Google+ vanity URLs make me like Google+ less

I just received this email from Google+, informing me I can get a custom URL for my profile:

Clicking the Get URL button took me to my profile with this modal:

In case you can’t tell, the URL is not changeable–my custom URL has been “preapproved”.

If you meet the eligibility requirements, you can get a custom URL for your Google+ account or page. This means **you can choose one of the custom URLs Google preassigns to your Google+ profile or page**. Depending on the preassigned custom URL, you may also need to add a few letters or numbers to make it unique to you.

via: Google+ Help

Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn all let users customize their vanity URL. Unfortunately by adding a feature where choice is eliminated, this change feels less like an improvement and more like a constraint. They managed to put a negative spin on a potentially positive (and much needed) change.