Long Covid – how the SRF “Club” invents a disease

If the SRF "Club" were not "a prominent discussion program", according to its own statement, the process would not be worth a line.

Because the presenter of the show, Barbara Lüthi, succeeded in inventing a new disease in the most recent show on February 8th, this special achievement of the controversial national broadcaster must be critically appreciated.

Long Covid has now received the stamp of an official SRG broadcast, especially since it was said that there could be "100,000 to 200,000 cases" in Switzerland.

I can already see dreamy late risers jumping out of bed and shouting: "Now I know, I have Long Covid. Leave me alone, I'll stay in bed."

The nightly program, very subtly led by Barbara Lüthi, resembled an early witching hour, where people who knew nothing about Long Covid discussed it with those who said they knew little about it.

Everyone agreed: "It's a comprehensive exhaustion." So what? This kind of thing happens a lot even without Covid.

"It's hard to talk." Again, this is by no means new, in fact it's common when people search for words.

"It's a 'brainfall', very difficult to understand." Anyway, I like the word 'brainfall'. Does normal or high intelligence devolve into stupidity in such cases?

"It's a serious neurotic illness," said a doctor.

In Zurich, as we were able to hear on this show, the Swiss headquarters of Long Covid, neurotic illnesses, including serious ones, have been the norm for generations. Then why do we need Covid?

"It's a brain fog," says one of those affected.

Somewhat bewildered, I follow the explanations of a previously unknown representative of the Federal Office of Public Health, who culpably confesses: "We reacted to Long Covid too late."

Poor woman, when did the BAG ever act early?

Since Covid ravaged the country, Swiss health officials, led by an SP beau not averse to female affection, have almost always overslept doing whatever was necessary.

Was there Long Covid in Bern before Covid existed?

"We have to discuss it well before we do anything," says the health official. She smiles sheepishly.

Two representatives of a Long Covid lobbying association spoke up: “My wife is a freelance artist. Who will help her quickly?”

"I've suffered from depressive concentration for over a year," the other lobbyist. What is depressed concentration? Anyone looking for the answer can become depressed.

Having survived the illness of "burn out" for 30 years without succumbing to burnout, I can only add: Isn't it time to invent a new illness?

Who is still working voluntarily these days? It must be lunatics who don't call in sick.

Surely this does not mean the upper management of the SRG, whose boss now earns more than half a million francs a year.

Dear Gilles Marchand, I'll treat you to half the box.

But the justification for the wage increase, which is heard from the SRG President, is interesting: "We are now doing it like the other Bernese state-related corporations."

Admittedly, it was the two big Swiss banks, UBS and CS, who first gave the reason for increasing the salaries of their top managers: "We'll do it like we do abroad."

It is no longer performance that decides, but class membership. Be it bankers and civil servants.

Who is laughing here?

Do you know Jean-Michel Cina, President of SRG? He was swept into office by Federal Councilor Doris Leuthard ("Atom Doris").

Both of them first ruined the CVP, then the woman from Aargau (“Showers with Doris”) pushed through an energy policy that can only be described as catastrophic today.

Jean-Michel Cina fled back to Valais, where he served for several years as a member of the Council of State, with little success.

Now, with his personnel policy, he is ruining SRG into a Swiss laughing stock that only Giacobbo could portray.

The Bernese felt, which lives splendidly at the expense of the taxpayers, brings about such miracles as the semi-state "Club" show.

All find themselves well. The journalists the politicians. The politicians the journalists.

Now the Federal Council wants the Swiss people to approve a billion-dollar subsidy for publishers next Sunday.

I don't know of any real Swiss publishers who really need the money.

The "Club" boss Barbara Lüthi urgently needs to be named the new "Journalist of the Year". The reason: She lets people talk about things that nobody needs.

SRG is silent about what people really need. The SVP threatens to halve the SRG fees. she is right.