Oh, come on. Calling Slash a cancer and withholding an album due to insecurity for over decade surely rank higher than that.

And, to be fair, the Mexicans had to tolerate all that talk about a wall, which they would (in someone's mind) pay for. That's hardly a nice thing to say and to repeat over and over again.

Axl took an issue with those sentiments and is using his stature as a public person to express his discontent. Would you prefer him to be apolitical and care only for his paycheck?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkslQjiSvKc

Strong screams. Short, but strong.

That's actually a real funny description.

And it's true. Look at The Making of 'Don't Cry'. They're doing a video to a simple love song Axl and Izzy wrote years back. Now, Izzy's gone and Axl's going on and on about this character he's playing, some sort of mythical gunslinger. That and his preoccupation with death (camera diving underground, into his grave) and reincarnation. What in the blazes does all that have to do with the song?

What about November Rain? Axl marrying Stephanie Seymour on MTV, with her character effectively killing herself? Hardly self-aware stuff, otherwise Uncle Axl might've thought twice about displaying a relationship that was, effectively, dysfunctional and tragic. Further videos, Estranged and Since I Don't Have You, feature him as a character drifting further into his own world.

SIDHY is particularly interesting, when you consider that Axl's in trouble, Slash is on a boat trip with the Devil, Duff and Matt are enjoying the easy life, Gilby's cooking and Dizzy is trying to help Axl out, albeit poorly. Them band dynamics were laid out pretty bare in that, I'd say.

We're obviously speculating, but I'll rephrase a bit.

Axl thought Paul was the right guy for the Izzy role. Gilby was given the boot so that Paul could come in. In retrospect, smart money would've kept Gilby on retainer as a live player to accommodate Slash. Axl practically threw Paul at them and told them to get busy. Slash and Duff both told him they thought Paul was simply a bad fit to the unit. Axl's boy from Indiana, possibly a teetotaler, zero experience on big bands and on Guns. This was hardly someone like West Arkeen, a proven collaborator and a familiar face.

In any case, Axl appeared perplexed by the issues. I'm sure that in his head, it had all worked out. He likely would've given it a lot of thought and reached a conclusion that it. Will. Work. Then, when the boys come to him with the bad news, he wonders what is their major malfunction. I'm saying Axl seems to get so doggedly convinced about some of his ideas that he's regularly felt alienated and misunderstood by the people around him whenever there's a dissonance between his theory and the outside environment. This is his problem obviously. He could've phoned up Slash and Duff and ask whether they'd like to jam with his personal writing partner, to see if they, too, could benefit from him. Nay, he was a mastermind without a reality check or a safety valve.

Steve Jobs had this thing called a Reality distortion field.

When you the biggest rock band in the world and remain entrenched in yes men, you'll write your own press releases and believe them. Everybody was too scared to tell him otherwise, because he'd fly off the handle and fire them in a heartbeat. Working for him was probably stressful for many. A well-paid job, but tenuous as hell, as you'd never know when the boss would get mad at someone, and next month's rent is still due. So, you'd have a bunch of strung-out yes men expanding his reality distortion field. Beyond that field would've been the band.

But they were led by Doug Goldstein. Most were unreliable narrators.

Yup, he's mentioned them as 'opinionated' and other things. But Ron had a terrible run in 2006 and was essentially bullied since Day 1. It was essentially Paul Huge revisited; the unwanted addition by the runaway boss. Axl, apparently, thought he could ascend all the interpersonal conflicts and focus solely on the music by putting all the guys on the payroll and listening to freshly-burned discs in his mansion. Because he was daunted by the circumstances his theories had led him and the band into.

Slash leaving Guns cut Axl deep and deflated his sense of creative security. It also ruined all chances to have a functional and productive band despite Axl. Hardly the single thing, rather than the final straw on the camel's back. Izzy was gone, Duff was thinking about his options. But Slash was the first mate - it's hard to imagine one without the other when considering the historical merits of Guns.

I blame CD's reception and the apparent soul-searching / depression / boozing that followed.

To many, sure. Others go and see the 'reunion' because it's there and everybody's talking about it.

Good point. Mr Rose himself has come off in many occasions as a complete loon, womanizer and downright hazardous to be around. He seems to have a better grip f things by now, but without a rock star career, he'd likely have been a habitual offender and would've spent a good portion of his life in jail or on parole.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ejj2CZnpt68#t=4m6s