Macca

And the Patriots are (right now) the No.1 seed in the AFC. Who would have thought? Belichick gets his team into contention again Pats @ the Bills tomorrow and there is a stack riding on the result

Yes, just a bob of the head in it Dark Dream was a good thing beaten as it was held up for a run twice ... might be worth following up on in the open handicaps (as well as the winner)

Bucs Vikings Arizona

We'll need one of Harris, Head/Khawaha, Green or Carey to have a big series with the bat ... either that or have 2 of the 4 do reasonably well The other question is when we do we rotate our quicks and if that includes Cummins? Hoping to see Jhye Richardson debut soon enough And I reckon England will have already earmarked which matches Anderson & Broad will play in And as previously stated, England's top order isn't strong but if they get runs in any given test, they'll be right in the contest

Jamie Kah is back in style! Wins the Pakenham Cup on Smokin' Romans A superb ride. All class I was on Mimi's Award however I picked up a nice 2/3 win parlay earlier in the day

Most of us have got an idea about how we'll perform in the Ashes (our strength is our bowling whilst at the same time having a heavy reliance on Smith, Labuschagne & Warner with the bat. We'll need at least 1 other batsman to really stand up if we're to do well As for England's chances ... not playing in Perth is a bonus for them and the pink ball test in Adelaide will suit their seamers If their top 3 (possibly Burns, Crawley & Malan) can put together 100-120 then that can set things up for their strong middle order (Root, Stokes, Bairstow, Buttler & Woakes) I reckon it will be a keenly contested series with Australia having a slight edge at home ... we should retain the Ashes but it won't be easy Lots of rain predicted for Brisbane and a draw there would suit England and not suit us. The 2nd test is in Adelaide under lights

@Gorgoroth @Dappa Dan @DeeSpencer @JV7 @Dee Zephyr @Go the Biff @titan_uranus @Clintosaurus @DemonDave @layzie 2 points up for grabs this week as we enter the business end of the season ... any number of road winner chances too Just be aware of the trap games! Good luck! Leaderboard - Tipping Comp 8 - Go the Biff, 6 - Clintosaurus, JV7, Gorgoroth 5 - Dee Zephyr, DemonDave, layzie, Macca 3 - titan_uranus, DeeSpencer

You have to put 2 and 2 together and if you are looking for absolute exactness, you won't get it Worldwide those aged under 12 haven't been vaccinated in great numbers (in a general sense) Those aged 13 - 15 haven't been vaccinated in great numbers either So it's almost certainly 16 and over as against the total population of those countries. The numbers won't be exact ... they can't be. But close enough? In my view, yes It's like wiki, it doesn't need to be perfect or have to be perfect The real pointers are the overflowing hospitals, those in ICU and the deaths (in the European countries & the USA) That can't be ignored no matter what the numbers tell us We're are doing well in Australia in comparison ... and there are a number of factors as to why (high vaccination rates, a more disciplined approach during lockdowns, mask wearing etc) But that's just my view ... others can have different viewpoints What's your overall view?

Google up 'Vaccination rates Worldwide' for all the info Wrecker You'll get a graph with drop-down facilities and below the graph is an 'About this data' icon that has further explanation I'm guessing the cases pertain to 12 years and over but it might be 16 years and over. Seen as more of an overview much like wiki provides

Yes, that could well be true Here in Australia I reckon the covid numbers can be managed (especially in comparison to many other countries) A more lethal variant of covid is a greater threat than the amount of unvaccinated we have (we are heading for 90% - 95% vaccinated - eventually)

30% in many European nations and 41% of Americans means there are a lot of conspiracy theorists. Too many Not that I disagree with your appraisal HT Mandates is the only solution then - but how to mandate? These people will cop token fines so more draconian measures will be needed We are seeing people give up their own career's all in the name of being an anti-vaxxer. As well as being shut out of society in terms of what they are allowed to do So do these anti-vaxxers stop their own children from being vaccinated? 30%+ in Europe up to 41% (USA)

Here in Victoria (where we have the most cases of covid) the numbers seem to be evenly spread out now in terms of municipalities & shires Even though the vaccination rates in 7 inner city municipalities here are lower than the rest (ranging from 73% - 80% as opposed to mostly 90%+ elsewhere)

What has surprised me is the amount of anti-vaxxers world wide. More so in affluent countries. And that the affluent countries aren't helping out the poorer countries with vaccine availability People have had ample time to get vaccinated and are these people not believing the actual numbers of covid cases, hospitalisations & deaths? Why would anyone dice with death? These people have got a far greater chance of dying from covid than they have from the vaccine ... especially if we get a variant of covid that is more lethal Austria are mandating vaccines from Feb 1st ... other countries will follow suit you'd imagine, DJ Low vaccination levels lead to more covid cases, more hospitalisations, more deaths and more lockdowns

So the UK & Germany have about 70% of their population double vaccinated yet both countries are still reporting in excess of 40,000 covid cases per day. 70% is nowhere near enough people vaccinated South Africa on the other hand has only 24% double vaxxed which means 45 million out of 59 million aren't vaccinated We are basically dealing with an unvaccinated country so whether it's Delta or Omicron, we could expect a big increase in covid numbers in South Africa. Their latest 7 day average is sitting at 4786 cases per day For more info go to google and type in ... 'Covid cases in (insert country) today' A graph will appear with a drop down facility to change the country of origin

Donald Rumsfeld would even have trouble spelling out an overview of covid (and all the variants)

And now we are seeing reports of younger people in South Africa being impacted more (health wise) by this new variant ... and the amount of those being infected rising dramatically. But again, South Africa has a very low vaccination rate in comparison to many European countries and the like As 'old dee' said in a post earlier, we may need until Christmas to see a clearer picture of the impact of Omicron All we have now are snippets of opinions without anything definitive. However, The World Health Organisation is using very strong language such as describing Omicron as a 'very high global risk' ... more contageous/more debilitating?

Fair enough but your original post referred to older/at risk getting hit harder but not specifying vaccinated or unvaccinated Coetzee is saying that older 'Unvaccinated' people infected with the new variant is an issue but isn't that what most health professionals are saying about the Delta variant with regards to the elderly or those at risk? It stands to reason that any of the unvaccinated elderly wouldn't want to get any version of covid. Same as these vulnerable people wouldn't want to contract influenza or any other debilitating diseases The biggest issue in South Africa is their low vaccination rates against covid. 45 million of 59 million aren't double vaccinated

The Rams might have to do it all on the road but if you can put it all together, you'll be there when the whips are cracking All your remaining games are winnable ... assuming you get over the Jags next up, the following game at Arizona looms large as a season definer. Win both and the season is well and truly alive As for the Packers, we've got a relatively moderate run home with the week off this week being a blessing (injury wise)

Posting up links or quotes from those who lean either way on where covid is going is relatively harmless anyway Some offer some hope, others offer caution and others still, offer nothing but doom & gloom There's not too many pollyanna's re covid though so any hope given could be welcomed with a cautious approach by those with hope in their hearts Caution & hope is my view as well as dealing with harsh realities I'm certainly no expert but isn't it a fait accompli that even if Omicron replaces Delta (or becomes the dominant variant) that Omicron will be replaced by another variant sooner or later?

So what might be Dr Coatsworth's agenda? I might add that we are still dealing with a number of unknowns with regards to Omicron so any definitive comment could be questioned But when the word 'if' is used that's not definitive. Dr Coatsworth used the word 'if' when he made his comment of if Omicrom may only have mild symptoms

If you are talking about Dr Angelique Coetzee I can't find anything that she has said other than Omicron having mild symptoms and different symptoms to Delta Can you provide a link to back up what else she might have said (specifically older/at risk people)

Dr Nick Coatsworth (amongst a few other health professionals) has some interesting views on the potency of Omicron Hope he's right

Eagles, Bucs, Chargers

As for a new variant ... when we get to September next season we might be having to deal with a new more potent covid variant (that is more contageous and debilitating) Or the variant we have at the moment - Delta According to the AFL and their 'Show must go on' mantra, that effectively means that (for instance) 6 or more players could be ruled ineligible to play on the day of a match. That includes the GF In overseas sports the game often involves 'squads' rather than our way which often surrounds best 12-15 or at the very least, best 22 So that is the covid connection and until we hear otherwise, that connection stays In my view, we need some wiggle room rather than a blanket rule. We could easily end up in a farcical situation otherwise

That doesn't surprise me but let's just for a moment imagine that we took up a stance of completely ignoring covid along with not bothering with vaccines The disease would be completely out of control, our hospitals full of covid patients with ICU units overflowing The elderly would be dying by the truckload and chaos would reign supreme The young being effected by the constant covid talk is unavoidable. The vaccines offer hope but that's not the end of it. So like it or not, we still had to act. And there cannot be half measures either. We have reacted here in the same way as nearly every country has. Lockdowns, vaccinations, the whole box and dice A lot of the decisions made have been forced upon us. The reaction from around the world (apart from the deniers) has been to fight back against covid. And when new strains emerge, we have to keep upping the ante. Annoying and time consuming but necessary This thread doesn't attract the majority of people here. In fact, most avoid this thread in my view. Can't say I blame them either My advice is that if talking about covid is bothersome, don't open the thread Different viewpoints? I welcome them