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UNDER A NEW law only brought in on Monday, it is now legal for people in the US state of Oregon to use petrol pumps themselves to fuel their car.
For decades, the rules in the State meant that people in rural counties needed to have an a staff member put the fuel in the car.
Now, counties in places with a population of less than 40,000 people are allowed to have self-service gas stations.
In a post that has since gone viral on local news outlet KVTL CBS 10 News, some locals express concern at the thought of having to do it themselves.
https://www.facebook.com/KTVLNews10/photos/a.249976140322.291712.180780400322/10159918052175323/
Alongside people appearing to express genuine fear, the post was hijacked with ridicule of those mocking their concerns.
One woman wrote: “I don’t even know HOW to pump gas and I am 62, [a] native Oregonian… I say NO THANKS! I don’t like to smell like gasoline.”
Another said: “Yuck! Pumping my fuel in freezing temperatures and handling a nasty ole fuel nozzle that 50 other people have touched that day (and who knows what cooties are on there), no thank you. It’s nice to not have to pump your own fuel.”
One man spotted a business opportunity: “Fear not Oregon! I’ve decided to move to Oregon to open a school to teach people how to pump their gas. Short-term business you say?”
While the law allows people to use the petrol pumps themselves, it doesn’t automatically mean they all have to, however.
Oregon law even lists 17 different reasons why pumping your own fuel can be dangerous, as its reasoning for the law remaining in place elsewhere.
It calls it a “health hazard” that requires “properly trained” attendants to perform.
This Pacific state and New Jersey are the only two in America with such a rule.
Can the minister please communicate to nursing home residents when they will get their freedom back, now that they have almost all been vaccinated? The fact that the most restricted group of people in the country are facing this wall of silence is a travesty. These are the very people who we were trying to protect. Why are we neglecting them so badly now?
@Jason Shortt: Does anyone know how many people are considered vulnerable in the country? Serious question. If 20% of our population is expected to be vaccinated by end of March, then why will be still in lockdown? I’m not anti-lockdown or anything, just tired of it and trying to do the maths. Thanks
@HectorPickaxe: the vast majority of people who have died are in the over 70 bracket. At the last census, about 12% of our population was over 65. That would be 600k people. By the end of March, more than that number will have been vaccinated, according to the government.
@HectorPickaxe: Unfortunately, you’ll never get a proper answer to that question, as the default answer always is, ‘I’ll bring you to the ICU ward, and that will show you why we are in lockdown’ …. Problem is all the farcical regulations in place have been subjective from day one …. Your version of ‘essential’ or ‘vulnerable’ is different to mine …. There is pure logic to your question, but as nothing, including the vaccine, is 100% risk-free, the fearful and paranoid sector of the population will keep this going.
@Jason Shortt: while they are severely restricted they are at least on the radar . There are people who literally have not left their houses since last March . No one has been into their houses either and the only person the see is the Tesco delivery guy who leaves their shopping at the door and goes . These people see no one often struggle to get meds and food delivered timely at times and the service where people are supposed to do these things for you is frankly not good and many people have been told they can’t get their stuff collected . So no visitors worried about meds and food delivered and they were group 7 up to the review . And if family carers aren’t included then some of these people still won’t be able to leave their homes because if their carers get sick they literally have no one else to step in. This group have been forgotten and have extreme loneliness and mental health issues .
This is after Mehole accused Mary Lou of playing politics when she put this question to him. It’s like watching a really bad sitcom that for some unknown reason won’t get cancelled…
@Coli: and has a really annoying laugh track
@Coli: is Mary back out of hiding, she has been such a big help after winning the election last year and then hiding after it.
About time!! Home carers are front line staff.
No excuses for this shambles of working out the manner in which people should be prioritised.
Seems people in these situations have to call the radio stations daily to get their pleas heard instead of the health service automatically adding them initially .
Had a meeting with a company in the UK yesterday, Everybody who was on the call has had their parents AND in-laws already vaccinated (2 of 5 people on the call had just got it also). We continue…
WORST Health Minister ever. Just winging it all the time
@Damian Ryan: Agreed
@Damian Ryan: really, seeing every health minister has been accused of that last 20 years, how many health ministers have had to deal with a worldwide pandemic and a worldside vaccination program.
@Damian Ryan: Stephen Donnelly does not decide who is in line for the vaccine maybe u should check it out ,this is done by a Medical team separate from Government so that’s one he can’t be blamed for ,& I’m no fan but why always be knocking people who are working hard , I would say he has one of the hardest jobs in Government
Considering he claims that we’ll have a surplus of vacancies it’s about time he consider home careers.
@Eddie Michael: it’s not his brief as u should know he has no hand act or part in who or in what order the vaccine is given it has to be that way or there would be no end to lobbying all TD ‘S
I though this was well set before we are over 11 months and Ireland do not know who is vulnerable in this pandemic/endemic situation
They should be considered as a specific group and moved up the list, especially if the vaccines are not reccommended for their children.
@Marie Broomfield: But even if vulnerable adults get vaccinated they still can’t leave their homes until their carers get vaccinated anyway . For a lot of these people if their carers get sick they have no one to step in and many carers may not have recognized underlying conditions many have mental health issues arthritis and lots of other things that have gone untreated and undiagnosed because carers can’t put themselves first . So many are vulnerable themselves even if they aren’t officially recognized as such .
Only now? I despair at the incompetence
Is he going to ask nicely ?
Maybe he should consider closing the boarders to international travel to stop foreign variations of the virus from coming in. The south african, brazilian British and Nigerian DIDN’T ORIGINATE IN THIS COUNTY!!!! BUT YOU LET THEM IN SHAME ON ALL OF YOU m u p p e t s
@Gary Mullen: there will be,or already have been, spontaneous mutations here too. Ireland doesn’t have a special non-mutating virus in circulation. The variants you’ve mentioned have mutated in surprisingly similar ways. It’s possible when we identify a mutation here that it will be similar too. As we don’t have the genomic sequencing capacity of world leading countries for this technology – like the U.K.- our homegrown variants may be picked up overseas having already escaped our shores.
Asal Jack.
Carers do a heartbreaking, stressful 24/7 job and save the government millions every year. Many carers have not had a full nights sleep for years. If they get sick what happens to the patient. Shouldn’t even be questioned that carers need a vaccine as soon as possible
They are an ADVISORY committee. Meaning they don’t decide these questions, just advise those who do. Namely they advise the minister of health. If he doesn’t like their advice then he is free to not use it. But then it would be his job to explain to the group bumped from receiving the vaccine as to why they were bumped. This “will ask NIAC” makes it seem like it’s all on NIAC’s shoulders and assumes that unlike the minister of health, they don’t care about these carers. What a terrible comment. It tries to take the disappointment from those not next in line for the vaccine and shift it from the ones who are actually responsible to those who are not. The final decision here and it’s praise or blame, is in the hands of the minister.
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