About the self-moderated thread: we want to keep a close eye on the thread, and manage it ourselves. However, we can promise you that we'll never delete any criticism, except for spam and promotional messages
You can still do that even if your thread is not moderated, an unmoderated thread is the easiest way to gain followers and support because people will not suspect that you have a hidden agenda, if you did your research you can check that the threads with the most support and good interaction are unmoderated, unmoderated threads can be considered a real community based and friendly casino.
So my unsolicited advice make your casino a community-based casino, get a copper account, design your thread, and be responsive, and you can start by having an unmoderated thread.