I agree that the original theatrical versions should be restored for their historical value if nothing else. Take a painter's art for example. Leonardo da Vinci's "Mona Lisa" is worth millions of dollars. Reprints and forgeries aren't worth all that much (that is if the buyer can tell the difference, of course), but the originals are considered priceless.

Hmm! If George Lucas considers himself an artist, maybe these would be good arguments of persuasion. Maybe a film historian like Leonard Maltin could convince Lucas that it has historical value. Why else would the hull of the Titanic be preserved (weil, part of it, anyway) and be considered a landmark? Because it has historical value. As does the original theatrical cuts of Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back and Return Of The Jedi. They are a huge part of film history. In 1977, Star Wars raised the standard for special effects....without computer generated images. How about everone that worked on the films during their production. Should everything the original crew did be long forgotten because their original work is now obsolete? I should hope he's not such an insensitive asshole as to forget the people that helped make them movies the success they are. Changing everything on there to CGI would be doing just that. I think writing him a letter and using art/film historical value as a persuasion argument is the best bet. As I posted in another thread, you can express your arguments at:

George Lucas
c/o Lucasfilm Ltd.
P.O. Box 2009
San Rafael, CA 94912
U.S.A.