Author Archives: Bodger

Chief Medical Officer Dept Of Health Dr Tony Holohan

Crazy for the hooch.

It can’t help itself.

This morning.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan said:

“Irrespective of the setting, but particularly when that setting is an indoor setting, particular in places where ventilation is poor, particularly where we have use of alcohol – and let’s be honest here, we have a challenge in this country, it is really difficult for us all to maintain public health guidance when it’s mixed in with the use of alcohol.

“But, all of those factors come together to create risks that this virus loves.

“The virus loves indoor settings, it loves close contact between people, and it loves alcohol. And if we give it the opportunity it will transmit very very quickly and that’s what we are seeing.”

Hic.

Country cannot cope with current social contact levels – Holohan (RTÉ)

RollingNews

Yesterday.

Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA.

Nurse manager Tiffany Dover had been giving a press briefing from CHI Memorial Hospital about her team being among the first to take the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine when, about 17 minutes in, she collapsed and was grabbed by two doctors who were standing nearby.

Nurse faints at press conference after getting COVID-19 vaccine (Washinton Times)

Nurse faints during on live TV minutes after getting coronavirus vaccine (News.com.aus)

Meanwhile…

“We would not at all be surprised to see, coincidentally, vaccination happening and then having someone pass away a short time after they receive a vaccine, not because it has anything to do with the vaccination but just because that’s the place where people at the end of their lives reside.

“One of the things we want to make sure people understand is that they should not be unnecessarily alarmed if there are reports, once we start vaccinating, of someone or multiple people dying within a day or two of their vaccination who are residents of a long-term care facility. That would be something we would expect, as a normal occurrence, because people die frequently in nursing homes.”

Dr. Kelly Moore, associate director of the US Immunization Action Coalition, which is supporting frontline workers who will administer Covid-19 vaccinations.

Why vaccinate our most frail? Odd vote out shows the dilemma (CNN)

Marco Dias (arrowed) on Broadsheet on the Telly

This evening.

Phoenix Park, Dublin

Photographer Hazel Coonagh‘s portrait of Brazil-born hair artist Marco Dias – him of the ‘telly‘ (top) – adorns the Wellington Monument nightly until December 21.

G’wan the Marco

Thanks Vanessa

The Contact Calculator (top) HSE CEO Paul Reid (above) and top with Anne O’Connor, Chief Operations Officer, HSE

This afternoon.

The weekly HSE covid briefing, Dr Steeven’s Hospital, Dublin.

Via RTÉ:

HSE CEO PAUL Reid told the briefing that the HSE has launched a “Contact Calculator“, available on HSE.ie, which he said will help people to think about the number of people they meet. He warned that people “will meet more people than they think” they will over Christmas.

Good grief.

Meanwhile…

The HSE’s Chief Operating Officer, Anne O’Connor has said attendances in Emergency Departments are increasing but are 15% below the number this time last year.

She said admissions to ED are increasing too, but are lower than this time last year.

Hmm.

HSE urges people to keep Christmas visits to ‘absolute minimum’ (RTÉ)

RollingNews

This week’s The Kerryman

Paul Dunphy tweetz:

This has made my day. Did you all see this? Barack Obama followed a random man in Kerry on Twitter. When the man was asked did he follow back? He said ‘Didn’t want to give him the satisfaction’. MOST IRISH REACTION EVER. Superb local story…

UPDATE!

Yay!

Oh.

 

From top: Johnny Ronan, of Ronan Group Real Estate (RGRE), and Paddy Campbell, of Bewley’s before a window by the artist Jim Fitzpatrick among a number of panels in the Grafton Street café said to be worth about €2m.

This morning/afternoon.

“The works of art are decorative and ornamental, are not part of the building and did not form part of Bewley’s original sale of the premises to Royal Insurance in 1987. The artworks have always remained in the ownership of Bewley’s, and have been protected, maintained and insured by Bewley’s, consistent with such ownership.”

Statement from Bewley’s.

“It is not in Bewley’s gift to transfer ownership either between its group companies, as it has purported to do, or to transfer ownership to the state as Paddy Campbell has so generously indicated are his wishes.”

Statement from Ronan Group Real Estate (RGRE).

Anyone?/FIGHT!

Trouble brewing: Johnny Ronan’s firm claims it owns Bewley’s stained-glass windows (Independent.ie)

RollingNews

This afternoon.

Meanwhile…

Speaking to The Echo today, the Taoiseach clarified:

“I misspoke yesterday in the Dáil and made a mistake in terms of how I articulated it.

“Essentially I was making the point that the shareholders…themselves weren’t bailed out.

“But obviously the banks, there was a huge rescue package for the banks, of course there was we know that, in terms of both protecting depositors and protecting bond holders,” he said.

Exclusive: Taoiseach says he ‘misspoke’ about bank bailout ‘in the heat of battle’ (Echo)

Earlier: A Limerick A Day