Ok...as you guys know I personally really enjoy Chinese Democracy...so this is more for the sake of playing devil's advocate...

But the thing is most people in the wider public don't care that the band was kept afloat.

They didn't like Chinese democracy, they don't care for sub-bass or anything that isn't classic rock sounding, they found it comical that GNR turned into a circus act with a guy with a bucket and an alien on guitar.

Here's what the general public see:

2001: Errrrr This Isn't GNR it's a circus
2002: Why does Axl think he is black?
2006: This is listenable but these guys arn't the old band
2009: Can't see this picture quality - is it recorded on an iphone in an ass? Why is there no pro shot?
2010: I never realised Slash had a kid to Mick Mars before.
2012: What happened to Axl he looks sick.
2014: Very Sick.

I know this because this is what I experience every time I try and get one of my friends around to watch a GNR boot with some drinks etc

So that's the thing pitman...you had your 20 years and all that came out of it is 1 album, and a handful of watchable shows, and a larger handful of embarrassments and mistakes.

The general public would almost have preferred GNR wasn't "kept afloat" and was just gone since 1993 only to return now.

As i said, myself I like the newer stuff too, but I've never met anyone else in person who does.

Wanting Izzy on the tour for the reasons you mention is fine to me, but the idea of boycotting the shows entirely because of no Izzy, like  couple of articles in the media have suggested, sounds kinda Hipster to me. I went to the UYI tour in 1993 and it was amazing, and it felt like GNR.

If it was a full reunion the same types would be speculating they're too old, or that only the first album was good.

It's sort of trendy.

The aspect i'm worried about, which I guess ties in, is  is how 'real' is this reunion?

The silence from Slash and Duff, the cancelled TV show from Axl, these things point to a situation where rather than Axl go back to 1980s style GNR  leadership, what has happened is Slash and Duff gave in and returned to GNR without pushing for any changes in the way things happen.

This is disturbing as it may mean there is no plan at all long term and this will literally be a handful of shows for the sake of it before they go back to seperate endeavours or Axl goes back to being semi-retired.

I hope i'm wrong and the band really reunites and starts working on new music and so on.

Hehe..come on....1991 was the last time there was an actual strategy.....the closest thing to a current strategy is:

1. Axl said he's ok to do a few shows, cos you know, why not, and it's been a year or two.

2. Slash and Duff are going to shut the fuck up lest they accidentally make Axl change his mind and spend another 30 years in the wilderness.

3. No one knows what the fuck Izzy will do, even Izzy, so we'll book him to come for a few shows, but we won't advertise it as anything other than Slash/Duff/Axl so that no one can complain.

4. Steven is in the too hard basket. We'll have to give him something so he doesn't off himself but he's so damn annoying. Let's work that out later before Axl changes his mind.

5. Matt would be cool to have, but then again, Matt will want to be paid, Hmm...lets think about him later too.

6. Someone call Richard and Frank and keep around. Just incase we never decide anything about Izzy, Matt and Steven.

7. Did Chris say something? What a fuckhead. Jesus 15 years in the band and he doesn't know fans are the enemy yet. Someone get him to shut up before anyone calls this a reunion tour and we have to come to a decision about Izzy and Steven. Fuck. It's like you want Axl to cancel the show.

8. Ok..so we have a lost GNR album around, CD2 sitting around, hundreds of hours of awesome proshot footage and multiple completed docs in the can, we've reassembled one of the greatest rock bands ever, and it's the 30th anniversary of our greatest record. Should we do something? Hmm...think about that later too.

9. Never speak of #8 again unless you don't want Axl to tour. Fuckhead.

Yep. Strategy.

I recently went to a seminar with Buzz Aldrin where he addressed some of this.

He was asked how they dealt with the fear. He said fear mostly comes from surprises. What NASA did was spend months working out what they know, what know they don't know, and what they think they know and so on. Then they work out a chain of events for every possible contingency.

Eg: Flick switch. Light either comes on or doesn't. If it does, open valve. If it doesn't check wire. If wire burnt then X, if wire not burnt then Y. If X then...and so on and so on.

They talk through and plan out everything that could happen.

Many of the contingencies end in "We Die", Some of them end in "Step into recovery boat on earth".

Basically they would have had a contingency for as many mechanical issues as possible, beyond that, the plan is they die, the president addresses the nation and speaks of their brave sacrifice in the furtherment of their nation and of science and how they made it to a place no one ever has before.