View Full Version : Should the goverment be aloud to do what they do?
I mean, Predicting stupid figures about Swine flu.
Things like:
'10,000 people to die of Swine flu in Britain by Christmas'
or
'Every person in Britain to get swine flu'
That kind of information helps nobody. Why are they aloud to panic the country with things like this? Also I think they should have to say how many people currently have swine flu. The number they read out, half of them are now cured of it.
Its ridiculous.
nomorepanic
21-07-09, 21:22
I'll get Jaco to sort them out for us :roflmao: He is the man for the job
redballoons
21-07-09, 21:25
hi:)
I think its more the papers and news channels who make a big deal out of government figures. The government HAVE to prepare for a worst case - thats their job but the newspapers and new channels give out the information as if it is fact not a worst case scenario!
sophie
bottleblond
21-07-09, 21:31
Nic i agree.....Jaco should be an emasssador for everything 'Swine flu' related. He would knock this racket on the head for sure..
:biggrin:
I agree there is far too much hype and negative press promotion over this matter.
Like many have said, they have had 'normal' flu and it effected them far worse.
Lisa
x
Oh please stop being ridiculous, the government have a duty to calculate these sorts of things so they can prepare adequately. It's just certain elements of the media who are taking those things out of context.
Example:
Imagine I was the government and I calculated that 10,000 would die out of (random figure) 30,000,000 infections.
Press reports that 10,000 people will die, oh my god, that's ridiculous you think to yourself, until you realise that using those figures it would be 1 in 3,000 people. Not very many at all.
See what I did? I didn't present the figures in any context, why is it the government's fault the press are being over the top? It isn't. Unless of course you're one of those bizarre conspiracy theorists who think they're trying to use this to control what we do, in which case I'll send you a tin foil hat later.
The government commissions other people to prepare reports so it can prepare for eventualities, these reports will contain masses of information and data, unfortunately masses of data isn't very reportable by the press so they'll do what they need and use soundbites and snippets to get over the central point. Unfortunately in doing so they lose alot of meaning. The government has a need to prepare for these things, if it didn't there would be far more deaths because the NHS which is already strained would probably have broken under the pressure due to lack of government intervention. The government needs projections and information on which to base its decisions, sometimes that information gets out to the press, who often use it badly.
The government have a responsibilty to make their predictions responsibly and I personally don't feel that it is in the public interest to make such predictions public knowledge. It's like when we had the 7/7 tube bombings here in London - the terrorist threat was raised to the highest ever, predictions of a nuclear bomb going off in London, how vunerable we were and all the rest of it. It was totally unhelpful. There were even predictions in the early 90's of mustard gas being used on the tube - never happened needless to say.
Ironically, they reduced the terrorism threat the other day - now we've got this flu to worry about! Just try not to pay attention to it. :)
nomorepanic
21-07-09, 21:38
Oh please stop being ridiculous
Not sure who that was aimed at :shrug:
bottleblond
21-07-09, 21:42
Oh please stop being ridiculous, the government have a duty to calculate these sorts of things so they can prepare adequately. It's just certain elements of the media who are taking those things out of context.
Example:
Imagine I was the government and I calculated that 10,000 would die out of (random figure) 30,000,000 infections.
Press reports that 10,000 people will die, oh my god, that's ridiculous you think to yourself, until you realise that using those figures it would be 1 in 3,000 people. Not very many at all.
See what I did? I didn't present the figures in any context, why is it the government's fault the press are being over the top? It isn't. Unless of course you're one of those bizarre conspiracy theorists who think they're trying to use this to control what we do, in which case I'll send you a tin foil hat later.
Don't the press report what the 'Medical professionals' release to them? as in facts and figures?
Just wondering
My opening comment was aimed at the OP for asking what to me is a silly question? Should the government be allowed to do what they do? Er yeah it's their job, the implication being by asking that question that they're doing something they really shouldn't be, hence ridiculous.
"Don't the press report what the 'Medical professionals' release to them? as in facts and figures?"
Yes, they do, but read what I said about context and volume. The press can't reproduce in its entirety the reports that are produced, not only would it be meaningless to the public but it'd also confuse people by providing too much information.
Alot of the press are reporting things in context with some responsibility others aren't. You could say they're just reporting the information that they're being given but all of the press have to make decisions on how they present the information they're given, which pieces to include what weight to give one item over another, some aren't choosing how to do so wisely.
Ultimately, headlines, soundbites and snippets are designed to grab your attention. The governments report didn't state "10,000 people will die" as its title did it? No, the government doesn't need to grab the attention of the press but the press do need to make the information interesting to us. So the headline "10,000 will die by Christmas" has certainly got the bang to grab our attention, sadly its also a way to panic certain people.
You could argue that people have a right to know when they are at risk, be that risk from terrorism, disease, whatever. I personally wouldn't trust a government that kept stuff like that quiet. That said, certain elements of the press do tend to get a bit carried away and seem more interested in sparking off public panic than reporting the facts, which isn't at all helpful. Medical professionals present the press with facts and figures which can be interpreted in different ways and manipulated to fit whatever agenda the particular paper has. They do it with everything, not just this, but the government can't really be blamed for the actions of a few irresponsible newspapers, they have a duty to make predictions such as these, keep us informed, and prepare for any possible worst case scenario.
Which probably won't happen anyway. :)
hmmm I wonder if it would make people stop speeding if the government and the media 'predicted' that 100,000 people would be killed on the roads by christmas! I don't think it would and it wouldn't sell papers would it, which is madness because it just could be true, yet people still go out and drive everyday. The media love to sensationalise ANYTHING. They would get more respect if they stuck to the FACTS and stopped frightening people. No one in the world knows enough about this virus to predict anything. I don't think it has much to do with the governement to be honest. I say that because this government haven't got a bloody clue what is going on with this virus, too busy trying to cover up their deceit.
honeybee3939
21-07-09, 22:14
The goverment will be making a fortune out of all the prescription charges (and they certainly need the money!)
Im begining to wonder if there doing it on purpose so people panic and go get the medication !:winks: Cost me £15 over the last week for meds i think it should be free !
:hugs:
Andrea
xxx
Heh Tamiflu should be free! I think the vaccine will be, should they ever produce enough of it.
bottleblond
21-07-09, 22:29
No matter who says what...it all boils down to IF we get it or not.
All the statistics under the sun will not make a blind bit of difference so why are we getting so defensive?
we have loads of members who have had it or have a family member/friend who has had it and all are fine or are going to be.
Lets stop listening to the negative (rare) stories in the media and help each other by being supportive rather that all this scare mongering.
Lisa
That's the point Lisa, the press is doing the scare-mongering, I'm personally not worried about getting the flu, this may well be because I've never had the flu before and don't know what to expect, but these sorts of things don't scare me.
The facts are the facts, you're right statistics are no hope especially when they're not only open to interpretation but the press can get a wide variety of differing statistics depending on which source they go to.
I happened to catch part of BBC World News America earlier, they did a feature on swine flu and whilst talking to their correspondent in London the anchor in the US said it's hardly being covered at all in the media here. Tells you something about how the press handle stories here, and as has been pointed out the press do this with lots of things not just swine flu.
I'm with you though, let's get back to being supportive and help each other out for the reasons they're here.
Lisa
I am not sure that we know if loads of people have had it. The Docs have stopped testing and as said before in earlier threads, doctors are now calling all flu like symptoms Swine flu!!!
I seem to recall seasonal flu hitting the uk most years at around about this time, are the doctors saying that there is no seasonal flu this year and that the only strain is swine. I cant help feeling the doctors just dont want anyone with flu through the doors, for obvious reasons.
How do we know we have had Swine Flu???? I doubt we will ever but a diagnosis of this will quench the panic for most. Most of us who have been diagnosed over the phone will feel "it aint all that bad". I suspect some will get the real thing and some the seasonal flu and Britain as a tiny island with 62,000,000 inhabitants does not have the resources to find out who has what.
Mee
hmmm I wonder if it would make people stop speeding if the government and the media 'predicted' that 100,000 people would be killed on the roads by christmas! I don't think it would and it wouldn't sell papers would it, which is madness because it just could be true, yet people still go out and drive everyday. The media love to sensationalise ANYTHING. They would get more respect if they stuck to the FACTS and stopped frightening people. No one in the world knows enough about this virus to predict anything. I don't think it has much to do with the governement to be honest. I say that because this government haven't got a bloody clue what is going on with this virus, too busy trying to cover up their deceit.
Very well said!! I personally wouldn't trust this government to run a bath much less a country and I have learnt from experience not to pay very much attention to anything they say. Secondly, there a few journalists in my family, and I know how it works. Everyone just needs to try and calm down.
Keep the people worrying about the flu...it will take their attention away from the mess we have made of this country
Sorry was filling out expenses, training to be an MP ;)
I would like to see you at Prime Ministers question time jaco, that would be worth tuning in for
:roflmao:
The government are giving the facts,as it is in general,the media are cashing in.
On money and people's emotions..
the press and goverment did these predictions with bird flu
which was a big killer wasnt it
i was so scared about that i hid in my bedroom all day even though it didnt come to britain but the news made such a big deal out of it scared millions of people made so many predictions and did it hit britain nooooooooooo
they do this for ratings on there channel
they scare us silly so we watch the news constantly buy newpapers to read about it
its pathetic to me its all a money making scheme and its wrecking every ones life what suffers badly with panic
I haven't had swine flu, personally i don't want it, yeah i am anxious over it, and the media has made that a bit worse, i will admit, but i don't want that flu, or any other, or even a cold, i hate being ill, mostly because i always want to go out when i`m at my worst. I have had normal flu, well i assume it was, about a year ago, it was awful, i had the worst headache and i was sleeping in my clothes because i felt too ill to change. It lasted a month and i ended up loosing a stone! It wasn't pleasant, and i don't want it again, or swine flu for that matter.
I have had my `omg i`m going to die if i get it` moments, ill admit that, but then i get that about everything.
deadgirl xxx
cococj... if you do your research you may change your view on the motivation behind the swine flu vaccine. I could spout a load of information for you, but in a health anxiety forum i feel it to be inappropriate as my research would add fuel to the flames. I am more than happy to discuss it further with you in a private message.
personally as long as it doesn't make me vomit I don't give a damn! :roflmao:
Danath, it is the fact that people dont give a damn that allows the government to control your health. It has the capacity to do more than make you sick. The mercury levels contained within it are 25 times the strength a human body can tolerate. The injection also contains animal dna, antifreeze and formaldehyde. This drug has only been tested on ferrets for toxicity....all the ferrets died. The companies producing it are responsibe for contaminated vaccines containing avian flu. In the 70's these companies "accidentally" put the aids virus in many vaccines, resulting in many deaths. Baxter and Glaxo Smith Kline, who produce the majority of the vaccines have had a track record for medicine that is extremely dangerous, including diabetes meds that cause heart attacks and anti depressants that provoke suicidal tendencies. It is all documented. Official paperwork from the US and the UK Government, say that should there be a pandemic, these companies are not liable for ANY deaths resulting from their vaccine. The companies are paid for quantity and not for safety. It being considered a "state of emergency" means they have time constraints which will not allow for adequate testing for safety. Its reported over and over that the swine flu isnt even as harmful as seasonal flu... so why they sense of urgency to rush and vaccinate the world with an unsafe chemicals when the virus itself isnt even that harmful. Does their motivation not lead you to asking questions? Are your human rights not important to you? In the states, it is making progress towards becoming mandatory throughout... they WILL be able to force you against your will. I would highly reccommend you do the research, as just saying yes ill take it, so long as it doesnt make me sick, is the most frightening thing ive heard in a long time. But you don't care?
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