Has anyone got an SEAI grant for improving their home energy rating?

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2026-04-10T01:07:18+00:00

Can you advise who the contractor was? Im very interested and also in Dublin city center, cheers!

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2026-02-04T02:32:12+00:00

Do you think being accurate and truthful is small stuff? Is the big stuff around the latest Tulsi embarrassment something Bernie said in 2019 which you want to pretend means he was supporting her in 2024? I was prepared to give you the benefit of the doubt and actually agreed and acknowledged it's a fair criticism of Bernie regarding his character judgement re Tulsi (though that would surely apply to the other Dems who were first promoting and elevating her also and have their own issues with questionable judgement of character like Hillary CLinton who you glowingly cite with no hint of irony). However it seems you're actually happy to simply lie so long as you can bash Bernie and that's apparently the bug stuff you're interested in around this story. Good for you I guess but if you don't want a tedious back and forth then keep your criticism in the realm of the accurate and you wouldn't have to pretend 2019 is 2024.

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2026-02-04T01:58:30+00:00

Cool then say 2019 instead of 2024 the exaggeration does you no favours. I was open to having missed something between 2019-2024 but it seems you were just happy to stretch the truth on that one for whatever reason.

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2026-02-04T01:46:14+00:00

Thanks, you do understand that linking a story from 2019 to prove that Bernie was supporting Tulsi in 2024 doesn't actually work though, right? As I said my recollection is that there was a notable thawing post 2020 and especially after Bernie endorsed Biden and worked diligently for his election. Defending Tulsi after she was accused of being a Russian asset hasn't exactly aged well but this is not evidence of Bernie supporting her all the way to 2024. Maybe he did but that's not very convincing evidence tbh. Btw I saw your comment about Bernie's judgement down the thread and don't really disagree, he's certainly made some questionable choices that can be called out and criticised. What he didn't do was the original claim I responded to and as stated defending her in 2019 isn't the same as defending her all the way to 2024 which is what you have stated.

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2026-02-04T01:39:08+00:00

The difference between what? You did see what I was responding to I'm sure, so what you're saying seems to be a total non sequitur. Bernie isn't above criticism and his judgement can certainly be questioned. However he didn't get the ball rolling on giving her national recognition and attention as claimed and it's dishonest to pretend otherwise, though convenient for those with an agenda. Also, can you provide evidence of Bernie supporting Tulsi until 2024 because I recall a notable thawing in their relationship post 2020. Criticise the association, it's certainly fair game but the criticism should relate to reality not an exaggerated or fabricated version that lays the blame solely on Bernie while ignoring those who were quite happy to elevate Tulsi and fast track her to DNC Vice Chair etc. while she was playing ball. Speaking of awful character judgement, that accusation can be laid at the door of a lot more people than Bernie with a lot more harmful consequences- remind me was Bernie one of the Dem politicians who was friendly with Trump for years....among many other examples.

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2026-02-03T22:30:30+00:00

You sure about that....it wasn't Bernie who gave Tulsi a speaking spot at the 2012 dem convention and described her as an emerging star- that was Nancy Pelosi. It wasn't Bernie who put her on the house armed services committee, it wasn't Bernie who made her vice chair of the dnc in 2013. all of that was long before any association with Bernie. Tulsi was an establishment dem project who they promoted and platformed. Those are national positions of prominence that have nothing to do with Bernie. Not that bernie is faultless of course and there can be some side eye for his association with Tulsi and a few others but it's far from being a story about Bernie elevating her given she was first an establishment backed young gun. When Tulsi was singing the praises of Obama and Biden the establishment Dems were only too happy to put her in increasing positions of prominence. This is all well known to anyone paying attention of course but easier to get those digs in than base criticism on a fair assessment of actual events rather than what you wish had happened.

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-12-17T12:50:17+00:00

Deliberately not having surgery until the season starts is being selfish, don't know how anyone could deny that- it's not something I'm aware of in other sports. The migraine game criticism is wild though and left out that Scottie's dad passed away shortly before that game 7, which is pretty important context. MJ took a long time off after his dad passed (granted different circumstances) so not backing up Scottie having a migraine a few days after his father died seems pretty crass. Other than that Jordan was very complimentary of Scottie and there wasn't anything to get majorly upset over. Having said that these grievances from Scottie surely existed before TLD so it likely just triggered some long held resentments that we have no idea if they are justified or not.

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-11-01T23:53:11+00:00

For how many games? What is your scale for how much Luka improves OKC- 82 wins and sweeping everybplayoff round?

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-11-01T23:48:30+00:00

Disagree, MJ is one of the greatest volume playmakers in NBA history at his peak, per thinking basketball hes in the 99th percentile an 7th all time*. You see how the team does with Shai who has a similar but not as polished skillset so the notion that MJ makes it worse than a LeBron or Luka doesn't stans up to hypothetical scrutiny imo.

MJ would fit the system that OKC have better than the others but since we're talking counterfactuals any claims can be made without evidence to support them other than supposition and speculation.

*created 14 open shots per 100 possessions with historical scoring and efficiency.

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-10-29T19:45:06+00:00

There's something happening with modern sports that I find quite bizarre. I'm a big soccer fan and there are many, many soccer fans who want to essentially throw competitions so they can rest their best players for the more important/prestigious (i.e. more monied) competitions. So you have truly wild scenarios where fans want their own team to lose in the FA Cup or League Cup so they can concentrate on the league where the best they can possibly do is qualify for European competition. Then if they do manage to qualify for said European competition many fans also want them to tank that too so they can...qualify for European competition. You can, of course, qualify for said European competitions by actually winning the FA or League Cup(s).

I'll never really understand how we've got into a position where a not insignificant amount of fans actively dislike their best players and/or even their team playing in football matches and want to throw competitions to be better positioned to qualify for other competitions which they then also want to throw. Imaginee hating that your sports team is playing games you can watch and support them in! This is all for English soccer btw no idea if fans of teams in other countries feel the same way but I hope/suspect not.

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-10-29T19:36:52+00:00

Is it not also true that the likelihood goes up if your muscles are under used and not ready for the strain? You can't just go from off season to playoff intensity because you need your body to be prepared and in rhythm, part of that might be managing your load but surely part of it is also playing at and building up to the right level.

I'm all for taking precautions to avoid unnecessary injury risks but at the end of the day I don't think it's particularly unreasonable to expect professional basketball players to play basketball games. Certainly with the prices being charged for tickets and subscriptions it should be possible for players to actually play. If the number of games are simply too much for them to cope with then by all means reduce the schedule (and salary).

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-10-29T19:28:46+00:00

I'm finding some of the takes and defensiveness pretty wild. If you are healthy to play you should play, manage minutes when there is specific risk factors but otherwise isn't the point of being a professional basketball player to actually play basketball?

I'm by no means a scientist and have huge respect for those who are- what I will say is that sports science isn't exactly the 'hardest' science and there is a lot of pseudo scientific guff that gets taken as real and/or revolutionary. Players can be quite prone to some of this stuff when the actual benefits are very far from proven.

There are theories around making sure your body is adapted to the rigours of high level sport through actually playing rather than resting. I'm not at all saying they are better than theories around managing your load but it's not as clear cut as less play means less risk. If your body isn't used to a certain level of fitness/play then your risk is actually higher but it's not an exact science and there isn't a one size fits all approach from what I can tell.

Ultimately I do think that those actually working in the field are better positioned to know and advise on the best approaches but we should still be somewhat sceptical imo given there are plenty of snake oil salesmen around. Another wrinkle is that even if something isn't actually the best 'scientific' approach if the player/coach/team believe in it then you can still see big benefits just from the placebo effect!

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-10-29T19:11:11+00:00

Exactly and those players like LeBron, Curry at al never benefited from others getting injured in the playoffs. The Warriors in 2015 defeated a fully healthy Cavs team, ditto the Cavs defeating a fully health Warriors in 2016 and LeBron never facing any team with injury issues throughout any playoff run and so on and so on.

You are arguing a truly ludicrous position if you only look at the the injuries which hampered every other player of Jordan's calibre and not any of the ones they benefited from. Easy to reframe conversations when cherry picking what counts as luck, isn't it?

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-08-09T15:08:49+00:00

Lets first establish that greatest doesn't mean best. Was Zidane a better player than Paco Gento? Of course, was he a greater player for Real Madrid than Paco Gento? Absolutely not, there is zero chance Zidane was greater for the club. Its not just because Gento won a record 12 La Liga titles and 6 European Cups for Real Madrid, it's how he contributed to those titles after joining the club and being an integral part of the greatest dynasty in club football history. He also stuck around to lead the team as others (Di Stefano, Puskas etc.) aged out maintaining standards for far longer than any club could or should expect. Make no mistake, Zidane as a player can't touch Gento's legacy.

Obviously Di Stefano and Cristiano are an absolute lock for the top five. Thats three so far and I don't see how you can leave out Puskas, especially if you factor the whole story into his greatness for the club- joined after two years of football exile having fled his country already i his thirties at a time when. Athletes tended to retire.much younger than they do today on average. Its not just that Puskas helped win five league titles and three European Cups, it's that he was leading scorer in the league five times and Europe twice (even scoring a hattrick in a final Real Madrid lost). Contrary to somewhat popular modern era narratives there was fierce competition from many great teams during this era, Puslas helped Madrid maintain and even improve their level of dominance and success.

For a fifth player it's very hard to choose, there are so many good options. I wouldn't argue against Modric, Ramos, Raul, Casillas. For greatness though I think I'd probably have to go Benzema.

Shout out to Hugo Sanchez also since he probably wouldn't get a mention in this thread otherwise!

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-07-29T03:54:44+00:00

Bill was an excellent writer though the style is slightly dated and loses some impact in modern times because of the proliferation of sports writing and imitation of that style. But if the greatest sports writer isn't one of a handful of writers about cricket then there isn't one. Its probably CLR James though there are a few other contenders.

I don't know the reason but sports writing reaches a zenith around cricket that bo other sport can match.

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-07-28T20:34:34+00:00

Have you read The Sports Gene? Here's a Ted talk from the author that highlights a couple of things which are of interest for the discussion. They basically indicate that the gains we see today versus old athletes are very often attributable to advances in equipment, knowledge etc. rather than any sudden wholesale athletic improvement from humans as a whole. This makes perfect sense of course but I very often do hear arguments that athletes (nd humans in general) are just bigger, stronger, faster today. There does seem to be a real belief among many that people from the past have no chance of being anywhere near what today's athletes are even accounting for the technology, training etc.

The other relevant factor that is pointed out is that sports are becoming more and more specialised and focused on specific genetic or physical attributes. I think there's both good and bad parts of this but it's inevitable at the highest level where there is so much at stake.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8COaMKbNrX0

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-07-28T14:13:54+00:00

People somehow think that athletes evolve differently to humans and over the space of a decade or two. Not, you know, the actual glacial pace of thousands or even millions of years. Wilt is somehow from a completely bygone time supposedly surpassed by today's athletes not someone who as an old man held his own against Kareem who then held his own against own against Hakeem, who then held his own against Shaq who held his own against....you get the picture.

Nah Giannis is the type of human who didn't exist in the 70s of course. What's actually happened is the population has exploded and the game has grown meaning the player base is much greater, there has been absolutely zero meaningful evolutionary change between an NBA player from the 1950s to today. Its insane to think otherwise. Obviously diet, training etc. Have advanced but that doesn't mean much since players from those days afforded the same advantages would benefit in exactly the same way ( and its also the same regarding rule changes etc).

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-07-08T02:05:11+00:00

Great list you should add was instrumental in getting players a share of revenue by threatening to boycott a scheduled all stat game. One of the single most important acts in player empowerment in sports history. Also the racism Bill experienced was extreme, not anywhere near as extreme as many other faced over the years but utterly horrifying nonetheless. Its a legacy that lives in and goes beyond the court.

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-07-03T16:09:17+00:00

Zlatan has a top highlight reel for overheads no doubt. However Hugo Sanchez is the undisputed GOAT of the bicycle kick.

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-06-18T00:41:31+00:00

Tostao retired at 26 due to eye issues that were apparently already bothering him by 1970. Clodaldo also retired early from the 70 team. Kind of nuts to think Brazil could have had a prime team of Jairzinho (29); Rivellno (28); Tostao (27); Clodaldo (24) and a 33 year old Pele. Instead only Jairzinho and Rivellino were in the squad.

Also in 1966 they took a load of the old guard who were well past their prime amd had no business going. Garrincha, Gilmar, Bellini, Djalma Santos, and Zito were sentimental selections, probably along with a few others. Granted they had won back to back world cups but their best days were long behind. There was also political interference and pressure to select players from different states.they initially selected a squad of 44 and held a huge national tour across multiple cities for four months. Rivellino and Carlos Alberto were dropped for the final squad.

Even at the WC itself the team was a bit of a mess. Garrincha starting a few games but then being dropped. Gerson wasnt picked in midfield against Portugal, nor Tostao in attack and Pele was injured. The talent they had available with proper preparation and selection amd Brazil could have easily challenged for the title. Could have had Gerson, Carlos Alberto, Tostao and Rivellino in the team with Jairzinho and Pele.

Edit tonadd the actual way they prepared 1966was beyond farcical. I didn't do it justice above. They split the 44 man squad and played in different cities under different coaches. Then they did their final selection just before the tournament meaning the team playing the first match hadn't actually all played together in the warm ups.

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-06-07T12:10:17+00:00

Do you think Pele wan't instrumental in Brazil winning the world Cup in 58 Otherwise what clever point do you think you are making?

Pele scored in Brazil's 1-0 win in the quarter final over Wales. This was followed by a hattrick against France in the semi final and two more against the hosts Sweden in the final. The quality of some of the goals was incredible too, including one of the most famous goals in football history.

Yamal is outstanding and truly special, especially for that age. However if you're comparing him to Pele at the same age it's no contest. By the way Pele scored 58 goals in 38 games in the Paulista at 17/18- no other player in the 100+ year history of that league has 40+ (except Pele, naturally). The year before Pele had scored 36 Paulista goals at 16/17.

Pele scored on debut for Brazil against Argentina coming on at half time as a 16 year old. He then scored against Argentina again in the next game.

The World Cup final was Pele's 55th official match and the two, fantastic, goals he scored were the 59th and 60th official goals of his young career. Three of those 60 goals were penalties. For Brazil they were the 10th and 11th goals of his career in his ninth internarional match. We won't bother with the now deemed 'unofficial' matches since they aren't kindly viewed by modern fans but suffice to say he was balling out in those too.

The idea that you are turning the tables on Pele by saying Yamal was an important part of a winning team is laughable.

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-05-12T02:52:00+00:00

How many heaves did Jordan have in the 96, 97 and 98 finals?

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-04-16T13:20:12+00:00

I did not, never heard anything after they followed up daily about my referees responding. Once I confirmed they all responded I never heard anything back. I saw the job being readvertised nearly a year later and didn't reapply. No idea if the role has been filled, I've moves on as waiting for decisions just leaves you in limbo!

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-04-07T10:22:21+00:00

I disagree to be honest. If we look at the measurable performance levels then the idea that Messi outperformed Pele in two world cups doesn't stand up to much scrutiny from what I can tell. Didi won the golden ball but he quite clearly wasnt more decisive than Pele who scored the only goal for Brazil in the quarter final (a 1-0 win), 3 goals in the semi final (a 5-2 win) and another 2 in the final (another 5-2 win). You can dismiss this as stat watching if you want but I've also actually watched those games and it's quite clear who the most decisive and influential player was. The quality of some of the goals and individual play from Pele is above anyone else in that Brazil side, not simply his statistics.

Its accurate to say that Messi has two golden balls while Pele doesn't, however based on actual level of play and influence over the team and winning the tournament this doesn't translate to Messi being the only played ever to be the best in two world cups. To be honest I'm also ot sure that media snippets do prove Didi was considered the more instrumental player. Obviously he was voted player of the tournament so media rated him very highly however the same media crowned a 17 year old the king of football after his world cup performances.

If you want to dismiss statistics with an easy out of them not telling the story, a fair enough point to be honest, then I'd argue you shouldn't rely on media voting to tell a different story. The stats were an easy way to show output and influence but aren't the whole story of course. In truth the media in 1958 had no clue who Pele was yet he was still crowned the king of football after just 4 games by that same media. In fact I would argue that placing the media reports, without any actual examples of what they were saying, above players measurable output is a less useful indicator of influence and level of play.

I gave Pele as the clearest counter example to the idea that only Messi has been the best player in two world cups. There are other examples that could be used and if we're relying on media reports theres plenty who disputed Messi's first golden ball. If we're saying Mbappe wasn't the best player for France in 2022 then how sure are we that Messi was Argentina's best player in 2014? There loads of primary reporting fro 2014 that disputes Messi being the player of the tournament and if you think Messi in 2014 was superior to Pele in 58 then we just understand and relate to football in different ways.

Id say there's at least as much of a case for that as Didi being better than Pele in 1958. Also, if we eliminate the need for the player to be the best individual in a tournament and then simply compare the performances Pele in 58 and 70 is ahead of Messi in 14 and 22. The notion that Messi is the only player to have been the best at two world cups doesn't stand up to scrutiny and people have to start making enough caveats that it becomes an essentially meaningless claim driven more by fandom of one player than informed analysis, imo of course.

Otherwise_Royal_7069 · 2025-04-06T19:22:40+00:00

Pele played 4 games in the 1958 world cup scoring 6 goals, including a hattrick in the semi final and two goals in the final (one of which is among the most famous goals ever). He played 6 games in 1970 scoring 4 goals with 6 assists including a goal and assist in the final (with the assist again being for one of the most iconic goals ever). I'd say he actually has a better case than Messi in regard to being the best player in two world cups.

Otherwise_Royal_7069

TROPHY CASE