curious

She and cabinet are acting on advice from experts in the health sector. Don't know what you mean about suicides. Do you mean suicides from amongst Covid cases?

There has been some really good work done using age specific mortality data to assess infection rates and IFR due to Covid. However, that work is quite clear also that there are a number of complexities in the interpretation of excess death data that can inhibit their direct use in assessments of IFR (see e.g, https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-020-2918-0 ) Direct use of that sort of data is part of the disinformation band playing a tune that will somehow make a serious infectious disease go away.

Totally disagree with that idea. Don't think any overall death rates, age adjusted or not, are a useful measure for the impact of Covid on death rates. Too many other factors conflated in that data.

Won a Group 1 in Italy but was relegated to second. Second also in the Eclipse and Coronation Stakes. His second to Alleged in the Arc no doubt his best performance and unlucky not to have knocked him off. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JmWHPiz0uw Great day at the races though.

You think most of these cases were in the dementia unit?

Great. You have to give up when you have no substance to stand on.

On the other side of the argument, Covid deaths may be significantly underestimated due to scarcity of testing and deaths may be attributed to other factors when Covid was the primary cause.

I agree that is an issue. They are counting anyone that dies within 28 days of a +ve covid test as a covid related death when a number may have died anyway but you have to have some determining measure and I'm not sure what is a better one.

Wait. We have 26 deaths from a bit less than that many cases so far?

Are you saying those numbers would be the same with no lockdown?

That appears to be an error. MOH stats say 17 currently hospitalised. 4 new in the last 24 hours.

That is current. Total could be a bit higher if some have already been discharged.

The report I read said that there are currently 19 community cases in hospital, including one in a stable condition in intensive care. Of those in hospital, two are in North Shore Hospital, eight are in Middlemore Hospital, and nine are in Auckland City Hospital. No deaths were reported. That seems to me to be a remarkable result for the country, the strategy and the measures taken at what is hopefully the peak of the outbreak.

Try this: https://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2021/08/23/does-the-fda-think-these-data-justify-the-first-full-approval-of-a-covid-19-vaccine/

Oops working now!

Link doesn't work but I'd like to read it

6.00pm Controversial Viaduct bar visited by positive case The NZ Herald has reported that Headquarters Bar on Auckland’s Viaduct, owned by controversial bar owner Leo Molloy, was visited by a recent positive Covid-19 case on August 14. Molloy confirmed that over 30 staff had been working on the evening in question, and also noted that Headquarters had been equipped with a “sophisticated surveillance system” installed last year. Molloy told The Herald that he was a “believer” in vaccinations, and that when Headquarters reopens in the appropriate alert level, he will not serve anyone who has not been vaccinated. Last year, Molloy made headlines when he planned a 100 person party at Headquarters under level two conditions (max. gatherings of 10 people or less), including guests such as Brian and Hannah Tamaki.

LifelineNZ reported a 25% increase in calls and texts during lockdown last year though they said those were mainly concerns about the impact on relationships and anxiety about money and accommodation as well as increased calls related to self-harm.

Figures for the year through June 21 should be out any day.

Don't think we'll know for a few years. Latest confirmed data is 2017 I think because it can take the coronial inquiries 2-3 years to be completed. Anecdotal reports of increase in suicidality last year. Provisional figures (per 100,00) for the year through June 2020 were well down on the previous 2 years.

What are talking about aquaman? Why would he go to a public testing site for a vaccination? He went to the Pipitea Marae which is a public vaccination centre and booked as soon as his age group became eligible.

The weird thing is that they have rescheduled Tuesday's trials for Thursday. Wonder what drugs they are using? Thursday in 4 weeks might have been reasonable. You can always bring them forward.

Happens every 5 or 10 years when the water table gets real high. Nowhere for it to go.

Last Tuesday Foxton track

Good afternoon, If the Taupo region is in Level 3 than the meeting will proceed. A Mdn 3YO 1200m race ($10,000) will be created out of the Mdn 1200m nominations. All races will be left open until 9am when the decision will be made whether to divide another race or races. There will be two trials run prior to the meeting.