Thursday, October 06, 2011

The Passing of a Great American

As I'm sure you already know, Steve Jobs passed away yesterday.

What a piece of work is a man!
How noble in Reason!
how infinite in faculties!
in form and moving how express and admirable!
In action how like an Angel!
in apprehension how like a god!
the beauty of the world!
the paragon of animals!
and yet to me, what is this quintessence of dust?

- Hamlet, Act II, Scene II


Jobs was probably one of the most brilliant creators and marketers of products in history. He also was born into and worked in a country, and at a time, that allowed him and his inventions to flourish, making himself rich in the process. Thinking about it, I sit here and wonder if Steve Jobs could start 'Apple' in his garage today and still get it off the ground floor.

With all the misplaced anger we see today directed at successful people, all the talk of corporate greed, and all the finger pointing by people blaming someone else for their lot in life, it makes me wonder if Steve Jobs will be the last true capitalist that political correctness will permit us to admire?

But really, who cares what's "permitted?". For myself, Steve Jobs was an inspirational figure, and I for one plan to keep on misbehaving - just like he did.

God Speed Steve.

2 comments:

D2M said...

I like the fact that he put money into causes that didn't necessarily make money at the beginning. He put quite a bit of capital into Pixar and they didn't make a profit for years. If it wasn't for his continual belief that they'd make it some day, we'd never have Pixar at all.

MARl0 said...

This was sad news indeed when it broke yesterday. As someone who adores Apple and their products, his company, and his vision for what consumer electronics can be, has consumed my life since we bought our very first computer back in 1994, which was naturally, a Mac. I use Apple products nearly all day, every day. From using a Mac at work and at home, to using my iPhone and iPad every day. And I thank him for the countless hours of entertainment and productivity that he helped bring to my life.