DemocracyWhy do you need "to know" ?
I think ,when heads of state are involved , news is always moderated by many other factors...factors that are not in play when lesser mortals are ill.
If you died I don't think that they would suspend trading on the US stock exchange but i imagine that they would if Trump dies.
If he ( BJ ) chose to have the bulletins about his health be upbeat so as not to add to the general worry then good for him.
Why do you "need to know" ?
Is there anyone else about whom you would like to have daily health bulletins sent to you by email ?
The Queen ? The leader of the opposition ? The dalai lama ?
....altogether now, 'We didn't start the fiiiirrrre...'Democracy
Transparency
This is the 21st century
Is there anyone else about whom you would like to have daily health bulletins sent to you by email ?
The Queen ? The leader of the opposition ? The dalai lama ?
What possible difference would it make to your life to know if BJ is "really poorly" or just poorly ?
They obviously tried to ply down BJs condition while ever they felt it was under control. There is such a thing as Dr/Patient confidentiality so he was within his rights to keep quiet. This is highly sensitive information which could have an effect on the markets.
Seems quite common on here...people do pick up on flippancy a lot. Dry / childish / sarcy / close to the bone humour does have translation issues on forums. That's why I'm so popular on here.Come off it Fred, they were not serious comments! Perhaps I should have put an emoji after them!
Harry Paterson writes -
"Boris Johnson.
A man who has lived his entire life recklessly, selfishly, irresponsibly; without any regard for the consequences. Because he's never needed to. His enormous privilege has protected him from any repercussions.
He is a proven pathological liar, swaggering through the years with no empathy or concern for anyone but himself. Indeed, recently bragging about shaking hands with Corona virus patients. As if it was just another laugh; a jape; just another moment in a life less honourable.
There is a grim irony to him finally, in this manner, being confronted by the consequences of his behaviour. Even he can't lie & bluster his way out of this mess.
One can only hope that the Prime Minister, as he languishes in intensive care, courtesy of the NHS that he and his party have done so much to destroy, deeply regrets the cheering & jeering doled out to nurses by he and his colleagues; when they voted down a payrise for those heroes. If he's lucky he'll now be finding out exactly how valuable these people are.
My brother, sadly, wasn't lucky.
Jas, 54, died of Covid-19 in Nottingham's Queens Medical Centre a week last Saturday night. Unlike the Prime Minister there was no ventilator for Jas.
'Operation: Last Gasp', right, Prime Minister?
I then stood on an empty street, shouting to be heard over the wind, no privacy, no dignity, to tell an old man on a doorstep his child had died. The most indescribably awful duty I've ever had to carry out.
There will, of course, be those idiots, those hypocrites, those bootlickers, who will condemn me for 'politicising' both my own loss & Boris Johnson's condition. They can't grasp that politicians making political decisions and political choices impact people's lives. And sometimes ends them. As Jas found out.
Do I wish Johnson dead? No. Do I wish dead his selfish and greedy supporters and voters? Those who were perfectly happy to ignore the systematic destruction of the NHS while they were all right Jack? Again, no.
My sympathy, however, remains with the terrified & heartbroken victims of this crisis. The appalling & callous mishandling of which is unavoidably the responsibility of Boris Johnson.
It would be nice to think that lessons will be learned; that, when this is over, an enormous reorganisation of the nation's priorities will be undertaken. By both the politicians and the electorate. That, finally, people concern themselves with the value of others & much less the cost of things.
If Boris Johnson, in any way, might be that catalyst then he will have done one noble thing in his life.
My breath, however, remains unheld".
PS: Another more pragmatic reason. It's vital that the public trusts the government in a crisis - our lives might depend on it. Spin and misinformation undermines trust and could cost lives.Democracy
Transparency
This is the 21st century
Getting over, once and for all, the regressive idea that the plebs are children who need to be reassured by paternalistic rulers.
etc.
It's hardly as if the misinformation didn't disintegrate on first contact with reality.
Isn't this the very heart of the problem? Lots of nice words about the NHS but the action falls far short of what's needed.I'm not a fan of Johnson, but I am shaken by his condition.
I know he brought it on himself in many ways and his whole life up to now has been one of thinking that he can lie his way out of any situation and get away with it—which he always has until now.
Cameron was visibly changed in his attitude towards the NHS when his son was ill and treated by the service. But it made little difference to the way he ran the country.
I hope that this whole situation might significantly change the attitudes of those that feel that Ayn Rand's writings are the fundamental basis on how we should run society—i.e. those in our current Government.
Stephen
I see a lot of this.News this am said oxygen, but not, as yet, on a ventilator.
He may have 'consultants coming out of his arse' ^, but none of them, no matter how posh the Harley St address, can do more for him than they can for the person in the next bed. Ans since there is no vaccine, no cure right now, all anyone can do is help a patient through the process and apply the right machine at the right time. Then it's up to your own body and will.
I hope everyone who is that ill gets better, but sadly, they all cannot. It's shit.
Boris is by far the best PM we've had in a long time, I reckon since Maggie Thatcher (who, love or hate her, was strong, decisive, and got the country back on its feet after the utterly catastrophic Labour government of the late 70s). Boris has done more good for this country since last summer, and particularly since the last election, than every PM from John Major onwards, mainly by getting us out of the EU. I hope he pulls through, the country needs him.
Boris is by far the best PM we've had in a long time..
The chilling prospect is that Gove could now potentially take the office of PM. I think it’s important to separate the office of PM from the holder. Orderly transition of power and a functioning government have to be the national priority.Gove says Johnson is not on a ventilator. Which means he probably is.
Boris is by far the best PM we've had in a long time,