If you assumed Gene Simmons telling immigrants to learn g--damn English would be his most controversial quote of the week, that would seem like safe bet.
Not the case, however. The rocker, 64, is back in the news thanks to strong remarks he made on the topics of drug addiction and depression in a recent interview.
Simmons gave the quotes to SongFacts (dot) com July 31, before Robin Williams' suicide elevated the issues to the center of so many public debates.
Still, Gene raised eyebrows by saying he "get along with anybody who's a drug addict and has a dark cloud over their head and sees themselves as a victim."
He went on to say that "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."
"I never understand, because I always call them on their bluff."
How so? Gene says, "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?" Simmons rants, believing such people should "shut the f--k up, have some dignity and jump! You got the crowd."
Simmons' comments have drawn harsh responses from mental health advocates, KISS fans and even friends such as Motley Crue's Nikki Sixx.
During a recent episode of his radio show Sixx Sense, the bass guitarist criticized Simmons, saying: "I like Gene. But in this situation, I don't like Gene."
"I don't like Gene's words. 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.'"
Adds Sixx: "For people who are depressed, there is a way out. There are many, many ways out. Don't listen to people who don't know what they're talking about."
"I struggled with addiction and depression but found recovery," he Tweeted. "Would you be happy if I killed myself instead? Also my 4 kids wouldn't [have] been born."
"I wonder if @genesimmons would still say how depressed people or addicts should just kill themselves if it happened to his wife or kids?"
Simmons has yet to respond to the firestorm on Twitter ... where his account is currently deactivated, very possibly because of this very controversy.
Gene Simmons in his Kiss makeup and as regular Gene Simmons. Quite a difference!
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