Steve Jobs Taking Time from Apple

As a big fan of Steve Jobs' innovation and Apple Inc., I found the personal release he recently sent out to the public very moving. I wish him all the best in his recovery towards the road to health.

Photo Credit: The Sydney Morning Herald

As I found through Crenk, you can see Jobs' letter below:

Dear Apple Community,

For the first time in a decade, I’m getting to spend the holiday season with my family, rather than intensely preparing for a Macworld keynote.

Unfortunately, my decision to have Phil deliver the Macworld keynote set off another flurry of rumors about my health, with some even publishing stories of me on my deathbed.

I’ve decided to share something very personal with the Apple community so that we can all relax and enjoy the show tomorrow.

As many of you know, I have been losing weight throughout 2008. The reason has been a mystery to me and my doctors. A few weeks ago, I decided that getting to the root cause of this and reversing it needed to become my #1 priority.

Fortunately, after further testing, my doctors think they have found the cause—a hormone imbalance that has been “robbing” me of the proteins my body needs to be healthy. Sophisticated blood tests have confirmed this diagnosis.

The remedy for this nutritional problem is relatively simple and straightforward, and I’ve already begun treatment. But, just like I didn’t lose this much weight and body mass in a week or a month, my doctors expect it will take me until late this Spring to regain it. I will continue as Apple’s CEO during my recovery.

I have given more than my all to Apple for the past 11 years now. I will be the first one to step up and tell our Board of Directors if I can no longer continue to fulfill my duties as Apple’s CEO. I hope the Apple community will support me in my recovery and know that I will always put what is best for Apple first.

So now I’ve said more than I wanted to say, and all that I am going to say, about this.

Steve

Dear FDA:Please Label Properply

Whether it's from my old college professor in Biology of Nutrition and Fitness or my nutrition-minded mother I've been pretty conscious of food labeling, or the lack thereof.

Recently, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has proposed a rule that would allow gene-altered milk or meat to be sold without the proper labeling. This would involve dangerous genetic engineering with animals and we don't know the repercussions or danger this could cause. My friend Linda, over at Forced Green wrote about the same proposal. Her frustration is legitimately apparent as she declares, "the FDA is going to set into motion rules that keep the consumers in the blind about what they are going to buy, cook and eat by not requiring the labeling of these products." I couldn't agree more. Ignorance isn't bliss, especially when it comes to what we're eating and our health.
Bill Freese, science policy analyst with the Center for Food Safety says that 90% of consumers want identifying labels on genetically modified foods. However, it doesn't seem to matter--U.S. laws don't require them.

With that being said there is a petition you can sign to prevent gene-altered food. However, you must sign it before October 31st. If you're moved, I urge you to at least check out the facts, think about what we could be dealing with and then sign the petition.