🧵 In Düsseldorf, Germany *100,000* people join huge rally against the far-right today, according to police.

At least as important, were the dozens of rallies in *smaller towns*, many of them in *eastern Germany* where the far-right AfD polls highest. ⬇️

In the spa town of Heiligenstadt, population 18,000, in the state of Thuringia.

https://twitter.com/georgmaier8/status/1751302559094944220

🧵 Long Covid expert @kahryn_hoffmann urges infection prevention in light of the long-term damage from Covid as it is now clear that risk increases cumulatively with each infection.

“What everyone needs is good protection from a renewed Covid infection.”

science.apa.at/power-search/1… Hoffmann emphasized that Covid is a virus that is transmitted through the air.

Therefore measures to clean the indoor air should be implemented immediately — especially in child care facilities and schools, but also in public transport, offices and health care facilities.

🧵 Austrian physicans:

"We CAN’T take responsibility for the constant, unmitigated infection of the population w/ a vascular-damaging, neurotropic virus like SARS-CoV-2, in which a previous infection provides no long-term protection vs future infection.”
t-online.de/gesundheit/kra… They call the handling and management of the pandemic “absolutely appaling”. They state that in Europe alone 36 million people have become chronically ill as a result of Covid infections.

🧵Germany’s new fall/winter Covid measures take effect & include:

National:

🔹FFP2 masks in hospitals/nursing homes/medical offices

🔹FFP2 masks on long-distance rail/bus

State options:

🔹Mask mandates: regional public transport, public indoor spaces, schools (grade 5 up) *Additional negative tests are required in hospitals/nursing homes

Changes include:

🔹Previously surgical masks were required on long-distance trains/bus while FFP2 masks were only recommended

▪️Mask mandate on planes was lifted

New rules stay in effect until April 7, 2023.

🧵 New Germany poll (pre-annexation):

“Should we continue to support Ukraine despite our rising energy prices?”

September
Yes: 74%
No: 20%

July
Yes: 70%
No: 22% “Will Ukraine win the war against Russia?”

September
Yes: 42%
No: 41%

August
Yes: 26%
No:59%

🧵 New Germany poll on Russia/Ukraine

Response by the federal government to the Russian invasion of Ukraine

Did not go far enough: 45%
Is appropriate: 37%
Goes to far: 11% Worries after the Russian invasion of Ukraine

About the people in Ukraine
Very great/great: 91%
Little/no worries: 7%

That the economic situation in Germany gets worse
Very great/great worries: 80%
Little/no worries: 19%

🇩🇪🦠 🧵 BIG. Germany’s new coronavirus expert council, per ARD:

All models show that boosters alone don’t lead to a sufficient reduction of the omicron wave, “therefore additional contact restrictions are needed.”

Goal: Nationally effective contact restrictions in coming days.

https://twitter.com/tagesschau/status/1472606002965061636

Other measures:

- Ramp up vaccinations and boosters over the holidays

- Avoid large indoor gatherings

- Ramp up indoor masking with FFP2 (N95)

- Ramp up self testing

🇩🇪🦠 Wow. In a frank & at times emotional presentation, the head of Germany’s CDC, Lothar Wieler, urges politicians to get real amid the country’s Covid surge. Excerpts:

“We are heading for a serious emergency situation. If we don’t act now, we will have a horrible Christmas.” “We have too many people who are not vaccinated.”

“We should not allow people who do not want to get vaccinated the opportunity to forego getting vaccinated, for example through testing.”