Since you conveniently left out the main point of my post, I'll repeat:
Life is about experiences. Little kids may not remember, but that doesn't mean that those experiences aren't meaningful to them or their development. My son was six months old when I took him for his first time (we had free tickets through my wife's work and I thought I'd bring him for just a couple of hours). Ya'know what? He LOVED it!! I had never seen him so happy.
And as far as it being "scary", there was nothing scary about it to him.
I totally agree with your point that no one should base an expensive vacation around a 6 month old, but no one besides yourself has ever mentioned anything like that.
So, Andy are you going to answer the question that others have asked? Do you have children yourself? Because you're making a lot of assumptions about children and parenting that it sounds like you are unqualified to make.
I think this debate doesn't have a concrete right or wrong answer to it. It all depends on what parents feel is best for them and for their children.
My parents started my siblings and I off very young taking trips to Disney. We loved it. Do I remember anything before the age of 4 or 5? Not at all. But my parents still thought it was worth the trips down for the photos, their memories, and to expose us as young children to things that made us smile, laugh, and have fun. Although our comprehension of those experiences at that moment was minimal, those experiences translated into us picking up attraction names, characters, and other things that made us happy at a very early age. By age 3 we knew all the parks, all the characters, and most of the attractions. Maybe I'm assuming too much about the psychology of the mind, but the exposure and experiences we had as very young children at Disney had to have effect on us enjoying Disney as much as we do today, even if we don't remember those early experiences. To our family, the trips with us at very young ages was worth every penny.
Yet other families feel that there is no point to any of that. They want to wait till their children are old enough to consciously be aware of their whole environment during the vacation. But to me personally, there really is no right age for this transition. Most of our trips go by in a whirlwind, and sometimes afterward I look back at the pictures and say "wow we did that?" A month later, I can't even recall all of our trip detail by detail. And I'm too busy planning the next trip anyway to be focused on the other trips.
So really, my point is that the Disney trip provides fun and happiness in the moment. That's why we go to Disney World. It's to enjoy every second that we are down there. We don't worry about if 6 months from now we will remember everything, or if our 1 year old child is going to understand all of what surrounds them. Laughter, smiles, enjoyment, and the realization that you and your family are having a great time together is what truly matters.
And to an extent yes, babies smile at alot of things. Babies smile at funny faces. Babies smile at poop. Babies smile when they poop. So if you compare those things, if you're spending thousands of dollars to travel to Disney just simply to see your baby smile, I would tend to agree that is a waste of money.
However, it's up to the parents' discretion whether it's a waste of money, which is why I feel this debate doesn't have a concrete right or wrong answer to it. If Disney has brought enjoyment to your family for generations, then there is something special about continuing the tradition with your young child. Seeing them have a good time at th eplace you've enjoyed makes you feel really good. I'm not a parent, but I've seen the look in my parents eye when we took my youngest sibiling down for the first time. Just the expression at the moment on my brother's face while riding Dumbo was enough to make the whole trip worth it. I've never seen a more happy baby. And unlike when he poops, my parents and I were smiling along with the baby.
That moment on Dumbo is something that only happens once, and can only happen at that young age, which is why I think it's worth it to go to Disney early.
Edit: I realize this post has nothing to do with Carsland in DHS. So to make my post somewhat on topic, I'll say that I hope Carsland comes. it will truly help in re-inventing a park that really needs a shot in the arm.