Free Republic

She’s the kiss of death for hospitals. The woke Veterans Affairs official who ordered hospitals take down the iconic Times Square V-J-Day kissing photo previously mismanaged a Missouri hospital so badly, she was condemned by both Democrats and Republicans alike. Smooch-bashing VA bigwig RimaAnn Nelson headed the department’s St. Louis hospital for more than three years, during which time the facility was rated worst in the country — with patients allegedly left in their feces for days, and more than 1,800 of our nation’s heroes being exposed to HIV and hepatitis from unsterilized dental equipment, reports said. “What happened in...

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Veterans Affairs secretary has reversed a department memo that aimed to ban VA displays of the iconic “V-J Day in Times Square” photograph of a Navy sailor kissing a strange woman on the streets of New York at the end of World War II. Secretary Denis McDonough acted hours after a copy of a memo from a VA assistant undersecretary requesting the photo’s removal from all VA health facilities was shared on social media. The memo had said the photo “depicts a non-consensual act” and is inconsistent with the department’s sexual harassment policy. McDonough on Tuesday...

A Minnesota man who spent years building a record-setting collection of items related to the rock group KISS is selling it off due to financial problems. Vern Simon conducted a count of the items in his collection last year and found that he had nearly 3,800 KISS-related dolls, comic books, toys, and other items. After he submitted the count to the Guinness Book of World Records, he was certified as having the largest known collection of KISS memorabilia. Simon says he's sad to have to let his collection go, but said it was necessary to find a way to take...

NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (AP) — A vehicle speeding toward a U.S.-Canada bridge from the American side crashed and exploded at a checkpoint in Niagara Falls on Wednesday, killing two people and prompting the closing of border crossings in the area, authorities said. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said there was “no indication of a terrorist attack.” Much remained unclear about the crash, which investigators were working to understand. Hochul said it wasn’t clear whether the driver was intentionally heading for the Rainbow Bridge across the Niagara River when the vehicle hit a median and flew into the air. “ Based...

THE FAMILY OF a Kiss guitar tech — who died while quarantining in 2021 after contracting Covid during the band’s End of the Road World Tour — is suing for wrongful death, according to a lawsuit reviewed by Rolling Stone. Catherine Stueber, whose husband Fran had served as guitar tech for Paul Stanley for decades, filed the suit in Los Angeles on Wednesday along with several members of her family, claiming both negligence and wrongful death. Kiss founding members Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, their longtime manager Doc McGhee, the tour’s promoter Live Nation, and hotel chain Marriott International were...

Spain recently won the Women’s World Cup (soccer). It was such a joyful event that during the medal ceremony Luis Rubiales, Spain’s soccer federation president, planted a celebratory kiss on the sweaty lips of player Jenni Hermoso. As a result, feckless FIFA (essentially soccer’s ill-reputed international governing body) have suspended him for 90 days.Unsurprisingly, that’s not enough for the fervid feminists, who want him dismissed for his “sexual aggression.” Rubiales mother is clearly subjective on the matter; nevertheless, she may be right about the criticism of her son being a “bloodthirsty witch hunt.” Luis himself remains defiant, referring to the...

Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) President Luis Rubiales has admitted he “made a mistake” by giving Spain star Jennifer Hermoso a surprise kiss on the lips after the 33-year-old received her gold medal following the team’s Women’s World Cup final victory over England on Sunday. Rubiales has faced widespread criticism for the incident, with politicians and journalists labeling his behavior “unacceptable” and “simply disgusting.”

British pop-rock band The 1975 has been banned from performing in Malaysia a day after the band’s frontman Matty Healy slammed the country’s anti-LGBTQ laws and then kissed his bandmate, bassist Ross MacDonald. The country, where homosexuality is illegal, also canceled the remainder of the Good Vibes Festival Saturday, which was supposed to run the rest of the weekend with several other acts. "There will be no compromise against any party that challenges, disparages and violates Malaysian laws," Malaysia’s Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said in a statement, according to Reuters. He added, "never touch on the sensitivities of the community,...

Rock star Dee Snider is no longer featured at the SF Pride Parade & Celebration. Snider was going to perform at the June event in San Francisco but the plug has officially been pulled, according to KRON4. What was the Twisted Sister star’s crime? The musician agreed with KISS rock star Paul Stanley that kids who believe they’re transgender shouldn’t get gender reassignment surgeries. In response to a statement from Stanley, Snider tweeted Monday, “You know what? There was a time where I ‘felt pretty’ too. Glad my parents didn’t jump to any rash conclusions!” That tweet cost him his...

In an ironic twist, San Francisco Pride’s campaign to push back against transphobia, to be unveiled this week, has been disrupted by its own brush with transphobia. SF Pride was all set to make a big statement this week about anti-LGBTQ attacks by announcing that the battle cry for this year’s event would be the iconic Twisted Sister rock anthem, “We’re Not Gonna Take It.” Choosing the 1984 song was intended to show how the community was going to push back on the hundreds of pieces of anti-LGBTQ and anti-drag community legislation being passed around the country and the endless...

Elvis Presley’s stepbrother revealed what the King thought of Kiss when the pair listened to Alive! together. The moment took place around 1975, soon after Billy Stanley had seen a Kiss show for the first time and bought the album, then played it in the basement of Graceland. “I got it cranked up, playing air guitar,” Stanley told Artists on Record in a new interview. “Elvis comes down [and asks] ‘What are you listening to?’ ‘It’s a band called Kiss.’ … And I showed him the album cover and he said, ‘Uh … OK.’ He sat down on the couch,...

Twister Sister frontman Dee Snider aired his support for KISS singer and guitarist Paul Stanley’s controversial Sunday statement, which condemned normalizing gender reassignment surgery on children as a “sad and dangerous trend.” Stanley, 71, who co-founded the iconic rock n’ roll group formed in the 1970s, shared his thoughts on Twitter about minors being convinced to mutilate their body parts. His remarks sparked both backlash and praise as many states craft legislation surrounding so-called gender-affirming care. Snider, 68, who formed the iconic glam rock group Twister Sister in the 1970s, retweeted Stanley’s statement in applause, becoming the next American rockstar...

KISS rocker Paul Stanley took to social media Sunday and addressed kids’ gender identities and the parents who are “normalizing and even encouraging participation” in embracing their desire for sex reassignment surgery, calling it a “sad and dangerous fad.” The guitarist and father of four opened his thoughts with a simple declaration. “There is a BIG difference between teaching acceptance and normalizing and even encouraging participation in a lifestyle that confuses young children into questioning their sexual identification as though some sort of game and then parents in some cases allow it,” he wrote in an unsolicited “My Thoughts On...

Paul Stanley, or Starchild, as fans of the supergroup KISS know him, decided to post his two cents in regard to the trans kids debate, and the rock singer came out of it looking like one of the few sane people left in this world. Here's the statement he posted on Twitter: There was once a time, in the '70s and '80s, when conservative parents had to work overtime to protect their kids from the influence of Rock and Roll megastars like the folks in KISS. But in today's upside-down world, those SAME parents would now consider themselves allies of...

Kiss frontman Paul Stanley posted a statement on social media Sunday cautioning parents against allowing young children to undergo sexual transitioning procedures. "There is a big difference between teaching acceptance and normalizing and even encouraging participation in a lifestyle that confuses young children," Stanley began. The statement goes on to detail his concerns about children and to express his support for people who make the decision as adults. The post garnered more than 4 million views in about six hours. Stanley provided an example of young children dressing in the clothes of an opposite sex sibling, calling the activity "innocent,"...

Original KISS guitarist Ace Frehley has shared an unfounded conspiracy theory that the deaths at a Travis Scott concert earlier in the month were part of a satanic ritual. The rapper November 5 set at his Astroworld event left nine people dead and several more fighting for their lives. Since then, dozens of lawsuits have been filed and a slew of questions remain unanswered about what went wrong. On Friday (November 12), Ace took to his Facebook to share a photo of what appears to be his right foot covered in a sock emblazoned with the words "Not Today Satan",...

Gene Simmons laid into anti-vaxxers on Wednesday, saying they have “this delusional, evil idea that you get to do whatever you want.” Speaking with the TalkShopLive podcast, the 72-year-old KISS rocker said “If you’re willing to walk among us unvaccinated, you are an enemy.” His comments came less than a month after a 53-year-old guitar tech for the band died of Covid-19. Some of the group’s roadies cited “lax Covid protocols” as a possible cause. The band claimed some crew members hid illnesses and carried forged vaccination cards. “I don’t care about your political beliefs,” he continued. “You are not...

Kiss canceled their planned Las Vegas residency suddenly late last week, amid questions about their coronavirus safety protocols. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famers were scheduled to play at Zappos Theater at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas as part of their long-running End of the Road World Tour. The decision came after some of the band's roadies blamed guitar tech Francis Stueber's death on negligent safety protocols in Rolling Stone. Kiss disputed many of the claims the tour staffers made. Kiss was scheduled to play at Zappos Theater from Dec. 29 to Feb. 5, but options to buy tickets...

KISS lead singer Gene Simmons has tested positive for Covid-19. The band has postponed their tour until further notice.Celebrities have been making the news on a daily basis after catching the coronavirus, and invariably they are “vaccinated.” But Simmons’ case is noteworthy because literally everyone he’s been around while on the road touring is “fully-vaccinated” as well.The NY Post is generally reliable as a mainstream media source, but even they buried the lede on this story, waiting until the bottom of the article to drop the important news:In announcing the rockers’ breakthrough cases, Kiss has also revealed that the entire...

Another member of the legendary rock group Kiss has tested positive for COVID-19.Following a Friday announcement that Paul Stanley tested positive for the virus — and that the band was canceling the evening’s show as a result — Gene Simmons has also tested positive, and the group will be postponing multiple upcoming shows as a result.“Kiss will postpone their next four tour dates. While Paul Stanley recently tweeted that he has recovered from COVID, Gene Simmons has now tested positive and is experiencing mild symptoms,” Kiss tweeted Tuesday. “The band and crew will remain at home and isolate for the...