Where does it state that Elite is a competitive game? I play purely for my own entertainment, not anyone else's, and I certainly am not in competition with anyone. Are you going to be the first person to win Elite?
there is also the issue of 'gaining unfair advantage,' something that is not possible as nobody is locked into open and anyone can switch modes at will. it's all down to the player what type of game they want, do they want the challenge of open or the predictability of solo/group play. as it stands people can play how they want to play and no amount of talking about it is going to convince me or others who feel the same that this is anything but a good thing.