The myspace argument is bollocks imo, every multisonged music player on those types of pages has the most listens on the first song and then it decreases all the way down, I've seen it on umpteen different bands pages.

I believe MTV described Chinese Democracys decent off the charts as a "missile like plummet", hard to argue with cause it sunk faster than a metal shite in a magnetic toilet.
But for me thats down the lack of band involvment, especially Axl, in the release. Its a good example of how quickly the wind changes in pop music when you dont play the game and stop having your face and story in every available media outlet. There was a buzz when the album was released, people were excited, music media was excited, but instead of a band coming out with all guns blazing, staring out from every magazine cover,  video premiers, bigging up their album on every radio station and talk show - there was nothing, less than nothing actually, it was a vaccum and it sucked the momentum out of everything.
I noticed the album getting talked about al the time in the first week or so on UK radio stations, highly positive for the most part, but it dwindled away rapidly when it became clear nothing else was forthcoming. These guys want something for them to big you up, if this was Slash's album he would (and did!) do the rounds and all these radio guys and magazines waxed lyrical about him and his album cause they knew there was a chance of getting something from him, even just a short phonecall or a soundbite, but its enough for them.
Who was the guy flying the flag for Chinese Democracy in the UK, and in other countries, the guy who they fell back on. He was on the radio, on TV, in magazines doing the rounds providing a voice these outlets were crying out for... Mick Wall. Mick fucking Wall.
This was Axls moment and he did nothing, so all these media outlets just kicked CD to the kerb and moved on to more relevant bands and musicans, people who are out there playing the game and are recognisable to their audience.

Add to it that Axl is an "old man" and Guns N Roses is "old man music". I've heard that so much from teenagers, and this is the audience that a band has to appeal to if it wants to sell millions of records. You dont do that by sitting at home boycotting your own album, you have to be innovative, imaginative, enthusiastic and get out there and work hard to sell your product to them.

Axl sat on his couch eating pizza and drinking beer, pretending none of it was happening, small wonder that the "most anticipated album of all time" of his took a missile like plummet of the chart.

Same problems in audio quality with the euro version, one of the worst sounding vinyls I've ever bought. Only difference was noone outside the US reported buying vinyls that were scratched, chipped and covered in fingerprints.
Workers in either the factory or the stores must have been using the things for frisbee practice, wonder if it was all part of the "sabotage".

Funny I'm going right off Franks playing, its so pedestrian and unimaginative. He reminds me off Adler though, not that good technically, but pretty good a hitting things hard.

Brain is hands down the BEST drummer to ever play for Guns N' Roses

He sounds tipsy

I'd love to see him bury the hatchet with Slash just to see the 180° all his fucked in the head online minions would do.

They love their rock its not just an Axl thing, other bands like Iron Maiden get just as wild a reception, its awesome!