Posts by Thomas Long7

Give us more coverage on youth soccer—enough already!

Why bother with these supposed "giants" when they’ve spent years looking down their noses at local neighborhood clubs instead of actually supporting them?

Jonathan Barnes5 said:It isn't that they bother me inherently, but rather that these teams lack a deep-rooted history, and I'd personally find a matchup like Phoenix vs. Memphis or maybe St. Louis vs. Nashville far more compelling than some local clash between suburb teams. Even having a neighborhood club around adds a certain flavor to the local scene, but for me, football is about the atmosphere and the soul surrounding the pitch. My point about them being from the metro area is simply that most of the clubs with real ambitions—or those already established in the top flight—just don't offer that same sense of excitement.

Furthermore, the massive regional imbalance isn't ideal either. It seems like the Midwest has been stuck with just one major contender for years, and the South will likely face the same fate, but as > already pointed out, we shouldn't blame these specific clubs for the structure of the first division.

Well then, go follow some tiny local club in the lower leagues. Sure, it might not be elite-level football, but the atmosphere is actually authentic and sporty. Personally, I find much more enjoyment there than wasting my time at matches for these pathetic, overpaid clubs.

Jonathan Barnes5 said:@Joshua Hayes89
Hold your horses, friend; these are just my personal thoughts and some unverified observations. Even if I don't follow everything at your level of intensity, it’s highly likely I’m keeping tabs on more than half the people involved in this league.

When I frame something as "I think," it simply means the information hasn't been strictly verified yet. If a fact I stated wasn't quite right, you corrected me, and that's perfectly fine—no harm done. Somewhere along the line, I held onto a specific detail regarding the viewership, but let's just move past it.

Moving back to the main point, I get why some folks find it exciting how a team like FC Cincinnati surged during the final stretch of the season, perhaps picking up steam around the Easter break; there was even a scoreboard in the stands highlighting their points lead. But honestly, I have no desire to watch them in the top flight, much like I have no interest in watching teams like Columbus Crew or especially LAFC.

Regarding what > mentioned, Cincinnati is actually ahead of most clubs organizationally; they implemented serious scouting and analytics well before eighty percent of the league did, they’ve made smart choices with coaches and sporting directors, and their style of play has been genuinely engaging to watch. It was similar with Columbus Crew for a long time, but those aren't teams I feel drawn to. I realize it's unrealistic to expect clubs with deep traditions, like Portland Timbers or FC Cincinnati, to see this kind of immediate success, but until the final two matchdays, they had a genuine shot at European competition—well, international tournament spots—and everyone was watching. We didn't even tune in when Columbus was playing in the lower divisions.

Thirdly, the pitches are definitely in better shape than they were a few seasons ago; if you don't see that, or if you believe certain clubs simply refuse to invest in their grounds, that's your prerogative. However, the quality of play on that hybrid turf was certainly superior to what we've seen this season.

Fourth, over the last two seasons, the spring half has been a bit of a disaster in terms of quality. This year has been particularly rough, with matches that were frankly unwatchable—just lifeless, stagnant play with zero scoring action.

Fifth, while the title race might keep you on the edge of your seat next season, and that's been the case for most of MLS history, at least you used to have the illusion that teams like St. Louis City or Seattle could jump into the fray, not to mention the obvious resurgence from Inter Miami. Now, the matchups at the big stadiums will likely just be predictable two-goal affairs. There's also a high probability the battle for continental spots will lose its luster; personally, I don't buy into the long-term sustainability of the projects over at Cincinnati or Columbus.

All in all, the league won't be interesting on multiple levels. This whole situation with four different clubs hailing from the same metropolitan area is especially hard to stomach.

This is absolutely mental... seriously? Is your only actual criterion for hating these clubs that they happen to be from the greater metropolitan area? It doesn't matter if they scrap for a few points against the "big names"—if they're from the suburbs, you can't stand them? You'd rather sit through ninety minutes of unwatchable football from a team like Ceballos or El Paso—teams that just park the bus and pray for a lucky counter-attack—than watch a decent side like Sibenik go up against the giants in the Cup? Ridiculous.

Kudos to Goricca—they absolutely earned that win.

Modern journalism has become absolutely repulsive—everything is about chasing clicks now, completely devoid of any sense of responsibility.

So, what on earth happened with Sopic?

stormyangler32 said:I mean, I’d blow the whistle there too—but honestly, I’m pretty sure they have those specific guidelines now where if it hits a part of the body and then bounces into the hand, they don't call it. Just one of those annoying little technicalities, I guess.

If that ball had actually gone in the net, they probably would have called it—just like that messy situation the Atlanta Braves dealt with a few games back.

But did they screw up with how they handled that arm contact and the rulebook? Absolutely.

It was a beautiful sight to see everyone embracing and saying their goodbyes at the end. #LoveOnly

hiddenranger5 said:Is it possible there was some major drama going down in Kansas City right under our noses?

While everyone’s busy arguing over penalty calls, Krstanović is out there absolutely killing it.

I honestly don't get it—what exactly was his reasoning for calling that a handball? Is he just making things up as he goes along?
If you look at the slow-motion replay, it’s glaringly obvious—the ball didn't change its trajectory or its rotation one bit. The only way he could have seen the hand is if he was looking at some high-def zoomed-in feed on his own monitor.

Cheers to every single person involved—because thanks to that loser, he actually managed to build something that looks like a real damn squad.

Honestly, this whole situation regarding the fifth goal—where they just let the defense collapse like that—is absolutely moronic. How can you even call that competitive?

Gregory Ramos3 said:Look, I already mentioned that they can do their own analysis, but when it comes to spotting actual forgery, I’ll leave that to the forensic experts once—and if—they actually get their hands on the paperwork.

Just take a look at the difference in color tones between the left and right seals in this section of the photo.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Faw90slW...jpg&name=large

But hey, let's just play along and assume it's totally legit for a second. Like, imagine some super-secret spy just strolls right into Russia, plants a car bomb while his daughter stands lookout, knows the exact moment Daria Dugina is going to be there, disables all the security cameras, strolls away perfectly fine with Ukrainian documents in hand, and then somehow an Azov ID card just happens to fall out of her bag while she's making a run for Estonia?

Seriously, try telling that story to your buddies over coffee, film their faces, and post it here... I would honestly love to see that reaction. 🙂

Come on guys, let's use a little common sense here... if it helps you wrap your head around it, just pretend this is happening in some remote parts of Africa or somewhere else entirely that doesn't affect you one bit.

Different color tones occur simply because different surfaces absorb ink differently. Take a felt-tip marker and scribble on standard printer paper versus photo paper—you'll see the exact same difference.

I am not even venturing into whether this is an original or a fake, but what you see above is absolutely not proof of forgery.

Look, I don't get it either—why on earth can't this press release be up for discussion?

Fine, let's say it's an off-topic tangent, but claiming we can't link the official statement from the Dallas Cowboys just because Mamic is a criminal? That is pure idiocy.
It’s like trying to ban any mention of Republican statements in politics simply because certain party members have been convicted of crimes.

Maybe it’s just some piece of space junk—an old, defunct satellite or something...

I can't say for sure—but I was actually out in the suburbs of Chicago when I heard that explosion myself.

Is it a matter of searching for a simple solution—perhaps a basic fix—or are we looking at something much more complex and volatile?

Ryan Barrett2 said:Does anyone know where I can pick up some magnetic stir bars? I'm honestly not even sure what the common term for them is here in the States.
They're those little magnetic "pills" used for mixing liquids with a magnetic laboratory stirrer. I feel like I've been scouring the internet all day long, but I just can't seem to track them down anywhere. I suppose I might just be using the wrong terminology when searching our local suppliers... maybe they go by a different name in American labs?

The length was about 35mm $5.00 roughly two years ago

You’re going to need an adapter—one end features dual RCA plugs to hook up to your Xbox 360 AV cable, while the other side sports a 3.5mm stereo jack that plugs directly into the first green audio input on your speakers (those front audio inputs)

Is it actually allowed to trim those two little strips off the ends of the bracelet? They’re getting in the way of my work and driving me absolutely insane—but I really don't want someone at the entrance giving me grief tomorrow claiming it's been damaged or some other nonsense.🤔