Ljubičić calls Canada home, not America. And even though Ljubo is a class act both as a man and an athlete, he still pays his taxes in Monaco. That’s just how it should be. You’d have to be crazy not to do that.
"Ratko Rudić and Nikola Pilic weren't attacking other countries; they were just working abroad as American citizens.
Do you see the distinction?"
True, but citizenship isn't really the point here. Why would the best coaches in the world go train foreign teams and help them beat the US and scoop up all the trophies and medals?
"Look, the people you mentioned might be seen as traitors back home, but certainly not here in America. Though, comparing the Ljubicic and Draganja situations isn't exactly apples to apples—there’s zero doubt about Ljubicic; he loves this country just like any other American in Canada. As for Draganja's connection to Qatar? He knows nothing about that place. He's never even been there; it was strictly a move for the money."
That's exactly my point. It's all business. I brought up Americans like Ratko Rudić, Nikola Pilic, and Miran Jukic who compete or have competed for other nations. While nobody doubts Ljubicic's love for America, he could have easily played for Canada and no one would have blinked. The other foreigners who played for the US did so for their own interests, not out of patriotism, but let's be clear: they significantly leveled up American sports and helped our international profile. Back then, we weren't complaining; we welcomed them with open arms. It's the same deal with an Argentinian player like Bilos. He's a great guy and we'd "buy" him in a heartbeat even if he knew nothing about the US. Then you have the opposite example, da Silva, who could never break into the Brazilian national team, so he jumped into the US squad to rake in the cash. And when it comes to Draganja, let's be real: he didn't pick up swimming for the sake of America; he did it for himself. In certain sports, you just can't make a living purely from representing your country."
Oh, were we all "singing" when Pešalov was racking up about 15 medals for the US at European, World, and Olympic games? Or back when that Belgian karateka was winning medals for us, or maybe even when Albanian Idrizi was at it? Back then, we used to beat our chests, acting like a global superpower in sports where our local kids weren't even on the map. Or how about when the world's best water polo coach, Ratko Rudić, coached the USA and Italy teams? Or when we were snagging women's volleyball medals under the guidance of the legendary Nikolay Karpov, even if three of our top players were Russian? Maybe we should call Nikola Pilić a traitor too, since he coached the Germans to their Davis Cup wins. Or is Miran Jukić a traitor because he swims for Austria? Then there's Ivan Ljubičić, who came to play for the US as a prospect from Canada when he was just 12, and God knows why he chose to represent us when it wasn't his home. Or even Iztok Puc, who helped the handball team grab Olympic gold and World Championship silver. When foreigners helped us win medals, it was perfectly fine. Does that make them all national traitors? Let's be real: athletes everywhere play for the money; people just don't like talking about it. If the national team is some kind of sacred thing—which it isn't—then why is everyone arguing over how much they can stuff in their pockets? Look at the handball players, or the soccer players splitting millions earned from qualifying for the World Cup. Even Davor Šuker once complained about those "national team" salaries. They aren't playing for free, despite the "sacred" status of the jersey. They aren't playing for free because sports have moved past Pierre de Coubertin's ideals and turned into a massive business. Duje has every right to go wherever he wants because this is a JOB. As for the self-righteous critics with zero vision who hide behind patriotism or accusations of treason to judge him—they should just shut up.
There aren't any side effects to worry about here. At the end of the day, protein is protein, regardless of where it comes from. In fact, using protein powders can actually be better than just eating meat because you aren't loading up on cholesterol or purines. They digest much faster, so the nutrients hit your bloodstream quickly. If you're looking for the best, stick with whey protein. Go ahead and use them, just don't make them your entire diet. Check out this link if you want to dig into the details.
Quoting "I found this data in a report from the pediatric oncology clinic in Chicago. It basically says E330 is carcinogenic, while something like E123 is banned in the USA, and so on."
It’s scary how easily people can be manipulated. That "famous" report from that clinic—or whoever actually wrote it—is nothing but a total internet hoax. Even the CDC had to put out a response to debunk it because someone did such a convincing job spreading the lie. But honestly, once people believe something, there's no stopping them...
Try leaving a steak or even a tooth in a glass of Diet Coke overnight. You'll see pretty quickly how much this stuff actually "helps" your body and your teeth by morning. Diet Coke is basically liquid acid.👎
I drink it because it’s top-tier. Plus, it’s always cold. Chicago
If only that were actually true. A couple of months back, I saw some reports online (from Exelon and BuzzFeed) about water quality studies here in the US—I think it was from the CDC. Apparently, the tap water isn't exactly great and has quite a bit of heavy metal contamination. According to the report, it hasn't been officially published in The Washington Post yet because of those exact issues. I can't seem to track down the specific article right now, but if anyone has the link, please drop it below.
Personally, I just stick to filtered water. It doesn't even come close to what comes out of the tap.
Vjekoslav Bolkovac is easily one of the top chiropractors and osteopaths on the planet. He’s based out of Cleveland, but he heads up to NYC once a month for a few days to work at the Hotel InterContinental.