When I was growing up I did not imagine the Jedi as they appeared in the prequels. When Obi-Wan explains Anakin's downfall to Luke on Dagobah, "I took it upon myself to train him as a Jedi.", I did not get the impression that there was a temple where all young Jedi were trained. It seemed more like this was a sacred tradition where people talented in the force sought out like-minded contemporaries and passed on their knowledge to them. I imagined that Kenobi had the opportunity to present Anakin to Yoda, but instead wanted to train him on his own. Instead in the prequels, we have Obi-Wan begrudgingly training a boy out of respect for his dead master and with Yoda's blessing.

I was also perplexed by what it meant to be a Jedi Knight. Couldn't someone have another profession and still take on the mantel of knighthood. Like Luke in the original trilogy. He is a rebellion commander who in his struggle against the Empire still finds the time to learn the ways of the Force. Couldn't Jedi in the old republic have a similar approach to life. A renaissance life style if you will. Jedi Knight and politician. Jedi Knight and writer. Or the more familiar "Jedi Knight and friend to Capt. Solo."

In this vein, I always though of Obi-Wan Kenobi as a military man in addition to his vocation as a Jedi Knight. So he would have a military career in the Republic's armed services which leads to his ascension to the rank of General at the height of the Clone Wars. Therefore when he meets the young naval pilot Anakin Skywalker and decides to teach him the ways of the Force isn't it possible that he could have the phonetic title of Colonel Kenobi?

It seemed to me that the Jedi would be spread out across the galaxy necessitating a true hunt for Darth Vader in which he sought out tremors in the Force to eradicate the Jedi. Hunt down and destroy, not conveniently execute in one day under the auspices of order 66. Perhaps I've watched too much Highlander the series, but I think it would suit Darth Vader's vanity as a swordsman to have single combat with each Jedi he intends to dispatch. A mission and personal vendetta to keep him occupied in the relative peace of COMPNOR.

Another explanation which makes more sense for the decay in the old republic is the internal struggle among the Jedi. As some, like Kenobi are more intertwined with galactic intrigue. Whereas others might have so much respect of the Force and the life it creates that they cannot condone violence in any form. So there is a struggle amongst the Jedi Knights and what characterizes peace and justice. Consequently just as there would be dissention among the core worlds and how to contend with a separatist movement, there would also be some division amidst the Jedi. Meaning there is chaos in the order, making it ripe for a Sith takeover.