• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Wisdom on Prince from Gene Simmons

#201
Brad Johnson said:
I don't know anything about whatever Gene went through. How that ties in with his ignorant remarks about Prince escapes me. Many people have gone through things... is that justification for crapping on others? In this case it didn't change a thing about Gene's history, it just seems like an incredibly classless thing to do. Which is nothing new for Gene from what I've seen.
:meh:
Click to expand...


I don't think Gene's suffering is an excuse, nor do I believe I shaped my comments in that way.

I'm acknowledging his/his family's suffering, and also saying that we can take the high road and 1) show compassion to the part of him that has suffered, and 2) ALSO not necessarily condone negative behavior.

We can manage to do both of these things at the same time.

LL
 
Last edited:
#202
Dr. Cheese said:
I think most who dwell on this incident did not like Prince, any it provides ammunition for that attitude. I think Prince could be a diva. He was also very gracious and supportive of lots of artists and causes. Short of Jesus, Buddha, your God of choice, people have great sides, and times when they come up short.
Click to expand...

The funniest thing about The Incident is how many people are apparently far more pissed, still, about it than guy who actually owned the frickin' guitar. Somebody explain that to me?
:D
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dr. Cheese
#203
When a person is not an addict, or an addict in denial, they have no understanding how addiction works. They see it as a sign of weakness. I'm an addict, who happens to be clean and sober, my wife has never had that issue. She doesn't understand it and I can't make her get it, because she hasn't had that experience. You can't really describe addiction to those without that experience anymore than you can describe an LSD trip to someone who hasn't tried it. It can be the same with mental illness also. I guess what i'm trying to say is maybe we should cut those people without that experience some slack because they will never get it, accept that sometimes people say dumb things at the wrong time, and move on. Still can make you feel like taking a bat to their head sometimes however!
 
  • Like
Reactions: catcauphonic, JLY and Brad Johnson
#204
louloomis said:
I don't think Gene's suffering is an excuse, nor do I believe I shaped my comments in that way.

It ties in in this way: People who are mistreated are statistically more inclined to mistreat others; we learn how to interact with our world starting at an early age. I'm sure you agree with this part.

So, I'm acknowledging these facts, and also saying that rather than us repeating the cycle and beating on Gene (or anyone), we can take the high road and 1) show compassion to the part of him that has suffered, and 2) ALSO not condone negative behavior.

We can manage to do both of these things at the same time.

LL
Click to expand...

Whatever happened to him is no reason for him to do what he did. I'm not beating him up, he wouldn't know me from a ham sandwich and I doubt I matter to him. And I couldn't care less if I did. To say something that only a fool wouldn't know had a very good chance of being incorrect as authoritatively as hs did basically makes him no better than whatever you say hurt him in the past. "Hurt people hurt people"? Sure... sometimes. But many don't. They figure out that that doesn't make their hurt any less. That's a choice Gene made while criticizing an imaginary choice he thinks Prince made.

The Diana Ross story was no less dense. How could someone famous not be an overbearing blowhard instead of just shy?
 
  • Like
Reactions: GregC
#205
Lee Moses said:
"All anyone can do"? No, taking modest care of a guitar he was borrowing is something else he could have done. And is probably what everyone else did who ever borrowed that guy's guitar. I'm sure no one else smashed it when they did.

I guess we're just not going to see eye-to-eye on this, because I don't understand how anyone could act like it's no big deal.
Click to expand...

It wasn't your guitar. Just saying. I can't believe the legs this thing has with some folks.
:D
 
#209
jpeck02 said:
We all have skeletons in our closets. Gene mentioned that David Bowie's death was tragic. Bowie was the biggest junkie of all in the 70s. If he had died of a heroin overdose, would that have been pathetic too? Gene has slept with thousands of women, has commitment issues and clearly has a sex addiction. If he had died from HIV/AIDs, would that have been pathetic too? When people die due to decades of dependency, it is sad. Not pathetic.
Click to expand...

Simmons seemed to completely ignore Bowie's long term recreational drug use. Not exactly a surprise when you're making a less than insightful statement.

And I was probably a bigger Bowie fan than Prince fan. Dumb is dumb.
 
#211
Dr. Cheese said:
Now that is the truth!
Click to expand...

Do you understand it? Because I seriously don't. Seems like there might be some seriously deep-seated issues with Prince that just manifest themselves in The Toss.

Rosebud!
;)

If you dislike Prince, just dislike Prince. Staying this worked up over what was likely an accident is just plain funny. Or do you guys actually think he meant to break Kirk's guitar? I bet some of you do.


"I WILL NEVER FORGIVE HIM!!!"
:mad:

:D
 
Last edited:
#212
Dr. Cheese said:
I seriously doubt if Kirk is as worked up about the incident as you are.
Click to expand...

I don't know. He posted about it publicly. He publicly called what Prince did "bad behavior." Myself, I had never heard about it until yesterday. And "worked up" about what Prince did might be a little strong. I absolutely would have been if he would have done it to my prized instrument, but he didn't. But I am absolutely floored about posters in this thread who seem to think that it is no big deal at all. "Oh, being a destructive jerk is all part of rock n' roll."
 
#215
Lee Moses said:
I don't know. He posted about it publicly. He publicly called what Prince did "bad behavior." Myself, I had never heard about it until yesterday. And "worked up" about what Prince did might be a little strong. I absolutely would have been if he would have done it to my prized instrument, but he didn't. But I am absolutely floored about posters in this thread who seem to think that it is no big deal at all. "Oh, being a destructive jerk is all part of rock n' roll."
Click to expand...

I'm not saying it was no big deal. I'm saying that people are inordinately wound up about what one man did to another man's guitar... and they are neither man. That's like me being pissed about Paul Giamatti borrowing Ryan Seacrest's 1st Gen Prius and wrecking it. Why would I give a damn?
Why do you?
:)
 
#218
Lee Moses said:
I don't know. He posted about it publicly. He publicly called what Prince did "bad behavior." Myself, I had never heard about it until yesterday. And "worked up" about what Prince did might be a little strong. I absolutely would have been if he would have done it to my prized instrument, but he didn't. But I am absolutely floored about posters in this thread who seem to think that it is no big deal at all. "Oh, being a destructive jerk is all part of rock n' roll."
Click to expand...

I never said it was not a big deal. I just said it was most likely an accident, and after an accident, all you can do is apologize and pay up. You keep on about it like Prince killed someone or assaulted a woman.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ianuaditis and Brad Johnson
#220
basschanges said:
Interesting philosophical quandary you bring up. Perhaps we are being asshats for calling an asshat and asshat. Maybe, by your own logic, you're being an asshat by implying that we could be asshats. I'm not saying this to be cute. I'm doing it to underline the discussion of responsibility and agency, the question of how much any of us have free will, so to speak. I don't really know myself.

Still, here's my answer to your post. Sociopaths would also fit your description of the mentally ill, pedophiles too. I don't call sociopaths or pedophiles asshats, or monsters, or morally bankrupt....until they hurt people. What Gene did was further the notion that addiction is a moral weakness, a sign of poor character. The dissemination of that notion actively hurts people and prevents progress in treating addiction. In doing that, he was being an asshat. I don't think he should be prosecuted for it. I also don't think me calling him an ass-hat is any great attack. To illustrate my point by taking it to an extreme: Jefferey Dahmer was likely born a violent psychopath, not his fault. But when he decided to eat people...he was an asshat.

And yes, in the sense that Prince hurt his family and his friends by killing himself, he was being an asshat as well. However, his addiction was an illness, not an act of moral turpitude.
Click to expand...

IF it was an illness why was he an a-hat? For having an illness?

I think that Dahmer was insane. I would think that by definition an a-hat would be someone who made the choice to do a-hat things. I doubt that Dahmer was making many conscious choices. This does not mitigate the fact that he did horrible things.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back