Catch Me If You Can: Confessions of a Theme Park Jumper

[ISTCrew20]

Rob...From what they told me, they thought they would play a joke on this lady who was walking thru a deserted part of the park. She was like, 70 years old. They ran up behind her, and grabbed her purse, and ran around the corner. She started screaming, and they meant to just play a joke on her, and ran back to give her her purse back. She was still screaming for security, and by the time they got there, they walked out the park, and a word was never said to them about it.


Not that Tifani or I would ever do it, but we also noticed how easy it is to get people into Magic Kingdom. Just go to an unmanned turnstile, (and since we have ap's) it would be real easy for a person to go in front of us, while I put my fingers in, and the person walks thru, and then I take my ticket, and do it myself. Again, we never did, never will do this, just to clear that up

 

[mkt]

Originally posted by ISTCrew20
Rob...From what they told me, they thought they would play a joke on this lady who was walking thru a deserted part of the park. She was like, 70 years old. They ran up behind her, and grabbed her purse, and ran around the corner. She started screaming, and they meant to just play a joke on her, and ran back to give her her purse back. She was still screaming for security, and by the time they got there, they walked out the park, and a word was never said to them about it.

gotcha... tell your friends they were still breaking the law

 

[PhotoDave219]

Originally posted by ISTCrew20
Rob...From what they told me, they thought they would play a joke on this lady who was walking thru a deserted part of the park. She was like, 70 years old. They ran up behind her, and grabbed her purse, and ran around the corner. She started screaming, and they meant to just play a joke on her, and ran back to give her her purse back. She was still screaming for security, and by the time they got there, they walked out the park, and a word was never said to them about it.


Not that Tifani or I would ever do it, but we also noticed how easy it is to get people into Magic Kingdom. Just go to an unmanned turnstile, (and since we have ap's) it would be real easy for a person to go in front of us, while I put my fingers in, and the person walks thru, and then I take my ticket, and do it myself. Again, we never did, never will do this, just to clear that up

Well Patrick, i realize arent condoning what your friends did nor advocating it; rather your pointing out a major shortcomming of Disney Security.

Of course if it were my grandmother who got her purse snatched, your firends would have gotten a whoppin.... That aint funny. Glad to know you really dont associate with them. Ranks right up there with that CM who found a camera in the park and kept it.....

 

[aim]

How interesting! I've never seen this. But have noticed how some turnstiles aren't manned. And the closest CM wasn't paying much attention. That guy is too old to be doing that. I thought he was in his 20s.

 

[ISTCrew20]

Originally posted by PhotoDave219
Well Patrick, i realize arent condoning what your friends did nor advocating it; rather your pointing out a major shortcomming of Disney Security.

Of course if it were my grandmother who got her purse snatched, your firends would have gotten a whoppin.... That aint funny. Glad to know you really dont associate with them. Ranks right up there with that CM who found a camera in the park and kept it.....

The kids who robbed the purse arent my friends..just some people I was talking to one time. I believe they did this back in October.

I also have many CM friends that go to my school, (almost all work at AK. I guess thats where Disney sticks them) and they tell me some pretty interesting stories also.

 

[WDWspider]

"Actually, I'm doing the parks a favor. In this post-Sept. 11 world, security is paramount. After this article, they'll know where they need to tighten up. Consider it a free security review, folks. You're welcome. "

This is the one quote that really bothers me. This has to be the criminals justification and it is accurate only in the mind of a criminal.

Are the guests who get injured on rides by not doing what they are suppose to doing parks a favor? Are people who ask for others to get them extra fastpasses so they can cheat the system doing parks a favor? Are people who steal items from stores doing them a favor?

People have no integrity. You can get by with anything if you try hard enough and are willing to potentially get caught. There is a limit to what should be necessary and what should be going overboard. You could almost argue that if Security measures where at a minimal then these clowns proved nothing. However, then you would have the greedy cheaters who would hop the fence to get out of admission costs. Maybe we should return to tickets per ride, then admission into the park would be free to all. The main problem with this is overccrowding of the parks with people not wanting to ride.

If someone has bad intentions, then they could buy a ticket and get in just as easily as they could go through the back entrance and shoot the few guards in the way. For this guy to say he has done us a favor is purely a desperate attempt to ease his own conscience.

OK, that's my rebuttal. :lol:

 

[MouseMadness]

Originally posted by ISTCrew20
Rob...From what they told me, they thought they would play a joke on this lady who was walking thru a deserted part of the park. She was like, 70 years old. They ran up behind her, and grabbed her purse, and ran around the corner. She started screaming, and they meant to just play a joke on her, and ran back to give her her purse back. She was still screaming for security, and by the time they got there, they walked out the park, and a word was never said to them about it.

Ah, so they pick easy prey. 70?? Niiiiiiiice... perhaps the next one will have a heart attack! What a kick that would be! They best watch themselves, if any of the very LARGE male members of my family had seen that happen, they would've most likely ended up flat on their backs. :lol: (or perhaps it would've been ME! )

And the guy who wrote the article is an idiot, and I look forward to him getting caught. :wave:

(Sorry, foul mood... it so happens I was caught breaking the law this morning! Tried to slip through a yellow light at the last minute and missed. Ah, well...)

 

[WDWFREAK53]

The guy who wrote the article complains about the prices of theme parks...

Now I ask...how does using the facilities without paying help? If they paid...they'd be helping the theme park industry...thus...keeping the price down.

(kinda like pirating music)

 

[FanofDinsey1981]

Originally posted by WDWFREAK53
The guy who wrote the article complains about the prices of theme parks...

Now I ask...how does using the facilities without paying help? If they paid...they'd be helping the theme park industry...thus...keeping the price down.

(kinda like pirating music)

this is true with any buisness out there. if everyone paid, then the prices would remain low. Ever wonder why when you go to a concert the tshirt prices are so high? don't think that the artist is getting all the money. a lot of it goes to covering theft, kinda like insurance money. At each stop, there are different workers working the booths, and some of them might not be so reliable. they could sneek a bundle (of 12) shirts into their backpack, maybe some cd's, etc. and the customers will 'return' tshirts for the 'right' size, and end up giving us a bootleg shirt. (another reason why the prices are high.) There are so many more issues to disucss, but i have already written enough to get my point across. IT really sucks when I buy something that has gone up so high in price, only becuse others don't want to pay for it.

If you can't afford it, don't steal it. because in 4 or 5 years, you still wont be able to afford it. And the cycle continues.

and what kills me is how people think that Disney ticket prices are so high! 50 bucks a day is not anywhere above anyone else. Even great america is 40 bucks a day! and not are you only paying for admission, but you are also paying for the clean walkways, the friendly workers, and the exceptional rides. People have no problem spending 50 bucks on a pair of jeans, but for that they could pay for a ticket into a park.


*stepping down from soap box*

serenity now.

 

[WDWspider]

Originally posted by FanofDinsey1981

and what kills me is how people think that Disney ticket prices are so high! 50 bucks a day is not anywhere above anyone else. Even great america is 40 bucks a day! and not are you only paying for admission, but you are also paying for the clean walkways, the friendly workers, and the exceptional rides. People have no problem spending 50 bucks on a pair of jeans, but for that they could pay for a ticket into a park.

I totally agree on the price of Disney being right. But $50 for a pair of Jeans!!! I'll just visit Disney with my Wranglers and JCPenny shirt on thank you very much. :lol:

However, do keep in mind that there is a big difference for a family of four to pay $40 for one park or $50 for four parks.

Now on a one person per one park count it is awesome for all that you gain at Disney.

 

[FanofDinsey1981]

Originally posted by WDWspider
I totally agree on the price of Disney being right. But $50 for a pair of Jeans!!! I'll just visit Disney with my Wranglers and JCPenny shirt on thank you very much. :lol:

However, do keep in mind that there is a big difference for a family of four to pay $40 for one park or $50 for four parks.

Now on a one person per one park count it is awesome for all that you gain at Disney.

agreed. $50 bucks for a pair of jeans is crazy (mine are under 20 bucks at Old Navy). but I agree, you do get so many more benefits with your disney pass then you do with just one pass to one park.

and disney is the best.

 

[GaryT977]

Disgusting. Both of these stories are just gross. I can't fathom breaking into a theme park or stealing some poor old ladys' purse. Patting themselves on the back for pointing out bad security (which results in a larger security force and higher ticket prices for the rest of us) or telling themselves that harrasing an old lady is just a joke is sick and unforgivable. All these idiots should be in jail.

 

[Lovecraft]

Originally posted by FanofDinsey1981
this is true with any buisness out there. if everyone paid, then the prices would remain low.

This isn't exactly true, although it is often used as a reason for raising prices by companies that raise them.

The truth of the matter is that in a free market system the price you pay for most items (those that aren't price regulated by a government or other authority) is what the market will bear.

Without the stealing, the prices would most likely remain exactly as they are, because that is what people are willing to pay-- less stealing just means more profit for the business owners.

I do not condone stealing of any kind, but I also do not believe a company when it says "our prices are higher due to shrinkage (or theft)" when I know their prices are what they are because they have determined that is what people will pay.

Do prices go down when a company implements an anti-theft system that winds up aving them millions? No, they stay the same, the operating costs go down and their profit margin goes up.

Did music prices fall when Napster was closed down? Nope, in fact they went UP.

Did banks reduce their rates etc. when ATM's were adopted, even though just using ATM saves BILLIONS of dollars? No, in fact they even CHARGE us extra for a service that saves them that money thus generating NEW income in addition to lower operating costs.

Now, theft CAN drive a business to have to raise its prices so high that it becomes unmarketable, thus closing down the business -- but lack of theft keeping prices low is a big myth.

 

[FanofDinsey1981]

I guess I shoudl have said in some cases, since I know in the case I stated that it is definatly true to why the prices are high. I don't think that all prices are high only because of theft, but I think that it does have something to do with it.

I don't get people who buy for full retail price anyway. I love shopping the clearance sections!

 

[Lovecraft]

Heck yeah! Clearance rules!

It's kind of disturbing how young people seem to think something is _wrong_ with it if it hasn't been paid full retail for.

I never understood that.

 

[FanofDinsey1981]

Originally posted by Lovecraft
Heck yeah! Clearance rules!

It's kind of disturbing how young people seem to think something is _wrong_ with it if it hasn't been paid full retail for.

I never understood that.

I once had a friend who vowed never to buy anything on sale, because it then became a fashion no-no. She would never spend less then 40$ on a pair of jeans, or 100$ on shoes.

Lets just say she now works 3 part time jobs (and attempts to go to college) just to pay off her credit cards.

I on the other hand, will not spend more than 20$ on a pair of shoes, and 20$ on a pair of jeans. even my wedding dress was only $500. and I got the shoes and accessories for VERY cheap.

People, there is no shame in shopping at Target or KMart for your clothes. Some of the new and upcoming designers now have clothing lines through each of those stores, and they are very reasonably priced!

 

[xfkirsten]

Originally posted by FanofDinsey1981
*stepping down from soap box*

serenity now.

Haha! Nice reference there.

-Kirsten

 

[Lovecraft]

I always look at it like this, the more I save on clothing, food, etc. the more I have to use to either make more money with, have fun, or finance crazy experiments.

An extra trip to Disney World, or an upgrade into a deluxe resort is worth far more to me than what people would think if all my jeans were over $100.

 

[FanofDinsey1981]

Originally posted by Lovecraft
I always look at it like this, the more I save on clothing, food, etc. the more I have to use to either make more money with, have fun, or finance crazy experiments.

An extra trip to Disney World, or an upgrade into a deluxe resort is worth far more to me than what people would think if all my jeans were over $100.

I like how you think. cause that is how I think. My mom and dad wonder why my husband and I can afford mini weekend vacations up to chicago or to florida, it is because we save our money for travel.

lovecraft, I like your style.

 

[Lovecraft]

Thanks, FanofDisney! I like your style too...

But I can't take credit for my financial style, it's really my wife who made me this way. She does things the "Dave Ramsey" way and one day she came up to me, showed me my finances then showed me how much extra money I would have if we just worked out a plan that eliminated all consumer depbt and involved a bit of frugalness in certain things. The quality of my life is so much better for it, and I get to do Disney trips MUCH more often because of it