Henry Rollins Apologizes for Robin Williams Criticism

"If what I said has caused you to be done with me, I get it"



http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/henry-rollins-apologizes-for-robin-williams-criticism-20140823

By Miriam Coleman | August 23, 2014

Henry Rollins has apologized for the column he wrote for L.A. Weekly earlier this week criticizing Robin Williams over his suicide. In a note posted to his website on Friday evening, Rollins called the anger his article provoked "off the scale and in my opinion, well placed."

"That I hurt anyone by what I said, and I did hurt many, disgusts me. It was not at all my intent but it most certainly was the result," he wrote. "I have had a life of depression. Some days are excruciating. Knowing what I know and having been through what I have, I should have known better but I obviously did not. I get so mad when I hear that someone has died this way. Not mad at them, mad at whatever got them there and that no one magically appeared to somehow save them."

In the original column, which was published on Thursday, Rollins excoriated Williams for traumatizing his three children by taking his life. While praising the actor's talents and his work on USO tours, Rollins said that he regards people who have committed suicide "with a bit of disdain." "I know they existed, yet they have nullified their existence because they willfully removed themselves from life," he wrote. "They were real but now they are not."

Rollins is not the only notable music figure to apologize for recent remarks about depression. Earlier this month, Kiss' Gene Simmons drew ire from Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx, among many others, for dismissive and insensitive comments about suicide in an interview with Songfacts.com. Shortly afterward, he apologized on Facebook. "I recognize that depression is very serious and very sad when it happens to anyone, especially loved ones," he wrote.

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) really doesn't like House Speaker John Boehner's (R-Ohio) cigarette habit.

In a Q&A with the House Budget Committee chairman, Time's Belinda Luscombe asked Ryan if he ever asks Boehner to refrain from smoking.

"No," Ryan said. "But I try to sit as far away from him as I can in meetings that I know are going to be stressful. I just hate getting that smell in my clothes."

HuffPost reached out to Boehner's office for comment, and while press secretary Michael Steel didn't remark directly on Ryan's aversion to cigarette smoke, he did offer some criticism of President Barack Obama.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/21/paul-ryan-john-boehner-cigarettes_n_5697885.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/10/tucker-carlson-gun-safety-fox-news-friends-bathtub_n_5666262.html

Fox News' Tucker Carlson criticized his own network's segment Sunday morning during a report on gun safety.

"Fox & Friends Weekend" aired a segment featuring a woman whose son was shot and killed accidentally while playing at a friend's house. The video was meant to draw attention to a new bill that would require the safe storage of all firearms in homes.

Directly after the segment ran, Carlson interrupted his co-hosts to disagree with the network's intention behind the clip.

"The point of that package was, guns are scary, gun owners are a threat to you and your children," he said.

Jimi Hendrix Park Finally Breaks Ground in Seattle

The two-and-a-half acre area, set to be built next year, will be communal spot to explore music and art



http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/jimi-hendrix-park-finally-breaks-ground-in-seattle-20140807

By Kory Grow | August 7, 2014 Updated August 7, 2014

The City of Seattle finally broke ground on the long-planned Jimi Hendrix Park, marking a two-and-a-half acre stretch of land adjacent to the Northwest African American Museum in Seattle's Central District to honor its hometown guitar hero. The park's organizers, the Jimi Hendrix Park Foundation, envision the park as being a place where people of different backgrounds will find the motivation to explore music and art, while celebrating Seattle's cultural heritage, experiencing community pride and appreciating the programming of the museum next door. The bulk of the construction will take place in 2015.

City officials, volunteers of the park committee and area residents were all present at the ceremony. At the groundbreaking, Scott Murase – the design principle of Murase Associates of Seattle, which will be working on the park's second phase – exclaimed, "Let the Experience begin!"

"Every project endorsed by our family which bears Jimi's name is meaningful to us, but this park holds special significance," the rock legend's sister, Janie Hendrix – who is also the president and CEO of Experience Hendrix, LLC – commented. "Seattle will always be Jimi's home. This very area is where Jimi grew up, where his dreams were cultivated and his creative energy awakened, in many ways. So to see this amazing place of beauty, dedicated to Jimi and his artistry, blossom into reality is indescribably fulfilling. Having been involved in each facet of the park's creation, I can honestly say that this musical garden is a fitting representation of Jimi's imagination. It is truly inspired."



The park's evolution is being split into two phases: The Jimi Hendrix Park Foundation has named the first "Little Wing," after the singer's 1967 song, and will include the construction of an entrance and stairway at the park's southeast corner, as well as paved pathways, a timeline of Hendrix's life and a butterfly garden, among other features. The second phase, which is currently unnamed and now the subject of a fundraising campaign, will include a central shelter, performance space and a "shadow wave wall," which will cast silhouette images of the guitarist.

Ann Coulter reacted to America's immigration crisis with her usual bombast on Thursday night.

Speaking on Thursday's "Hannity," she said she believes the answer lies no further than Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The fighting between Israel and Gaza has continued for over three weeks, despite a rising death toll and diplomatic efforts to arrange a ceasefire.

"I wish we could have Netanyahu as our president," Coulter said.

She compared the Hamas-built tunnels that Israel is intent on destroying to tunnels under the U.S.-Mexico border. "We are being invaded," she said. "And I wish people would talk about our border the way at least people like you and I talk about, the way we talk about Israel's border. We need a Netanyahu here."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/01/ann-coulter-border-crisis-netanyahu_n_5641337.html