The long battle ahead.

If we look at the figures of global infections as collected by John Hopkins University, despite what we see here in England or the UK or even Europe, the infection rate, globally, is accelerating. The figures and time scales are truly scary.

t took the world about 100 days to go from 0 cases to 1 million detected cases. Then:

1 to 2 mil: 12 days

2 to 3 mil: 13 days
3 to 4 mil: 12 days
4 to 5 mil: 11 days
5 to 6 mil: 10 days
6 to 7 mil: 8 days
7 to 8 mil: 8 days
8 to 9 mil: 6 days

In some US states and in South America, highest daily totals were posted on Friday. This will only get worse as more infected people pass on their "gift" to the uninfected. Meanwhile, the whole idea of protecting the population at large has become a political matter, with the American Dream and God's will now taken as meaning compulsory face masks is something communist. There is a video of a town hall meeting where a woman says I won't wear a face mask the same reason I don't wear underwear, to allow me to breathe.

With logic like this, mankind is screwed.

But it is the way COVID has been portrayed, and echoing the Spanish Flu of a century ago, cities and citizens march to demand the right to infect the weak and sick.

The American dream.

And in the White House, Trump denies reality, to allow the virus to decimate his voter base.

Here in the UK, SAGE has been replaced with a political group, we are not told who sits on it, and are given little or no evidence that restrictions should be lifted, but they are anyway. While it is fine for footballers to play professionally, cricketers cannot. While it is fine to sit side by side in an aircraft to fly off on your summer holidays, whilst wearing a mask, you cannot sit in a cinema or theatre under any circumstances.

If one is fine, so is the other.

But the Arts and less than profitable sports suffer. Its ironic, because once the lockdown hit, it was the arts that kept the nation sane; music, films, TV box sets all binge watched or listened. The hard days of March and April were only bearable thanks to the Arts and artists. But whilst business is supported, the Arts isn't. Theatres and cinemas have run out of money, and they begged the government for help, but that fell on deaf ears.

There is still little or no scrutiny of the Government. Te daily briefings have ended, the daily figures are not mentioned now, if they are, its just in passing. Anyone raises an issue with Cummings of some other scandal, that is met by the phrase: "The Prime Minister considers that closed". As if that is it.

Maybe it is it.

Nothing is a resignation offence. Certainly helping a party donor void £40 million in costs after donating just £12k to the Conservatives, and that is fine. That one of the poorest London boroughs lost that £40 million is neither here nor there.

We're all in this together. Only we're not.

Do as we tall you, not as we do.

The Spanish Flue lasted 500 days before it petered out, which means this is something we will have to deal with throughout the autumn and winter, even if a vaccine is found, it will take months to test and to be considered safe to use Even if it works.

Meanwhile, as the virus runs rampant, Cummings is planning on major reforms to how Government is run, downgrading the Civil Service, and so removing yet more scrutiny. And no one will hardly notice, until its your rights that are taken away.

And they will.

Enjoy the weekend.