QUEER QUOTE: Apple CEO Tim Cook Comes Out Publicly

Tim Cook, the chief executive officer of Apple, has finally publicly acknowledged what many people have known for quite awhile: he is an openly gay man. In a first-person essay published today in Bloomberg Businessweek Cook says:

 Being gay has given me a deeper understanding of what it means to be in the minority and provided a window into the challenges that people in other minority groups deal with every day. It’s made me more empathetic, which has led to a richer life. It’s been tough and uncomfortable at times, but it has given me the confidence to be myself, to follow my own path, and to rise above adversity and bigotry. It’s also given me the skin of a rhinoceros, which comes in handy when you’re the CEO of Apple.

With openly gay Cook as its head Apple has been quite successful, and has flirted with becoming the largest market capitalization of any US corporation in recent years.

Congratulations, Mr. Cook!

What Browser Do You Use?

Matthew Yglesias over at Slate posted the above diagram showing the rise of Google's Chrome and the fall of Microsoft's Internet Explorer as popular browsers used to access the World Wide Web.

I use Chrome as my primary browser but at work "for da gubmint" most of the applications are written to be optimally run using Internet Explorer.

According to this blog;s stats, roughly 37% of you use Chrome, then 22% Firefox, 19% Internet Explorer and 9% Safari.

What browser do you prefer to use?

LGBT Friendly Apple Worth Over $500,000,000,000!

The largest company (by stock market valuation) in the world is Apple, which also happens to be one of the most LGBT-supportive companies in the world. For example, it's CEO is Tim Cook, who is an openly gay man. It is now worth nearly half-a-trillion dollars, according to the Los Angeles Times:

The company's market value passed the rarefied half trillion mark in trading Wednesday, as its stock bumped up more than 1%, or nearly $6, to put its value at closer to $504 billion.  The stock jump came a day after the company sent invitations to members of the media for an event next Wednesday in which it is expected to release its third generation iPad. 

Apple is currently the world's most valuable company by market value -- a measure of the total combined value of all of its outstanding shares of stock.  For much of last year, Apple was neck and neck with Exxon Mobil Corp. for that title, but over the last month Apple has catapulted nearly $100 billion past Exxon, which is now worth about $407 billion.

Interestingly, Apple's rival for the top spot, Exxon-Mobil is one of the most anti-LGBT companies in the Fortune 500, infamous for eliminating policies like domestic partnership benefits and sexual orientation nondiscrimination when it merged with Mobil. It is the only company ever to get a negative rating on HRC"s Corporate Equality Index.

With Apple CEO Resignation, Openly Gay COO Takes Over

New Apple CEO Tim Cook (left) with former Apple CEO Steve Jobs

Wow! This is big news! Tim Cook, the openly gay COO of Apple, has been named the new CEO, effective immediately  following the resignation of Steve Jobs earlier on Wednesday.

Here's the text of the letter co-founded and CEO Steve Jobs sent to the Apple community:

To the Apple Board of Directors and the Apple Community:

I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s C.E.O., I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come.

I hereby resign as C.E.O. of Apple. I would like to serve, if the Board sees fit, as Chairman of the Board, director and Apple employee.

As far as my successor goes, I strongly recommend that we execute our succession plan and name Tim Cook as C.E.O. of Apple.

I believe Apple’s brightest and most innovative days are ahead of it. And I look forward to watching and contributing to its success in a new role.

I have made some of the best friends of my life at Apple, and I thank you all for the many years of being able to work alongside you.

Steve

I have recently become a MacBook Air user and I'm loving it! I had previously blogged about the openly gay COO of Apple, who now becomes the one of the most famous LGBT people in America. Apple, interestingly, has been flirting with the #1 position on the Fortune 500 in terms of market capitalization as the largest company in the world this summer. The #2 company is the evil Exxon Mobil, which is the only company in the Fortune 500 to have rescinded a gay-supportive non-discrimination ordinance (when Exxon merged with Mobil several years ago).

Hat/tip to Joe.My.God