Most of the time since Richie left, Jon has been looking at the Richie situation coldly, "he did not turn up to work". In that context his narrative works. If I don't fulfill my work contract, I am out of a job even if I have another job. It is a convenient attitude for Jon to have.

The problem is, as another poster said, Jon spent 30 year prior to Richie's departure cultivating an idea of Bon Jovi as a band of brothers. He still does that with Tico and David, but if Tico didn't turn up for a show next year, would that mean the band of brothers is down to two, with new brothers added in?

As for Richie, I still think he had every intention of coming back to the band. Probably within a year or two. In that sense, he played his hand poorly because here we are 10 years later and just last year it was him doing all the talking about going back to the band.