Its been good Disney World

[Matt_Black]

I'm here for the same reason you're here, mutual interest. Being a complete and total fanboy or a pro-Disney zealot isn't a requirement to use this site.

Apparently not being pompous or dismissive are requirements either.

 

[The90skid]

But that's actually no longer true with most companies, in the past earnings were distributed to shareholders via dividend payments (yes some companies still pay dividends). But now it's all about manipulating the share price and the management gets most of the actual cash money.

In the past share price was not as important as making a sustainable profit run rate so the shareholders could be paid. Now it's in bizzaro world where share price is everything and holdings can drop to zero in the blink of an eye. Even if the company is profitable.

The other thing about running the market the old way is malfeasance and fraud was quickly caught because companies had to pay their shareholders every quarter. No phony profits from accounting trickery because the shareholders would say where is our cut.

Not that fraud did not happen before, but it was nowhere near as rampant and destructive at a macro level as it is today.

I mostly agree with that assessment. Yes, dividends are hard evidence for measuring success, but at the end of the day, if my company's stock rises in value, I'm still happy! Also, while earnings management is definitely common practice for corporations, we must remember that at the end of the day, no corporation actually "sets" the price of their stock. Investors are amazingly fickle, and they can buy or sell stock for the most absurd reasons, driving price up and down. Finally, "accounting trickery" is as old as the profession and you are right, fraud has been happening since about day one. I think we just see so much more of it now because of crazy advances in communication over these past few decades.

I think I have driven waaaayy off the OP topic here, so in attempt to come back... 1.) I'm sorry that the OP has had a bad time. 2.) It's funny how this all started from a phony post. and 3.) To all the rest of you: if you hate Disney, don't go. If you still enjoy it, by all means, save up and go! Seems pretty simple.

 

[EnergyKing]

did my comment about Mr. Toad get deleted?

 

[Matt_Black]

. Investors are amazingly fickle, and they can buy or sell stock for the most absurd reasons, driving price up and down.

Clarification- speculators are amazingly fickle. Investors, as a general rule, are usually in for the long term.

 

[thomas998]

Sad reality is that a few people boycotting Disney's theme parks will do absolutely nothing. If people wanted to try and force Disney to change they would need to first get organized and get more than just a few hundred people on board, you would realistically need a few thousand and they would need to be willing to do more than simply boycott Disney's parks. First they would need to picket in front of a Disney park to get some publicity. Have a charismatic leader to speak to the reporters that the picketing would attract... and then use that brief platform to target one or two of ABC's largest advertiser and push the boycott on those products that advertise on ABC... Because Disney parks are too popular with foreign visitors for boycotts in America to do any good... But Disney owns ABC and that is the easiest target to go after if you want to hurt Disney... and hurting them financially is the only way to get change.

 

[Maelstrom Troll]

Picketing"

Sad reality is that a few people boycotting Disney's theme parks will do absolutely nothing. If people wanted to try and force Disney to change they would need to first get organized and get more than just a few hundred people on board, you would realistically need a few thousand and they would need to be willing to do more than simply boycott Disney's parks. First they would need to picket in front of a Disney park to get some publicity. Have a charismatic leader to speak to the reporters that the picketing would attract... and then use that brief platform to target one or two of ABC's largest advertiser and push the boycott on those products that advertise on ABC... Because Disney parks are too popular with foreign visitors for boycotts in America to do any good... But Disney owns ABC and that is the easiest target to go after if you want to hurt Disney... and hurting them financially is the only way to get change.

Good luck. Even if you could get 1,000 of your best friends to picket anywhere on Disney's property, I can guarantee you will be disbursed. A quick look at the Florida ACLU's page reads:

"You do not have the right to block a building entrance or physically harass people. The general rule is that free speech activity cannot take place on private property, including outdoor malls, without the consent of the property owner. You do not have the right to remain on private property after being told to leave by the property owner."

ABC earns Disney billions, not millions. A grass roots boycott of an ABC sponsor would be like boycotting Walmart.

 

[thomas998]

Picketing"


Good luck. Even if you could get 1,000 of your best friends to picket anywhere on Disney's property, I can guarantee you will be disbursed. A quick look at the Florida ACLU's page reads:

"You do not have the right to block a building entrance or physically harass people. The general rule is that free speech activity cannot take place on private property, including outdoor malls, without the consent of the property owner. You do not have the right to remain on private property after being told to leave by the property owner."

ABC earns Disney billions, not millions. A grass roots boycott of an ABC sponsor would be like boycotting Walmart.

I'm quite aware you can't do anything on their property. But at some of their parks like DL there is quite a bit of public sidewalk right around their entrances and it would be enough to get the media coverage to provide a pulpit from which to speak. At the moment I doubt most people have even heard of what Disney is doing.