I apologize because I haven't listened to the episode but what did he ever do or say that was actually controversial? Like real world controversial, not like "i don't like this pinball machine" controversial.
I never got why people felt so passionately against him. He would stir the pot, but so does the flip n out guy (who actually profits off the industry) and I don't see the same level of hatred directed his way.

I also always here people talk about kaneda being mentally ill. I don't know if he is, but if he does suffer from mental illness SO WHAT? Lots of people do. Lots of people that have mental illness still have a lot to offer. I don't know how it is different than saying "don't listen to that guy's podcast, he has hypertension."
He was what I call a dreamer. No machine was ever going to be good enough. He would always want more. That is why he is a marketing guy. We need people like that. Lots of people that worked with steve jobs thought he was unreasonably demanding, but we all benefited from his work.
I myself am a numbers/logistics guy. So he and I look at the world very differently. I didn't agree with him much, but I never felt the need to silence him. It didn't even make my want to stop listening. I just occasionally acknowledged that he was "being a little extra" today (as my daughter would say) and continue listening. We NEED different types of people in this world. Not everyone has to agree with you to have your respect. Not everyone needs to want the same things out of this hobby.
Jason Fowler raised thousands of dollars for charity through his contributions to this hobby and people trashed him until he quit. Kaneda had someone go to his employer and complain because of his opinions about the pinball hobby. None of this makes any sense to me. There are real problems to address in this world and none of them are related to pinball.
Please don't try to get me fired for posting this

Ok, but here is the thing. There are lots of people in my life that I think make bad decisions, or that say things I don't agree with. But I don't wish that they get what us coming to them either. I personally haven't cared for several of my bosses over the course of my life, but i still genuinely wish the best for them. If a shitty thing happens to a guy that is a jerk, it is still a shame that something unfair or unjust happened and I still empathize.
You say Kaneda was no saint. But neither am I. I would guess that neither are you. Does that mean we all deserve anything terrible that happens to us? I feel like we still should all want the best for each other.