R.I.P. Steve Jobs

By Michelle Malkin  •  October 5, 2011 09:22 PM

A creative genius. American original. Entrepreneur extraordinaire. His vision transcended politics. His success showcased the power of the free market and individual initiative.

R.I.P.

From Apple CEO Tim Cook:

Apple has lost a visionary and creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Steve have lost a dear friend and an inspiring mentor. Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple.

We are planning a celebration of Steve’s extraordinary life for Apple employees that will take place soon. If you would like to share your thoughts, memories and condolences in the interim, you can simply email rememberingsteve@apple.com

No words can adequately express our sadness at Steve’s death or our gratitude for the opportunity to work with him. We will honor his memory by dedicating ourselves to continuing the work he loved so much.

Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Laurene and his children during this difficult time.”

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Comments


  1. #1
    On October 5th, 2011 at 9:30 pm, mcsandberg said:

    I was in college when I got my first development contract – to do a device driver for one of the first hard drives for the 128 k Mac. Already, the drive for perfection was clear.

    May we all strive for perfection in all that we do.

  2. #2
    On October 5th, 2011 at 9:31 pm, systolic said:

    Steve Jobs was a perfect example of the power of capitalism and individual determination.
    RIP

  3. #3
    On October 5th, 2011 at 9:31 pm, cbmi said:

    That’s sad. I don’t know a lot about him, to be honest, but he struck me as a decent man. I am sorry for his family’s loss.

  4. #4
    On October 5th, 2011 at 9:33 pm, Ron P said:

    He seemed to exemplify the ancient Greek definition of happiness: the use of all one’s powers in pursuit of excellence.

  5. #5
    On October 5th, 2011 at 9:41 pm, ill_in_illinois said:

    Words can’t describe his creativity.When shopping for my first computer in 1994 a co-worker told me to buy an IBM-compatible. But after seeing a Mac at Wards I was sold on it. My next computer was a Mac Power-PC. Then after several PC laptops I bought a MacBook for my daughter and followed her lead with an IPhone.

  6. #6
    On October 5th, 2011 at 9:44 pm, peteee said:

    yes, steve jobs and steve wazniak started apple in a garage. jobs is a big lefty, i wonder under obama, if he could do the same thing today? i work in the printing industry sometimes, they owe alot to apple, and jobs. the revolution that apple did for printing is unbelievable. in the old days, apple couldn’t do math. so they needed a pc to do the math to rip the images for printing. but today apple can do math.

  7. #7
    On October 5th, 2011 at 9:48 pm, UrbanSpaceman said:

    May God give His peace to Steve’s friends and family during their grieving and beyond.

    I thought Steve’s best invention came when he was thrown out of Apple–in the mid-80′s he came out with the NeXT computers–the first multi-tasking personal computers. You could even rip CD’s and play music on them.

  8. #8
    On October 5th, 2011 at 9:50 pm, AlohaGuy said:

    cbmi said:

    That’s sad. I don’t know a lot about him, to be honest, but he struck me as a decent man.

    Well, there’s that thing about denying his daughter was his for two years…but he was certainly creative.

  9. #9
    On October 5th, 2011 at 9:51 pm, happyscrapper said:

    I didn’t know Steve Jobs. I didn’t know much about him personally. I had no emotional attachment to him. Yet, when I heard he died, I cried. That reaction surprised me until I thought about it a bit. It saddens me a great deal that the world lost such a creative genius who gave so much to all of us. We owe that man a huge debt of gratitude for many of the things that make our lives easier and give so much pleasure.

    Well done, good and faithful servant!!

  10. #10
    On October 5th, 2011 at 9:52 pm, WarEagle82 said:

    I have worked in IT since before there was an Apple Macintosh. I remember going to a computer store to see the Lisa which was a $9,999 computer that was the forerunner of the Mac. And I’d go back to look every time I had the chance. It seemed light years ahead of the IBM PC with 64KB of RAM and a single 160KB, 5.25 inch floppy drive.

    Steve Jobs didn’t invent any of those concepts but he did commercialize them though at times the “war” was fierce and the path to success wasn’t obvious.

    When I saw a picture of Jobs in late August I was aghast. It was clear he was terribly ill and I feared the worst. Unfortunately, I was more prescient than I realized.

    America lost a great innovator and businessman today. A family lost a father and husband. I wish his family well in this time of grief.

  11. #11
    On October 5th, 2011 at 9:52 pm, mattm said:

    RIP Steve. Without your vision and entrepreneurial spirit we would not have so many of the advances in technology we have today. You will be truly missed.

  12. #12
    On October 5th, 2011 at 9:55 pm, jamesgreenidge said:

    R.I.P. Steve. Peerless.

    How ironic. Steve was the crest pop example of captialism and corporate innovation. Will that Wall Street mob ditch their iPhones and iPads I wonder.

    I only wish Steve had thanked Rush for promoting Apple from day one but never receiving the time of day for it. And he’s way too humble and classy to’ve asked.

    Miss you too, Woz.

    James Greenidge
    Queens NY

  13. #13
    On October 5th, 2011 at 10:00 pm, jamesgreenidge said:

    On October 5th, 2011 at 9:48 pm, UrbanSpaceman said:

    –in the mid-80′s he came out with the NeXT computers–the first multi-tasking personal computers. You could even rip CD’s and play music on them.

    You’re good, only the Amiga (still got mine!) was the first to really do true multitasking back then — and a lot more ahead of them all! Instead of Mac it could’ve been Amy who helped change the world. Stupid CBM.

    James Greenidge
    Queens NY

  14. #14
    On October 5th, 2011 at 10:05 pm, travlinman said:

    I find it ironic that the “Occupy” crowd use the devices that Apple marketed yet denigrate the very principles of free enterprise and capitalism that made them possible. What a bunch of maroons!

    RIP Steve Jobs.

  15. #15
    On October 5th, 2011 at 10:10 pm, Straight_Talk_Luigi said:

    Well, that is sad. I didn’t even realize he was sick.

  16. #16
    On October 5th, 2011 at 10:23 pm, HarryBailey said:
    On October 5th, 2011 at 9:55 pm, jamesgreenidge said:
    R.I.P. Steve. Peerless.
    How ironic. Steve was the crest pop example of captialism and corporate innovation. Will that Wall Street mob ditch their iPhones and iPads I wonder.
    I only wish Steve had thanked Rush for promoting Apple from day one but never receiving the time of day for it. And he’s way too humble and classy to’ve asked.
    Miss you too, Woz.
    James Greenidge
    Queens NY

    Wow. In eulogizing the genius that was Steve Jobs — self-described lefty — you arrive at Rush Limbaugh?

    Steve Jobs, who revolutionized how the world sends and receives information in all its forms, should have thanked a radio personality for approving of his innovations once they were on the market?

    Wow.

  17. #17
    On October 5th, 2011 at 10:26 pm, vinny said:

    He was a thief, a pirate, and a tyrant. Perhaps because he was so good at these roles, he made the world into a better and more enjoyable place.

  18. #18
    On October 5th, 2011 at 10:31 pm, Peter Hughes said:

    And now I’m wondering if the cluless (Pre)Occupied (with) Wall Street gang will realize to their dismay that ol’ Steve didn’t leave them a red cent.

    To quote Hank Rearden in Atlas Shrugged, “If you want a job, fine. Go find the bush it grows on, pick one out and go to it.”

    RIP Steve.

    Regards,
    Peter H.

  19. #19
    On October 5th, 2011 at 10:33 pm, zorro said:

    Eternal rest grant unto him O Lord,
    And let Perpetual Light shine upon him.
    May his Soul
    And the Souls of all the faithful departed
    Through the Mercy of God
    Rest in Peace.
    Amen.

  20. #20
    On October 5th, 2011 at 10:40 pm, HarryBailey said:
    On October 5th, 2011 at 10:26 pm, vinny said:
    He was a thief, a pirate, and a tyrant. Perhaps because he was so good at these roles, he made the world into a better and more enjoyable place.

    Do share.

  21. #21
    On October 5th, 2011 at 10:56 pm, PatriotGal2257 said:

    On October 5th, 2011 at 10:33 pm, zorro said:

    Eternal rest grant unto him O Lord,
    And let Perpetual Light shine upon him.
    May his Soul
    And the Souls of all the faithful departed
    Through the Mercy of God
    Rest in Peace.
    Amen.

    Rest in peace, Steve.

    One of the first among many industries you transformed with your great inventions was graphic design, where I have had the good fortune to be working for over 25 years. As a student in art school during the early 80s, I did not realize how my job would be made not only much easier, but also much more visible as a profession in American life. By your commitment to industrial and graphic design through your products, you brought design to the forefront as a concept and turned it into an almost-household word.

    Thank you.

  22. #22
    On October 5th, 2011 at 10:58 pm, Flyoverman said:

    Perhaps the Thomas Edison of his time.

  23. #23
    On October 5th, 2011 at 11:06 pm, ITookTheRedPill said:

    R.I.P. Steven.

    The first computer program I ever wrote was on an Apple II.

  24. #24
    On October 5th, 2011 at 11:29 pm, Flyoverman said:

    The first computer program I ever wrote was on an Apple II.

    Fess up Red Pill. You wrote it on an Eniac 1 in IPL-5

  25. #25
    On October 5th, 2011 at 11:47 pm, ITookTheRedPill said:

    On October 5th, 2011 at 11:29 pm, Flyoverman said:

    Fess up Red Pill. You wrote it on an Eniac 1 in IPL-5

    :lol:

    Nope…

    The first computer keyboard I ever touched was a terminal for a time-shared mainframe. The terminal even had the phone modem where you put the receiver on the modem. But about all I can remember doing on that was playing The Oregon Trail.

    The first computer program I ever wrote was on an Apple II.

    The first computer I ever actually owned myself was an original 1984 Macintosh, with 128K and a single, single-sided disk drive.

  26. #26
    On October 6th, 2011 at 12:48 am, OK_Loyalist said:

    On October 5th, 2011 at 11:47 pm, ITookTheRedPill said:

    I had the opportunity of programming in 8th grade (early 70′s) in a special math class in Fortran… I’m touched in case you haven’t noticed ;)

  27. #27
    On October 6th, 2011 at 1:15 am, mattm said:

    Think Different:

    Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes.

    The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them.

    About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They invent. They imagine. They heal. They explore. They create. They inspire. They push the human race forward.

    Maybe they have to be crazy.

    How else can you stare at an empty canvas and see a work of art? Or sit in silence and hear a song that’s never been written? Or gaze at a red planet and see a laboratory on wheels?

    We make tools for these kinds of people.

    While some see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.

  28. #28
    On October 6th, 2011 at 7:35 am, ACHefty said:

    Expressing deepest condolences through my iPad. Thanks, Steve!

  29. #29
    On October 6th, 2011 at 7:44 am, tre said:

    He lived the American dream. He started a company in his garage and through his God-given talent and sheer determination turned it into an empire.

    Rest in peace, Steve.

  30. #30
    On October 6th, 2011 at 8:17 am, NotTheMama said:

    Rest In Peace Steve Jobs.

  31. #31
    On October 6th, 2011 at 8:28 am, BK said:

    His success showcased the power of the free market and individual initiative.

    But his politics didn’t.

    He was just another leftist. How ironic. An extraordinary guy who just turns stupid in his politics.

    RIP Steve Jobs. I wonder if we’ll ever get any more people like him.

  32. #32
    On October 6th, 2011 at 8:38 am, ITookTheRedPill said:

    Steve Jobs was conceived as an unplanned pregnancy in 1954.
    His mother carried him to term and put him up for adoption.
    Think of what the world would have missed if his mother had aborted him. While that would not have been legal in 1954, it became legal in 1973, and since that time over 50 Million babies have been aborted.

    Every single day, we lose more lives to abortion than were lost to terrorists on 9/11/2001.

    How many world-changers have we, as a society, aborted in the last nearly 40 years?

    This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that
    I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses.
    Now choose life, so that you and your children may live

    Deuteronomy 30:19

  33. #33
    On October 6th, 2011 at 11:23 am, Drkmagneto said:

    Steve Jobs is the very sort of person that the President is so intent on running out of business. He was a genius and an innovator, qualities that would disappear under any sort of Marxist doctrine. God Bless you Steve Jobs and may you rest in peace!

  34. #34
    On October 6th, 2011 at 12:14 pm, Cal City Conservative said:

    On October 6th, 2011 at 11:23 am, Drkmagneto said:

    Steve Jobs is the very sort of person that the President is so intent on running out of business.

    But yet apple gives LARGE amounts of cash to the democrats. You reap what you sow.

    We all get to meet the maker at sometime. Jobs was great at what he did but in my book it doesn’t excuse him from being a dyed in the wool lib. To add I’m not a mac fan FWIW.

  35. #35
    On October 6th, 2011 at 12:22 pm, Cal City Conservative said:

    On October 6th, 2011 at 8:38 am, ITookTheRedPill said:

    Every single day, we lose more lives to abortion than were lost to terrorists on 9/11/2001.

    How many world-changers have we, as a society, aborted in the last nearly 40 years?

    I normally like your post ITRP but not this time.

    So on the other side of the coin how many Pol Pots, Hitlers, or Manson types have been taken out of existence? It goes both ways.

    We could have only gotten so lucky that Obama would have met the same fate.

  36. #36
    On October 6th, 2011 at 6:15 pm, SgtSchultz said:

    Hmm, I have mixed feelings on this one.

    No one can deny that Jobs was a visionary. Almost all Apple products show a unique flair, both physically attractive and intuitive in use.

    I personally own several Mac computers (including the now top-of-the-line 27″ imac). I’m not part of the “cult of Mac” but I do think their computers are well designed (albeit uncompetitively priced), good looking, and work well.

    I do not, however, own a single consumer iDevice. The reasons for this are simple: The captive, closed, regulated and DRM’ed market in which software developers and customers alike work in. The iOS environment is sort of like Job’s politics: top-down control and regulation of everything you do. It is something of an irony that Apple products are favored by creative types, but one’s (creative or usage) freedom is rather curtailed in the iOS environment. And the decisions about how this environment was to be structured were definitely guided and dictated by Jobs.

    I do not wish to speak ill of the dead. I acknowledge Jobs’ creativity, vision and entrepreneurial spirit while at the same time decrying some of his business decisions (like the embracing of DRM and closed operating environments) and personal politics, which seemed to run directly counter to the spirit of his creations.

    There is a bright side to this… perhaps, just perhaps, Apple will someday introduce a mouse with more than one button…

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