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© Thomson Reuters 2020.New Zealand PM hits back at Trump's comments on coronavirus 'big surge'
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Kaerimashita
WAs always a red herring. what this shows is that lockdowns and travel bans are not a panacea. We are going to have to learn to live with occasional outbreaks of Covid for the forseeable future.
theResident
Completely correct. We will have to learn with it and just get on with life like this for a while yet. Not quite sure why 2 people have thumbed you down.
InspectorGadget
Agreed. Sounds like the leaky border still needs a bit of fine tuning.
This is all a major learning experience for everyone involved.
Luddite
No country can eliminate Covid, that window of opportunity was closed early this year. Obviously it was never eliminated in NZ in the first place. Mitigation is the only option for countries now, through widespread testing and local lockdowns when necessary.
Akula
I'm pretty sure that they know where this current cluster originated. Ardern is hiding the information to avoid a backlash from voters.
InspectorGadget
In sort, no squabbling, it was logical and everyone supported it or could see the reasons for doing so.
Blacklabel
so they locked down their largest city and delayed their election but it wasnt caused by a surge? that seems nonsensical.
carpslidy
Nz set an unsuitable goal of elimination and now have to have the common sense to change strategy.
Blacklabel
so the lockdown and the delay of the election support that there is no "big surge"?
what shows that the remarks were patently wrong? (Yes, I agree it was unnecessary for Trump to call out NZ, but what he said isnt wrong at this moment in time, or else election would be on and city would be open)
Bob Fosse
To you, yes I imagine it does.
i@n
It was bound to happen because they can't refuse entry to returning citizens.
They may be able to stop community transmission again but chances are it will just be a cycle.
It is what it is.
serendipitous1
Yeah Donald, a terrible upsurge of 9 cases and no new deaths!! Time to get your own pandemic under 1,000 deaths a day and let NZ do her thing.
fxgai
Shouldn’t have been crowing about the 100 days thing... looks a bit silly now, to change the goal posts.
Eradication didn’t work out as a viable strategy.
Although yes, she did a better job with New Zealand than Trump did with the US, methinks. Not hard to beat that disaster.
geronimo2006
Taking the differences in population into account, the US has 70 times the daily rate of infections that NZ currently has. So, according to Trump, if the so-called-surge in NZ is just terrible, how should he describe the situation in the US? Answer - Great. Why? - cause he lives in a completely different realty.
Bob Fosse
It would be so much easier for trump if every female politician were also an aspiring TV starlet or beauty pageant entrant. He has a playbook for that scenario.
Poor man must be terribly frustrated seeing female politicians doing so much better than he is.
I wonder why he doesn’t go after Merkel.
Kaerimashita
It is a big surge. From 0 to 13.
ClippetyClop
Nobody ever claimed it would be.
Some people seem to think that if a measure isn’t 100% effective then it isn’t worth taking at all.
ulysses
Don't worry Jacinda, mathematics isn't one of trump's stronger points.
Other than lying he is bad at everything!!!
Starbucks
For those who don't know,Again,both sides of parliament are in agreement to delay the election.
Alfie Noakes
Ah, so this is why there are always accounts attacking Jacinda Arden on this site; it's because Trump doesn't like her. The penny has dropped. Naruhodo, as they say.
Yeah, right. And who told you that, your mate Carl Benjamin? Link us up to another one of his videos will you, I could do with a good laugh.
Bobby Fizzicola
You are pretty sure you know? Where do you get your information? It is more likely you are making up rubbish that suits your narrative. People like you are part of the problem why the net is becoming a worthless forum.
He is not even a good liar in that his lies are easy to detect. I am surprised people still listen to him. When information becomes unreliable, it is most profitable to discount that source of information...
rainyday
So for those keeping score:
13 infections in New Zealand = “Terrible surge”
5,514,651 infections in US = “I’m doing such a great job, best in the world”.
Blacklabel
Surge, surge, surge. None of them related to Trump whatsoever.
https://www.france24.com/en/20200814-new-zealand-super-rugby-match-cancelled-over-coronavirus-surge
https://www.trtworld.com/asia/new-zealand-delays-its-election-by-four-weeks-over-surge-in-covid-19-cases-38959
https://time.com/5879177/new-zealand-coronavirus-cases/
itsonlyrocknroll
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, must not react to playground poking and prodding.
A heartfelt genuine but simple statement of condolences to the families of 170,000 lost US souls, victims of the devastating pandemic.
Over and out, point made
BurakuminDes
@ Blacklabel - Because Kiwis of all political stripes value lives. If the month delay saves even one life, its worth shutting down and putting off the election for a short time. This is what responsible leaders do. Possibly difficult for Trump supporters to grasp.
NZ - 22 lives lost, and doing everything in their power to keep it very low.
USA under Trump - 173, 713 lives lost, and tragically counting. Plus an economy he has turned into a smoking ruin.
Hervé L'Eisa
rainyday, in case you've missed several days of the news, the 13 cases are NEW cases that are added TODAY to the ever-growing total of NEW cases that have popped up over the past week, a total of about 100. I wonder why THAT tally has been omitted?
Hervé L'Eisa
Source data:
https://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/diseases-and-conditions/covid-19-novel-coronavirus/covid-19-current-situation/covid-19-current-cases/covid-19-significant-clusters
Significant clusters in New Zealand
There is currently one open cluster in New Zealand, currently known as the ‘Auckland August cluster’. Data specific to this cluster is available below.
Auckland August cluster –
Auckland August cluster: (location) :Auckland (total to date) :69 (new cases in last 24hrs) :12 (currently under investigation) : 69 (status) Under investigationOpen
rainyday
Oh well, that makes a big difference. 100 cases? Wow, thats almost as many as the US generates every 2 minutes.
Blacklabel
its not a comparison to the USA. Its whether it is a surge or not.
It is. per media reports, separate from any Trump comments.
Hervé L'Eisa
Blacklabel, exactly! From zero(from an arrogantly prideful declaration of 102 days) to now officially 69 constitutes a surge.
Bob Fosse
‘Arrogantly prideful’...the only surge happening is in rapidly declining brain cells.
rainyday
Its the bloody president of the USA who made the comment for crying out loud!
1glenn
By now, absolutely no one on Earth should be surprised when Trump opens his mouth, only to tell a lie.
What would be truly newsworthy would be if Trump said something truthful, for a change. Now that would be newsworthy.
Starbucks
@ Bobby fizzicola
One good thing he's done is to galvanize all the kiwis to getting rid of it.If only the rest of the world could vote.
Dr Maybe
@Blacklabel
so they locked down their largest city and delayed their election but it wasnt caused by a surge? that seems nonsensical.
To you it might. However, that's what competent leaders do to combat something like this. "Go hard, go early", as Ardern, that rarest of beasts (a real leader, with the interests of all her people at heart) said. We're talking about a handful of cases, but authorities have to jump on the first signs of Covid immediately or else it gets out of control.
Zaphod
In a couple of months, when we see the final figures, NZ will not look very different from Sweden. Yes, there will be difference, but as big as now. Populations are still working there way towards herd immunity, some slower some faster. The idea that you can isolate a modern country from the virus by locking down is silly.
Jimizo
A patently wrong Trump comment? Another one with a PhD in stating the bloody obvious.
rainyday
Which would perhaps be why she said “Obviously”?
Peter14
What this shows is that lockdowns and travel bans work better than any other action.
This moderate increase in cases is hardly a "surge" but that makes it sound worse than it really is, which was what Trumps wanted. All an attempt to have people look away from the American catastrophe that he is responsible for. Like a worm trying to wriggle off the hook, but he is responsible for the US disaster, and smart Americans will hold him accountable on November 3. Let us hope the number of Smart Americans far outweighs the dumb ones.
Graham DeShazo
Pot, meet Kettle. One of these countries is run by an intelligent person who listens to scientists and has her constituents best interest in mind. Her country has been an example to us all
The other one is run by a narcissistic sociopath who also happens to be an idiot (which is lucky because if he had even a modicum of intelligence, he’d be even more dangerous) who’s default position on any decision is “What’s in it for me?”
Trump doesn’t even have the intelligence to realize what a buffoon he makes of himself when he says these laughably stupid things.
Hervé L'Eisa
"Every other single country in the world has experienced resurgence. We went longer than many, our outbreak is certainly not as significant as what we are seeing in Vietnam, in Hong Kong, in South Korea or in Australia,(YET ) " she told state broadcaster TVNZ.
Time will tell.
i@n
Trump does say stupid things but he still score points with it. Like in this instance he managed to reel in Ardern and succeeded in attracting attention and creating distraction.
Hervé L'Eisa
"New Zealand reimposed lockdown measures in Auckland after several new cases were discovered. Before that, the country had gone more than 100 days without any detected community transmission of the illness. The government has raised eyebrows with its heavy-handed response to the handful of new cases, even going so far as postponing the country’s general election, originally set to take place on September 19, to October 17. The move sparked comparisons between Ardern(praised by the adoring left) and Trump(loathed by the same left) , who himself floated the idea of delaying November’s presidential election so that Americans could “properly, securely, and safely vote.”"
Why the disparity?
" Still, online pundits have quickly drawn parallels between the situation in the two countries, arguing that people should hold Ardern to the same standards as Trump, when he was labeled a “dictator” and “fascist” for toying with the idea."
Bob Fosse
This question has been adequately answered several times.
n1k1
I think Trump, Herve and Black are absolutely correct. How is "big sure" wrong ?
Maybe. When you have only 10 hospitals in the whole country and a very primitive economy
I think competent leaders of countries prioritize science, medical care and vaccine development. Trust me you will not see a single vaccine candidate nor treatment coming from NZ.
What is the PhD in and where was this obtained ?
Lastly another question, why would you pick a fight with Trump now and over semantics while campaigning ? What if he wins ? Isn't it a bit silly ?
Peter14
Arden will likely win the next election in NZ because she deserves to, no matter when it will be held.
Trump is trying to postpone the election as it is likely he will lose in a landslide, not to save lives.
Aden is a competent leader who is respected at home and abroad. Trump is an incompetant leader who is despised at home and abroad.
That is why the disparity.
Graham DeShazo
n1k1,
Trump would lose an argument with a head of shredded cabbage. He’s that dumb.
Peter14
My spelling sux *Ardern.
n1k1
He maybe not be very likeable but he is not dumb. He plays the media anyway he wants , he plays the markets anyway he wants he is definitely smarter then me actually.
ClippetyClop
That isn't good news for you.
Smart people don't do dumb things as frequently as Trump does. They don't need to keep trying to convince people they are smart by turning hurricanes into sunshine by nuking them, then putting those sunshine pills into the body with a swig of drain cleaner to end pandemics.
Trump's leadership has been so pitiful that he's trying to find people who are doing worse than him. His misery needs company.
wtfjapan
He plays the media anyway he wants , he plays the markets anyway he wants he is definitely smarter then me actually.
and how is his play on the markets as of today, seems pretty abysmal , his play of the 40million lost jobs, or his play on the failed pandemic response, estimates that 200000 Americans will be dead before the end of the year.... Trump fans oh that all apart of his big plan. !?
wtfjapan
He maybe not be very likeable but he is not dumb.
losing a $billion in ten yrs and bankrupting a casino!?, even those far richer smarter guys always say, if Trump was smart he would have invested in the stock markets and just sit back, he would have made far more money than putting it in golf resorts and hotels
Desert Tortoise
Sigh. There are forty hospitals just in the Auckland region. There are another 25 in Canterbury. You are as sloppy with the facts as your orange jesus. It's not something to be proud of. Facts matter. Truth matter. Both of these you seem to be unacquainted with.
n1k1
This wasn't part of his plan. No. It probably wasn't even China's plan.
It just happened. Wrong bat kebab shop, i don't know..
It is a big number and it is truly sad, there really isn't much anyone could do. The low mortality in Japan is not a product of superb governance it just happens to be the case for unclear reasons.
Harshly enforcing anything in USA results in clashes with police and death because everyone has a gun. Locking-down obviously would resulted in more lost jobs.
It is not a plan , just like me and perhaps you most of the time it seems to me he plays it by ear.
Given he is 80. I think he is doing OK.
carpslidy
New zealands response is definitely out of line with the rest of the world.
Anyone who just read the headline "nz in lockdown again" would automatically assume the situation is out of control.
This probably means trump doesn't read the whole report, (but we knew this already)
And it means nz"s heavy handed tatics are so out of wack with the rest of the world even an idiot like trump took notice.
Doesnt really reflect well on either country.
n1k1
I think it is more like the truth hurts in this particular instance. You really shouldn't compare NZ with USA .
proxy
So why did Jacinda Ardern delay the democratic election?
ClippetyClop
You should tell Donboy that.
Over 170,000 dead, he should choose his trolling targets better.
Peter Neil
Maybe to reduce the risks of people becoming infected? What do you think?
And the Prime Minister determines the timing of elections.
ZENJI
A rancid dictator calling out a Countries Leader because she showed him up.
trump said , to show me something. All about me, trump turns everything into
It's all about me.
Our Country is not in a race with the trump owned virus.
Jacinda adopted a "go early-go hard" policy. The Team of 5 million complied.
For 103 days we did good, now we have a new attack, so we again "attack back"
JohnSmith
Kiwis getting all worked up that Trump talked about them. I bet they're secretly chuffed;-)
And... @ZENJI - He's not a dictator. But of course there's no convincing you.
n1k1
I don't think he was. He used it as an example to show how lock-downs even when perfect and people are cooperative ( no riots and no protesting) once you start opening up the virus will find it's way back.
And maybe this is why for NZ lock-down while people around the world die trying to find a vaccine which probably will reach NZ as a gift from UK or Australia could in theory make sense but, to propagate that this works and this is what the rest of the world should do is just irresponsible.
You your benevolent leader should also know that the vaccines will all depend on existing immunity and we will be seeing complications and even deaths long after everybody is vaccinated.
2020hindsights
n1k1
Actually no. He was shown up by New Zealand successfully beating the virus and when he saw that there were new cases in the community, he gleefully took the chance to proclaim a "surge".
The thing is, if New Zealand is having a "surge", what do you call daily increases that are 7000% higher than New Zealand's "surge"? How can you still claim that you are doing just fine with this "super surge"?
Due to quick action by Ardern, they will beat this again and New Zealand can go back to normality again.