Coronavirus outbreak

[Buck]

Having never worked in a supermarket I don’t know if this thought is workable or not, so feel free to adjust it or shoot me down in flames.

Gather all the highly sought-after essentials that people are panic buying into a couple of roped off aisles. Customers don’t get to wander up and fill their trolleys but instead a staff member(s) will retrieve the permitted quantity and hand it over. Customer continues with remainder of shopping duties.

It’s by no means foolproof but could it be made to work? It would just be going back to the old days when the shop assistant got you everything on your list while you waited.

This is already happening but via the checkout software. If you try to buy say 3 of an item and the limit is now set to 2 then it won’t permit the sale.
the challenge is restocking the shelves as a lot of stock is having to be pulled from holding depots (some are owned by the retailers but some are owned by the manufacturers) which takes longer as its another journey and process or the suppliers are “just in time” and have to up production to meet the demand spike.

 

[Rocky]

Jury trials postponed in Scotland, according to the BBC.

Beeb is also saying there are 'calls' from barristers for courts in England to do the same.

I can see the focus on the jury, because it's the one part of the process where keeping your distance from others is very difficult.

Other hearings can take place in reasonable safety.

I've no inside knowledge on this one, but it looks to me inevitable England and Wales will have to follow suit.

Worth pointing out the Scottish order applies to trials yet to start, so the high profile case of Alex Salmond will continue as normal.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-51935320

I gather that in WW2 cases (other than murder and treason) could be held with as few as seven jurors. I wonder if that would be the way forward rather than judge only trials.

 

[Rusty Nails]

This is making me extremely angry. Why can’t they just shop as normal?

Because this is nothing like normal.

On the one hand we are told there is plenty of stuff around and then newspapers report shortages. Which is very worrying if you are one of the groups that is being told you could have to stay in for months. The UK has grown a system of large supermarkets away from high streets so not everyone has a local shop they can just pop into.

We are lucky in that we have a couple of local shops within a few hundred yards and we have a large fridge freezer that at any one time has enough in it to keep us going for weeks, and my wife can make great meals out of the most basic ingredients. Many people today are not so self-sufficient when it comes to cooking.

I am old enough to remember how to keep squares of newspaper hanging on a hook in the toilet, so am not going to go into a panic over toilet roll shortages.

I don't like this panic-buying, but until I know the individual circumstances I will not rush to condemn.

 

[pawl]

This is making me extremely angry. Why can’t they just shop as normal?

It annoys me also.We have done our weekly shop online for sometime now..we can view as you probably know your regular basket once a week we either add goods we don’t use on a regular basis or delete items from the regular list.So far it has worked well On occasion they my put a substitute in same product different producer.Not usually a problem

Not ordered toilet rolls as Mrs P has always bought extra when they are on offer so we probably will not need to order more for two weeks.

I remember the period of rationing during the latter stages of the war and post war I may be wrong buti ido fell that we’re were a more caring. community back then we new are neighbours back then. I have lived for some time and only really know a few of my neighbours well

 

[tom73]

Possibly because, if they're anything like me, they're looking at 12+ weeks being isolated. There's no home delivery slots and I'm awaiting a phone call to say I'm off-limits.

We've about 2-3 weeks worth of food in and we'd need to send my 15yo shopping for us if both get phone calls.

Ok i understand that but people don't need what my mate spotted last week. A couple walking out with 2x24 multi pack toilet rolls each that's 96 rolls FFS.
Also if times are going to get really hard than people can't expect to cook the same stuff they will have to learn how to make things a bit different. Problem is most have no idea how to manage.
The only way we can get though this is to pull together.
I can't help my neighbour get some shopping or cook some stuff for the freezer if even I can't find stuff for them or have stuff to cook for them.

 

[Pale Rider]

I gather that in WW2 cases (other than murder and treason) could be held with as few as seven jurors. I wonder if that would be the way forward rather than judge only trials.

That may work for a jury box which would then have an occupant in every other seat.

Most retiring rooms also have enough space for seven people to sit further than a metre or more away from each other.

Waiting juror rooms might be more difficult, because the equivalent of several panels has to wait there, although you would be using the seven times table rather than the 12 times one.

Filing in and out of court could be a problem, but I suppose it could be managed by sending them in with a time gap between each.

The jurors all have to pile into a lift at Newcastle Crown Court, so they might have to do two or three at a time.

Anything is better than letting a judge decide.

As judges often say when thanking a panel:

"We are very grateful to you for coming to court to do your public duty.
"The jury system may not be perfect, but it's the best we have.
"If you weren't here to decide guilt or innocence, someone like me would have to do it."

 

[Buck]

I popped into Sainsbury’s this morning for a few. It’s and pieces and it was still devastated. No fresh chicken or meat of any sort but odds and ends of bacon and a smattering of ready meals. Fresh fruit and veg was low but OK. no soap or toilet rolls.
The priority was on the grocery side with pallet boards of stock 9n the shop floor and everyone helping out to get the stock on display (They normally only revert to boards instead of roll cages at Peak times as it is much quicker to pick and distribute on boards vs roll pallets)

Fresh Food will have been trimmed by the forecasting teams as they will be modelling that people are switching to stock cupboard items so trying to prevent losses due to date code issues. Also, the supermarkets will be throttling back perishables to give more space on the delivery vehicles for the non-perishable items.

In my observation, everyone was being very calm and I didn’t see any evidence of people buying multiples of products (those that were available). checkout colleague said it had been busy since first thing.

 

[pawl]

Making meals from basics seems to be a long lost skill.Fortunatlly Mrs p is a good cook so we don’t have pre prepared food very often Majority of meals are from fresh produce and usually cooks double what is needed for one meal,the extra is frozen

 

[itboffin]

its nuts i popped into Tesco for some mushrooms and greens to add to my lunch stir-fry and all but the fruit & veg were decimated, mind you the booze is still well stocked, shame i'm not drinking

 

[Buck]

We’ll also being using this as a time to look at whats I. Our freezers and end up with a few “concoctions” as we call it. Not unheard of for the four of us to eat a meal together consisting of four different lots of left overs etc.!

 

[Julia9054]

squares of newspaper hanging on a hook

Who still reads newspapers? I’m not wiping my bum on my iPad!

 

[Mo1959]

Making meals from basics seems to be a long lost skill.Fortunatlly Mrs p is a good cook so we don’t have pre prepared food very often Majority of meals are from fresh produce and usually cooks double what is needed for one meal,the extra is frozen

Embarrassed to admit, i don’t cook. Don’t even have a freezer just now, just a fridge with small freezer compartment so I rely on the shops having fresh stuff as I just walk round a couple of times per week to get what I need.

 

[pawl]

Embarrassed to admit, i don’t cook. Don’t even have a freezer just now, just a fridge with small freezer compartment so I rely on the shops having fresh stuff as I just walk round a couple of times per week to get what I need.

Don’t feel embarrassed,if I was on my own I would be doing the same thing.

 

[Rusty Nails]

Who still reads newspapers? I’m not wiping my bum on my iPad!

Pass the mind bleach!

 

[itboffin]

i would also say and dont hate me for this but toilet rolls arent the only way to clean ones under carriage, think terry nappies ....just saying