What I'm seeing a lot here is exactly what I've found my reaction to be, and my wife's...I didn't really like Elmo, I got that preschoolers like him and that's what important, but let's just say I tend to spend the last seventeen minutes of Sesame Street putting dishes in the dishwasher. But I always loved Kevin, I'd known him from interviews and whathaveyou since the 90's, and of course it was hard not to love the man after seeing Being Elmo. I mean, he was like so many of us, someone who loved the Muppets from day one, and he ended up being the de facto star of Sesame Street. Very, very few people end up achieving their life's ambition to such an extent.
But this whole thing has cemented my support for him, and made me realize that, though Elmo's World may not be my thing, it wouldn't be Sesame Street without Elmo. In many ways Kevin is the one who's really picked up Jim Henson's mantle, in that he's now both one of the key people behind the scenes and in front, as well as the charismatic public (human) face of Sesame Street. All of these allegations sound like attention/money seeking scumbags looking to cash in on a man who wouldn't hurt a fly.