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9 new Covid-19 cases - all linked and all in Auckland

9 new Covid-19 cases - all linked and all in Auckland

There are nine new Covid-19 cases in the community to report on Friday. 

All new cases are linked. Three are household contacts. 

One of yesterday's cases remains unlinked. 

76% of the eligible population (over-12s) have had one dose of the vaccine. 41% of the eligible population have had two doses. 

There are 13 people in hospital, including 3 in ICU. 

6928 swabs were taken in Auckland yesterday. 

All tests (more than 1000) from Upper Hauraki have come back negative, other than those for the household members of the initial infected person. 

Upper Hauraki will move to Level 2 at 11:59pm on Saturday. 

Here's the latest from the Ministry of Health: 

Cases  
Number of new community cases Nine
Number of new cases identified at the border One historical case
Location of new community cases Auckland
Location of community cases (total) Auckland (including 4 cases in Upper Hauraki) 1,114 (886 of whom have recovered); Wellington 17 (all of whom have recovered)
*Number of community cases (total) 1,131 (in current community outbreak)
Cases infectious in the community Seven (50%) of yesterday’s *14 cases have exposure events
Cases in isolation throughout the period they were infectious Seven (50%) of yesterday’s *14 cases
Cases epidemiologically linked All of today’s nine cases are linked. Three are household contacts and six are contacts of known cases.
Cases to be epidemiologically linked N/A
Cases epidemiologically linked (total) 1096 (in the current cluster) (14 in the past 14 days not yet epi-linked and not connected to a cluster)
Number of sub-clusters 10 epidemiologically linked subclusters. Of these, two are active, six are contained and two are dormant. The three largest subclusters are the Māngere church group: 386; and Birkdale social network cluster: 80; secondary community transmission associated with the Māngere church group 168.
There are fourteen epidemiologically unlinked subclusters. Of these, three are active, four are contained, seven are dormant.
Cases in hospital 13 (total): North Shore (1); Middlemore (6); Auckland (6)
Cases in ICU or HDU Three
Confirmed cases (total) 3,788 since pandemic began
Historical cases, since 1 Jan 2021 (total) 154 out of 1,970 since 1 Jan 2021
Contacts  
Number of active contacts being managed (total): 1,053
Percentage who have received an outbound call from contact tracers (to confirm testing and isolation requirements) 93%
Percentage with at least one test result 90%
Locations of interest  
Locations of interest (total) 140 (as at 10am 24 September)
Tests  
Number of tests (total) 3,301,910
Number of tests total (last 24 hours) 14,855
Tests in Auckland (last 24 hours) 6,928
Tests rolling average (last 7 days) 13,660
Testing centres in Auckland 21
Wastewater  
Wastewater detections No unexpected detections in the last 24 hours
COVID-19 vaccine update  
Vaccines administered to date (total) 4,917,531; 1st doses: 3,192,380; 2nd doses: 1,725,151
Vaccines administered yesterday (total) 49,115; 1st doses: 20,983; 2nd doses: 28,132
Māori 1st doses: 304,397; 2nd doses: 151,308
Pacific Peoples 1st doses: 196,170; 2nd doses: 105,217
Vaccines administered to Auckland residents to date (total) 1,786,161; 1st doses: 1,160,058 (81%); 2nd doses: 626,103 (44%)
NZ COVID-19 tracer  
Registered users (total) 3,248,447
Poster scans (total) 380,822,134
Manual diary entries (total) 16,920,270
Poster scans in 24 hours to midday yesterday 2,573,666

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84 Comments

Get vaccinated.

Overseas, there are people on their deathbeds who are lamenting their choice to reject vaccination.

TTP

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17

It's an awful way to die too, in isolation, unable to have your family or friends there. Just doctors and nurses in PPE

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TTP 

Thanks for caring with your kind comments. I'm sure you want a more inclusive society with affordable housing. 

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Thanks PonziKiwi,

Indeed I yearn for social equity - in health care, education and housing. A fairer society benefits everyone.

Much appreciate your thoughtful words.

TTP

 

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Does anybody know by now outcomes for those that are fully vaccinated yet have underlying conditions? NZ has its fair percentage of respiratory complaints, asthma, bronchiectasis, bronchitis and more. Appreciate a mixed bag, young and old and individual case history but just wondered if any data had been collected anywhere by now. Would think perhaps  that some guidance on this would be forthcoming by the MoH and associated professionals in NZ.

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https://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/diseases-and-conditions/covid-19-no…

There's a list of relevant conditions that put you at higher risk. We don't yet have enough deaths to produce actual statistically significant risk factors.

Edit: 87% of deaths in Ireland have had underlying conditions.

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For what it's worth, about 1/5 people worldwide have an underlying condition that increases their risk:

https://www.lshtm.ac.uk/newsevents/news/2020/estimates-suggest-one-five…

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1000 cases and 13 in hospital and 3 in ICU, I think I will take a pass on the vaccine thanks. Factor in that this is a random sample of the population, take all the fatties and those with underlying health issues and I would have expected at least 50 in hospital by now. The numbers are not running in correlation with the level of fear factor. 

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"The median age of deaths is 86 years."

https://www.health.gov.au/resources/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-a…

"The current life expectancy for Australia in 2021 is 83.64 years"

 

 

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228 current active community cases with the current 13 hospitalizations and 3 in icu.  Not 1000 cases you've quoted. 

I'd have to track back the media releases but we've had alot more people admitted to hospital through this outbreak than are currently inpatient.  The people in icu have changed over as well. Ie if you want to use the 1131 cases as your denominator you need total admitted to hospital as the numerator. 

Death rate is low because with contained outbreak our hospital system hasn't broken and we can have someone in icu for 2 plus weeks to get them through.  

Bigger outbreak  = overwhelmed system.  Triage for who gets icu kicks in. Blocks care for those in accidents etc. Death rate goes up as we can't provide maximum care to everyone. 

Your choice about vaccine but I want to be able to go see family and friends overseas again. I also want to protect myself, my family and those in community who can't have vaccine or are immunosuppressed and don't respond as strongly as we'd like to the vaccine. 

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On 9th Sept there had been 88 people admitted to hospital.  It's most now 2 weeks later. I can't find a more recent total. 

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Those 1000 cases include 200 children.  1000 Aucklanders get infected and 3 in ICU so if all 1.6 million Aucklanders were infected there would be 4,800 in ICU.  How many unoccupied ICU wards, beds and nurses do we have?  

Remember the start of this - while businessmen and politicians and journalists were discussing whether restricting flights from China might be racist our health service staff were watching scenes from Italian hospitals where 150 doctors died of Covid. Our govt had no choice, anything other than a hard lockdown would have meant a medical rebellion in NZ and that deservedly would be political suicide.  

Delta is worse than what we had last year so go and get vaccinated.

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And in 6 months you will say the same thing because your injected trial of new technology is not working any longer?

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The death rate in the current outbreak is interesting, though.

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As long as you don't take up a bed in hospital if Covid hits you for six. Reap what you sow.

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I would get the jab, but agree that the boy is crying wolf too loudly.

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Alarm ....

Things not quite down in Tauranga.

New Zealand imported kiwifruit tests positive for COVID-19 as part of the batch being sold in E.China’s Nantong

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202109/1235008.shtml

 

 

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Surprisingly we must have upset the CCP.

Need to take with some degree of scepticism; China Times is described as the “Fox News” of China with numerous incidents of fabrications and disinformation (Wikipedia).

No Covid in Kiwifruit producing and exporting areas of NZ either during the picking season or since.

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The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says coronaviruses like Covid-19 are thought to mostly spread via respiratory droplets, for example when an infected person coughs or sneezes.

"Although the virus can survive for a short period on some surfaces, it is unlikely to be spread from domestic or international mail, products or packaging," it says on its website.

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Same thing happened last summer with cherries - almost on Chinese New Year. It's not so much about the reality or not, of the claim, it is about the consumer reaction to it. Consumers in China stopped buying imported cherries, so ALL exporters were affected.

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So what are they saying? Kiwifruit was shipped from NZ with Covid on it, or that of all fruit, Kiwifruit is susceptible to carrying Covid?

It sounds like a hit job on a Kiwi exporter, or our Govt. for not hurrying up on China's application to join Pacific Trade Pact.

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Robertson says "we're getting on top of it."

The stats show less people are getting tested. A lot of the tests now are from people who's employer is making them get one. We know it's out in the Auckland community. People have figured out that if you don't get tested they can't send you to MIQ.

The big test for New Zealand will be when Auckland moves to Level 2, because the virus will be spread far and wide.  

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When (and if) we get to zero, or close to it, the Govt should make MIQ optional for infected people for a while, to see if we can flush out the remaining cases.

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Is it right that all cases necessarily go to MIQ? I thought it was for "those unable to isolate at home" and that they were "asked".

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It was my impression that you had to go to MIQ, but to be honest I haven't looked into it closely.

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Bingo.

Who in their right mind would risk a positive test for the WuFlu when the state will come to your house and forcefully take you away to their coronaprison.

No thanks.

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Great numbers today.

Auckland's hit 81% of eligible population vaccinated which is awesome!

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Love the 9 all linked. The vaccination rates are slowing faster than I would like. 

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I have been wondering,If they are all linked ,andoften are expected to turn up ,as they are known contacts , i repeat KNOWN CONTACTS of existing households ,how is it that these people are out and about causing exposure events? They say they are close contacts often,and then say they are out creating exposure events. Is there ( again) undue laxity and ill discipline amongst the close contacts group. Certainly I have personally seen a hell of a lot ( maybe 200 or so events of family visits (3 or 4 a day)over 5.5 weeks / 52 days,so far,of family visiting in South Auckland( Round me ,where i live),over the last 7 weeks,not from me,I live and work alone,but other Ethnic communities who have extended family arrangements, as if the word " lock down" is in an unfamiliar language ,or incomprehensible.maybe this is too politically incorrect to publish..up to Editor.

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yep - and now they're back on work sites and socializing on the way home - if we keep a lid on this outbreak it will be more luck than anything. The inevitability of having to deal with it eventually has pretty much run many out of patience. Investment in the covid response is rapidly waning esp. in the working classes with limited resources. Many just want to get back to work and damn the consequences - Melbourne protests a case in point.

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I think sometimes the timing is an issue. E.g. today you tested positive. Three days ago your partner did, and you've been in isolation since. But a week ago you went to countdown. They don't know who got it first, so on the conservative side, that's an exposure event.

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What does linked mean? They still could have got it in the community (in their local supermarket for example) but they are linked to the main cluster? Who cares?

Isn't the important statistic the number that got it in the community (vs getting it from their family)? Was that 6 today?

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81% of the first jab...

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Yes. The assumption is that almost all of those will get the second when due. 

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About 10% that get there 1st jab won't get their second. Another 10% won't get the April 2022 booster.

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Seems to be true for the second. Remains to be seen about any boosters.

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Assumptions like the models that have been released? Not proven to be that accurate

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Oh, and what might also by now be spreading like Delta virus, the word that the second jab makes many people feel rather ill for a couple of days. I just had 2 guys in their mid thirties at work get their second helping, and they seriously wonder how a vaccine that does not contain the virus itself at all can make your joints really sore, give you a decent fever over 38, and feel so sick. I suspect that not as many people so keen to get their second jab when they see colleagues or close family being affected quite a bit. Just wait until the real serious side effects occur and many more people getting further complications. It will be interesting to see how the medsafe published data looks in 3-6 months.

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1st jab gave me a mild reaction. 2nd was something nothing.

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What a surprise, Jacinda and Bloomfield didn't take the stand today. So much accountability & transparency....

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Never do on Friday. If they'd jumped in today they'd be accused of hogging the limelight on a good news day.

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The last thing Prime Minister Ardern needs is encouragement. You should always leave them wanting more, not a lot less.

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One thing with COVID is there is a lag between actions & cases. Generally about 2 week. So the impact of going to level 3 won't be known for another 10 or so days.

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That is why level 3 is at least two weeks long. 

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Indeed. I think Coivd will have us in checkmate in a few weeks. Cases will start to increase but it will be politically difficult to keep Auckland in level 3 any longer. Parents will want to send their kids to school, restaurants will want to open. What will the government do? Cancel term 4 of school?

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Why are Aucklands testing numbers so low?  I thought they had asked an entire suburb to get tested?   Why aren't they going door to door testing as not everyone will bother going to testing places and not everyone owns a car

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"not everyone owns a car."

Indeed, there are many stolen cars in Auckland.

TTP

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And SUV tractors ..either white or black

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I agree that for target areas they could (should) be more proactive about bringing the tests to people, rather than asking the people to go to the tests. 

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If you have mild symptoms, do the right thing, get tested, return a positive, it’s off to jail for two weeks, or more. How many people are self isolating out of fear, I wonder. Remember those screaming skull stories on TV a while back?

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Societal vaccine effectiveness in Ireland.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/126468067/ireland-a…

For all of you who still think vaccines are 99% effective against hospitalisation or death stuff has published some current data from a Delta wave. Its some honest and not alarmist reporting from stuff. 87 percent of deaths had underlying conditions.

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The importance of being fully vaccinated, wearing a mask and social distancing is further underlined.

TTP

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Well the last stuff article of note: vaccination was 99% effective. Supposedly 99% of the over 50s in Ireland are fully vaxed.

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/covid-19-vaccine-tracker-how-man…

So almost all deaths are vaccinated and vaccinating the young will not stop transmission for more than a few months.

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Gee that sounds like a fun life.

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It's a reasonable article, and nowhere does it suggest that the vaccine is less than highly effective in preventing severe disease. 

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There's highly effective and then there is 99% effective. 99% percent effective is an eighth of the risk of 92% which is highest effectiveness I had seen elsewhere for Pfizer vs Delta. 99% is absurd and any editor should have spotted it.

Whats highly effective to you? If it's 70 to 80% then I would say we can can expect the vaccine to be highly effective for almost 6 months.

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There seems to be the same commentators each day hanging out for this update? 

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People have particular things they're interested in. I'm pretty interested in this topic at the mo, to the exclusion of other topics I usually engage with to be fair, and the comments are always a good rollercoaster ride...

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Dont trip on the rabbit holes..

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Total number of vaccines administrated just keeps sliding down... to me it means one thing - not so much hesitancy rather de-sensitisation over time.

Rightly or wrongly, most people are over it and have grown tired of the 1PM show including the COVID-19 voice actor who just keeps on nagging us on radio.

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Hi flyer,

We ALL need to get vaccinated promptly.

There is no room for complacency.

TTP

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Why's that?  So the boomers can get back to their normal routine of screwing over the young?

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#BL

I’ll have a Big Mac with those chips on your shoulder.

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But there is room for a basic human right.

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We have lots of licences, so a vaccine passport will just be one more. 

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When you get a car license you don’t get an injection that is not proven! When you get a passport, do you have to get an injection? Quite a difference obviously.

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Just wait until they say 5-12 year olds can get vaccinated. Our number of total vaccinated will drop down again. PM on TV yesterday saying "save the childen", she obviously wants to vaccinate under 5 year olds too, which will mean total vaccination rate drops again. By the time all this happens the virus could be wiping entire communities around the country.

The government has to choose between lockdowns and economic hardship or deaths. 

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To be honest if there is one demographic I feel for the most in all this it is a health vulnerable young person. Who knows what their body might be capable of as they grow, but if covid messes them up because people didn't do everything in their power to minimise the spread, which at the moment is getting vaccinated (as imperfect as that may be, it's all we currently have), then that sucks.

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Stop spreading misinformation! Having an injection of mRNA does not stop the spread of the virus.

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When you start joining all the dots the whole vaccination thing could be almost a complete waste of time in the long run. At best its going to save a few people who are obese and have serious underlying health issues to live another couple of years when their self inflicted lifestyle was killing them softly anyway. If the effectiveness of the vaccines drops off after a few months and you start needing a booster every 6 months then its a dead duck, Nobody is going to keep going for the boosters except those in the really high risk category. Seriously you want a dose of that every 6 months so you can feel sick for a week ?

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So a healthy country like Japan doesn’t need the vaccination? We can’t be that unfit being the 17th best life expectancy in the world and eclipsing countries much richer than us like the US. 

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I share your doubts Carlos. I got vaccinated but I'm not all that interested in the 6 monthly booster ad infinitum. 

Further the govt still seams to be persisting on the idea of elimination. To achieve this we will have to be operating at about level 2.5 permently with restricted international travel. In essence our interactions between each other will be heavily regulated. Not to mention the fact each of us will be thrown into MIQ prison every so often. Seams like a hell hole to me. 

 

 

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I very reluctantly got the vaccine too, but only because I wanted to help get us over the 90% threshold and free us all into L2.

However, I am not signing up to a 6 monthly regimen of booster shots and I expect most of the population will tell the government to FRO if that is what's demanded of us.

 

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Mate, you're the one reliably spreading misinformation here every day

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 You are mistaken, I am not your mate, lol.

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If the South Island being kept in Level 2 despite having zero cases of Covid for almost a year now represents the government's actual criteria re. lockdowns then Auckland may never get out of Level 3 (slightly tongue in cheek but it does beg the question!).  However, I suspect that the South Island is being kept where it is so that Auckland doesn't get totally disgruntled with their lot (and with the government) if others were to be enjoying full freedom under Level 1 and they are not.  I do feel sorry for those South Island small service businesses that are suffering for no justifiable reason because under even Level 2 people are still not out and about as they were.

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Christchurch and Queenstown are big enough airports and have plenty of hotel capacity -- maybe we should move all our MIQ down to the South island and shift the heavy lifting ?    nah didnt think so 

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Why would anyone take a vaccination against last year's flu? I humbly believe we have become an, "Alice in Wonderland", fascist state where all logic has gone. Doctor's are terminated for stating their scientific opinion and the media is not even reporting that the FDA just barred boosters for the under 65's.

Why is it that the media is also not reporting that Israel now has 20,000 cases a day - twice their peak last year - but are 80% double vaccinated, one of the highest rates in the world? 

Because the entire world is in the grip of a mania.

 

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"Unvaccinated Israelis are putting a strain on hospitals, Nachman Ash, the Health Ministry's coronavirus director-general said Thursday, as official figures showed that the 17 percent of eligible Israelis who have not received the vaccine account for 60 percent of coronavirus deaths in the past two weeks."

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/israel-s-covid-czar-says-17-unvacci…

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Interesting article. However, when you go to an article in the same newspaper from just a few days ago, it says…

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/covid-israel-unvaccinated-17-nearly-half-deaths-booster-pfizer-1.10216067 

The death toll has reached 7,465, with 703 people dying in the past month, 322 of them unvaccinated. I won’t even bother to work out the percentage for you, lol. Which one is right?

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There is no money in the healthy society. More people are sick - the better it is.

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A perverse but true comment. Like the police wanting a crime free society, accountants wanting simple tax rules…

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