The stench of ass-covering and incompetence:

‘Auckland church members hugged and kissed their friend before she died from typhoid
A member of the Samoan church at the centre of a typhoid outbreak says they have received poor information and support from health authorities. She told Morning Report that hospital staff didn’t warn friends and family of any risk of infection when they visited the woman who died of the disease shortly before her death.

Members of an Auckland church hugged and kissed their friend as she was dying, unaware that she had an infectious disease.
More than a dozen others have since been confirmed with typhoid, and public health officials are under fire for their lack of communication.
…A fellow church member said she rushed to hospital when she heard her friend was dying.
“There was no protective gear, no signs to say that she was affected, or that she may have typhoid fever,” she told RNZ.
“There was nothing to say we were not allowed to touch, or have any body contact with her….’
However:
‘Prime Minister Bill English says officials did everything they could to control the typhoid outbreak.’ :shock:

This entry was posted in Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink.

19 Responses to The stench of ass-covering and incompetence:

  1. Darin says:

    Died from Typhoid? No Azythromyocin handy? http://falfn.com/CrusaderRabbit/wp-content/plugins/wp-monalisa/icons/wpml_unsure.gif

    • KG says:

      I have a hunch there’s a large untold story here, Darin. And the NZ media certainly can’t be trusted to get to the bottom of it.

      • MacDoctor says:

        Indeed. It is extremely unlikely that this patient was not being barrier nursed, in which case there would be large signs on the door warning visitors to gown and glove.

        Either this visitor ignored the warnings or they visited before the diagnosis of typhoid was made.

        • KG says:

          Thanks, MacDoc.
          The remark by Bill English is odd – how on earth could he know at that stage that officials had done “everything they could” to control the outbreak, unless he’d simply taken an official’s word for it?

          • Darin says:

            That is what’s known as the “First lie cover” in PR damage control.Get a false narrative stuck in the public’s mind early on and later if the shit hits the fan there will be people on both sides,with differing arguments based on half truths so in the end no one will be able to put all the pieces together and the original sin will be forgotten.

  2. tranquil says:

    “Prime Minister Bill English says officials did everything they could to control the typhoid outbreak.”

    Yeah right, and I’m Julius Caesar.

  3. Lara says:

    The consequences of mass immigration from third world countries?

    • KG says:

      The effects of migration from Pacific islands seem to have been managed pretty well for decades, Lara, to the advantage of both them and NZ.
      I suspect this episode may have more to do with simple poor management and bungling bureaucrats, even if only on the PR front.
      It sure doesn’t instill confidence should a big health scare come along…think Civil Defence running hospitals. *shudder*

  4. Lara says:

    Shudder indeed! Totally agree with that.

  5. george romero says:

    Billy boy is a complete and utter godamn idiot, he thinks islam is a peaceful ”religion”.
    Fuc! i hate that cun&!

  6. Pascal says:

    ‘Prime Minister Bill English says officials did everything they could to control the typhoid outbreak.’

    Exactly. Wherever rulers foster Malthusian, Utilitarian, Green and Islamistophilic nutcases, there the ruled are at grave risk.

    • Pascal says:

      Here is a bit more background in support of the conclusion: wherever rulers foster Malthusian, Utilitarian, Green and Islamistophilic nutcases, there the ruled are at grave risk.

      From 22 years ago comes this uncommon commentary on policies as looked at from the economic standpoint of the policy executives. The Myth of ‘Failed’ Policies by Robert Higgs provides one example after another of how failure of a programme is viewed by its proponents and real beneficiaries oppositely from the view of its alleged beneficiaries. (If you have never read it, please do yourself the favor and do it now. It’s quite memorable.) Those proponents so exposed have labeled the following conclusion as outrageous.

      When we take a realistic view of the political process, we see that so-called failed polices are nearly always spectacular successes.

      Then add to this the reality that the SSM never holds failed policy makers accountable. Instead they pin the blame on those who opposed the policies from the start. I’d say it is an easy prediction that PM English will blame the failure on insufficient funding; that he and his SSM will demand that the public buy the idea that commonsensical posting of warning signs is obstructed by budgetary factors. If that fails, then they will seek a way to pin the blame on the most truthful doctor or administrator at the facility, orchestrated payback for refusing to aid the budgetary narrative of the other liars.

      There have long been indicators about how rulers find ways to say things convincingly in great part due to that infamous rule of Bill Clinton’s: “it depends upon what the meaning of is is.”

      For this typhoid outbreak you have all been talking about ass-covering of incompetence. We are all capable of making mistakes so we tend to be more tolerant of them. The public is not going to be terribly incensed about failures, even catastrophic ones.

      So why accept ass-covering of malevolence and instead shove it to the category of incompetence? In great part because we are not all inclined to malevolence, and thus we are more inclined to allow for benefit of the doubt there. So while the possibility of malevolence ought to outrage, too many feel they cannot be sure malevolence is present. This is the villain’s greatest advantage.

      For Heaven’s sake people, at this point in time Heinlein’s razor should be viewed as way too charitable: “Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity, but don’t rule out malice.” Never say never should have long ago been taken seriously in regard to this.

      It seems very odd that the same people who are apt to accept Adam Smith’s invisible hand of philanthropy at play in the miracle of capitalism then fail to see the invisible hand of misanthropy at play in even the most outrageous “incompetent” events.

      • andy5759 says:

        Pascal, that is similar to the question I often ask myself; Is this a result of cock up or conspiracy? Our leaders rarely do anything which doesn’t have a hidden purpose. In future I will think differently, “mishap or malevolence”. Now to open an account at my local pitchfork vendor.

        • Pascal says:

          Andy, please keep in mind how much easier blackmail far more than cooperative conspiracy has a role in this. See Robertv here http://falfn.com/CrusaderRabbit/?p=31345#comment-92293

          Those blackmailed usually have one or more other evils that puts handles on them to keep them in line. Thus, like an iceberg, where we see one noticeable evil — such as permitting the spread of typhoid — we should expect there to be many more below the surface. There the ruled are at grave risk.