how do you feel about masks

[TheLiqidator]

Cracked me up when I read this mate.

Quite right, it does seem a bit strange, the business of.
"High Risk - Going to Bars - Don't need a Mask.
Low to Medium Risk - Grocery Shopping - Mask Required"

Then there is this bit.
"Outdoor restaurant dining - Medium Risk.
"Outdoor picnic, or Al Fresco dining - Low Risk"

Makes you wonder what goes through the minds of the people that write this stuff.
But bearing in mind the bit that says bars are banned from opening in SA, that seems to indicate that this guy lives in Florida...............Enough said...............

Mind you @Social Misfit don't really matter much to us, as we are both mask exempt anyway.

That translates to going to bars... more government monies.

Going to the supermarket... not so much government monies.

My local was telling people to wear a mask while they're walking about, going to the bar etc. Mist were just doing it, no complaints. They were then actively telling people you don't have to wear them.

 

[Badboybez]

That translates to going to bars... more government monies.

Going to the supermarket... not so much government monies.

My local was telling people to wear a mask while they're walking about, going to the bar etc. Mist were just doing it, no complaints. They were then actively telling people you don't have to wear them.

I don't really think it is about the government make more money from pubs than supermarkets, think about the scale of the supermarkets paying vat, than the pubs / brewers paying excise duty.
Also the supermarkets turn over a hell of a lot of booze that duty is payable on, that's why some of the largest breweries close pubs, they make more money selling beer to the big four supermarkets. (plus property sales)
The real reason is constant risk assessment, based on the best evidence their medical, and scientific advisers provide at any time.
I'm not saying the government does not need money, they have a very difficult task judging nations health, versus nations wealth. We could have gone into the strictest lockdown ever seen in any country, and remained like that until a vaccine has been given to each, and everyone (approx 68 million) but that could take years, and what would the country be like by then, completely bankrupt, lawlessness, people fighting in the street for scraps of food, etc, not an attractive prospect.

 

[TheLiqidator]

I don't really think it is about the government make more money from pubs than supermarkets, think about the scale of the supermarkets paying vat, than the pubs / brewers paying excise duty.
Also the supermarkets turn over a hell of a lot of booze that duty is payable on, that's why some of the largest breweries close pubs, they make more money selling beer to the big four supermarkets. (plus property sales)
The real reason is constant risk assessment, based on the best evidence their medical, and scientific advisers provide at any time.
I'm not saying the government does not need money, they have a very difficult task judging nations health, versus nations wealth. We could have gone into the strictest lockdown ever seen in any country, and remained like that until a vaccine has been given to each, and everyone (approx 68 million) but that could take years, and what would the country be like by then, completely bankrupt, lawlessness, people fighting in the street for scraps of food, etc, not an attractive prospect.

About a third of a pubs income goes to the taxman, average per pub in the uk is about £135k to £140k a year. Supermarkets do sell a lot of booze and will have probably doubled that if not more over lockdown but the majority of their sales are still food which doesn't have vat applied to it. They take in about £10bn a year on booze, so it's a huge amount of money. Pubs and restaurants also had a huge number of furloughed staff, who were having 80% of their wages paid by the government so them opening before others and having lighter restrictions than other places will partly be down to the money involved.

I've been to about 5 pubs since they reopened and there's no clear guidelines for them, as they're all sort of doing their own thing and changing that to adapt. It seems to me like they're trying to make people feel comfortable going to the pub, some are pretty much as they were with the odd bit of perspex here and there and a hand sanitizer at the door. Anywhere else you go still feels very different.

 

[andipandi]

We could have gone into the strictest lockdown ever seen in any country, and remained like that until a vaccine has been given to each, and everyone (approx 68 million) but that could take years, and what would the country be like by then, completely bankrupt, lawlessness, people fighting in the street for scraps of food, etc, not an attractive prospect.

Your thoughts are worse than mine, ffs

 

[zouzounaki]

superspreader

 

[Fuctifino]

Still getting a tan this summer despite the masks...

 

[Kenneth]

 

[Badboybez]

Your thoughts are worse than mine, ffs

Sorry mate, maybe I painted an extreme picture of what could happen.
But I've had quite a few things in my personal l life taking several weeks instead of one, and a gov process that would normally take a month, that took six !
It just seems to me that there are a lot of people out there that have been either furloughed, or working from home, for up to five months (including the companies they work for) that seem to make every excuse why they can't possibly go back to work, or why thing are going to take 10 times as long as they did before. Even to the point where one gov local authority was sending me a letter nearly every month (disguised threat of of action in court) but I could not answer them until I had an answer from another higher up the food chain gov authority answering my questions ffs !

 

[Badboybez]

About a third of a pubs income goes to the taxman, average per pub in the uk is about £135k to £140k a year. Supermarkets do sell a lot of booze and will have probably doubled that if not more over lockdown but the majority of their sales are still food which doesn't have vat applied to it. They take in about £10bn a year on booze, so it's a huge amount of money. Pubs and restaurants also had a huge number of furloughed staff, who were having 80% of their wages paid by the government so them opening before others and having lighter restrictions than other places will partly be down to the money involved.

Yes, a lot of a pubs income gets snaffled up by the pubs / breweries via duty, but don't forget the supermarkets pay the same extortionate rate of duty on the booze they sell, add to that the fact that although the supermarkets have a massive amount of outlets nowadays from the giant superstores to small "express" and "local" shops that the duty from pubs is more, or less small change to the government. Also a lot of "hospitality" staff are still furloughed because with the restrictions imposed on their businesses mean they owner would lose money if they were trading. In fact in my small town a third of the pubs are still shut (including the "gastro" pubs)

I've been to about 5 pubs since they reopened and there's no clear guidelines for them, as they're all sort of doing their own thing and changing that to adapt. It seems to me like they're trying to make people feel comfortable going to the pub, some are pretty much as they were with the odd bit of perspex here and there and a hand sanitizer at the door. Anywhere else you go still feels very different.

There is clear guidance for pubs, but as a lot of them are limited, for example have no way of creating a one way system in / out of the building as they are listed.
One that I use a lot surprised me when it opened again, as only about a third of the bar had perspex along it, the other day one of the barmaids I knew well sat down after her afternoon shift sat down near me for a drink before going home, and I asked her why, she said when they were getting the place ready the landlord (small freehouse pub) could not buy any more perspex as a shortage had been created for it.
So yes, all pubs will vary, but remember they all have to be inspected / risk assessed, both premises, and working methods, by on the relevant local authority (not sure which one) before opening, and have the power to do spot checks at anytime.

 

[Badboybez]

My local was telling people to wear a mask while they're walking about, going to the bar etc. Mist were just doing it, no complaints. They were then actively telling people you don't have to wear them.

Sounds like your "local's" landlord / manager don't know what the fuck he is doing, rather than something to do with the government rules / duty income.