Before making an opinion about Arnold, read the complete part where Arnold talks about this...
From Flex September 2006 issue...
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger Editorial
Lately, I have heard talk from bodybuilders and others who think more monetary rewards should be available in the sport Joe created. I think it’s always good to strive for more, but I want to challenge them to do something about it. Maybe they should create these extra revenue streams by starting their own supplement line, publishing their own bodybuilding magazine or promoting their own pro contests, where they can offer more than the $700,000 plus that is available at the Olympia. If they have innovative ways to improve the bodybuilding economy, I say have at it.
One of President John Kennedy’s famous lines was, “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.” I would put a bodybuilding inflexion in there and say, “Ask not what bodybuilding can do for you; ask what you can do for bodybuilding.” You cannot stand and wait for the world to knock on your front door and offer you a living. Of course, everyone needs a little help, sometimes a little luck, but essentially your future is in your own hands.
When Joe brought me to the United States in 1968, he gave me the opportunity to improve myself physically and fiscally. He gave me a stipend that helped me move into a small apartment in Venice and buy a used Volkswagen. It wasn’t a fortune, but it was enough to get me on my own two feet. With a roof over my head, transportation and the ability to feed myself, I had all I needed as a foundation upon which I could build myself.
Soon after relocating, I enrolled in business school, I did bricklaying work with Franco Columbu, and I went about the business of finalizing my long-term plan for reaching all my goals one by one. With the security of knowing I had the basic tools for survival at my disposal, I was able to spread my wings and soar toward my loftiest goals.
Joe put me in that position. He believed in teaching you how to fish, rather than simply giving you a fish when you’re hungry. That way, you become more self-reliant. Joe gave me the opportunities, but it was up to me to work hard to maximize those opportunities. Neither Franco nor I ever saw Joe as a meal ticket. We saw him as a kind of dream maker. It was as if he laid out a treasure map but left it to us to decipher it by combining our ambition, talent and work ethic. And we did. Franco is now a successful chiropractor living in Los Angeles, and I’ve done pretty well for myself, as you probably know. Joe gave us the opportunity to better ourselves and we took it with both hands.
