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People shopping on Henry Street in Dublin. Niall Carson/PA Wire/PA Images

What does shopping look like in a pandemic? Here's what we learnt today

From queuing to face masks, the shopping experience looked very different today.

WHAT DOES SHOPPING look like during a pandemic? As Ireland enters Phase Two of the easing of Covid-19 restrictions, shops across the country were tentatively raising the shutters and welcoming in customers for the first time in months. 

For some in Dublin, it was a case of nervously wiping down surfaces and monitoring the number of customers inside. For others, today was the real thing after weeks of planning and – in a few cases – dress rehearsals. 

Freshly cleaned streets greeted shoppers this morning, while a few gardaí could be seen patrolling. 

The government’s decision to begin Phase Two meant a broad range of shops were able to re-open. After weeks of sales being purely online, people could once again leave home browse for shoes, toys, clothes and plenty more. 

In Dublin, Grafton Street and Henry Street were busier than they had been in months since the government announced the closure of all-but-essential retail outlets back in March. 

If you didn’t make it out today or decided to avoid the crowds and stay at home, what can you expect once you venture out to shop?

Are there crowds?

Make no mistake about it, the streets were busy today. Shops only opened at 10.30am in line with the government’s advice to have staggered opening times, but by 1pm both Grafton Street and Henry Street were filled with thousands of people. 

At times, the capital seemed on the brink of normality. People looked happy and relaxed as they strolled along, with even a few buskers playing in the background. 

The mood seemed to chime with the latest data from consumers. According to Core Research, 74% of people are optimistic that Ireland can overcome the virus, while concern about Covid-19 has fallen to 51% – a decline of nearly 25% since March. 

ILAC The Ilac was busy today, even if not all shops were open. TheJournal.ie. TheJournal.ie.

One busker Paddy Finnegan said this was the busiest day he’d seen since he returned to the streets a week ago. “This is the first busy day back,” he told TheJournal.ie. “It’s always nice to have an audience.”

Inside shops, things were calmer – a reduced capacity necessitated by physical distancing meant that most stores had few people in them. 

The crowds also only stretched so far. Some areas of the city were largely quiet and empty of traffic, while the busier shopping areas had been transformed since the start of Phase One only a few weeks ago. 

Inside the Ilac Centre, one proprietor told TheJournal.ie that more people were out and about. It’s definitely “busier,” they said, but hardly back to normal. 

Technically a shopping centre, it’s managed to stay open to allow access to supermarkets and pharmacies. It should re-open fully on 15 June – for now, many shops inside remain closed. 

The crowds may ease in the days to come as the novelty of re-opened shops wears off – but be aware when you venture out that plenty of people could be around. 

Do I have to queue?

“It’s been very busy, we’ve had a constant queue since we opened our doors at 10.30am,” Laura O’Shea, a staff member at Office shoe shop on Henry Street, told TheJournal.ie

“People have been waiting consistently since we opened the doors. It’s just a matter of finding our feet now I think,” she said. 

Because of physical distancing inside shops, you will have to queue to get into places. In big stores like Smyths, long queues formed this morning as people waited to buy toys. “I’m inquiring about something for my granddaughter, hopefully they’ll be able to help me,” one woman in the queue said. 

Outside smaller shops, people also waited in line at a safe distance. Many of the staff who spoke to TheJournal.ie praised people’s patience – and the ease with which they’ve adapted to the new realities of shopping. 

Shoe shops seemed to be the most popular option for many people, although staff reported some difficulties. 

“We’ve trying to avoid people trying them on, but everyone seems to be trying anyway, O’Shea said, while acknowledging that this was probably inevitable. 

Do I need to wear a mask?

The benefits of the average person wearing a mask is both complex and contested, but officially there is no requirement for anyone shopping to wear a mask. 

While the government has advised that people wear masks when on public transport or shopping, there is nothing mandatory about it. 

Today, there were very few people wearing masks as they shopped. 

masks Some staff wore face shields. TheJournal.ie TheJournal.ie

Are staff wearing masks?

In shops across the city, staff were using varying combinations of PPE. Some wore plastic face shields with masks and others had masks on only. In some shops, staff weren’t wearing masks. 

There’s no shop, however, that hadn’t changed significantly. Many had the now-familiar physical distance markings on the floor, while plenty had perspex sheets up at tills. 

The government’s own guide for employers about returning to work doesn’t endorse masks for all workers, but states that they should be provided as is “reasonably practicable”. Instead, it stresses good hand hygiene and measures to limit the interactions between staff and customers. 

You can expect to have to sanitise your hands before entering a shop, while you’ll also notice plenty of cleaning and wiping down of surfaces.

“It’s actually been pretty good,” Christine Kelly, the manager at Great Outdoors on South Great Georges Street, told TheJournal.ie. “We’ve got a one-way system in the shop, it’s all working out really well.”

And in terms of staff, “everyone is at ease”, she said. 

“We had training last week so everybody came in before their first day today, just to have an induction to show them how the shop was going to be laid out differently,” she said.

Such a system was a common sight in many shops, while a few high-end retailers had introduced appointment systems for customers.  

Phil Whyte, who works at Chapters Bookshop on Parnell Street, told TheJournal.ie this morning that staff were excited to be back. He was manning the door to ensure that a safe number of people were in the bookshop. 

“It’s been a long and enforced break. It’s great to be back open now and it’s great to see people around town,” he said. 

coronavirus-mon-jun-8-2020 Security staff ensure social distancing while shoppers queue. Niall Carson / PA Wire/PA Images Niall Carson / PA Wire/PA Images / PA Wire/PA Images

Are all shops open?

No. Shopping centres aren’t opening fully until 15 June. Penneys, Brown Thomas and Arnotts are all set to open their doors again later this week, while other retailers will open later. 

Plenty of places decided that now wasn’t the right time to open, judging by the shutters and signs on many doors. 

Then again, some unexpected shops are open for business. Despite the lack of tourists, Carrolls gift shops – there are several across Dublin – are open again. “We’re trying to target more of the local people for now until the tourism picks back up,” Danny Chilvers, a staff member at Carrolls on Westmoreland Street, told TheJournal.ie. 

Later phases will see more places open. The five-step plan originally outlined by Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has now been reduced four, while a number of measures have been brought forward after the government announced the acceleration of the previous roadmap on Friday. 

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    Mute SEAN LYNCH
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 6:47 PM

    Driver looks non too happy to be on that shift.

    161
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    Mute Will Hourihan
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 6:58 PM

    She is probably thinking that the mask she purchased from Woodies DIY isn’t going to be much good!

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    Mute bob®
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 6:46 PM

    One reason an island is a bonus, nasty thing to get!

    154
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    Mute potatoman
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 7:01 PM

    Unless they stopped in Shannon to refuel

    241
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    Mute winding_down
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 7:08 PM

    Britain is an island too, with an unprecedented number of direct air connections to the outbreak zones in West Africa. Given the number of people transiting to Ireland via the UK, Ireland’s geography as an island means nothing.

    We are utterly dependent on the UK to put in place measures to prevent its spread to this part of the World.

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    Mute Ryan Carroll
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 7:23 PM

    Infection with Ebola requires direct contact with the boldly fluids (blood, semen, vomit etc) of an infected person, that’s how it spreads, it’s not airborne and you don’t breathe it in as droplets like the flu.

    If we heard in the morning that there were 3 Ebola cases in St Vincents Hospital there would not be much cause for alarm, they’d just be moved to an isolation unit.
    The only danger is in it mutating into something that is more easily transmitted.
    Even in that worst case scenario, where the movie outbreak or the novel executive orders happened there would be a few simple measures we could take to shut it down:
    -Declare a state of national emergency
    -Close the ports and airports and get the UK govt to do the same to the ones in NI
    -Have the Taoiseach announce that 6 hours from the state of emergency’s beginning all places of assembly (schools, shopping centers etc) would be shut down, all intercity road and rail travel would be terminated, a curfew would be in place for all nonessentials, and all congregations of more than 2 persons will be unlawful.
    -Enforce the curfew and travel bans with the army, army reserve and Garda.
    That would give people enough time to grab some groceries and get home.

    We would do ok. My only concern in this kinda scenario is the lack of adequate CBRN gear for our first responders, civil defense and military. We could get those quick enough though.
    We would not be alone either, we’d have help from WHO and even the CDC in the US if we asked.

    86
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    Mute Ciara Ryan
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 7:58 PM

    Not when you have mass immigration or open borders. Defeats island defence.

    44
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    Mute Ryan Carroll
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 8:07 PM

    What exactly do you define as ”MASS” immigration, I’ve been hearing that for years but I’ve never heard anyone define it.
    The immigration in the EU goes both ways, plenty of our citizens go to France, UK, Cyprus etc

    The point remains however, it’s a simple matter to close down that flow of people in an emergency. Germany for example can officially ”’close” it’s borders but it will still be porus because even with patrols there won’t be a wall around it.
    However if we close our ports and airports on the island the only way for people to get in or out is by personal boats and thats easier said than done for the smaller craft, and the bigger ones are easily spotted and intercepted by the navy.

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    Mute Ciara Ryan
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 8:24 PM

    @Ryan

    Tell me did we have the same amounts of immigrants before mass immigration?

    No we had a very small trickle and had secure borders, the difference in type of influx and numbers we have now and what we had then is a defining characteristic of mass immigration, one where the island retains it’s ancestral, indigenous demographic, culture and heritage.

    Western Europeans do not go to each others countries in vast quantities that change the identity of the country, also we are same/similar in ancestral and cultural make-up, this is incomparable to Africans and asians coming here.

    Your idea that closing ports keeps people out is naive in the extreme, and thus dangerous. Illegals have been coming to Ireland via the north since mass immigration began.

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    Mute Ryan Carroll
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 9:04 PM

    You’re not explaining what mass immigration is, so I can’t say what it was like before or after it.

    You’re not saying what ”then” was.

    So unless you’re willing to define these things, I’m not responding to you. I don’t argue with vague emotional rhetoric, get specific

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    Mute Ciara Ryan
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 9:43 PM

    @Ryan

    I actually have given you a working definition of that word.

    But with or without such a definition one can still describe what the situation was like before and after a time when there was ongoing immigration from the time it occurred to before the time it occurred sometime around the 90′s.

    For example before this time, there were next to none Africans coming here. Yet you somehow are unable to include that in any description you might give as to how it was before such a time.

    Hello troll.

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    Mute James Franco
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 6:47 PM

    Not very Christian of Mr trump

    86
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    Mute winding_down
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 7:10 PM

    My thoughts exactly. But then, this is one of the few things that all his wealth wouldn’t protect him from…

    58
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    Mute Aaron
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 7:40 PM

    It’s harsh but he’s right. Why transport the virus back to the US or anywhere else. Keep it contained where it is.

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    Mute Ann Mc Loughlin-O'Connor
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 7:08 PM

    I hope both of these patients can fight this terrible virus and wish them well. They were doing a selfless job helping so many. They deserve to be home near their families.

    85
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    Mute Ger Kelleher
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 7:15 PM

    One word – ‘isolation’
    Might be near their families but still can’t see them!

    33
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    Mute Ann Mc Loughlin-O'Connor
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 7:39 PM

    I know!

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    Mute Lily
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 6:53 PM

    I’m sure America has kept the Ebola virus in a high security laboratory for decades. Probably since the first know outbreak. You know to study it and maybe even see if it could be made into a biological weapon.

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    Mute darragh murphy
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    Aug 3rd 2014, 1:38 AM

    Don’t be ridiculous. It’s a horrific virus. You think a little more of Americans.

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    Mute Diarmuid Lenihan
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 6:57 PM

    SARS was 11 years ago ? Christ.

    37
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    Mute cosmological
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 6:58 PM

    This is panic inducing and rightly so. It shows how these dystopian fictions aren’t so far fetched. You don’t want to catch this one.

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    Mute Pat Lennon
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 6:56 PM

    Why the hell would you bring this virus into your country, surely they could of brought the best care to the 2 unfortunate people instead of them being brought back. Somethings not right.

    33
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    Mute cholly appleseed
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 7:12 PM

    Peopke are just not understanding ebola transmission. Its as hard to transmitt as hiv

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    Mute winding_down
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 7:13 PM

    West Africa as a region lacks the critical clinical equipment and personnel to provide to best care. Why would you treat somebody with serious head injuries in a rural hospital, when the best services for treating head injuries are at Beaumont?

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    Mute Sandra Turner
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 8:18 PM

    It can be transmitted in sweat I don’t think you get HIV from sweat

    38
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    Mute Aaron
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 8:20 PM

    Cholly – maybe you should head to West Africa and tell them all there’s nothing to worry about because its really hard to spread the disease. And then go to the US and tell the two patients over there because they obviously didn’t realise how difficult it was.

    27
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    Mute Hank Schrader
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 7:14 PM

    I haven’t ever subscribed to all the conspiracy theorists but on this occasion all is not right as to why the US are really taking these 2 unfortunate people back to US soil.

    I expect they want them on their patch in order to be able see what they can find out about the Ebola virus now and, hopefully not be the case, when they die of it.

    Maybe it’s the case that they seriously hope they can save the two people but me thinks they want to do a few experiments in the meantime.

    Here’s hoping they survive and the US can indeed learn a little more about it but I’d rather they didn’t peddle this story about wanting to do all to save their citizens etc.

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    Mute Ryan Carroll
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 7:28 PM

    There have been several ebola outbreaks before, they know all about it they don’t need to do any new primary research.
    They took them back to the US because they don’t have the facilities to treat them where they were.

    33
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    Mute Ciara Ryan
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 8:02 PM

    @Ryan

    Naive apologia.

    There is nothing stopping the most advanced nations on the planet in setting up state of the art facilities in these countries. Transporting this virus to jam-packed areas is asking for trouble. Nevermind disasters like airplane crashes.

    One would think that governments want Ebola to spread.

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    Mute Ciara Ryan
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 8:05 PM

    Conspiracy theories.

    Like our govt’s have done right by us up to this, like there really were WMD’s in Iraq, when are people going to realise govt’s lie.

    11
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    Mute Ryan Carroll
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 8:11 PM

    There is indeed many things stopping them. Most of these countries still carry around a kind of childish nationalism and the idea of a foreign government coming in and it’s agencies taking over a section of their country to run as they please would not go over well, besides if it’s their people they will want them back on their own soil.
    The CDC facilities are in the US, it’s a logistical nightmare to move many of these halfway across the planet for 1-2 patents when you can just fly that patient home.

    I’m not even going to bother with the conspiracy nonsense, my experience with that kind of mindset is that nothing you say, no logic or facts will change their mind, 600 people see a plane crashing into the pentagon ”no no it was a missile” , you could argue it all day and they won’t change their minds because it’s not about the facts it’s about their mindset.

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    Mute Ciara Ryan
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 8:18 PM

    @Ryan

    Nationalism is the opposite of childish, no nationalist country with it’s own currency as espoused by Libya would have succumbed to the world recession. It is interesting to note that what you would espouse as mature, results in mass devastation of peoples lives and livelihood.

    I did not say transport the facilities, it is obvious temporary bio-hazard clean-facility fabrications are capable of being erected in very short time and dotted around each country.

    To play around with global health is what is immature and irresponsible in the extreme.

    As for your conspiracy theory opinion, what people have seen a plane crash into the pentagon?

    Why at the Pennsylvania crach site there is no debris yet at the Russian MH17 crash site there is ample debris, all perfectly reasonable, in your book.

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    Mute Ablitive
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 8:37 PM

    America has a bad reputation for turning Drills into “actual events” …It has happened with almost every false flag to date including 9/11, Sandy Hook, , Boston Bombing and I also believe UK’s 7/7.

    When we hear of drills being carried out, they should be a sign of caution

    http://www.myfoxny.com/story/26170612/drill-in-new-york-city

    10
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    Mute Ryan Carroll
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 9:07 PM

    Again, I don’t argue with conspiracy theories because they are not based in rational thought, you’re just arguing with someones psychosis.

    I’ve learned that lesson too many times, I’m not gonna exhaust myself debating someone who will not change their mind no matter what facts are presented to them. I’ve talked to enough truthers to know nothing anyone says will change their mind, they are fundamentally irrational.

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    Mute Barry Cooper
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 9:20 PM

    When the facts r not really facts . 9-11 commission report never explain y building 7 fell. There is and has only been 3 tall rise buildings that have ever collapsed due to fire and they all fell on the one day. Does anyome know the odds on that. I just cant belive people belive governments cause they tell ya too. If my misses cheats I will never belive ir trust her again. Its human nature .

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    Mute Ciara Ryan
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 9:48 PM

    @Ryan

    A conspiracy is when 2 or more people make a plan. Yet you seem to think people in govt are above making plans.

    You also decline to answer a very rational argument, a contrast and comparison argument.

    Plane crash in pennsylvania of one of the hijacked 9/11 aircraft left no debris, yet every other plane crash site I have seen, leaves debris including the recent Malaysian MH17, explain that.

    As an engagement in rationality one should ask that question on the simplest basis of contrasting results, yet your “rationality” prefers to ignore such pertinent questions. that sunshine smacks of irrationality.

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    Mute Shane O'Donnell
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    Aug 3rd 2014, 1:37 AM

    So you’re saying the plane left no wreckage. That’s a new one. Are you the only person on the planet who has spotted that flaw in this master plan? Or did you read it off some whack job website?

    4
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    Mute Stephen Downey
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 6:59 PM

    Anyone else thinking the driver of the van is hot?

    Awful situation to be in, otherwise.

    20
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    Mute Bon Jonham
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 7:20 PM

    She’s got green fingers and half a blue face ffs!!! That’s f**ked up man..seek help!

    46
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    Mute Stephen Downey
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 7:24 PM

    Oh no! You think she’s been infected?

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    Mute seamus mcdermott
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    Aug 3rd 2014, 2:57 AM

    She’s employed.

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    Mute Dorothy Kavanagh
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 9:45 PM

    Did I not hear on the news last night that there was to be no people leaving from that area so to contain the disease? And now I see two medical personnel have left and flown to the US. Ok it was a private jet but mistakes can be made and it could spread into the population.
    There is no cure apparently.

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    Mute onewrongopinon
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 7:19 PM

    Nice to see my correction Of your headline was deleted

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    Mute Emmet Galvin
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    Aug 3rd 2014, 10:51 AM

    I never realised there were so many experts on the ebola virus reading TheJournal.ie.

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    Mute Barry Cooper
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 8:42 PM

    Agenda21 . Google it

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    Mute Barry Cooper
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    Aug 2nd 2014, 9:14 PM
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    Mute md
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    Aug 3rd 2014, 12:41 AM
    1
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