I'm hoping it's a case that your sarcast-ometer is on the blink.

Im going to weigh in on this once just because it seems to be the thing to do.

There are so many different things that go through my head when i try to speculate on what is going on here, and face it its the natural thing to do.

1. I dont believe a think Matt BJ says so i pretend he doesnt even tweet, talk, type, whatever.

2. TMZ is a fairly reliable source and just because a lot of people dont like some of the things they publish, this story isn't crazy out to lunch.

3. I do believe there's a very good chance that this is involving a rift between JBJ and RS for a couple of reasons:

- JBJ has become a monster. There has been a slow shift to this being Jon and the rest of the band, and i know people are going to say "yeah hes always been the boss, blah blah blah" but the interviews used to include the band, they at least used to include RS. Now all i hear is JBJ doing interviews and saying ME, ME, I, MY, etc every chance he gets. You listen to his town hall interview and he is a bold face liar. About HIS shows, HIS tour, HIS this and HIS that, he lies. He lies about setlists, he lies when he makes comments like "my best is yet to come" and i could go on for hours.

- From what i saw in the 2 Toronto shows, there was something going on with JBJ and RS. Very little interaction between the 2, they seemed more disconnected than ever. The set was stale, the band sounded OK, and it seemed like a show that ive seen a million times with a band going through the motions.

- The band didnt want to tour this soon. JBJ made them. To me its about money. For this band doing a tour is like printing money. JBJ is smart and knows the window wont be open for ever so he's milking this thing for all he can. He's gonna keep doing sell out (or close to sell out) shows and every single time they make millions. He's even gotten so cocky with the setlists to the point where they could sing the alphebet and the masses will eat it up.

4. This band is not immune to these types of problems. Some people act like its not possible, that it cant possibly be a fight between "peas and carrots" - well guess what? If i was dealing with that ego (JBJ) every day I wouldnt have lasted this long no matter what the money is. RS has been through enough that he probably doesn't want the stress anymore. He has JBJ by the balls because he knows they cant go to Europe without him so he takes this break and tells JBJ "i'm taking the break you said i was getting" or something along those lines.

5. If it was alcohol, we would know by now. Plain and simple.

I really never thought i would get bored of this band. Ive been to 23 shows and always look forward to the next, but when you look at everything over the past 5 years I have come to the conclusion that Bon Jovi in 2013 is an afterthought. Nobody outside of these message boards cares about this band anymore. JBJ always talks about not being a nostalgia act, which again is a lie. Thats what they are. Outside of HAND (the Song), LH (The song) and maybe WWBTF - nobody wants to hear anything post 2000 at the shows. Most of the crowd just goes along with it because JBJ is bouncing all over the stage. (Which he doesnt even do anymore).

If this band wanted to protect its legacy they would have taken the break as planned. Make people wonder where they've been and come back with something somewhat fresh. Its my opinion that JBJ doesnt care about that either anymore and he would rather ride the marketing machine to the bank.

Its such a weird feeling to have such strong feelings towards JBJ himself but love the band and the music for what it is.

At the end of the day, none of this surprises me. Ive been wondering how the band puts up with him and his attitude/actions, and i really think that this time someone finally stepped up and did something about it.

Of course i could be completely wrong and that wouldnt change my feelings one bit, but when you think of it (if you want to believe it) the signs have been there for some time.

I would have written exactly the same if i wasn's sick. You read my mind.

this is one of the best posts i have read in a long, long, time....

for me it really started to turn when he would walk back out at the end after the band all held hands for his own personal encore....disgusting and a deep sign of personal/personnel issues...

it seems so much more a corporate machine now, maybe i am just different, i always realized there was some part of that but was able to believe that it wasnt most of it and now it seems it is almost all of it.....

such a shame....

As a 17 years-old male who's been fan for years now, I'll travel from Holland to London to see them live for the first time in my life, this summer. If Richie won't be there, it just won't be the same... I really hope he'll join the band again soon and am desperately waiting for an official statement from the band. Damnit. :(

Sadly, Capt. Crash is pretty much spot on, from what we can tell. I mean, who the hell knows what really goes on behind the scenes? But from what we see of Jon, the music the band has put out, the live performances, the assholish tweets of Matt, the lack of information coming from the band on this latest scenario, it all appears to make sense.

I'm torn. Bon Jovi is not the same without Richie, but the fact is, Phil X can play circles around him. If Jon lets him off his leash, we could see some serious kick ass guitar playing for the first time in a while. I think Jon needs to wake up to what's going on with the band.

BTW - Anyone been keeping tabs on the Queensryche fiasco? Makes this look like a jump rope game.

Like others have stated already, this post is absolutely precious because, in my opinion, hitting the nail right into the head ...I am going to save this post ... it sums it all

Thank you for this post. It sums up what I've been thinking, but I couldn't find the right
words.

Is Phil X arrogant? I don't know the guy, I had never heard of him before this, and looking up youtube with him and Bon jovi, but he tweeted this:

Phil X ‏@TheRealPhilX 33m

it's like answering the BATphone only every 2 years.

Doesn't seem a particularly arrogant tweet to me?