at this point, it certainly isn’t breaking news that steve jobs passed away a couple days ago. the news came in torrents, particularly via social media. for a solid 24 hours, little else was talked about. even at the time of this writing, 2 of the top 10 trending topics on twitter are steve jobs-related.

the most interesting aspect of the deluge of tweets was how sincere the response was. there was a genuine expression of sadness and loss (myself included). when celebrities die, there is plenty of emotional response—particularly from musicians—because their art becomes woven into the very essence of our lives.

but steve jobs was a retired ceo.

of a tech company.

so why do people really care? undoubtedly, in 2011, at least a handful of CEOs of large, successful companies have passed away. but can we name them? no. and there’s been a handful of recognizable celebrities die in 2011 but they haven’t clogged social media streams like this. so why do we (particularly 20- and 30-somethings) care about steve jobs?

this won’t be a shocking revelation to long-time blog readers and those who know me beyond the blog, but sociologist tony campolo has probably been the most influential theologian in my life over the past 10 years. i’m consistently inspired, challenged and provoked by his wise words. he’s had decades of teaching and preaching and garnered a vast collection of [...]

few people would ever confuse kanye west for jesus christ. except, well, kanye west. famously, mr. west has one of the most unrestrained egos that we’ve seen in some time. yes, john lennon said the beatles were bigger than jesus christ, but kanye actually became jesus christ (seriously, click the link). for the all the uproar the cover of rolling [...]

let’s just go ahead and state the obvious (as a matter of full disclosure): i. love. apple. plain and simple, i’m a huge fan of the little tech company in cupertino. i’m firmly planted on the apple bandwagon and i don’t plan on getting off any time soon. i don’t like the moniker “fanboy”, because it assumes an ignorant/blind following. [...]

dante alighieri stopped too soon. you see, in his classic, the inferno, he depicts 9 circles of hell. but alas, there is actually a 10th circle. what resides in this deepest circle of endless torture? facebook memes and games. yes friends, those who engage in mafia wars or farmville (or any other game) or those who tell you to repost [...]

one of the beauties of social media is that it allows for a wide variety of usage. for some, it’s strictly “social” in the truest sense of the word, serving as a place to foster conversation and casual interaction. for others, it’s a mode of relaying and broadcasting information or a vehicle for relationship-driven branding/marketing. i see all these uses [...]