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”Be Useful”
- dopeboy 3y agoIf you're a founder or just someone who wants to be inspired, read his book 'Total Recall'. It's a fantastic story of his life and I came away really motivated reading it.
- maxverse 3y agoSame. I also enjoyed the wonderfully-narrated audiobook. Just listening to it makes me want to get out into the world and do something.
- pchristensen 3y agoThe interviews on Tim Ferriss and Rich Roll podcasts were very good.
- runjake 3y agoThe second interview on TF, released this month, was good. But Arnold’s first interview with Tim back in 2015 was much better (IMHO). https://tim.blog/2015/02/02/arnold-schwarzenegger/ https://tim.blog/2015/02/02/arnold-schwarzenegger/
- gardenhedge 3y ago[flagged]
- 29athrowaway 3y agoIn that article it said he did it under the supervision of a doctor, and the stuff was legal at that time.
- monooso 3y agoIt wasn't steroid "abuse", it was completely legal (and common practise) at the time. The article you linked to makes this perfectly clear.
- AlecSchueler 3y agoLegality doesn't preclude abuse potential. Plenty of people abuse legal things like alcohol every day.
- slothtrop 3y agoThat still doesn't reflect a moral blight, let alone for the fact that it's a "potential".
- AlecSchueler 3y agoI don't know what this means.
- codemiscreant 3y agoIt might have been common practice, but everyone denied it, including Arnold repeatedly. It was and is considered “cheating”, so the claim that it was normal should be asterisked. It is “normal” the way affairs in marriage are. And his recollection of his usage seems suspect. Both his dbol and test are seriously on the low side. I hugely doubt he is being forthcoming. To be clear I am a big fan of his and think the use of steroids is a personal choice, weighed against risks. It’s just that the post-facto fictions presented are seldom honest.
- monero-xmr 3y agoWhat’s wrong with using steroids? If it’s your own body you should be able to use them. I won’t, but I don’t put a lot of things in my body that others do.
- tayo42 3y agoIn personal use it's fine, when competing it raises the bar to you needing to use steroids to compete. Anyone not comfortable with messing with their hormones and dealing with the effects will never keep up
- geraldwhen 3y agoNearly all athletes are on PEDs, many even at the recreational level. That ship has long sailed.
- tayo42 3y agoIdk people always say that but athletes get suspended when their caught and it's always a decent sized scandal when it happens
- gwd 3y agoThis is why (according to lots of videos I've seen on youtube) there are two "tracks" for body-building competitions. One "track" has rules that prohibit steroid use, and do regular testing to enforce the rules. The other track has no rules prohibiting steroid use. They're not required, naturally, but it's basically understood that if you want to use them it's fine... which means you'd have to be a freak of nature to compete effectively on that track without taking them. Might be interesting to see what it would look like to have two tracks for other sports as well.
- moe_sc 3y agoEvery bodybuilder in any competition that isn't labeled as a natural competition uses them. That's just how bodybuilding turned out. Sure, you could debate on if that is good, but then don't argue about the athletes using them, but the orgs allowing it.
- runjake 3y agoHe does a decent job of addressing the above in his Netflix mini-series. A good watch if one wants to know more about Arnold. https://www.netflix.com/title/81317673 https://www.netflix.com/title/81317673
- BowBun 3y agoThen don't reply? This isn't reddit, your replies need substance and every passing thought isn't worth submitting. Just a tip.
- infinitezest 3y agoReplying to the reply that shouldn't have replied.
- gardenhedge 3y agoWhy shouldn't I reply? The link is promoting a person's tools for life. It's totally relevant to analyse the character of that person.
- ws66 3y agoAre you professing that we should pass on everone that doesn't have a perfect record? I mean, is there someone with a perfect record? I think you learn and grow to be good, to take care of others, and this process goes with mistakes that impact yourself and others... You cannot expect someone to be always 100% perfect all the time. As for myself, I did tons of shit that I am not proud of, so you should pass on this comment as well...
- AndrewKemendo 3y ago>Are you professing that we should pass on everyone that doesn't have a perfect record? This is the entire focus of western American Christianity. The pervasiveness of this is built into our culture, and as a result the world culture (because we exported this insanity) So what you get is a worldwide society of people who will use any human failing of a leader as proof of why all of what they did is wrong. Pillaging Christians starting with the Inquisition created a perfect reference person for which everyone should be compared to which makes everyone not good enough ever. Only through the weekly blessing that you have to attend and confess to can you be temporarily saved from certain forever death It's just so embedded into western culture that the source is not even recognized as the source.
- drewcoo 3y ago> Pillaging Christians starting with the Inquisition Not sure what that's supposed to mean. Strange spell-check error? I'm not a Christian, but I think that Protestant purity culture is a likelier culprit than Catholicism. Claims of moral pollution and calls for banning don't come from the pulpit, but from an "enlightened" public that can "think for itself."
- gardenhedge 3y agoYour comment is excusing groping people as not being "perfect"? Please explain. If you've done tons of shit that you're not proud of, I'll probably pass on your book too.
- ws66 3y ago
- geraldwhen 3y agoAll professional bodybuilders and powerlifters, and most athletes, use steroids. The US Olympic teams have team doctors to help the athletes cycle off in time for the drug test.
- hcks 3y agoThis is why he decided to be a body builder > actor > politician of course, makes perfect sense (people usually profess the beliefs their actions contradict the most)
- jawerty 3y agotrue the most useful people I know you'll never hear in NPR they're typically highly skilled workers who just do their job everyday.
- neontomo 3y agoEntertaining people can be useful to society, without fun we'd simply be worker drones living miserable lives. That said, I also struggle to see how how this guiding principle of "being useful" led him to take these actions. More likely, his real principle is, "be successful" in the dominant media view of "be famous, by doing anything you can to get there". He's selling a book with the same title as his "philosophy" so there's the real answer. I don't mean to be negative towards him, but this article reads like bullshit to me.
- detourdog 3y agoBeing useful is another way to express moving through life in a way that doesn’t cause more effort from those surrounding you. I see that as a path to success.
- booleandilemma 3y agopeople usually profess the beliefs their actions contradict the most Why is that?
- hardlianotion 3y agoAnd is it true?
- marc 3y agoArnold kept inspiring people from all walks of life that through hard work you can, in the case of body building quite literally, shape your own reality. I’d call that being useful.
- jef_leppard 3y agoI grew up in the 80s and it’s hard to overstate how dominant Arnold was back then. Every little boy wanted to be Commando or Conan. I also remember when he was governor (I live in cali). Those years I remember less fondly. He was not very good imo but it’s impressive nonetheless that he achieved that milestone. Once in a lifetime phenomenon. I’m really enjoying this new more thoughtful and reflective era he’s having. EDIT: moved some words around for clarity.
- appleiigs 3y agoMy recollection was that he was a good governor but tied up with political red tape. Also, compare him to other California governors since then and he doesn’t seem so bad.
- SoftTalker 3y agoI don't live there, but my perception was that he was a Republican so hated by the left, but he was a fairly moderate Republican, so not liked all that well by the right either. This left him without many powerful allies on either side.
- RickJWagner 3y agoWhen he was governor, California was not so solidly blue. He was more popular than you might guess today.
- hackernewds 3y agoyou think he has been better than Newsome?
- metabagel 3y agoSchwarzenegger was a perfectly fine governor of California. He actually created a mobile pandemic response capability for the state (instant hospital beds), but it was dismantled before the pandemic happened. Would have been handy when hospital beds became scarce.
- photochemsyn 3y agoArnold is a nice guy, certainly, but his political legacy is a bit questionable. He was a useful tool for certain energy interests, but it's not that laudable: > "On May 17, 2001, future Republican governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and former Los Angeles Mayor Republican Richard Riordan met with Enron CEO Kenneth Lay at the Peninsula Beverly Hills Hotel in Beverly Hills. The meeting was convened for Enron to present its "Comprehensive Solution for California," which called for an end to federal and state investigations into Enron's role in the California energy crisis." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000%E2%80%9301_California_electricity_crisis https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000%E2%80%9301_California_ele...
- rnrn 3y agoMaybe a tool for energy interests, but apparently not a very useful one given the fate of Enron and Lay in the months and years following that meeting. There were plenty of investigations into Enron after Schwarzenegger was elected governor.
- avalys 3y agoSo he had a meeting? What’s your point?
- photochemsyn 3y agoTakes a little digging, as the corporate media is mostly owned by the same shareholder conglomerates that own the utilities and their providers... but Schwarzenegger dropped the lawsuit against those who rigged the California energy system. (2003): > "According to the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights of Los Angeles, the biggest single threat to Ken Lay and the electricity lords is a private lawsuit filed by California Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante under California's unique Civil Code provision 17200, the Unfair Business Practices Act. This litigation, based upon rock- solid evidence of alleged fraudulent reporting of sales transactions, megawatt "laundering," fake power delivery scheduling and straight-out conspiracy, is headed to trial now in Los Angeles. The lawsuit would make the power companies return the $9 billion they filched from California electricity and gas customers." > "The prediction is that Gov. Schwarzenegger will now bless a sweetheart deal with the power companies that short circuits the lawsuit by way of a "settlement" of 2 cents per dollar negotiated by Bush's Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, headed by a guy originally proposed by former Enron CEO Ken Lay." https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/2003/11/19/hell-work-with-the-system-energy-lawsuit-down-drain/28775495007/ https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/2003/11/19/hell-wor... Arnold then dropped the $9 billion lawsuit once in office, I think the eventual settlement was only a few hundred million. I guess he was useful.
- suid 3y agoArnold the Tank Engine.
- ARandomerDude 3y ago> Champion bodybuilder. Hollywood superstar. Governor of California. I would question whether any of those count as useful.
- 39 3y agoBut this snark is truly something…
- avalys 3y agoAre you useful?
- vore 3y agoWell, I'm not doing anything useful with my life either, so that makes two of us.
- gardenhedge 3y agoUnfortunately there's no room for critizing him here. HN hivemind has become reddit-like and decided who is good and who is not.
- cpach 3y agoIt’s fine. If you don’t want to like Schwarzenegger, you don’t have to. But I would still recommend reading the interview. I found it thoughtful.
- maxverse 3y agoWhat do you consider useful?
- inglor_cz 3y agoIDK about bodybuilding, but: a) Entertainment and arts are useful, even Stone Age hunters and gatherers left some art behind. It is part of our humanity. We obviously feel need to produce and consume art. (Maybe not you, but we the people in general.) And movies are art. b) Big sets of people, like California is, need to be managed somehow. Individual politicians might be useless, but the office of the governor is useful.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- padolsey 3y ago>I hate when someone says, "Oh, Schwarzenegger is the perfect example of a self-made man" because I'm not. I'm a creation of my parents. I'm a creation of my coaches, my teachers. I have been helped by my training partners, by my friends. Especially when I think about coming to America, it was Joe Wheeler that helped me to come over here, got me the airline ticket, helped me get the apartment and the car. The people of California voted for me to be governor of California. So I didn't become governor because I'm self-made; I became governor because people voted for me. I love this humility and wish more people would have it. Even if you weren't supported by individuals, it is due to the society around you, its infrastructure, its structure, its technology, that you are able to be a "success". We are the product of things we had no control over initially. Yet people still say "self made" ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
- jasfi 3y agoI'm quite sure that was Joe Weider.
- RickJWagner 3y agoI think you're right. This seems like a pretty plain blunder.
- marginalia_nu 3y agoThis is sort of a crippling mindset though. If we tell ourselves others succeed because of what they were given, that's not really putting yourself in a position where you're likely to take control over your own life. It becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. Whether you tell yourself you're destined for greatness or be a deadbeat and fighting against this destiny is pointless, and you're more than likely to be correct. I don't think this is particularly informative. You gotta play the hand you're dealt and make the most of it. It's not fair in the sense everyone has the same opportunities, but there's still a spectrum of accomplishments that can be achieved by any given person.
- jvalencia 3y agoI would argue that true maturity is when someone can take care of themselves, recognize their inputs with gratitude, and ask for help when needed with humility, not expecting that someone else would take care of them AND being grateful even if they don't get it. The polarization of our arguments leads us to pretty shallow poles.
- mr_mitm 3y agoI'm a fan of Arnold, but I think it's pretty clear that he suffers from issues stemming from his rough relationship with his father. How else could you become the embodiment of success and hard work if not for a pathological need to succeed and impress? It seems to have worked out for him, but in any other person I'd consider his insane work ethics to be toxic and unhealthy.
- Etheryte 3y agoI don't think that necessarily holds. It's a common trope to look at someone who's had a rough childhood and then become a success and say that it's because of their rough childhood. But this overlooks all the people who had a rough childhood and didn't become a success, why doesn't it hold there? Similarly, many people are successful without having a rough childhood. In essence, if you can easily make the same argument either way, that the childhood did/did not matter, then it's hard to say that it holds any bearing. Of course, I don't disagree that coming from that background comes to define many parts of one's character, but to say that that's the reason for where they ended up is in my opinion a bit too reductionist.
- slothtrop 3y agoValidation isn't something you only get from your parents. Notwithstanding, it's not the only motivating factor for achieving and taking risks. Arnold's charisma and charm helped him go far rather early (he made his first million in construction with a fellow bodybuilder). He seems to delight in competing and new challenges. Some people are built that way.
- dboreham 3y agoI saw him having lunch at a rooftop restaurant in Beverly Hills a few years ago. He seemed pretty chill and not working at the time.
- pkaler 3y ago> I'm a fan of Arnold, but I think it's pretty clear that he suffers from issues stemming from his rough relationship with his father. Read the book and watch the Netflix documentary. I’m pretty sure Arnold is self-aware of his father issues. For a concrete example, Arnold’s brother dies drinking-and-driving at the age of 24. Arnold contrasts the way he was able to handle his relationship with his father compared to his deceased brother.
- shipscode 3y agoHe’ll always be Arnold “Screw Your Freedom” Schwarzenegger to me.
- redder23 3y agoOh man its great to read that here. This site is so filled with woke people who probably STILL agree with him.
- koonsolo 3y agoNext time when you're at the operation table, tell the surgeon and assistants that there's no need to wear masks.
- shipscode 3y agoWell that would be silly, masks MUST BE WORN when you’re standing around or walking to a table, you can only take them off if you’re actually seated at the table. Same as a restaurant. #science
- lottin 3y agoWhen I was young I struggled to fit in with others. I didn't know what to do so that other people would like me. As an older adult, I understood that everyone respects and appreciates someone who can deal with problems and get things done, in other words, a useful person. This is all there's to it. A big part of it is getting physically in shape. A big strong man is perceived as a useful man. I wish I figured this out earlier.
- Animats 3y agoThat sounds so Thomas the Tank Engine, who is Really Useful.
- wly_cdgr 3y agoI like Arnold the most of any American public figure but, no
- b3nji 3y agoGood old, "Screw your freedom" Schwarzenegger. Love that guy.