Steve Jobs' 'Curious' Lack of Public Philanthropy

Starcrossed said:
I don't really care if it's "his" money - people are literally starving to death at this moment.
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Hunger is a 24/7 battle so I take it you are working 'round the clock making sure your hard earned dollars end up in hungry kids mouths across the world, right? Forget feeding yourself - by the time you're done donating, the people you donated to will end up needing to donate to YOU.

Or is this just one of those "it's the thought that counts" or "people with money should donate it, excluding me because I have problems too" type of deals? ;)
 
kuyaglen said:
Maybe his donations aren't opportunities for grandstanding?
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Given the egoistic way he portrays himself to the public, it's absolutely unlikely he'd donate a dollar without making a big public spin over his 'generosity'.

Bono's statement is just counting the millions of iSheep who bought extra Product Red iPods (and still giving a shit ton of profits to Jobs himself). And Product Red stuff is more about grandstanding by big companies to give a pretense of being charitable, a sort of Live Aid for corporations anyway.
 
Ducman69 said:
You're clueless if you think that's what his compensation is. He didn't get a net worth of $8.3 billion on a $1 a year income. :rolleyes:
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You were talking about CEO salaries being ridiculous. Now you're talking about compensation and income, which are very different from salary.

Jobs, 55, has not sold any shares since he rejoined the company in 1997 following a 12-year hiatus. He has not been awarded any new equity since 2003 and is currently its largest individual shareholder. His annual salary has been $1 since 1998.
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http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2011/01/apple_ceo_steve_jobs_salary_in.html
 
yimingwuzere said:
Given the egoistic way he portrays himself to the public, it's absolutely unlikely he'd donate a dollar without making a big public spin over his 'generosity'.
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The man often does make bold claims, but I've never really gotten a rampant egotistical vibe from him. I'm curious - what do you mean when you talk of his egotistical public image? I'm legitimately curious as to what you're referring to because all I've seen him do is announce/talk about/hype up products during expos and conventions, not unlike every other salesman out there trying to pitch a product. I mean, really, If you don't have a big "ego" about the product you're showing, then that shows lack of confidence in yourself, the product or the company. Demonstrating products pretty much requires you to be 'big' about them.

To me though, when it comes to Steve Jobs the HUMAN BEING (not the salesman or CEO), he never comes off as an egomaniac. The guy seems to dress plainly in clothes he finds comfortable - nothing crazy. He doesn't make it a point to buy a mansion for every state on the map or anything. He does drive a Mercedes, which is by no means cheap (of course), but from what I understand he drives it because he legitimately likes that type of car. I guess my point is that he doesn't seem to be a real flashy guy. He doesn't have a bunch of super cars just sitting there for looks or mansions that he'll never even occupy during his lifetime or any stuff like that

And of course, obviously it's possible that I'm completely missing something here. Maybe I missed a story/interview or something? I'd like to understand where you're coming from with the whole egomaniac thing.
 
Starcrossed said:
I don't really care if it's "his" money - people are literally starving to death at this moment.
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So sick of the "starving people" guilt trip argument. People have been throwing money at hunger problems for decades and it's solved nothing. Throwing even more money at it will not solve it either.
 
stop!theradio said:
Hunger is a 24/7 battle so I take it you are working 'round the clock making sure your hard earned dollars end up in hungry kids mouths across the world, right? Forget feeding yourself - by the time you're done donating, the people you donated to will end up needing to donate to YOU.

Or is this just one of those "it's the thought that counts" or "people with money should donate it, excluding me because I have problems too" type of deals? ;)
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Or one of the "Im about to lie about a bunch of bullshit I did to stop xx issue in the face of being called on it" deals
 
lilbabycat said:
Except when he pays to bump himself to the top of the Organ Donor list in multiple states and some 5 year old kid that could have had a whole life ahead of him dies.

just saying.

You'd think a guy dying of cancer would throw some bucks to cancer research.
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What the hell are you talking about ?
 
Its his money do as he pleases with it. The guy's a dick though, did anyone really expect him to give anything back that he stole from morons all over the world over the last decade?
 
stop!theradio said:
Hunger is a 24/7 battle so I take it you are working 'round the clock making sure your hard earned dollars end up in hungry kids mouths across the world, right? Forget feeding yourself - by the time you're done donating, the people you donated to will end up needing to donate to YOU.

Or is this just one of those "it's the thought that counts" or "people with money should donate it, excluding me because I have problems too" type of deals? ;)
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Someone with $8 billion has money to spare. Most people are living pay check to pay check.
 
While its certainly his right to hold on to every cent, that doesn't make it something we should condone. There are a lot of scumbag behaviors that are perfectly legal and still make you a piece of shit.

People have a hard time comprehending how wealthy these kind of people are and what they can accomplish with that money.

It may, from their perspective, seem like nothing worse than skipping donating to the bell ringer outside the store before Christmas.

But from the perspective of those they could have helped, it's much more serious. Actual human lives are lost every day because of financial circumstances outside their control. It's closer to walking by and seeing someone hanging off a ledge yelling for help and simply ignoring them.

Legal? Sure. But should we be okay with that behavior? Hell no. People who have the power to save lives with little or no consequence to themselves and consciously forgo exercising that right are the scum of the Earth and should be shunned accordingly.

I'd love to be as wealthy as these people. I could have all the toys I want, be financially secure in the extreme, and still be able to fly around the world helping people out.

No one was ever asking Steve Jobs to sacrifice his own livelihood or his own company to help others. He and Apple have plenty to give that they'd never even notice was gone.
 
"It's his money he can do whatever he wants"

So if I was walking down the street and I saw someone dying, and I decided screw it it's none of my business I'm not going to do ANYTHING I'm too busy anyway! - Does that make me right?

None of us are billionaires or have an elevated social or political or economic status like he does. There's some responsibility that comes along with the great power and unimaginable wealth that billionaires like him have. While it's true that he can do whatever he wants, the fact that it is publicly well known that his peers have been trying to make a difference in this world while nothing comes out of him or Apple, makes him look like a huge asshat and major douchebag in the public eye.
 
LeninGHOLA said:
You should never expect anyone to give anything away for free.
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This.

Every account I've read by people who actually know Steve Jobs depicts him as a pretty nice and reasonable guy, even if he's anal retentive at work. I wouldn't be surprised if he had some sort of plan set up in his will that donates a portion of his estate to some sort of charitable organization, or if he donates big piles of money to charitable organizations anonymously, a la Ayrton Senna.
 
TheMadHatterXxX said:
"It's his money he can do whatever he wants"

So if I was walking down the street and I saw someone dying, and I decided screw it it's none of my business I'm not going to do ANYTHING I'm too busy anyway! - Does that make me right?

None of us are billionaires or have an elevated social or political or economic status like he does. There's some responsibility that comes along with the great power and unimaginable wealth that billionaires like him have. While it's true that he can do whatever he wants, the fact that it is publicly well known that his peers have been trying to make a difference in this world while nothing comes out of him or Apple, makes him look like a huge asshat and major douchebag in the public eye.
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Hold on a sec. You mean Steve Jobs actually walked down the street and saw someone dying and totally ignored him? The fucking bastard!

:rolleyes:
 
TheMadHatterXxX said:
So if I was walking down the street and I saw someone dying, and I decided screw it it's none of my business I'm not going to do ANYTHING I'm too busy anyway! - Does that make me right?
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yes, it makes you right. You are not obligated nor required to help another human being in any way, shape, or form.

Nor are they obligated to help you - that's the part to remember.
 
rhone89 said:
yes, it makes you right. You are not obligated nor required to help another human being in any way, shape, or form.

Nor are they obligated to help you - that's the part to remember.
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You are right. Nobody is obligated to not be a self-absorbed self-centered asshat.
 
Steve isn't part of that elite club that gets to have all that money tax free in Foundations that are up to no good, so doesn't get to reap the benefits of these so called "donations". Hence, he doesn't donate.
 
TheMadHatterXxX said:
"It's his money he can do whatever he wants"

So if I was walking down the street and I saw someone dying, and I decided screw it it's none of my business I'm not going to do ANYTHING I'm too busy anyway! - Does that make me right?

None of us are billionaires or have an elevated social or political or economic status like he does. There's some responsibility that comes along with the great power and unimaginable wealth that billionaires like him have. While it's true that he can do whatever he wants, the fact that it is publicly well known that his peers have been trying to make a difference in this world while nothing comes out of him or Apple, makes him look like a huge asshat and major douchebag in the public eye.
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No matter what I believe about Jobs, if that is what you believe, then that responsibility comes in equal measure to all of us. If you make less, give 10% of less. If you make more, give 10% of more.

Are you giving your 10%?

Personally, I wonder if when Jobs dies, a whole lot of people will find out he's been giving to charity but not calling attention to himself. As I've said before, I don't think Jobs is God. However, there are so many people on this forum that seem to think he's Satan incarnate that it just boggles my mind.

There's a lot of space in between there, folks, and I can't think of a person here (least of all, me) who is even remotely close to perfect. If you are though, feel free to cast the next stone.
 
Azhar said:
Hold on a sec. You mean Steve Jobs actually walked down the street and saw someone dying and totally ignored him? The fucking bastard!

:rolleyes:
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When you're talking the kind of money we are here, yes, that's exactly what its like. It takes remarkably little money to save a life. And Steve Jobs and Apple are consciously deciding not to give it.

If Apple gave more to charitable causes, they would literally be saving lives at no significant cost or risk to themselves. But they don't want to. That's their right, of course, but it doesn't mean you should be confused that people find it morally reprehensible.
 
NKDietrich said:
When you're talking the kind of money we are here, yes, that's exactly what its like. It takes remarkably little money to save a life. And Steve Jobs and Apple are consciously deciding not to give it.

If Apple gave more to charitable causes, they would literally be saving lives at no significant cost or risk to themselves. But they don't want to. That's their right, of course, but it doesn't mean you should be confused that people find it morally reprehensible.
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According to RED, Apple and Jobs have been giving to charity. That's just one we now know of that's been secret for all these years. Who's to say there's more?

Seems to me that a lot of you guys are just finding reasons to support your dislike for the guy. Yeah so he was an asshole during his stint as Apple CEO, but that's all he ever was. I'm not going to make things up just to support it.

I've been saying this time and again, I don't dislike Apple products - they're just machines. I only dislike some of the politics behind them, but frankly it has nothing to do with me.
 
stiltner said:
The fact that anyone feels that they are obligated to the money of another man who worked for it (and as much as I scorn Apple for its practices, Steve Jobs is fucking brilliant, there's no argument necessary there).

The fact that someone else feels they are entitled to your hard work when they don't output as much as you do pisses me off to the point where blood shoots from my eyes. People who feel that "the rich man" is the source of the problem, are actually, guess what...the problem themselves.

Fuck Apple and Steve Jobs, but its his money, he deserves to keep every red cent if he wants. Period. If you don't like it...go create something that gives you money, and then when someone bitches they want your money, see how the shoe fits on your foot.
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amen... agree 100%
 
When it gets to the point that wealthy people are obligated to make large charitable donations, I think it's time to start looking into raising taxes.
 
TheMadHatterXxX said:
"It's his money he can do whatever he wants"

So if I was walking down the street and I saw someone dying, and I decided screw it it's none of my business I'm not going to do ANYTHING I'm too busy anyway! - Does that make me right?

None of us are billionaires or have an elevated social or political or economic status like he does. There's some responsibility that comes along with the great power and unimaginable wealth that billionaires like him have. While it's true that he can do whatever he wants, the fact that it is publicly well known that his peers have been trying to make a difference in this world while nothing comes out of him or Apple, makes him look like a huge asshat and major douchebag in the public eye.
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If he was really concerned about other peoples well being I suggest he should publicly support social support programs, job aid, health Care programs, Medicare etc. People giving to charity and saying they care about other people while voting republican just sickens me. Making sure somebody gets a meal on Christmas while not caring the other 364 days is hypocrisy.
 
It's amusing that so many people believe Steve Jobs "earned all that money because he's a genius". Sure, he's a smart guy, but it was the employees of Apple who did the work to make him wealthy. He and Bill Gates alike entered the market at a very opportune time.
If either of them were 23 now and starting out, neither would be a billionaire.
 
His money. He can do what he wants with it.

The fact that he appears supremely greedy, bought his liver (you will never convince me otherwise, money talks and bullshit walks, news articles have no idea what happened behind the scenes), and is known to be a complete assclown to employees simply makes him an asshat with money.

Again though it's his money. I don't give a shit what he does with it. I'll just keep considering him a rich, brilliant asshat.
 
Genny said:
It's amusing that so many people believe Steve Jobs "earned all that money because he's a genius". Sure, he's a smart guy, but it was the employees of Apple who did the work to make him wealthy. He and Bill Gates alike entered the market at a very opportune time.
If either of them were 23 now and starting out, neither would be a billionaire.
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Do you have Jobs' money?

Do you have a company with many employees doing work to make you wealthy?

How does someone get to the point where they have a company with employees doing work to make them wealthy? Do most people inherit that from someone else? Did Steve Jobs?

Regarding your statement about entering the market at the right time, do you have a point? I'm just curious because you could say that about Alexander Graham Bell and the telephone, or Henry Ford and the Model-T, or Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook, or just about any significant company in history. Does that mean anything?
 
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