Has anyone considered that George Lucas does not hate the original theatrical movies, but actually wishes he could release them again?
Consider that when the SE was being created, he told his 'yes men' to go and clean up the movies, create some new effects and replace the old footage, but by accident or misinterpretation that they lost or destroyed the original footage? Surely he isnt as cruel a man as everyone makes him out to be, and above all else, he is about making money.
Surely with the few million it would take to remaster the theatrical versions (if existed) to make hundreds of millions, he would swallow his pride and release all that he could.
It just could be impossible to recover even if he wanted to, so hes making himself out to be a grinch instead of a fool.