As everyone knows I am a Pregame supporter and a huge fan of RJ's. I respect and admire RJ for everything he does for the site and any time there is talk of ousting him as CEO I always defend him and argue that such a move would be a huge mistake. That being said I believe RJ made a terrible decision in deciding to close the Lloyd Christmas goodbye thread.
In my opinion the decision to close the thread was petty, vindictive, and unjustified. The reasoning for closing the thread (a few knucklehead comments) doesn't stand up to scrutiny and other more appropriate remedies to rectify the situation should have been used. It seemed like RJ was just looking for any reason he could find to close the thread.
I thought JD handled the situation perfectly with his comments and actions and the rest of Pregame management should have followed suit. I am not alone in my feelings as several other posters have echoed these sentiments and I'm sure many more feel the same way but may be afraid to speak out of fear of retribution.
The irony of the situation is that the backlash against Pregame for closing the thread is now worse than any backlash that would have been caused by the thread itself. In the future if RJ is going to make any major forum decisions I think he should consult with JD first. JD spends almost all of his time in the forums and just like in handicapping it makes sense to put your ego aside and lean on people who specialize in certain areas.
Lloyd Christmas did so much for this site and he deserved to have his goodbye thread open for more than a couple of days so the community could have a chance to thank him for all his contributions and wish him well. The value Lloyd contributed over the years to Pregame was off the charts and he never asked for anything in return.
I believe this post qaulifies as constructive criticism and is therefore protected speech under the Pregame Constitution. Thank you for allowing me to speak my mind and I would urge that the decision to close Lloyd's goodbye thread be reconsidered.