Saturday.
Berlin, Germany.
A crowd of people whistling and cheering, and with few masks in sight, marched through downtown Berlin from the Brandenburg Gate ahead of a rally on a wide boulevard that runs through the city’s Tiergarten park.
Protesters held up home-made placards featuring slogans that included “Corona, false alarm,” “We are being forced to wear a muzzle,” “Natural defence instead of vaccination” and “End the corona panic — bring fundamental rights back.”
They chanted, “We’re here and we’re loud, because we are being robbed of our freedom.”
The demonstration, entitled “The end of the pandemic — freedom day,” was planned for weeks and drew people from various parts of Germany. Police used bullhorns to chide participants to keep to distancing rules and to wear masks.
Getty/AP/AFP
Meanwhile…
Um.
Ragbag?
Anti-Covid protest draws ragbag of conspiracy theorists to Berlin (Derek Scally, Irish Times)
It drew in a right collection of eejits for sure. Some of them were way off on the whacky end of conspiracy theories. Every country has its fair share of morons. Berlin has actually handled the covid 19 crisis exceptionally well for such a large city (4.5 M population i think), it has a really low death count under 250. So well in fact, that some people don’t believe covid 19 is dangerous at all!
Over one million people is a collection of eejits? What number would it take before people like you accept that they may have a valid point of view?
The fatality numbers just don’t stack up and people are becoming wise to that fact. There is no ‘new’ science to back the assertion that paper or cloth masks provide any level of protection to themselves or anyone else.
I don’t think pandemics are susceptible to popular dissent.
@SOQ Lol. Where are you getting the “one million” love? There were no more than thousands. I actually live in Berlin.
Do one.
Me too!
1.3 million figure was reported on france24 but appears to have disappeared now.
A couple of thousand- seriously?
@SOQ There is literally no way anything approximating one million or even a hundred thousand for that matter were at this. FFS, I live there. Mitte was busier than usual but only the most surreal interpretation of attendance could come up with this level of exaggeration. There were barely any restrictions or diversions in place apart from around Unter den Linden.
This is the France 24 report: https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.france24.com/en/20200801-protests-against-coronavirus-curbs-draws-crowds-in-berlin
Cite your sources for one million or quit the flimflam.
No that is not the link- France 24 done quite a number of stories on this march.
@SOQ Of course. Convenient.
Still, in the absence of any link or evidence from you and the fact, I LIVE IN BERLIN, you my friend are telling porkies.
SOQ only hears whatever he wants to hear.
9 deaths in Melbourne the day before yesterday resulted in the most draconian lock down seen outside China- and for what?
Yes! They came from far and wide to blame 5G and Bill Gates. Morons.
The fatality numbers in Germany are very low because they have a very well funded and equipped health care system.
Masks work as a way of suppressing the virus when sharing indoor space. Its really simple, many countries have proved this. Countries have to find a way of getting businesses moving again. So in Berlin they have reopened restaurants and bars, with most people eating and drinking outside, all shops are open but you need a mask. It is helping to recover lost income but not perfect.
Protest numbers were : 20,000 not a million
What countries have proved this exactly?
Taiwan, Czech Republic, Austria, Switzerland, South Korea, Japan, Norway, Greece, Finland, Thailand
Link to that claim please?
Here is a good report on the status of EU countries and covid 19 with regards to a 2nd wave.
https://www.euronews.com/2020/08/03/is-europe-having-a-covid-19-second-wave-country-by-country-breakdown
And what has that got to do with masks?
Even the WHO admits their is no evidence of the efficacy of masks. They wore them in Wuhan right from the start of their outbreak of course.
@SOQ You are demanding proof from others while blithely claiming a one million attendance without any evidence whatsoever. ROFL.
You’re some chancer.
Aggressive much?
If you are going to blindly state that somehow masks have prevented the infection in half a dozen countries then surely you have some sort of scientific study to back it up?
Sweden’s Top Epidemiologist Says ‘We See No Point In Wearing Masks’ As COVID-19 Cases Drop “Not even on public transport.”
https://www.dailywire.com/news/swedens-top-epidemiologist-says-we-see-no-point-in-wearing-masks-as-covid-19-cases-drop
@SOQ Demanding proof from others while exempting yourself from any such obligation so you can churn out quackery is a trite rather than aggressive point, I would have thought.
Hahaha oh my god
This is insane
@SOQ
Not all information about covid 19 is from online sources. I have watched and heard many scientists reports about wearing masks. Dr.Luke O’Neill (not sure of surname) reports daily on Newstalk radio in the morning. He mentioned Taiwan, Norway, Denmark and Czech republic many times in April and May. Same goes for reports on TV from Euronews, DW news, Sky News (all have youtube channels). It’s not my job to provide links to proof of this, that’s what google is for. Very easy to find info about masks.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7270822/
@SOQ
Here is another mask related link : https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/03/would-everyone-wearing-face-masks-help-us-slow-pandemic
No more links from me
It is Prof. Luke O’Neill and I will say no more. https://twitter.com/indepdubnrth/status/1282791959640383488
As a general point- yes not everything is online but you would expect that something so serious as compulsory mask wearing would have at least some semblance of agreed evidence? Why is Sweden’s fatality figures so similar to the rest without the economic carnage? No lock downs and no masks.
One point completely missed in your cited paper btw is that Taiwan was exposed to SARS-CoV-1- but that is only emerging as a potential factor now.
Lets be honest here- the medical experts and the doctors do not agree. That is why I favour the data analytics approach of people like Ivor Cummins.
Any country which had a couple of years of mild respiratory viral seasons had a fatality peak this time around- and countries which had an average couple of years did not- that is my type of science.
@SOQ
That link may contain Jim Corr. JIM CORR!!! There’s a whack of anti-vax simpletons off of it, but I shall read it later.
I doubt it entirely discredits Dr.O’Neill’s science credentials.
It’s Dr Marcus De Brun- he who resigned from the medical board over the treatment of elderly people in the nursing home scandal.
But no doubt there will be plenty trying to paint him as ‘whatever’ too.
Just to note that Sweden is not economically strong right now, even though they avoided a lockdown. Their economy was still affected badly. Many elderly have died and lots of scientists in Sweden regret their approach. Its quite a controversy there, its not all roses.
Agreed but when you have Sweedens chief epidemiologist Anders Tegnell saying the exact opposite of Prof O’Neill- one has to accept that they can’t both be right.
Time will tell but my moneys on Tegnell.
Dude, if you want to see what happens when you don’t wear a mask, look at America.
Does the popularity of an idea have any bearing on its scientific basis? Close to 100% of the human population used to believe that the sun revolved around the earth…
We still do – if you look outside you can see the sun crossing the sky!
Except it isn’t. It just looks like it if crossing the sky.
It is like trying to argue with some sort a religious fear cult- you are never going to win- science doesn’t seem to matter.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h8Eu5W4pqvc
Please stop fella. For yourself
Fancy that, a youtube link of a vlogger…
a youtube link of a vlogger who is a biochemical engineer and complex problem solving specialist in the corporate sphere- reviewing an analysis by The Max Planck Institute.
And you are?
Did I miss something, or when did biochemical engineers become the authority on viruses and epidemics?
You must have missed him PrimeTime so.
Seriously did you even watch that vid? – its only 5 minutes long. Go watch and the come back with an opinion please.
I think i will wait until he gets it published in a scientific journal and read about it then.
Its data analytics you clown- not medical research.
… analytics of medical/epidemological data, which he does not appear to have any particular competences to interpret.
He did not interpret it- he merely presented the findings from The Max Planck Institute- unless you want to question their credentials too?
If it is the case that you just don’t like the evidence presented- then maybe it is time you asked yourself why?
While I applaud protests as a means of civic engagment, I don’t think it’s a valid approach to ending pandemics.
But enough about Black Lives Matter- which you supported.
BLM weren’t marching to end the pandemic, they were protesting police brutality – you know, actual infringements of freedom, civil rights and freedom of speech, as opposed to the appalling tyranny of wearing a mask – though of course disproportionate effects of the pandemic on minorities played a part.
And this super intelligent virus knew that- a bit like how it infects in shops but not pubs serving food.
The police certainly knew who to beat up and shoot tear gas and rubber bullets at, does that make them smarter than a virus?
Leave Nigel alone.
Blatant hypocrisy is his brand.
No, no, feel free, it’s that robust debate you’re supposed to be such fans of
The word ragbag is correctly used and mirrors reporting in Germany. The demonstration brought together miscellaneous groups with varied “outlooks” and “beefs”. Strongest were the neo-nazis but also present were the anti-vaxxers, the it’s-all-a-hoax brigade, the “this-is-a-distraction-so-5G-can-be-secretly-rolled-out club and various other assortment of deplorables (yes, I’m using that word) each with their own causes célèbre. While there is an obvious overlap between some of these groups, the word ragbag is appositely deployed.
Stop siding with Irish Times, it’s not taken well over here…
BS – Striving for impartiality! Kind of…
Sort of…
careful! You’ll waken that Lawless yoke
I agree with Junkface. “Ragbag” seems a reasonable term to cover the variety of views in the march. Jewish pangolins called Bill with shares in ‘big pharma’ are the cause of all of this.
There was a PBS documentary on vaccines and anti-vaxxers (from a few years ago – it’s on YouTube) which showed that medical students now have to be shown videos of kids with whooping cough and other (thanks to vaccines) now rare conditions. The few seconds the doc showed of a kid with whooping cough was horrific. Perhaps some harder hitting public service ads are needed. Some conspiracy theorists can’t be reached but others might be guided to decide they should be a bit more responsible for their relatives’ sakes if nobody else’s.
Not surprisingly conspiracy theorists will presumably deny a link between large public gatherings they take part in and the resulting spread of the virus and the need for increased restrictions. Eejits alright.
Antivaxxers don’t care. Their right to spread disease trumps your right to not die of it.
Remember poor old Herman Cain? Ran for president in 2016 race? He was totally anti-mask and a Trump supporter. So he went to his rally in Tulsa without a mask, so did his family and friends (besides hundreds indoors, they were photographed). He caught covid 19 and died last week, he was 73 I think.
Unlike the ‘ largely peaceful’ heroes who marched for BLM at the height of the pandemic
BLM or this crowd…
Praise/shame one crowd, but be consistent.
The difference is- this crowd are marching because they don’t believe it- BLM marched (and rioted) despite believing it.
The BLM crowd were pushed SO FAR by relentless police brutality and extra-judicial murder that they marched despite believing it.
Yes- Ballsbridge is renown for its relentless police brutality and extra-judicial murder.
Ah yes the famous BLM riots in Ballsbridge.
How far up youtr own backside do you have to climb to dismiss the substantive issues behind respective protests as irrelevent because your priority is to accuse others of hypocrisy and double standards rather than engage with the issues?
People always believe that their march is the important one, the righteous one. So just no mass gatherings for a while. No matter the cause!!
If you support the Protest In Favour Of Peace Love And Understanding but oppose the Protest For Skewering Puppies On Kebab Sticks you’re a hypocrite!
And if you recognise the public health risks involved in one mass gathering but can’t see them in the other you are a moron.
Who says I can’t? If anything the BLM protests were more of a health risk due to all the violence by heavily armed police.
https://youtu.be/XqWGlLKCxE8
Look, it’s the BLM Oxford militia here to save you Nigel. You’ll be happier now.
Nigel, when the future looks back to see where liberalism went off the rails and became an object of ridicule- they will find you in an unmarked grave.
They can carve your comment on my headstone to show that when it all came crashing down so many idiots were looking the wrong way.
Clampers, how you haven’t been hired by the White House defies belief!
Still, interesting to observe your epiphany or whatever you call it after all these years.
Lol.
To all who supported the BLM movement, here’s an example of the Oxford leader in the last few days, berets, dodgy sunglasses, calling for a militia, remind you of anyone?
https://youtu.be/XqWGlLKCxE8
Why are you giving the appalling Irish Times more clicks? Put it out of business.
Since when have large crowds of Germans hurt anyone?
Hilarious.
/sarcasm
Their Bach is far worse than their bite, of course.
-Joke © Noel Coward, 1943
crowd size discourse is truly the worst
The ironically named SDQ muddyin the water. By now his West of Ireland carcass must be rotting with the toxicity he gives off. I’d nearly swear you were a Keith Mills groupie
An early prototype
how else would you describe a collection of people that believe masks would reduce oxygen Levels?
A Murder? (of crows)
An Embarrassment? (of panda)
A Smothering of Anti-Maxxers.
Bunch of triggered snowflakes! Mein freezepeach! Mein right to die of a respiratory illness! Mein struggle!!
Tasteless Hitler joke. I can only assume you’re living a comfortable middle class existence, blithely disconnected from the level of suffering these draconian measures are having on so many. Lives and livelihoods devastated. After living through Nazism and the Soviet occupation, Germans would be only too aware of the dangers of creeping authoritarian rule. With deaths and hospitalisations virtually non-existent for weeks now, only those still in the grip of hysteria can continue to rationalise these measures as proportionate.
More snowflakery and hysteria! Wearing a mask is not succumbing to “authoritarian rule” and it’s pure stupidity to suggest that it is.
I’ve worked all through this pandemic out of necessity and I’m all too keenly aware of family and friends who’ve lost their livelihoods because of the lockdown. Whinging snowflakes who won’t wear masks will be responsible for its extension.
Sorry to say, but I think this Broadsheet comment section is currently a contender for one of the worst ever.
oh I’d say that’s very much a matter of (minority) opinion
I’m finding it wildly entertaining
Indeed. The diminishing numbers is concentrating the irrelevance and heightening the hate. You could say its reaching its peak potential.
…here newsjustine…the antivaxxers are going after your ‘most sanctimonious ‘ title…
I find the sheep like conformity- of never questioning this madness- quite frightening.
These are the same people who will be queuing up for a vaccine which has bypassed all animal trials without ever demanding a SARS-Cov t-cell test to prove that they do not need it in the first place.
Douglas Murray has coined the phrase ‘proactive laziness’ and that is very evident in some the comments on this thread.
Don’t sweat it SOQ – it’s the same empty vessels on this site making all the noise. They are in the minority but they are bored and have little else to be doing then on sites like this, journal, politics etc. so they appear like the majority.
“It’s the same empty vessels on this site making all the noise.”
True that.