RIP, Steve Jobs
As soon as I heard that Steve Jobs had died I went on Facebook and posted, “RIP, Steve Jobs.” There were many responses, some that surprised me. A few people talked in glowing terms about how Jobs had transformed their lives, as though he were a spiritual guru. Some talked as though they were losing a long-time friend. This response surprised me: these people didn’t know him personally, and while Jobs could be charming and charismatic on stage, otherwise he wasn’t very accessible and could be prickly.
For baby boomers the passing of Jobs has special meaning. We not only remember a time before personal computers but also that Steve Jobs was a baby boomer, one of us. Our generation has a reputation for being self-indulgent, yet Jobs was a highly disciplined, self-motivated person who used his creative genius for the common good. He makes us proud.
I wonder if something more is involved in the great outpouring of grief over Jobs’s death. Is it because we are addicted to our technological gadgets and, like a drug dealer, Jobs supplied new gadgets to feed our habit? Is it just another sign of our consumer culture that a creator of consumer products is revered and grieved when he dies?
