Gene Simmons of KISS tells depressed people to ‘kill themselves’

SOURCE

KISS rocker Gene Simmons has built a career on controversial antics, but has he gone too far this time?

In a recent interview with journalist Roger Catlin on Songfacts.com, Simmons made some extreme comments regarding suicide and depression that now threaten to have long-term effects on his band’s career.

Asked whether he still keeps in touch with original KISS members who left the band over the years, Simmons launched into a shocking tirade:

“No, I don’t get along with anybody who’s a drug addict and has a dark cloud over their head and sees themselves as a victim. Drug addicts and alcoholics are always: ‘The world is a harsh place.’ My mother was in a concentration camp in Nazi Germany. I don’t want to hear f**k all about ‘the world as a harsh place.’ She gets up every day, smells the roses and loves life. And for a putz, 20-year-old kid to say, ‘I’m depressed, I live in Seattle.” F**k you, then kill yourself,” Simmons said.

It didn’t end there.

“I always call them on their bluff. I’m the guy who says ‘Jump!’ when there’s a guy on top of a building who says, ‘That’s it, I can’t take it anymore, I’m going to jump.’ Are you kidding? Why are you announcing it? Shut the f**k up, have some dignity and jump! You’ve got the crowd,” he said.

Simmons’ comments have drawn condemnation from other legendary rockers. Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx yesterday denounced Simmons on his radio show, Sixx Sense.

“It’s pretty moronic because [Simmons] thinks everybody listens to him, that he is the God of Thunder. He will tell you he is the greatest man on earth, and to be honest with you, I like Gene. But in this situation, I don’t like Gene. I don’t like Gene’s words,” Sixx said. “There is a 20-year-old kid out there who is a Kiss fan and reads this and goes, ‘You know what? He’s right. I should just kill myself.’”

Motley Crue’s Nikki Sixx (at left) has publicly denounced Simmons’ comments.

Motley Crue’s Nikki Sixx (at left) has publicly denounced Simmons’ comments. Source: Supplied

The backlash has reached all the way to Australia, with Triple M today announcing they would remove all KISS songs from their playlists nationwide.

In a statement published on the Triple M website, network head Mike Fitzpatrick labelled Simmons’ comments “misguided and insensitive.”

“Depression and suicide are not topics he should be using to further his notoriety or sell records. His desperation to use mental health issues to find relevancy in a modern age is sickening. I can only put it down to a brain fade on his part. The Triple M Network can’t and won’t be playing or supporting this d***head’s music. I put the challenge out to other stations across Australia and North America to also drop any of this nudnik’s songs until such time as he reconsiders his thoughtless and insensitive position.”

Simmons comments were published on the Songfacts website on July 31, and it appears that, in the wake of actor Robin Williams’ tragic suicide this week, the KISS bassist may already have softened his views on those dealing with depression:

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Simmons also retweeted the following (US based) information for those struggling with depression following Williams’ death:

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Source: News.com.au

 

And it Begins… Comcast and Netflix Strike Deal for Faster Streaming

For Netflix users, you would think this would be a good thing. Comcast and Netflix have struck a deal that will allow faster streaming streams of Netflix content through the Broadband giant. Neither would discuss the details of the deal, however, money was definitely involved. This is great for us streamers right? Well, you would think.

However, it’s just the beginning of losing the neutrality that we have been fighting for.

You see, deals are normally struck between service providers to allow better service for all but normally, free. What this does is open the door for similar deals to be had between ISPs and other service providers and, say, websites to make streaming/surfing to their site faster while leaving the smaller, less wealthy sites with poor service.

The companies both emphasized that Netflix will not receive special treatment. Of course they did. However, how can they offer better and faster service to the streaming giant without special treatment? According to Mashable: “The difference between a network-connection arrangement and preferential network treatment is technical but important, particularly within the topic of net neutrality. The deal struck by Netflix and Comcast has to do with a process called “peering,” in which companies physically connect networks together to exchange data. This is distinct from the net-neutrality issue of simply favoring or throttling certain content in an attempt to solicit payment. The difference means Netflix and Comcast can claim to be abiding by net-neutrality rules (or, for right now, conventions) while still creating a system in which content providers pay for better speed.”

So yes, it’s a great thing for Netflix watchers, but in the future can prove to be a really bad thing for the internet and start-ups who don’t have the money to gain that extra “oomph” needed for their viewers.

Let us know what you think in the comments below.

Wolf Problem in Sochi?

Is there a wolf problem in Sochi? Well, no, there isn’t. It was a prank that pretty much every News Channel picked up and ran with. Watch the video below to see this “story” in action.

Jimmy Kimmel, along with co-conspirator Kate Hansen from the U.S. Olympic Luge Team uploaded this video on her Twitter account to see if the media would run with the story, and they did.

Does anyone else find it disturbing that our News Media doesn’t need to verify stories anymore and just runs with them? By the way, when I went to search for a picture for this article (Google: Wolf Sochi) every media outlet in the nation pretty much has this up with “Wolf Roaming the Halls in Sochi!” Funny, but kinda sad actually.

Possible Link Between Paxil and Breast Cancer Found

A research team from the City of Hope in Duarte has found a possible link between the antidepressant medication Paxil (paroxetine) and Breast Cancer they say.

The team has developed a quick way to identify drugs and chemicals that have the ability to disrupt the balance of sex hormones in human beings, influencing and progressing such diseases as Breast Cancer.

In a trial screening of 446 drugs that are currently in wide circulation, their research singles out the popular antidepressant as having a weak estrogenic effect that could promote the development and growth of breast tumors in women.

What is really important in this study, many women that are being treated for Breast Cancer also suffer from depression, treated with antidepressants such as Paxil. Paxil has been on the market since 1992. According to statistics, almost a full quarter of American women in their 40’s and 50’s are taking an antidepressant in the same class as Paxil. (SSRI)

A high rate of breast cancers in women, about 70%, are sensitive to estrogen, a hormone abundant in women of child bearing age.

The new screening method developed at City of Hope also identified two antifungal medications — biconazole and oxyconazole — as having an anti-estrogenic effect similar to that of medications prescribed to prevent breast cancer and its recurrences in women. Incidental to their intended use in combating fungal infections, those medications inhibit the action of aromatase, an enzyme that converts androgens — hormones more plentiful in males but present in both sexes — into estrogen.

Their screening method also identified bisphenol A — a compound used in the manufacture of plastics and epoxy resins — as an estrogen promoter capable of raising breast cancer risk.

According to the Los Angeles Times, “The discovery that Paxil behaves as an endocrine-disrupting chemical may shed light on growing suspicions about the medication in women who have had breast cancer. A 2010 study found that breast cancer patients in Canada who were taking Paxil were more likely than those taking other antidepressants to die of breast cancer when there was a substantial overlap in their use of that antidepressant and of tamoxifen to prevent breast cancer recurrence.

The researchers surmised that paroxetine, which was taken by about a quarter of the depressed breast cancer patients in the study, might block the production of a liver enzyme needed to metabolize tamoxifen. The authors of the latest research said paroxetine’s “weak estrogenic” effect “may be responsible, in part, for the observed reduction” in tamoxifen’s effectiveness in that study.

The finding that paroxetine has estrogenic effects “has implications for patients with estrogen-sensitive breast cancer who are on other medications,” said Shiuan Chen, professor and chairman of City of Hope’s department of cancer biology and lead author of the study.”

Weird Holiday of the Day – Innovation Day

TODAY’S “HOLIDAY” – FEBRUARY 16TH
Innovation Day

Spot a problem, think of a solution, and before you know it you’re innovating! Innovation Day is all about imagining new, better ways of doing things. 

Innovation is awesome! If people didn’t come up with new and innovative things, we’d all be stuck doing clothes by hand, drinking warm milk straight from the udder, and walking to work barefoot. Of course, those were also all new innovations at one point, too, so life has gotten better. Think of how much better life will be after your awesome invention!

What problem will you solve today? Let us know in the comments below!

“If there was a problem. Yo, I’ll solve it” ~ Vanilla Ice

Weird Holiday of the Day – Gumdrop Day

TODAY’S “HOLIDAY” – FEBRUARY 15TH
Gumdrop Day

Gummy, chewy, tasty sweets are the theme of Gumdrop Day, which presents you the opportunity (or the excuse) to eat as many gumdrops as possible (within reason, with consideration for your teeth, sugar levels and general health)!

Gumdrops are great! Although, I prefer to stick with the Sour Patch Kids variety of gumdrops, which are essentially the same thing, but in kid shape. However, typing that out makes it sound like I prefer to eat things that are kid shaped, which is not my preference at all. It’s more about the taste. Damn, now it sounds like I like the taste of kids more than regular gumdrops. Forget it! This holiday is over! Moving on…

What’s your favorite gumdrop inspired candy? Let us know in the comments below!

“Not the buttons! Not my gumdrop buttons!” ~ Gingerbread Man from Shrek

Weird Holiday of the Day – Ferris Wheel Day

TODAY’S “HOLIDAY” – FEBRUARY 14TH
Ferris Wheel Day

Ride high, high in the sky (within the constraints of a Perspex box attached to a giant wheel); what better way to celebrate Ferris Wheel Day?

If you decide to celebrate today with your special someone in a ferris wheel, they’re probably planning on pushing you out when you get to the top. While it’s not a super-romantic way to spend today’s OTHER HOLIDAY, it’s a great way to pass the time at amusement parks and circuses around the world! My favorite is when you get a group of people inside a single car, and there’s always that one jerk who like to rock the car back and forth as much as they can because they know it will freak out at least one other person in the group. That person is the one who should get thrown out at the top!

What’s your favorite ferris wheel memory? How will you celebrate today’s holiday? Let us know in the comments below!

“I see nothing in space as promising as the view from a ferris wheel.” ~ E B White

Weird Holiday of the Day – Get A Different Name Day

TODAY’S “HOLIDAY” – FEBRUARY 13TH
Get A Different Name Day

Whether you’re having a bit of an identity crisis, or simply fancy confusing your friends, Get A Different Name Day is a chance to throw off the shackles of the norm and adopt a new name!

When I was younger, I wanted to change my name to Steve. I’m not sure why I picked that name, but I thought Steve Sherman had a nice sound to it. Turns out, my dad wanted to name me Steve when I was born, and my mom overruled him and picked Sheldon, based on a name she read in a romance novel. I had never heard that story until years later, but it must have been fate, since I picked that as my fake name for a while. So, for this day only, I shall be known as Steve!

What’s your new name? Let us know below!

“I used to think feminism was a liberating force – now I see many of those people are just censors under a different name.” ~  Lydia Lunch

Weird Holiday of the Day – Plum Pudding Day

TODAY’S “HOLIDAY” – FEBRUARY 12TH
Plum Pudding Day

Plum Pudding Day is dedicated to a mouthwatering treat that, surprisingly enough, contains no plums! In the 17th century when it was first created, plums were referred to as raisins or any other type of dried fruits. Plum pudding (aka Christmas pudding) is a steamed or boiled pudding usually served during the holiday season. Plum pudding is composed of nutmeg, raisins, nuts, apples, cinnamon, dates, and many other ingredients. In England, it is tradition to have every person a household simultaneously hold onto the wooden spoon together to help stir the batter. As they stir it they also have to make a wish!

I’ve never had Plum Pudding, but I’ve heard it’s good. The ingredients in the holiday dish sound like they might be quite good together, so maybe today is the day to try it for the first time! Plum Pudding Day would be the best time to figure out if this will be a holiday I should participate in every year or not. Also, if I hate it, then I only have to eat it once a year! Yes, I would still eat it! You have to celebrate the holiday after all!!! Have you had Plum Pudding? Do you have a family recipe you want to share? Let us know in the comments below!

“’Make a remark,’ said the Red Queen; ‘it’s ridiculous to leave all the conversation to the pudding!’” ~  Lewis Carroll

Weird Holiday of the Day – Satisfied Staying Single Day

TODAY’S “HOLIDAY” – FEBRUARY 11TH
Satisfied Staying Single Day

“No one to walk with, but I’m happy on the shelf”, sang Fats Waller. If that’s you, there’s a perfect day to celebrate. And you don’t have to be “through with flirting”, either…

Seen by many as the antidote to Valentine’s Day, the international day of the singleton may be a strange occasion to mark. But Satisfied Staying Single Day, or S3, is less about chasing a dream of happily-ever-after, and more about living life in the moment – a cause that even couples can embrace. And unlike St Valentine, with his cutesy satin hearts and overpriced roses, S3 remains reassuringly un-commercial.

Above all, S3 is an excuse for a good party. People around the world celebrate their freedom by meeting up with friends for an evening in or out. However, you have to wonder about the logic behind “Satisfied Staying Single Speed-Dating Night”…

Being single three days before Valentine’s Day is not a problem. If you’re happy being single, then this is the holiday for you! My good friend and I enjoy spending Valentine’s Day together where we can relax at home, not worrying about getting a restaurant reservation, spending way too much money on extravagant gifts for each other, or the awkward (and sometimes forced) way to “end the evening.” Are you single? Loving it? Share your story below!

“All sincere boys fall in love with stupid girls, all sincere girls fall in love with stupid boys, I am neither stupid nor sincere, that’s why I am ‘single’.” ~  Abhishek Tiwari