OPINION
TRINITY NEWS November 17, 2009
15
IN PROFILE: TONY QUINN
£100,000 for happiness Sarah Clarkin IF YOU feel that the real you is entangled somewhere deep inside you, screaming hysterically to be set free from your inner chains and not-sosecret demons, look no further than Bahamas based Tony Quinn, a former Mr. Ireland bodybuilder most famous for coaching Steve Collins to the world title in 1995 against Chris Eubank. Quinn is the heaven-sent self motivator who promises to sort out your life and make you a better person. Tony Quinn understands you; he knows that deep down you can be a better person. That new job you’ve long sought after? The new house that calls out to you at night? Or maybe it’s your relationship with the person you know is the One, however unsmooth the path of true love is? Fear no more, this self motivator knows that it just boils down to knowing to the many ideals unrealised due to lack of teaching. You may not be aware of it yet, but Tony Quinn can tell you that your way of thinking is severely outdated, and this can drastically limit your understanding of life. Luckily Tony Quinn understands your life better than you do; there’s nothing like a second opinion! As long as you’re prepared to unearth the problems of your life, with the help of this perma-tanned former Mr. Ireland, you’ll find yourself on the path to selffulfilment. The inner you is engaged in a Civil War, you see, swinging backward and forward in a “Jekyll and Hyde manner,” and this disconcerting motion is holding you back. However as we now know, there are peaceful communes where we
can live in a yogic state of being. Tony Quinn was once a scrawny boy from Stonybatter in Dublin, a far cry from his Christmas home in Martello Tower, Malahide. A taxi driver’s son, the onetime scrawny butcher, developed a love for Charles Atlas, and himself became a spiritualist, messianic character, endowed with the godly powers of persuasion and influence, despite his limited education. It was during the 1980s and 1990s that the “lifestyle guru” flourished. Ensuring longevity, Quinn successfully distanced himself from some hippy associates. After mastering the art of hypnotism, he developed his now infamous Educo system, the ‘good word’ being spread through his bible, Blueprint for Successful Living. This newspaper was delivered to homes and contained otherworldly interviews
“We are a small group of people who have made a vital difference to every man, woman and child in a whole country.” with Quinn regarding his most intimate “insights.” Quinn’s big break came for him on the Late Late Show which showed footage of him successfully employing hypnotic anesthesia. Yet, for an individual who claims to have the recipe for triumph over all else,
his positivist approach has come in for a serious battering lately. Even Collins has simply played down Quinn’s role, by spooking Eubank into believing he could feel no pain. We mere mortals are to blame if Quinn’s methods do not work for us; if they fail, it is because we do not believe. His programmes are not for the faint hearted, it is not called the system of true believers for nothing! Though, they’re not for the faint pocketed either: small master classes could cost up to £62,000 while one-on-one coaching could leave you more than £100,000 out of pocket. Clearly, if you are not faithful enough to understand how his methods work, his home on the well-to-do Hamhaugh Island in Surrey, his house in Malahide, his property in Los Angeles and apartments on Paradise Island in the Bahamas, where Far Niente, his yacht, is moored will rub you up the wrong way – as will his fondness for James Bond movies and busty 23 year old blondes like his wife. What we need to comprehend is how successful we can be if we cough up enough dough! Clearly the psychology professor in UCD who called the Educo system “simplistic in the extreme and without any acceptable research” could do with enrolling in a Tony Quinn master class. Joe Duffy is another one who urgently needs to fight his inner negativity that threatens to consume. Tony Quinn was recently said to be shocked by RTÉ Liveline’s “witch-hunt” that alluded to his organisation as a “cult,” and attacked him for the vast amounts he charges for seminars. (In a court case in 2000, a woman was forced to go before a judge to gain control over her
finances, claiming her husband was acting under an “external influence” following one such seminar.) Quinn’s pitch is that the money spent will be dwarfed by the amount you will earn following the discovery of your successful self. “Here’s the bottom line,” Quinn said last week. “We are a small group of people who have made a vital difference to every man, w o m a n and child in a whole country. Maybe even for future generations as well. Tell me who else can lay claim to that kind of achievement, to really be able to say they made a difference.” Indeed! With the decline of religion in Ireland, our saviour, Tony Quinn, has stepped up to the mark once again. Perhaps he can offer Dialogue Ireland, the organistation that gathers information on new religious movements, some cut price seminars so they too can repeal their negativity regarding the personal and financial problems of participants on previous seminars in favour of the all too bright Tony Quinn light.
Illustration by Sinead Mercier
USI strike support strikes at students Martin James Melvin UNEMPLOYMENT AMONGST 18–25 year olds now stands at over 27.6%. The rate is even higher for men with over 1 in 3 under the age of 25 being unemployed. This figure is likely to rise. Noting this shocking and unfortunate statistic one wonders about causes of such unemployment and of course the emergence of a potential “lost generation”. Clearly one of the factors responsible for our high unemployment even by current European and world standards is the competitiveness crisis the Irish economy faces. We have the most overpaid civil service in Europe. In fact the civil service is so overpaid it is now creating stress in our ability to attract foreign multinationals. A notable example is the decision by Amgen in 2007 to move its biopharma plant due to be built in Cork to Puerto Rico due to costs. Foreign multinationals, the likes of Abbott and Wyeth, are the cornerstone of Irish economic development and are important and perhaps the largest employers of graduates from the Irish universities. Noting this and that the entry salary of graduates tends to start in the range of 22–26k. The starting salary of a clerical officer at the lowest
pay bracket is close to 26.5k, with the associated benefits of being in the public sector like a generous pension scheme and practical invulnerably from being fired once made permanent. Such generous conditions put pressure on companies in the private sector to pay comparable salaries. This negatively affects our ability to compete with other
Is activation of public sector workers and galvanising them towards protesting and effectively striking in students best interests? Of course not. European countries. Our recovery, according to the OECD will be export driven. But that recovery is put in jeopardy by the unsustainable level of expenditure which the public sector is demanding. Companies such as Dell, who employed 1900 people in Limerick have already voted with their feet and pulled out of this country. How many families has this affected?
USI has frequently come under attack from its own members: this piece fo street Graffiti was drawn on the path of the anti-fees march of February 2009. Photo: David Molloy Yet it is sheer nerve of the public sector unions to try and manipulate these jobs losses as being the fault of bankers and property developers is astounding. The cause of these job losses have nothing to do with banks, but do have a strong correlation with salaries which have become unsustainable, partially on account of unrealistic pay demands from public sector unions. If we are to recover from the economic crash we must re-instate the competitiveness of the Irish economy. That requires the current unconscionable salaries paid to public sector workers to fall. Minister Lenihan cannot bow to union pressure. The cuts in salaries, which must come, must be savage and the sharpest cuts should be the first. It will be far more difficult in future years to cut civil service salaries. A cut of 5% or 6% simply isn’t enough. A far steeper cut of at least 12% is required and should be sought, in order to start to restore some of our lost competitiveness. A similar cut in social welfare payments is required. What people don’t seem to realize is that its not €4 billion the
budget needs to be cut by, but €26 billion. Instead of borrowing money for capital projects we are borrowing money to pay the salaries of civil servants. There are thousands of builders and construction workers unemployed. Many would work for a quarter of the salaries they enjoyed during the boom. Crucial infrastructural projects such as Metro North are at a standstill. Instead of building the infrastructure of the country and building a more sustainable Ireland, the Unions seem to have the government in a headlock. So why is USI supporting the ICTU day of action? The civil service is clearly overpaid. Cuts are absolutely necessary to stabilise government finances which are careening towards disaster. Department of Finance figures for the last 10 months alone show a deficit of close to €26 billion. They’re not even the figures for the full year and don’t include returns made by sole trader businesses, whose bad results are likely to further plunge the government finances into the red. Noting the situation, ICTU’s “day
of action” really is ridiculous. The government is currently borrowing billions which are being spent on paying the public sector. The actually terms of the cuts for this years Budget have not been released. I doubt they are even finalised. So being clear, these strikes are nothing more than a show of power in advance of the Budget. If the country was a house on fire, ICTU would be protesting against the actions of firemen trying to put the fire out. Hopefully the Government will realize for everyone’s good – including the civil servants’ – the blaze is better put out, firmly. USI also is de facto supporting college staff who are due to protest as part of the “day of action”. Is activation of public sector workers and galvanising them towards protesting and effectively striking in students best interests? Of course not. These strikes can and will ultimately negatively impact on students. So what is USI playing at? Students first and foremost want jobs in the future and the ability to use what they have learnt as part of their education to earn
a living rather than face unemployment. USI, by siding with the other trade unions, is supporting a high cost base and high salaries for civil servants. A recovery cannot happen when Poland and other Eastern European countries are attracting companies which once based themselves in Ireland such as Dell. USI should instead call on the main trade unions to realise that previous Celtic tiger salary levels are completely unsustainable, given the size and scope of the government deficit. USI is the Union of Students in Ireland. It is not the Union of Civil Servants, and most students want jobs when we finish college. Most of those jobs will not be in the civil service. Furthermore, until costs come down more jobs won’t be created in the public service anyways. The resources simply aren’t there. Let’s hope USI recognises why most students work hard in college and recognises perhaps the most important mandate USI has is to look after student interests. These interests are not served by supporting ICTU’s day of action.