If you're not in the U.S., what's up in your part of the world? Showing 151-200 of 3,266

[Leonie]

Scout wrote: "As Nik says, "Were it not for the army this country wouldn't exist." That goes for the U.S. also. When you say, Leonie, "We do watch the hand on the heart, flag saluting, patriotism, of the US, wit..."

We do have pride in our armed services, and their significant achievements, but I think it's a cultural thing, Scout. We don't express patriotism as openly as Americans. (It would generally be considered embarrassing to do the hand on the heart, for example.) We do sing our national anthem enthusiastically, but only at the 'right' moments. And quite a lot of us prefer other 'national' songs to the anthem. It has some very...problematic...verses, not to mention the pretty ordinary tune.

Here's a rendition that says a lot about us. I suspect people in the US would never do this to the US anthem. But that in itself says quite a lot about us.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eobSM...

[Lizzie]

Problem is that if people are within our communities, even without the correct paperwork to make them "legal", we cannot control contagious diseases unless we provide treatment. And, if illegals avoid medical care because of costs or the possibility of being deported, we still have the same problem - we all get sick.

[Papaphilly]

Ian wrote: "Papaphilly, yes, I can understand Australia wanting to get rid of them, but I do not buy the "They came and stayed illegally." Their stay in Australia was quite legal up- until they committed crime..."

You make my point for me. Nobody cares until it matters. They have no issues until they break the law. They could have become Australian, but chose not to and then scream when they get deported. All they had to do was live a legal life and they did not, now they pay the price. I certainly understand why you do not want them back. Does NZ deport on the same basis?

[Papaphilly]

Leonie wrote: "Scout wrote: "As Nik says, "Were it not for the army this country wouldn't exist." That goes for the U.S. also. When you say, Leonie, "We do watch the hand on the heart, flag saluting, patriotism, ..."

Each country handles their patriotism differently.

[Ian]

Fortunately, NZ does not have many illegal immigrants. It is hard to get here, and on aircraft, the airlines know if the person hasn't got the right papers they are back on the plane for the return journey. The seas around here are fairly large - the smallest, the Tasman is about 2/3 the width of the Atlantic, and the storms are fairly vicious when you get one.

As for healthcare, it is something of a problem. People should not come into a country and expect the country to pay for it, but do you let someone just die on the pavement?

[Leonie]

And on the NZ/Aus front: 16 all draw between the Wallabies and the All Blacks in the first match of the Bledisloe Cup!

[Philip]

Scout wrote: "As Nik says, "Were it not for the army this country wouldn't exist." That goes for the U.S. also. When you say, Leonie, "We do watch the hand on the heart, flag saluting, patriotism, of the US, wit..."

Scout not sure which fight you are quoting 1776 to 1812 or the one US land attack in Pearl Harbor 1941 or the very limited terrorism attacks in 2001. Many, many other countries have had to fight
On topic - news from UK is dominated by bleak warnings of increase in COVID cases and what additional restrictions will be announced on Monday. Passing comment on Trump's doctor claiming the President is "no longer a transmission risk" whist not stating if he has tested negative or not. Other coverage of Brazil passing 150,000 deaths mark and India rates. A side story about tests of the BCG vaccine having some impact on COVID.

[Ian]

Leonie wrote: "And on the NZ/Aus front: 16 all draw between the Wallabies and the All Blacks in the first match of the Bledisloe Cup!"

A fascinating game. Either side should have won, and each side bungled badly at times. Each side had fairly ordinary tactics for much of it. Then, when the full time siren sounded, after which the game ends on the first infringement other than a penalty, they went on for 8 minutes of highly frenetic activity. In that 8 minutes, each side had about two or three opportunities to win, and blundered them all. Weird!

[Scout]

Philip, of course, many countries have had to fight. I think it's obvious that I was referring to the War for Independence fought against the British and which established us as an independent nation. That's a big deal, and one we never forget and are ever grateful for. Thus, the patriotism and respect for the flag that symbolizes that fight. It's the reason our country is big on independence and individualism, and why we fight for those ideals to this day.

I'm wondering what the BCG vaccine is.

It's interesting to see that other countries are having problems with illegal immigrants, with criminals coming from other countries and what to do about that, including deportation.

[Leonie]

Scout wrote: "Philip, of course, many countries have had to fight. I think it's obvious that I was referring to the War for Independence fought against the British and which established us as an independent nati..."

The BCG vaccine is for TB, Scout. It was routine when I was a teenager, (we all had ours at school at 14) but has now not been on the immunisation schedule for some years. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BCG_vac...

It appears to have some cross uses - leprosy and a specific type of ulcer. This is why the current studies into potential prevention of COVID infection are being done.

[Graeme]

I remember getting the TB vaccine at school as a teenager.

[Scout]

Me, too.

Leonie, do you think BCG has promise as a vaccine for COVID? And are your soccer matches played with fans in the stadium? We haven't been able to do that for our sports teams.

[Ian]

The rugby test between Australia and NZ in Auckland has effectively been sold out. There are about 5,000 tickets deliberately held back for gate sales, but that will be about 45,000 already committed.

[Leonie]

Scout wrote: "Me, too.

Leonie, do you think BCG has promise as a vaccine for COVID? And are your soccer matches played with fans in the stadium? We haven't been able to do that for our sports teams."

I think the verdict is not yet in. This kind of trial will take quite a bit of time. There have been interesting observations. It's more about whether it might prevent severe disease in adults, because apparently the evidence demonstrates it doesn't protect in children.

https://www.gavi.org/vaccineswork/can...

[Ian]

Leonie, if I understand your link correctly, the way it works is that it stimulates the immune system, and it does that a lot better in young children. It should not have a direct effect on a coronavirus, but of course a better immune system would help. Trials may make this comment seem ridiculous, but of I follow correctly the BCG vaccine becomes increasingly less effective as people age, but it is the aged that are more likely to die from Covid-19.

I also gather at least three clinical trials of developing vaccines have been halted due to the occasional "adverse effect". The vaccine could take a bit longer to be available than some people seem to think.

[Leonie]

That's basically correct, but it probably depends very much on whether the aged have actually had a BCG.

From our Dept of Health Info: In Australia, the broad-based BCG vaccination program originated at a time when the epidemiology of TB was quite different. Initially in 1948, vaccination targeted health care workers, Aboriginal people and close contacts of active cases, especially children. In the 1950s the program was expanded to include all Australian school children except those from New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory. This policy was discontinued in the mid-1980s (1991 in the Northern Territory) in favour of a more selective approach. The change occurred because of the low prevalence of TB in our community and concerns about the balance between the benefits and the risks.

For example, I'm 55, and I grew up in WA. We were routinely given the BCG at school at the age of fourteen (1979). When I became a physiotherapy student, I was tested (Mantoux test https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mantoux... ), and due to my enthusiastic reaction, scored a chest x-ray as a result just to make sure I didn't actually have TB. According to my informal survey of my fellow students, about half of us reacted, and the other half were revaccinated with BCG.

A few years later, routine BCG vaccination was ceased. So anyone a few years younger than myself, born before the 1950s, or who grew up in NSW (most populous state) or ACT, would not have been given a BCG.

In Australia, that means anyone who is 70 or older unless they were a health care worker. I am rather happy that I was.

And on your other comment: Vaccination trials have strict criteria for pauses. It's important that any significant event is investigated. That's very much what phase three trials are about. Some side effects will not be seen in phase 1 or 2 due to the very small numbers of people (generally healthy) used to establish a demonstrated immune response in vivo.

Note that most health professionals have cautioned that an effective vaccine takes time. No matter how much we want it in a hurry, we still have to do all the right things to make sure it's safe, and actually at least 50% effective.

[Ian]

Occasional adverse effects are tricky because most vaccines have the occasional adverse effect on somebody. The trick is to know how adverse, and if possible, why. Unravelling that, and working out whether it is effective, is what takes the most time. Effectiveness is tricky because most of the subjects may not even come into contact with the disease. If it is double blind you can hardly request the subjects to deliberately expose themselves.

[Nik]

Scout wrote: "....And are your soccer matches played with fans in the stadium?...."

Can't speak for Australia, but in Europe spectators in some places start to return at 1/3 of stadium's capacity to avail social distancing.. Can't be certain, but hope to be able to watch a game this fall

[Scout]

Hope that happens, Nik.

[Leonie]

Nik wrote: "Scout wrote: "....And are your soccer matches played with fans in the stadium?...."

Can't speak for Australia, but in Europe spectators in some places start to return at 1/3 of stadium's capacity ..."

We have some spectators for the NRL and AFL, and at the AFL grand final fairly shortly, Queensland is proposing to have 30,000. Mind you, their borders are currently closed to some states, so that may or may not happen.

https://www.sportingnews.com/au/afl/n...

[Ian]

In NZ, the rugby test was played in what was effectively a full stadium. (NZ won. It was played frenetically, but I think it led to Australia making its mistakes at the wrong time or wrong place on the field.)

The NZ election is over - a walk-over for the Labour party of Jacinda Ardern. You know it was really bad when Rangitata, the electorate around Ashburton where I went to high school goes red. (Here, the right, the National party, is blue.) This would have been unimaginable when I was young, since it is largely a rural electorate. At least now we can treat ourselves to days free of political ads, and exhortations to "vote for me!" The turnout was 82.5%, and we do not have compulsory voting like Australia.

[Scout]

So the liberals won? Great turnout, and good that you can now be free of political ads, Ian.

[Leonie]

Our travel bubble with NZ seems to be causing some of our premiers problems. Also some of the NZ tourists.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-10-1...

[Leonie]

And in the ACT, the Labor party won again. But with some interesting statistics. For those who are confused: Our Liberal party is the conservative party in Australia.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-10-1...

[Nik]

Scout wrote: "Hope that happens, Nik."

Thanks! Ronaldo won't be travelling to Kiev for the game, slated for Tuesday, because he's got corona, so I'll skip too :) Wish him and others fast recovery

[Scout]

Thanks, Leonie, for that info about your Liberal party being the conservative one. I wouldn't have known that otherwise. So, the liberal party, Labor, is stronger than the conservative party there?

[Graeme]

The two blocs are as follows...

Liberals/National Party (Right/Conservative) typically in a coalition and like that for decades now.

Australian Labor Party (ALP)/Greens (Left/Progressive) aligned but not in a coalition, but will send 'preferences,' via preferential voting to each other. In essence, the Greens are the left wing of the ALP.

This carves up the Australian political environment. We have 'proportional,' voting system for our senate which increases the representation of minor parties and independents, which means that sometimes a single person (not aligned with a major party) will have a lot of power in the senate.

We have country level elections on a 3 year cycle, so quite quick turnover.

[Scout]

Do you have a Senate and a House of Representatives (or something equivalent)? Our Senate has two elected people for each state. The number of voting representatives in the House is fixed by law at no more than 435, proportionally representing the population of the 50 states. As far as I can find, there's no limit on the number of times a Congressperson (Senate or House) can be re-elected, so we have lifetime politicians in many cases. As long as they're re-elected, they can serve for an unlimited time. Is this the case where you are?

[Ian]

NZ only has a House of Representatives, and no senate. It is only a small country, with no states so there is no need for a senate. There is an argument that there should be an upper House to put some restraint on Parliament, but nobody has put up a sound case as to how it would work that wasn't just another collection of politicians, so we don't have it.

[Leonie]

Scout wrote: "Do you have a Senate and a House of Representatives (or something equivalent)? Our Senate has two elected people for each state. The number of voting representatives in the House is fixed by law at..."

We have two houses. The lower house (the House of Representatives), and the upper house (the Senate).

Whichever party gains a majority (with or without coalition) in the lower house, forms government, and the PM is the leader of that party. The governing party may or may not hold a senate majority. Recently, the balance of power in the senate has often been held by a minor party, or even one member of the senate. On occasion this happens in the lower house.

https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliame...

[Leonie]

We have no term limits. But even ex-prime ministers can lose their seats.

https://www.theguardian.com/global/20...

[Leonie]

Scout wrote: "Thanks, Leonie, for that info about your Liberal party being the conservative one. I wouldn't have known that otherwise. So, the liberal party, Labor, is stronger than the conservative party there?"

Currently, the Liberal Party in coalition with the National Party, has formed our federal government. The Labor Party is in opposition.

[Philip]

UK news
- Lockdown measures across UK and rising case numbers - criticism of track and trace by people who know nothing about how it works e.g. company or government fault that 20% refuse to give details and further 20-25% give false details
- £3bn Fraud on business support scheme yet Gov not doing enough
- HS2 (high speed rail) build destroying old forests.
- More retail closures of chains (COVID good excuse) i.e. companies borrowed to massively expand number of stores and now with Amazon impact have too many but its COVID's fault)
- Coverage of US election and comment on NZ election
- Nigeria shootings
- Brexit trade deal with Japan signed and Brexit negotiations still arguing with EU

[Nik]

Philip wrote: "...-£3bn Fraud on business support scheme yet Gov not doing enough..."

Would appreciate a link to read more

[Philip]

Nik wrote: "Philip wrote: "...-£3bn Fraud on business support scheme yet Gov not doing enough..."

Would appreciate a link to read more"

https://www.nao.org.uk/report/impleme...

[Sharon]

Philip wrote: "UK news
- Lockdown measures across UK and rising case numbers - criticism of track and trace by people who know nothing about how it works e.g. company or government fault that 20% refuse to give d..."

Thanks for the cliffnotes for the UK news. Being an ex-pat I am always interested in what they are doing over there.

[Leonie]

Most exciting thing here today:

It's raining! And there is more to come. Much rain across south eastern Australia. it's both a blessing and a curse after this year, as it's fantastic to have rain to fill the dams, but some of our farmers are about to harvest. Then there's the flow on effect for summer in terms of stimulating vegetation growth just in time for fire season.

Oh, and there were sausages at Bunnings today! 😱😱😱

[Philip]

Nice - terrorism
COVID lockdowns
US Presidential
Anti-semetism report Labour party
Death (Possibly COVID) of comedy star
14 year old girl arrested for murder

[Nik]

Philip wrote: "Nice - terrorism ....."

Sounds kinda ambiguous, if anyone hasn't grasped "Nice" is the name of a city

[Ian]

NZ has an English women's netball team touring. Obviously there is something wrong here - they lost match 1 but they hadn't played anything for 7 months, whereas here the NZ team had just emerged from provincial matches, so some warm-up games should have been scheduled.

However, that is not the point. They had a TV interview and one was totally surprised that everything here is normal, and life is going on with only concern about the borders as far as the virus is concerned. As an aside, thanks to the lockdown and other measures, hospitals had a 97% reduction in flu cases.

[Philip]

Ian wrote: "NZ has an English women's netball team touring. Obviously there is something wrong here - they lost match 1 but they hadn't played anything for 7 months, whereas here the NZ team had just emerged f..."

Forgot to mention they were touring having gone through all the health checks - true no games since March but great they were able to travel

[Ian]

They are at least making a good impression here. Some sports teams are rather troublesome, but this one is behaving very well and are generally likeable.

[Papaphilly]

Philip wrote: "Nice - terrorism
COVID lockdowns
US Presidential
Anti-semetism report Labour party
Death (Possibly COVID) of comedy star
14 year old girl arrested for murder"

What comedy star died?

[Philip]

Booby Ball who was part of a double act called Cannon and Ball

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainm...

[Papaphilly]

Always sorry to hear about the death of a comedian. We need them so badly now.

[Scout]

Just to check, the Labour Party is the liberal one? And they've been accused of anti-Semitism?

[Graeme]

More specifically, their former leader Corbyn.

(I think)

[Lizzie]

For those of us who no longer want to hear about elections, riots, or covid 19;

1. The LA Dodgers won the world series; first time since 1988.
2. Hurricane Zeta hit the Gulf Coast, but is moving quickly.

Ok, That's all i got. Hard to find anything that isn't part of those first 3 categories in American news.

I don't watch sports except for hockey Stanley Cup and baseball World Series. But my friends all seem to be happily watching football and basketball games.

[Philip]

Scout wrote: "Just to check, the Labour Party is the liberal one? And they've been accused of anti-Semitism?"

Labour were formed from Trade Union movements before the first World War. Sometimes they swing more socialist then centrist in European terms. Tony Blair was once their leader when they were very centrist. We have a separate Liberal Democrats Party too who at one point were in coalition with the Conservative party 2010 Cameron led government. They are much smaller now whereas the Labour Party remain the largest Opposition party. Their former leader has been suspended from the party because of his reaction to the Equalities report which accused some named and many unnamed leaders of the party of discrimination and political interference when complaints were raised.

The Liberals have a varied platform and are not liberal in a USA sense.

[Ian]

The word liberal in politics seems to have a varied meaning. I gather that in the US it tends to mean "socialist lite"; in Australia it tends to mean Conservative and I am not sur4e what it means in EDngland, but I gather it is a rump of the old English Liberal Party, which opposed the Tories, but originally they were more representative of class. (I await a barrage of criticisms for that.)

I have always taken Liberal to mean following the economic principles of David Ricardo, but I suspect nobody else here will agree with me.