Monday, October 24, 2011

Snipers


Any time a famous person dies, there always seems to be some sniping going on during all the news accounts of his or her passing. 


There were people gave Mother Teresa shit after she died. I expect the Dalai Lama will catch some of that when he shuffles on. 


Yeah, I can understand how one can get fed up with hearing the same stuff over and over. When the Challenger space shuttle blew up, I had to turn my TV off–they kept showing that explosion over and over and over until I couldn't stand it. As they did with the twin towers on 9/11. My knee-jerk reaction when I see either of those now is to change the channel, or go refill the water glass. 


Like pop forty rock or cute TV commercial that are fun the first three or four times you hear see them, but that grate after the ninety-eighth time during one single day, TMI is TMI.


Steve Jobs was, by most accounts, a dick to work with. Self-centered, driven, and living in fantasyland to such an extent that it probably killed him–had he gotten the surgery to remove the cancer when it was encapsulated instead of waiting nine months and drinking herb tea? Maybe he'd still be here. 


He ragged on everybody around him, apparently had the managerial skills of a blind walrus, and no concept of sparing anybody's balls in public. 


But when I scan Facebook and see comments from people on my friend list that say, "Hey, Jobs wasn't so hot!" I just shake my head.


Really? How many billions of people are making phone calls, listening to music, or reading stuff like this online using a computer or touch table that your company created?


He created Apple, then came back after they fired him and pulled it out of the toilet to make it the second most valuable corporation in the country behind Exxon, and for a while, ahead of them.


Only a sales guy? Are you fucking kidding? The man could have sold matches and gasoline in Hell, and gotten premium prices for both. 


Don't have to like the guy, but if you don't respect what he accomplished, you are missing a critical piece of your brain ...

4 comments:

Ed said...

Wish I would have begged, borrowed, stole - well, not stole - some money to buy Apple stock when it went down to around $7 a share. A girfriend and I bought a few shares but not like we wanted to....Apple had tons of cash in reserves....they weren't going anywhere. Anyway, one of those doh moments looking back.

Ian Sadler said...

LoL, even Forest Gump knew to buy apple shares!

Ed said...

I think Lt. Dan bought/invested in the stock in the movie. Go Forrest....Where was Dan when I needed him?

William Adams said...

People who claim Steve Jobs didn't design anything are showing their ignorance:

http://www.folklore.org/StoryView.py?story=Calculator_Construction_Set.txt

That said, people who claim programs like InDesign wouldn't exist w/o Steve Jobs are historically myopic given that the Xerox Alto was in use back when Apple was selling the Apple ][.

Unfortunately, I wasn't in a position to buy Apple shares when the stock price was down in single digits --- but did talk a friend into buying them at $6 or so. He sold at ~$18, tripling his money. ::grrr::