Last week, he said he had a “hormone imbalance.” Now it’s “more complex” than that — whatever that means. If he really wants people to stop speculating about his health, as he claims, he sure has a funny way of dealing with it. Let’s be honest here: when you are a) a survivor of pancreatic cancer; and b) the world’s most charismatic, and possibly its most irreplaceable, corporate executive, putting out a press release announcing that your problems are “more complex” is only going to fan the flames, not douse them. [...]It is really hard to write about Steve Jobs and his health problems. What you really want to do is root for him, not criticize him. Everybody — myself very much included — hopes that he will get well and come back to work. I can even understand why he doesn’t want to disclose details about his medical problems — it’s distasteful, and Mr. Jobs also believes strongly that it’s nobody’s business except his and his family’s.
But he’s wrong. There are certain people who simply don’t have the same privacy rights as others, whether they like it or not. Presidents. Celebrities. Sports figures. And, at least in terms of his health, Steve Jobs. Once again, his health is a material fact for Apple’s shareholders, and more disclosure is required. His vagueness about his health, his dissembling, his constantly changing story line — it is simply not an appropriate way to act when you are the most important person at one of the most prominent companies in the country. On the contrary: it is infuriating.
Seems pretty much on the money, even though it can't be easy for Steve Jobs to air his laundry to the world. Although I do wonder about the significance -- practical and symbolic -- of Jobs remaining at the helm.
