COVID-19 Coronavirus UPDATES, BANS, CLOSURES, ADVISORY, etc.

International travel to RSA open October 1st!
 
Hello;
See red highlights detailing international travel conditions.
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P

STATEMENT BY PRESIDENT CYRIL RAMAPHOSA ON PROGRESS IN THE NATIONAL EFFORT TO CONTAIN THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC
Sep 16th, 2020|Press Releases and Notices
STATEMENT BY PRESIDENT CYRIL RAMAPHOSA ON PROGRESS IN THE NATIONAL EFFORT TO CONTAIN THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC
UNION BUILDINGS, TSHWANE
16 SEPTEMBER 2020
My fellow South Africans,
Exactly half a year has passed since we declared a national state of disaster in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
In that time, more than 15,000 South Africans have lost their lives to the disease and more than 650,000 have been confirmed as infected.
Our economy and our society have suffered great devastation.
We have endured a fierce and destructive storm.
But, by standing together, by remaining resolute, we have withstood it.
Two months ago, at the height of the storm, we were recording around 12,000 new cases a day.
Now, we are on average recording less than 2,000 cases a day.
We now have a recovery rate of 89%.
Even as restrictions have eased over the last month with our move to alert level 2, there has been a gradual, but steady, decline in new infections, hospitalisations and deaths.
Demand for hospital beds, ventilators, oxygen and other essential medical requirements has also reduced steadily.
We have succeeded in overcoming the worst phase of this epidemic while protecting the capacity of our health system.
I wish to applaud you, the people of South Africa, for this achievement and for the thousands of lives that have been saved through your collective actions.
This achievement has also been recognised by the World Health Organisation, which has been working closely with us to strengthen our response.
As we said earlier they have continued to give us advice and have even deployed their experts to our country.
We are grateful for all the support we received from the Director General of the World Health Organization in Geneva, as well as the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
Although we have made remarkable progress, a number of our people are still getting infected and some are losing their lives.
By any measure, we are still in the midst of a deadly epidemic.
Our greatest challenge now – and our most important task – is to ensure that we do not experience a new surge in infections.
Several countries around the world have been hit by a ‘second wave’ or a resurgence of infections.
A number of these countries had passed the peak of the disease and had seemingly brought the virus under control.
Some of them had even lifted most of the restrictions on economic and social activity.
In many cases, the second wave has been more severe than the first.
Several countries have had to re-impose a hard lockdown.
Our public health response is now focused on further reducing the transmission of the virus and preparing for a possible resurgence.
We have now taken a decision to keep increasing coronavirus testing.
Due to the decline in new infections and the reduced pressure on our health facilities, we now have sufficient testing capacity to expand the criteria for testing.
Among the categories of people we will now be able to test are all those who are admitted to hospital, outpatients with COVID symptoms, and individuals who have been in close contact with confirmed cases whether or not they themselves have symptoms.
Alongside increased testing, we are improving contact tracing through the deployment of the COVID Alert South Africa mobile phone app and the COVID Connect WhatsApp platform.
Effective testing and contact tracing systems will allow us to quickly identify and contain outbreaks before they spread further.
I want to make a call this evening to everyone who has a smartphone in South Africa to download the COVID Alert mobile app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.
The app has been zero-rated by mobile networks, so you can download it without any data costs.
Using Bluetooth technology, the app will alert any user if they have been in close contact with any other user who has tested positive for coronavirus in the past 14 days.
The app is completely anonymous, it does not gather any personal information, nor does it track anybody’s location.
The Department of Health has also developed WhatsApp and SMS systems for people without smartphones to provide them with test results and alert them to any possible exposure to the virus.
Contact tracing is an important preventative measure to protect yourself and your close family and friends.
We will be undertaking a nationwide survey to assess the actual levels of infection within society.
This survey – known as a seroprevalence survey – uses antibody tests to see if a person has been exposed to the coronavirus.
A nationwide study would allow scientists to estimate the extent of asymptomatic infections and immunity within the population as well as better understand the transmission patterns of the virus.
We continue to maintain our health care capacity to ensure that we are able to manage any possible outbreaks of infections effectively, and to ensure that everyone receives the care they need.
The Department of Health is working closely with trade unions and other stakeholders to ensure that all health care and other frontline workers have the necessary personal protective equipment and safe working conditions.
I wish to thank the nation’s frontline workers for raising the issue of safety so sharply and so consistently.
I wish to thank them for their dedication to caring for our people and for the enormous sacrifices they have made.
While we are working to prevent further transmission of the virus, we are also preparing for the time when a vaccine becomes available.
To ensure that South Africa is able to access an effective vaccine as quickly as possible and in sufficient quantities to protect the population, the country is participating in a global initiative supported by the World Health Organisation to pool resources for the development and distribution of a vaccine.
Through this initiative, South Africa joins other countries in supporting several vaccine development programmes and seeking equitable access to successful vaccines at a lower cost.
Through our position as chair of the African Union, we have been advocating for equitable access across the globe so that no country should be left behind.
We are also investing in our own capacity to produce and distribute a vaccine locally, so that South Africa can play a key role in the effort to expand access to vaccines.
Our country is already participating in three vaccine trials, demonstrating the capability of our scientific community.
Fellow South Africans,
A month ago, the significant decrease in new infections enabled the country to move to coronavirus alert level 2.
Now, with the further progress we have made as infections have come down further, we are now ready for a new phase in our response to the pandemic.
We have withstood the coronavirus storm.
Now is the time to return our country, its people and our economy to a situation that is more normal, that more resembles the lives that we were living six months ago.
It is time to move to what will become our new normal for as long as the coronavirus is with us.
While much economic activity resumed from June, it is now time to remove as many of the remaining restrictions on economic and social activity as it is reasonably safe to do.
Following consultations with provincial and local government representatives, and drawing on the advice of scientists and engagements with various stakeholders, Cabinet decided this morning that the country should move to alert level 1.
The move to alert level 1 will take effect from midnight on Sunday 20 September 2020.
This move recognises that levels of infection are relatively low and that there is sufficient capacity in our health system to manage the current need.
The move to alert level 1 will mean a further easing of restrictions on gatherings.
– Social, religious, political and other gatherings will be permitted, as long as the number of people does not exceed 50% of the normal capacity of a venue, up to a maximum of 250 people for indoor gatherings and 500 people for outdoor gatherings.
Health protocols, such as washing or sanitising of hands, social distancing and mask-wearing, will need to be strictly observed.
– The maximum number of people who may attend a funeral is increased from 50 to 100 due to the higher risk of viral transmission at funerals. Night vigils are still not permitted.
– Venues for exercise, recreation and entertainment – such as gyms and theatres – which were limited to no more than 50 people, will now be allowed to accommodate up to 50% of their venue’s capacity as determined by available floor space, subject to social distancing and other health protocols.
– Existing restrictions on sporting events remain in place.
Where required for the purposes of voter registration or special voting, the Independent Electoral Commission will be allowed to visit correctional centres, health facilities, old age homes and other similar institutions.
This will be subject to all the health protocols, include the wearing of masks and washing or sanitising of hands.
One of the earliest measures we took to contain the spread of the virus was to severely restrict international arrivals and to close our borders.
With the move to alert level 1, we will gradually and cautiously ease restrictions on international travel.
We will be allowing travel into and out of South Africa for business, leisure and other travel with effect from 1 October 2020.
This is subject to various containment and mitigation measures:
– Travel may be restricted to and from certain countries that have high infection rates. A list of countries will be published based on the latest scientific data.
– Travellers will only be able to use one of the land border posts that have remained operational during the lockdown or one of the three main airports: King Shaka, OR Tambo and Cape Town International Airport.
– On arrival, travellers will need to present a negative COVID-19 test result not older than 72 hours from time of departure.
– Where a traveller has not done a COVID-19 test prior to departure, they will be required to remain in mandatory quarantine at their own cost.
– All travellers will be screened on arrival and those presenting with symptoms will be required to remain in quarantine until a repeat COVID-19 test is conducted.

– All travellers will be asked to install the COVID Alert South Africa mobile app.
Countries that have used this type of app have been able to manage the coronavirus pandemic quite effectively.
In preparation for the re-opening of our borders, South African missions abroad will open for visa applications and all long-term visas will be reinstated.
The tourism sector is one of our greatest economic drivers.
We are ready to open our doors again to the world, and invite travellers to enjoy our mountains, our beaches, our vibrant cities and our wildlife game parks in safety and confidence.
Also as part of the gradual return to regular economic and social activity:
– The hours of curfew have been changed. The curfew will now apply between midnight and 4am.
– The sale of alcohol at retail outlets for home consumption is now permitted from Monday to Friday, from 09h00 to 17h00.
– Alcohol will be permitted for on-site consumption in licensed establishments only and with strict adherence to the curfew.
In the next few days, the updated regulations will be published and Ministers will provide detailed briefings.
The Department of Public Service and Administration will shortly issue circulars to all public servants on the measures that will enable the return of all areas of government to full operation safely and without undue delay.
Because there are several remaining restrictions that can only be enacted through disaster regulations, we have already extended the national state of disaster by a month to 15 October 2020.
The move to alert level 1 removes many of the remaining restrictions on economic activity, although it may be some time before it is safe for all sectors to return to full operation.
Global and domestic demand and supply of goods and services for some sectors will remain low for the foreseeable future, regardless of the lifting of restrictions.
It is therefore vital that we move with urgency to rebuild our economy, restore growth and create jobs.
Following several weeks of engagement, the social partners at NEDLAC have made tremendous progress on an ambitious social compact for economic recovery.
This represents a historic milestone for our country, demonstrating what can be achieved when we unite to confront an urgent crisis.
Cabinet will build on this emerging common ground to finalise the country’s economic reconstruction and recovery plan in the coming weeks.
The reconstruction and recovery plan that will be finalised will build on the R500 billion economic and social relief package we announced in April, which has provided vital support for households, companies and workers at a time of dire need.
Through the special COVID-19 grants and the top-up of existing grants, well over R30 billion in additional support has already been provided directly to more than 16 million people from poor households.
More than 800,000 companies have benefited through the UIF wage support scheme and through the grants and loans provided by various government departments and public entities.
More than 4 million workers have received R42 billion in wage support, helping to protect these jobs even while companies were not able to operate.
This support has touched the lives of millions of South Africans, and has made a real difference to those in greatest need.
The UIF benefit has been extended until the end of the national state of disaster to ensure that those workers and companies whose income remains at risk can continue to be supported.
In addition to those businesses that have received direct support, many more companies have benefited from tax relief measures worth in the region of R70 billion.
And millions of South Africans have benefited from the historic reduction in interest rates.
Adjustments have been made to the Loan Guarantee Scheme to make it easier for companies of any size to access credit at low interest rates, with repayments delayed for as much as twelve months.
We encourage all companies who have faced a disruption of their earnings to seek support from this scheme while the economy recovers.
At the beginning of the pandemic we appealed to South Africans to demonstrate their solidarity and patriotism by supporting government’s effort in dealing with the pandemic.
We established the Solidarity Fund, which has received some 300,000 donations from almost 15,000 individuals and nearly 2,500 companies.
The donations came from ordinary people and workers, religious organisations, political parties, non-governmental organisations, trusts and foundations.
Through its work, the Solidarity Fund has demonstrated the power of social partnership and cooperation.
Since it was established, it has raised over R3.1 billion in donations from companies, foundations and individuals.
It has, to date, allocated R2.4 billion to support key areas of our national coronavirus response.
These include the purchase of testing equipment, medical supplies and personal protective equipment and the local manufacture of ventilators. It extends to food relief for vulnerable households, vouchers for subsistence farmers, care for survivors of gender-based violence and a national COVID awareness campaign.
Fellow South Africans,
Violence against women and children has continued unabated during the period of the pandemic.
We are determined to continue with our resolve to deal with the scourge of gender-based violence and femicide.
Based on the latest data, we have identified 30 hotspots around the country where this problem is most rife.
As we move to the next alert level, we are increasing and improving support services for survivors of gender-based violence, particularly in the identified hotspots.
We have to do so not just because the lockdown is being eased, but as part of work already underway to implement the National Strategic Plan adopted by Cabinet earlier this year.
This includes the rollout of an integrated and multidisciplinary model that incorporates psycho-social support, case investigation, housing services and economic empowerment for survivors under one roof.
The Khuseleka One Stop Centres expand on the mandate of the existing network of Thuthuzela Care Centres, and are already operational in districts in the North West, Limpopo and the Eastern Cape.
Work is underway to expand this model of care and support to all provinces.
Let us spare no effort to eradicate the problem of violence against women and children.
The coronavirus pandemic has exposed the extent to which corruption has infected our society and robbed our country of vital resources at the time we need them most.
Our law enforcement agencies are making important progress in investigating all allegations of the misuse of COVID-related funds.
The Special Investigating Unit has submitted its first interim report to me, detailing the progress of its investigations in all provinces and in some national departments and entities.
As the SIU concludes its investigations, we will be in a position to make public their findings.
The SIU is working alongside 8 other agencies in the COVID-19 fusion centre to detect, investigate and prosecute any instances of corruption.
As part of the effort to encourage transparency and accountability, the National Treasury has published online the details of all COVID-related contracts awarded by public entities at national and provincial level.
This is a historic development that we hope will set a precedent for all future expenditure of this nature.
The Office of the Auditor-General has also played an extremely valuable role in identifying weaknesses and risks in the management of COVID resources, and detecting cases of possible fraud for investigation by the agencies represented in the fusion centre.
We continue to work to strengthen our anti-corruption efforts through measures to provide the NPA and other law enforcement agencies with the human and financial resources needed to tackle corruption, strengthening of specialised commercial crime courts, which will help expedite COVID-related cases, and the finalisation of the new National Anti-Corruption Strategy.
We are determined to ensure that the worst of this pandemic is behind us.
We cannot afford a resurgence of infections in our country.
A second wave would be devastating to our country, and would again disrupt our lives and livelihoods.
It is up to each and every South African to ensure that this does not happen.
As we settle into a new normal and learn to live alongside the virus, we must continue to exercise every possible precaution to avoid infecting others.
This is how we are going to keep ourselves safe and keep our economy open:
Firstly, we must wear a mask whenever we are in public and make sure that it covers both the nose and mouth.
Secondly, we must maintain a distance of one-and-a-half metres from other people at all times and ensure that we are in spaces that are well ventilated.
Thirdly, we must continue to wash our hands or use hand sanitiser regularly.
Fourthly, we must download the COVID Alert South Africa app, and protect our families and communities.
In just over a week from now, South Africans will celebrate Heritage Day under conditions that will be better in many ways from what we have experienced over the last six months.
I urge everyone to use this public holiday as family time, to reflect on the difficult journey we have all travelled, to remember those who have lost their lives, and to quietly rejoice in the remarkable and diverse heritage of our nation.
And there can be no better celebration of our South African-ness than joining the global phenomenon that is the Jerusalema dance challenge.
So I urge all of you to take up this challenge on Heritage Day and show the world what we are capable of.
Just as we have acted together to defeat this virus, we must roll up our sleeves and get to work rebuilding our economy.
We have a mammoth task ahead of us.
It will take the combined effort of each and every South African to restore our nation to prosperity and development.
This is now the task of our generation and our work starts today.
We have overcome doubt and cynicism to confront the worst public health threat in living memory.
We have shown what South Africans are capable of when we join forces.
Let us hold on to that spirit of unity and solidarity.
Let us move forward with determination and resolve.
May God continue to bless South Africa and her people.
I thank you.
Issued by the Presidency of the Republic of South Africa
www.thepresidency.gov.za
 
I won't go in a restaurant if I have to wear a mask. I sure as heck won't fly all the way to Africa wearing one. Kind of sucks being almost 70 have the money than we have this virus crap happen. Well at least my Greenland trophies are on their way from Coppersmith in Dallas.
 
Facts, nested in rhetorical simplicity, have always seemed the most effective means to counter the typical closed-minded, emotional climate change acolyte or their latest "we are all going to die" Covid alarmist cousin. Interesting isn't it that the belief systems seem to overlap substantially. The respective followers are even being used by the same political class to further the same political agenda. It should be a red flag to any educated person when a scientific theory is couched in terms of whether or not we "believe in" it - in this case - climate change. The religious parallel is unmistakable and should be disturbing.

What also should be concerning, to even those who swallow these belief systems whole cloth, is the patent refusal to entertain alternative facts or argument. When one points out the hypocrisy of an Obama sipping wine on his coastal estate or perhaps a Pelosi eating ice cream from her freezers as small businesses collapse, we are told not to question their "convictions." That is the definition of surrendering one's independence of thought. - one's ability to use one's common sense.

I freely admit that I am open to being convinced that man is causing dramatic warming of the earth. I have yet to see those conclusive facts. Indeed, that a large group of politicians and idealists have seized on the climate change issue to support a particular economic and political agenda that is the antithesis of democratic capitalism while doing everything in their power to mute alternative theses, is, at least, cause for added suspicion if not outright skepticism.

I think the MSM is, in fact, offering a single catechism of stories with regard to both the theory of man-made climate change and the seriousness of Covid (along with their hate of the President). That is by definition a propaganda campaign. I believe it should be the responsibility of any free-thinking citizen to try and fully understand the "why" behind such a coordinated strategy. I believe most historically aware individuals would agree that Joseph Goebbels was something of an expert on the subject. But you are correct, he was indeed a Nazi. Perhaps you prefer Trofim Lysenko or some other Leninist or Stalinist. They were after all Soviet Socialists.

So, I believe you are wrong with regard your "facts." I dispute them. I use alternative information, comparative analysis, examples, and yes, my God-given common sense. And I have no earthly idea to what you refer by "means" justifying the end with regard to any argument I made. But with regard to that whole common sense thing - I would urge you to try it.

Doubling down huh?

So if you keep using fallacious examples I’m gonna keep pointing a glowing neon finger at ‘em. Nancy Pelosi is a politician I fundamentally disagree with about many things. This does not automatically make anything negative about her true in my mind. Please do map out the logic behind ice cream = hypocrisy. Not for a second saying she’s not a hypocrite but this is like proof of grass growing = cow.

Alternative information does not equal alternative facts. One is useful to create stronger scientific conclusions and one doesn’t exist.

The “why” behind a “coordinated strategy” to report what scientists say about both climate change and a pandemic may have some nefarious ulterior motivation or they could be doing their job. Being incredulous of the media in general is probably wise. Choosing poor sources of news intentionally makes no sense even when they are telling one what they want to hear, feel in their gut or are otherwise convinced of. I’d argue it’s pretty hard to be both a National Review conservative and a Fox News conservative.

Intimating I’m a Socialist? Subtle bait. Not taking it. Good day.
 
Doubling down huh?

So if you keep using fallacious examples I’m gonna keep pointing a glowing neon finger at ‘em. Nancy Pelosi is a politician I fundamentally disagree with about many things. This does not automatically make anything negative about her true in my mind. Please do map out the logic behind ice cream = hypocrisy. Not for a second saying she’s not a hypocrite but this is like proof of grass growing = cow.

Alternative information does not equal alternative facts. One is useful to create stronger scientific conclusions and one doesn’t exist.

The “why” behind a “coordinated strategy” to report what scientists say about both climate change and a pandemic may have some nefarious ulterior motivation or they could be doing their job. Being incredulous of the media in general is probably wise. Choosing poor sources of news intentionally makes no sense even when they are telling one what they want to hear, feel in their gut or are otherwise convinced of. I’d argue it’s pretty hard to be both a National Review conservative and a Fox News conservative.

Intimating I’m a Socialist? Subtle bait. Not taking it. Good day.

I’m sorry but I can’t follow your argument at all. Based on what was said previously I’d comment as follows:

1) The climate is changing and has been trending as such since before the industrial revolution. That is an incontrovertible fact. However, the data supporting human causation of this change is tenuous at best. The liberal left has chosen to carry this flag and demonize anyone who asks for scientific rigor in the analysis of the link. This is the very effect Red Leg was pointing to in the reference to Goebbels. They state causation as a fact without scientific rigor to support their claim, they then demonize anyone who questions the validity of their statements.

Furthermore, leaders in the liberal left undermine their position by living lifestyles that would indicate that they don’t care about their personal contribution to the alleged problem.

2) Politicians from both sides are politicizing issues that simply need common sense solutions. Biden’s opposition to shutting down travel from China has now flipped to criticism of Trump for not shutting down travel sooner. Seriously? They must think that we are a special kind of stupid.

I have tried to lay out two scenarios that are purely fact based observations. If these seem fallacious, I’m afraid I can’t help you.
 
Most all the politicians are people who are real close to needing assisted living. I believe the climate is getting warmer. The problem is that countries like China and India don't want to be held to the same standards as us. Pretty hard also to tell Brazil to stop cutting down the rain forest when we plowed the great plains. The people in Greenland told me they didn't mind it getting warmer.
 
With respect, that is nonsense. On several levels.

First of all, we are a continental country with a republican form of government. The States, not the federal government, have responsibility for disaster response - storms, earthquakes, and pandemics. The Federal Government is there to provide support. Agencies like FEMA, the CDC, and DOD are tools which state government can request. Special appropriations represent another form of aid during such a crisis. All have been effectively employed.

Such decentralized management was inherently necessary in the case of a mildly dangerous pandemic where the public health environment ranges from the teaming burroughs of New York or Los Angeles to small town and rural America. The policy of one would be ludicrous in another.

And while it might get away with it for a while due to media and politician stoked hysterical citizens, the Federal government taking charge of the total response to such a crisis would herald an eventual constitutional crisis. Last I looked, we still have a Bill of Rights. And no matter how hysterical the fear mongering, I am unwilling to give those rights away to a "temporary" dictatorship.

Considering those challenges, the US has done remarkably well. Our deaths per 100,000 are less than the European Union. Known cases are only somewhat higher, but we have done substantially more testing. Who knows what they have been in China. Hospitals never reached over capacity, and no one in this country ever perished due to the absence of a ventilator. Of course none of that reaches the MSM outlets watched by half the country.

The actual worst case scenario took place in the State and City of New York. There, where draconian stay at home orders were dictated, little was done to protect the most vulnerable citizens in the state - those residing in assisted living and nursing homes. Indeed, the governor's patient acceptance criteria dictated to those homes insured the death of thousands. So if you are intent on finding a criminally negligent leader to blame, you might start with Governor Cuomo.

Finally, all responses to issues like this are indeed a cost benefit analysis problem. How much damage to the American economy and personal livelihoods is worth saving the next Covid patient? How many people with heart issues, undetected cancer, emotional trauma, etc should would kill to save the next Covid patient? These are real questions a governor and a President have to ask. They seem an obvious and necessary calculus to me, but then again, I was a professional soldier.

At the start of this, the horribly flawed UK model indicated +2.5 million deaths were likely in the US. Had that been true, there would be some (though only "some" - we are a nation of 325 million) legitimate reason for the concern being pandered by the media. In spite of that possibility, ceasing all economic activity was never a real option. As the truth about the actual fatality rate (still largely hidden by the MSM and one of our political parties) became apparent, the President tried to strike a hopeful balance. I too wish he could articulate his vision and strategy more clearly, but his actions - when compared to the nation's closest peer - the European Union - have worked pretty well.

And we have quite a ways to go before we hit half a million deaths - even as many states have counted them. And of course there is that pesky vaccine solution on the horizon. I should not be surprised that the MSM and the Democrat Party seem willing to politicize that as well. There is a second level of criminality it might be worth your time to review.

@Red Leg

Great post. Measured, insightful, and on point as always. FYI, I may borrow your opening sentence in the future if you don't mind?
 
When will the governments listen to other people than their pet experts....if you dont follow the standard lines you aren't listened to....what a total fkup

What a wealth of common sense this highly qualified observer provides.
Doubling down huh?

So if you keep using fallacious examples I’m gonna keep pointing a glowing neon finger at ‘em. Nancy Pelosi is a politician I fundamentally disagree with about many things. This does not automatically make anything negative about her true in my mind. Please do map out the logic behind ice cream = hypocrisy. Not for a second saying she’s not a hypocrite but this is like proof of grass growing = cow.

Alternative information does not equal alternative facts. One is useful to create stronger scientific conclusions and one doesn’t exist.

The “why” behind a “coordinated strategy” to report what scientists say about both climate change and a pandemic may have some nefarious ulterior motivation or they could be doing their job. Being incredulous of the media in general is probably wise. Choosing poor sources of news intentionally makes no sense even when they are telling one what they want to hear, feel in their gut or are otherwise convinced of. I’d argue it’s pretty hard to be both a National Review conservative and a Fox News conservative.

Intimating I’m a Socialist? Subtle bait. Not taking it. Good day.
You both describe and illustrate exactly the issues with limited, or worse, constructed, information. Moreover, you have no idea whatsoever informs my opinions.

I subscribe to the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and New York Times. I regularly review postings on National Review, AOL, CNN, Fox, OAN, American Thinker, Politico, Breitbart etc. etc. I maintain a broad correspondence with a wide range of acquaintances who you would likely find interesting. I consider myself both educated and well informed, with a reasonable amount of political and international experience to help separate fact from agenda. Most importantly, I have a finally honed intolerance to being told what to think. I suppose it is that latter trait that most disappoints me about the hand-ringing portion of the electorate who walk lockstep with the bilge they are daily fed. One would only hope a little common sense would prevail.

You really ought to delve into this climate science just a bit. It is a worthwhile debate that has been shanghaied by the international political left. They have convinced an amazing number of otherwise sensible people that the only way that the planet can be saved is by allowing those elites to totally control their lives. The key to me is that they vilify any dissenting opinion. Nothing could be more non-scientific. The parallels that a persecuted Galileo faced in the early 17th century are striking.

The same playbook is at work with the Covid pandemic. In proportion to our population and the annual death rate, very, very few of us are going to die of this disease. That is a fact, however inconvenient for you or the left. Not many more are going to even get sick. That is even more inconvenient. Shortly we will have a vaccine, and that, apparently, is practically intolerable; so much so, Kamala Harris is seemingly happy to put at risk their own followers by convincing them not to take it. That to me is criminal.

Had the vast powers of the state been focused on protecting the most vulnerable instead of crushing our whole population, I have no doubt the death toll would be far lower - particularly in the Northeast. I do not believe that is even debatable - probably why both Coumo and Murphy try to deflect the issue so strenuously and why the MSM ignores it. You really should actually read about Sweden's experiences with the pandemic.

With respect to Pelosi and her ice cream, it was an allusion to Marie Antoinette. I am sure you are familiar with her alleged "let them eat cake" dismissal of the French commoners caught up in the economic crisis that led to the French Revolution. It probably wasn't actually true, but meanwhile, in the 21st century, we have the uber-wealthy Pelosi on video taking the little people through her multiple refrigerators of ice cream as small businesses failed across her state. Couldn't make it up. Though the MSM certainly did all they could to cover it up.

I would love to read the history of this period as it will be written a generation or two from now. I truly believe this will not be an episode characterized by a pandemic in the way we look at the Spanish Flu of 1918, but rather studied as a period of mass hysteria generated by an irresponsible main stream media, fanned by an out of control social media. I think one of the major take away's - lessons learned if you will - is that a generation that has never faced an existential threat is susceptible to the worst sort of fear mongering and pandering by an exploitive political class.
 
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International travel to RSA open October 1st!

Wouldn't get too excited....this is a list of countries that have had visa exemptions revoked....so I presume you wont be allowed in from these countries at the present time of SA reopening to international travel....hope it's wrong....

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Wonder which states are in lockdown. :unsure:



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Wouldn't get too excited....this is a list of countries that have had visa exemptions revoked....so I presume you wont be allowed in from these countries at the present time of SA reopening to international travel....hope it's wrong....

View attachment 368134

Thanks for this post and info. I had to go back to read the title of this thread - "COVID-19 Coronavirus UPDATES, BANS, CLOSURES, ADVISORY, etc." - Good to see posts that are back on track about travel. I suppose with so little hunting available we all have to vent somewhere and somehow. Keep the good travel advisory info flowing though I say......
 
Thanks for this post and info. I had to go back to read the title of this thread - "COVID-19 Coronavirus UPDATES, BANS, CLOSURES, ADVISORY, etc." - Good to see posts that are back on track about travel. I suppose with so little hunting available we all have to vent somewhere and somehow. Keep the good travel advisory info flowing though I say......

As I said not sure if its correct but they are making an announcement nearer open day. But countries will be graded on amount of cases...so who knows
 
Glad I live in Canada!
 
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Not so sure about uptake on mask wearing as am sat in cruiser in downtown lusaka in a shopping/market area and would say possibly 1 in a 100 has a mask...and that's either around neck..on chin...or just covering mouth...no distancing etc....but report below is good...apart from billboard's warning about it ..having to put mask on to go into malls and temp taken going into some shops and hand sanitizer there and restaurants etc..you really wouldn't know anything was going on here....basically life as normal....testing obviously hasn't happened in big numbers but dont have capabilities...

 
Good article by bbc for a change...but obviously the muppets in government wont listen as it goes against their pet experts verbal spoutings

This is the article we have been waiting for. - just 3 months late
 

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Impact shots from the last hunt

Early morning Impala hunt, previous link was wrong video

Headshot on jackal this morning

Mature Eland Bull taken in Tanzania, at 100 yards, with 375 H&H, 300gr, Federal Premium Expanding bullet.

20231012_145809~2.jpg
 
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