Coronavirus Sars-CoV-2/Covid-19 Megathread

[Richard Hakluyt]

I was testing my eyesight?

Could hardly see three feet in front of me; it was therefore essential that I drive 30 miles to an optician in Barnard Castle to get my eyes tested 

[celedhring]

Spain really has an enviable number of politically charged national flags - all the variations on the Republican flags too.

All our national flags are really boring by comparison

Centuries of political stability come with a steep price, you know.

I suppose you can have more fun with them in Northern Ireland?

[Sheilbh]

I was testing my eyesight?

Yeah. And presumably his wife can't drive?

That was bizarre. Loads of false claims apparently, but despite all the personal details I can't think of anything there that contradicted the stories in the press. There's still no apology. He attacked the media in the middle of a pandemic, which is great. Oh and we all know his family own property that includes two houses and some woodland now.

As I say I think if he'd come out with this, and just said sorry on Friday or Saturday I think he'd probably be fine with this.

[Barrister]

Spain really has an enviable number of politically charged national flags - all the variations on the Republican flags too.

All our national flags are really boring by comparison

Umm, your flags seem rather politically charged as well.  The Union Flag seems like it is only ever popular in England (hardly ever saw one in Scotland), whereas you treat the English flag as some kind of almost racist symbol except when it comes to football.

Personally, I'd rather have a flag that is boring in that nobody can object to it.

[Sheilbh]

I suppose you can have more fun with them in Northern Ireland?

Not really - even there it's quite dull. You've got the Union Flag, the Irish Tricolor and the Ulster Banner. But that's about it - there's no diversity. But I can think of about 5 different versions of the Republican flag, plus all the different ones different sects of the right are interested in.

[The Larch]

I suppose you can have more fun with them in Northern Ireland?

Not really - even there it's quite dull. You've got the Union Flag, the Irish Tricolor and the Ulster Banner. But that's about it - there's no diversity. But I can think of about 5 different versions of the Republican flag, plus all the different ones different sects of the right are interested in.

But the Ulster banner is not even the official Northern Ireland flag, right? I thought NI doesn't have an official flag at all because it'd be too controversial to pick one, and the banner is used as a bit of a placeholder.

[Sheilbh]

Umm, your flags seem rather politically charged as well.  The Union Flag seems like it is only ever popular in England (hardly ever saw one in Scotland), whereas you treat the English flag as some kind of almost racist symbol except when it comes to football.

Personally, I'd rather have a flag that is boring in that nobody can object to it.

I should have carved out separatism more clearly. That's boring - all the nations basically have their national flags which, of course, are freighted with meaning because all flags are national symbols.

What I mean is that various sections of the left prefer slightly different Republican flags, there are flags for different wings of the right as well - from my understanding within Catalonia there are even different versions/meanings behind different Catalan flags. In Spain there are loads of different versions of different Spanish and regional flags which have different political meanings. That's what I meant bu the enviable diversity.

There's no difference here between, say, flying the saltire and the lion rampant in Scotland (only nation I can think of with multiple flags). They're just different flags of Scotland.

[celedhring]

I suppose you can have more fun with them in Northern Ireland?

Not really - even there it's quite dull. You've got the Union Flag, the Irish Tricolor and the Ulster Banner. But that's about it - there's no diversity. But I can think of about 5 different versions of the Republican flag, plus all the different ones different sects of the right are interested in.

There are shitloads of different Catalan separatist flags, too. Each for different separatist subgroups, which often despise each other (splitters!). And a few for different Unionist groups.

[Sheilbh]

But the Ulster banner is not even the official Northern Ireland flag, right? I thought NI doesn't have an official flag at all because it'd be too controversial to pick one, and the banner is used as a bit of a placeholder.

Yeah. It depends on context - there's no Northern Irish flag. It was the Ulster Banner until home rule was imposed during the Troubles since then it's largely been used by Loyallists, but is somewhat rehabilitated because it's now the flag used for sporting competitions like the Commonwealth Games etc.

And the flag issue is big, but my point was more Spain has lots and lots of flags. Even in Northern Ireland there's just the flag of the UK, the flag of Ireland and the Ulster Banner and there's controversy around them.

[celedhring]

I should have carved out separatism more clearly. That's boring - all the nations basically have their national flags which, of course, are freighted with meaning because all flags are national symbols.

Yeah, the current Spanish flag was chosen in the late XVIIIth century just because those vibrant colors could be picked up more easily at sea. It has no history or meaning behind it other than that, but give it a couple centuries as a national ensign, and it becomes charged.

[Duque de Bragança]

Bah, Carlists. Bring back the Visigothic royal line. 

False refugees, Barbarians at best. 

[The Larch]

I should have carved out separatism more clearly. That's boring - all the nations basically have their national flags which, of course, are freighted with meaning because all flags are national symbols.

Yeah, the current Spanish flag was chosen in the late XVIIIth century just because those vibrant colors could be picked up more easily at sea. It has no history or meaning behind it other than that, but give it a couple centuries as a national ensign, and it becomes charged.

And most of the modifications are just changing the coat of arms for whatever symbol you prefer, anyway. I mean, we even have this. 

[Legbiter]

As I say I think if he'd come out with this, and just said sorry on Friday or Saturday I think he'd probably be fine with this.

What is the absolute TL;DR of this Cummings business? I can't quite understand it because the I'm missing the context and the last 2 seasons in this drama. Also feel myself losing the will to live at even the thought of investigating the matter.   

[celedhring]

As I say I think if he'd come out with this, and just said sorry on Friday or Saturday I think he'd probably be fine with this.

What is the absolute TL;DR of this Cummings business? I can't quite understand it because the I'm missing the context and the last 2 seasons in this drama. Also feel myself losing the will to live at even the thought of investigating the matter.   

Brits correct me because I have only semi-paid attention to it, but I think he drove with his wife (who had covid) through half the country to drop his son at some family estate.

[garbon]

I was testing my eyesight?

Yeah. And presumably his wife can't drive?

That was bizarre. Loads of false claims apparently, but despite all the personal details I can't think of anything there that contradicted the stories in the press. There's still no apology. He attacked the media in the middle of a pandemic, which is great. Oh and we all know his family own property that includes two houses and some woodland now.

As I say I think if he'd come out with this, and just said sorry on Friday or Saturday I think he'd probably be fine with this.

I do like the new line that Boris just said on the briefing that he might have known where Cummings was but he was very sick at the time and had a lot on his mind.