Wow, I didn't realize how heated the debates on this are. But now I must chime in with my opinion on it.
If you stay at the resort for a 14 day trip, you get the use of that mug the whole trip. It also doesn't limit you on how often the mug is used, or by whom it is used. This would indicate to me that someone who goes for a 5 day 4 night trip may not get the same value out of it. Also, someone may not have as many people in their party using the mug.
I believe that they must be quite relaxed on these things because I can see a solution to each barrier.
* If they told ya you can't use the alternative mug such as a sealed mug, you could just take the Disney mug right in front of them and use it to fill the other mug. There is no rule against that, and some people may prefer their own mug. I'm sure a lot of that occurs back at the hotel room anyway.
* Filling up a gallon jug could be done the same way, but who wants a flat drink? I could see doing this for someone who is going to spend the afternoon by the pool with kids, it would just be easier. But if they don't have the mugs to get the drink from the fountain, they're just being rude. I wouldn't see an issue with using the mug to fill a gallon jug to bring to the pool.
* You wouldn't believe how cheap Coke really is when you buy it in bulk. Even the coffee and hot chocolate are bought in bulk. It is actually more costly to monitor its usage with "drink police" than to just let it go. On top of that, they'll get their money's worth out of your drink purchases in the parks.
In addition, many people who don't take the time to plan things out will not notice those mugs. I can tell you that a few years ago I went to WDW and stayed on property. My father didn't know about the mugs, and I can't see stuff like that. I wouldn't have known about them if I had not seen things about them on the web. So the people who have the money and don't pay attention will lose out anyway, and that is where they make the most money.
Bottom line, I don't feel very bad for them when stuff like the above happens (except the 20 ounce bottles, gross). They're just thrilled to sell ya something that you may not otherwise buy, and they are counting on people using much less than those of us here may use.
A short story. When I was at NIU, they used to have a free drink night in the cafeteria the Sunday before finals. I needed as much Mountain Dew as possible to get through the all night study sessions. a friend and I took my Wallmart water container (3 gallon) and filled it up. We then managed to drink most of it by 8 AM, and were totally wired and ready to go. In fact, I couldn't sleep when the night came. Funny thing is, they needed to get rid of the stuff, or else they'd have to store it for the next Fall. it was nice to study in the dorm without constantly taking a break to go get more.
While I write this, I had another thought. At WDW, you can potentially have a really long night. That cafeteria in your resort is only open til midnight. So if you're back from PI and in need of a drink, you could be SOL unless you filled up a few mugs before leaving. So maybe that is why people do what they do. I know if I was planning a late night, I would be tempted to at least sit there and use my purchased mug to fill up a container for the late overnight after party at PI. But at least use a mug you purchased at Disney, that stuff isn't there for free.
