I’m willing to bet that virtually NO ONE would have had any issues with the release of the OT on DVD if it had been handled correctly. Put the OOT on one side of the disk and then put the SE OT on the other side. This has worked for home video releases for decades. The original film is presented on one disk or tape and the directors cut is provided on a second side/disk/tape. That way fans have the original film they fell I love with, but know that the other film is what the director originally had in mind. In fact if George really wanted the majority of his fans to adopt the SEs that was the only way to do it.
By the same token George has allowed his political views and social mores to alter the feel and indeed believability of his films. There is the much lamented Han/Greedo scene that was only altered to appeal to George’s new ideas about what a “good guy” should do. That would be just great if we were discussing the clean-cut, goodie-two-shoes hero, Luke Skywalker. Unfortunately we are talking about the sell my mother up the river, cut throat, anti-hero, Han Solo. Now it’s no surprise that Han shows up to rescue Luke at the end; that’s what heroes do.
Then there is the jab at the President that George threw into ROTS. I don’t have a problem with George taking a jab at George, but I do have a problem with the fact that it was obvious, poorly executed and lied about:
“Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists.” – George W. Bush
"If you're not with me, then you're my enemy." – Darth Vader
“Only Sith deal in absolutes.” – Obi-Wan
Really Obi-Wan? Let us look at what the grand masters of these two orders have to say:
“No! Try not. Do. Or do not. There is no try.” – Yoda
“Anakin, if one is to understand the great mystery, one must study all its aspects, not just the dogmatic, narrow view of the Jedi. If you wish to become a complete and wise leader, you must embrace a larger view of the Force.” – Darth Sideous
It looks to me like the Jedi are the conservative order. They believe in black and white and they believe that anyone that embraces anything other than white is evil. Meanwhile the Sith draw on black, white, gray or any other shade that will bring them power. Of course according to Lucas I’m imagining this jab at Bush41 because he wrote all of this during the Nixon administration. Really? Lucas had all of the dialog for ROTS written prior to August 9, 1974? I’m calling bull shit on that one.
I’m a Moderate/Independent so I have no horse in the Liberal/Conservative Republican/Democrat race, but I’d be offended if I did. If I was a Bush supporter I would be mad at the obvious jibe at the president. If I was a Bush hater I would be upset that my position was being represented by such a flawed and contradictory argument. If I had been able to maintain my suspension of disbelief up until that point in ROTS that one sequence of dialog would’ve jerked me back and it only happened because George has his priorities mixed up.