'Mom, I think what you're saying about transparency makes sense. At the same time, I think there is a difference between people expressing, "I vote for Worlds to be in my backyard," and "I think this alternative plan could benefit many people, and distribute the cost of playing this game competitively more fairly." I think someone like Pete, Mike, or Dave stepping into this thread and saying something like, "we hear you," or "we hear you, but it simply isn't our decision" also really changes things. I think people feel strongly enough about this that they'll casually shout into the internet for a very long time.
I agree Jason. Honestly though, I think there are two major factors which will keep people arguing against something like this for eternity:
1) A lot of people live closer to SD/Hawaii than these other places, and are motivated to want Worlds between those locations for their own purposes
2) Many board members have this loyalty to the status quo
I really enjoyed Orlando in 08. San Diego was exciting in 09. Hawaii blew my mind in 2010. SD in 2011 was cool, but just not the same as the thrill of discovery and traveling around for the first time. Granted, I took a sidetrip to LA for that, but still. I'm looking forward to experiencing Hawaii again this year, but could easily enjoy some place new.
It is tough to analyze the positive growth factors at play for moving World Championships around. I think that my local Yu-Gi-Oh community could get really excited to play at the grinder and experience a World Championships event if it was within a 5 hour drive. I imagine there are other communities that would react the same way. Many people would pick up playing, even if just for a little while. Some of those players wouldn't put it down. On the flip side, I have no sympathy for someone living in San Diego who would quit because World Championships wasn't guaranteed to be in their backyard every other year.