The Spirited Seventh Heaven ...

[flynnibus]

This was odd because who let's their kid ride a roller coaster with a complete stranger.

Uh single rider lines?

 

[seascape]

Okay so the only way to protect our kids is to keep them away from Disney, Universal and Sea World. That was the story. Let's go after Disney was the story behind the story. He can anyone who says he gave the story to CNN be trusted for impartial news when he says he wants to hurt Disney and Iger? You can believe what you want about anyone here but someone who stated he has an agenda against Disney loses credibility.

 

[bhg469]

Uh single rider lines?

This place is more of a carnival atmosphere than a theme park though. It was also a wild mouse type ride similar to primeval whirl. It was a very odd story.

 

[cw1982]

Okay so the only way to protect our kids is to keep them away from Disney, Universal and Sea World. That was the story. Let's go after Disney was the story behind the story. He can anyone who says he gave the story to CNN be trusted for impartial news when he says he wants to hurt Disney and Iger? You can believe what you want about anyone here but someone who stated he has an agenda again Disney loses credibility.

I've read this three times, and I'm not following.

 

[wm49rs]

Okay so the only way to protect our kids is to keep them away from Disney, Universal and Sea World. That was the story. Let's go after Disney was the story behind the story. He can anyone who says he gave the story to CNN be trusted for impartial news when he says he wants to hurt Disney and Iger? You can believe what you want about anyone here but someone who stated he has an agenda again Disney loses credibility.

As does someone incessantly banging the same drum over and over again....

 

[Nemo14]

Okay so the only way to protect our kids is to keep them away from Disney, Universal and Sea World. That was the story. Let's go after Disney was the story behind the story. He can anyone who says he gave the story to CNN be trusted for impartial news when he says he wants to hurt Disney and Iger? You can believe what you want about anyone here but someone who stated he has an agenda again Disney loses credibility.

Again, the intent was not to hurt Disney, but to help.

 

[flynnibus]

Uh-oh...

But to the main point, I agree this is a problem and without a simple solution.
Background checks? That's a no-brainer.
Polygraphs? I suppose, though as others have said they aren't perfect.
Online surveillance? Sure, but it'd be difficult to do.

Here is a bat crazy thought. Get to know your employees. Hire and retain people that are good managers and give them career paths at that level. People managers are positions you fill with people you trust and do more than just organize the schedule. Then you employer those people, and back them up with specialists they can consult with.

Actually know your employees and don't treat them like worker ants and you will have a far better shot at weeding out undesirables.

The other real problem is employment laws intended on protecting the employee. It becomes hard to fire employees who are showing tendencies but haven't actually done anything wrong. And rightfully so... You wouldn't want to lose YOUR job just because some enemy of yours makes some suggestive comments about you.

People have privacy rights - and unfortunately the guilty have those rights as well

 

[bhg469]

Are we there yet? the new thread I mean!! This is the first time ever where I feel like a lock is warranted... Sorry to be that guy

 

[stevehousse]

Are we there yet? the new thread I mean!! This is the first time ever where I feel like a lock is warranted... Sorry to be that guy

No I agree, I don't think it needs to b locked, but it's not something that need to be discussed for days like 74 thinks it is...let's get back on topic and get those Disney rumors flying again! What's next on the agenda...

 

[Skip]

Apparently this guy was going to USF almost every day and on those days he was going to every single showing of Beetlejuice. During HHN he would go to every night and every showing of Bill and Ted. It also seems that he was a bit stalkery with the actors and actresses on the shows. I don't know what precipitated the incident between him and team member, but he was asked to not return for a while and in response he took to Facebook with "To the entertainment show manager xxxxx that ruined the Beetlejuice show for me and my friends tonight. You go to hell. You go to hell and you die!!! We will be back tomorrow. I dare you to stop us again."

And that appears to be what got him trespassed.

The next day he posted "My life is over. Goodbye. I love you guys".

So, yeah, craziness went down over the weekend at USF.

Thanks for the additional details - I hadn't heard that element of it. Puts a lot of it into context.

 

[lebeau]

No I agree, I don't think it needs to b locked, but it's not something that need to be discussed for days like 74 thinks it is...let's get back on topic and get those Disney rumors flying again! What's next on the agenda...

Exactly.

I watched Escape From Tomorrow on Netflix. Bad things happen. Got it.

This thread has been on fumes for ages. This topic isn't breathing new life into it. Time to move on.

 

[stevehousse]

Exactly.

I watched Escape From Tomorrow on Netflix. Bad things happen. Got it.

This thread has been on fumes for ages. This topic isn't breathing new life into it. Time to move on.

I still hvnt found time to watch that...I know it's nothing special but insure any Disney fan can appreciate how it was filmed in the parks...

 

[Lord_Vader]

What is that? A sponge? Can it do the maths?

Depends on who it is installed in, some have rocks while others are sponges... Most are somewhere between the two.

 

[Skip]

I'm going to assume this is the same event I heard about on Sunday, with a "super fan" jumping up and doing the choreography to Beetlejuice in the middle of the show.

Honestly Skip, I think you overstate the role of alcohol and understate the fact that a lot of these "super fans" are just garden-variety stalkers. I've said many times before, every theme park performer gets stalkers. It's a fact of life in the community. You even admit that this phenomenon exists at DL--a park without alcohol. Some of the worst I ever saw were teetotalers at the Adventurers Club--yes, they hung out at a bar all the time and never drank.

As @WDW1974 has alluded to many times (still waiting on that Spirited book), stalker fans have deep-seated mental issues. I think it's far too easy to dismiss it as, "oh, they like to get drunk."

Also, I take issue with your statement that Universal serves "fairly freely." In-park and CityWalk bartenders are far stricter about IDs than either WDW or SW, will not serve more than one drink unless the person drinking it is right there, and routinely cut off people who have had too much. They are true professionals and I resent any implication to the contrary.

I think you do have a point here, and part of my assumption alcohol played a greater role here was due to the ambiguity of the situation and the experiences I have had with these folks at HHN (where they do, for all intents and purposes, get plastered along with everyone else which can be problematic to their already disturbing behavior). Do not think, however, that I'm putting the blame on Universal or its staff for serving alcohol - that includes the bar tenders, etc. - on the contrary, I agree that these people all have some sort of mental illness or at the very least some deeply rooted problems relating to depression, anxiety, or a lack of connection to the real world. In the past I've seen this issue be exacerbated by alcohol - though in this case it doesn't sound like that was part of the situation.

Another note - when I say "fairly free," I'm not referring to its bar tenders bending the rules, I'm referring to the plethora of alcohol stands located throughout the park. While the maximum drinks per ID rule is typically enforced in my experience, the sheer amount of locations in which to purchase alcohol can be problematic.

Sorry for any confusion, and I appreciate your additional info on the case!

 

[bhg469]

I still hvnt found time to watch that...I know it's nothing special but insure any Disney fan can appreciate how it was filmed in the parks...

It is interesting but you'll notice lots and lots of green screen in scenes where they are just sitting around. The movies content is terrible though.. such a stupid story

 

[EpcoTim]

Come on Tim. Surely you have seen the boys with their shorter hair? Much like Bob Jovi and even Metallica, Van Halen went through a short hair phase. On a side note, Tim Hawkins is HILARIOUS!!!

Ok, I do somewhat remember the short hair days, but I didn't use enough hairspray to be a fan at that time either.

 

[TeriofTerror]

But theme parks are not just attention grabbing. A pediphile working as an assembly line worker is not the same as a pedophile working the call center gathering children's personal info... Or the guy cleaning the locker room... Etc

There is merit to highlighting roles at theme parks because they are congregating points for families... And in the case of Disney, an environment know for its perception of bubble of safety from reality.

But here's the problem: Highlighting the theme parks as a potential "danger zone" isn't an actual representation of the facts. According to the Child Molestation Research and Prevention Institute, here are the people that pose the most risk to your child:

Which Children Do Child Molesters Target?


CHILDREN IN THE FAMILY

Biological Child

19%

Stepchild, Adopted or Foster Child

30%

Brothers & Sisters

12%

Nieces & Nephews

18%

Grandchild

5%

CHILDREN IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD

Child Left in My Care

5%

Child of Friend or Neighbor

40%

CHILDREN WHO ARE STRANGERS

Child Strangers

10%


So "strangers" -- be they on the internet, in a theme park, or someone who snatches your child as they cross a parking lot -- comprise only 10% of the people likely to molest your child. The fact is, your child is far more likely to be safe from sexual predators if you take them with you to WDW than if you leave them at home with a "trusted" friend or relative.

 

[GoofGoof]

Being on the outside of these companies all I can really do is take the piece for face value to form an opinion. I found myself wondering what can these companies do about it.

Other than the CM from Port Orleans using his work computer for this stuff, I didn't see any reports of workplace behavior that would have alerted the company there was anything amiss with these people.

I believe this was already pointed out but no one had a criminal record so I background check would have been useless.

This is one of those slippery slope issues because just the accusation of being a predator is enough to ruin someone. If polygraphs are implemented, a false positive could be enough to hurt an innocent person.

So in the end I'm still left wondering what can they do. What additional screening can be implemented reliably? I just don't know.

It's a difficult problem. Disney knows they are a target for these people. They have to do more than another company that doesn't specialize in children's entertainment. I think Lee or maybe someone else already said this, but they need to set a tone of zero tolerance. It has to be part of the training process, the corporate values and even part of the hiring process. These people are cowards preying on children, they will go to places they think are safe for them or at least where they can blend into the background and be invisible. If you have a reputation for zero tolerance and you have a reputation for catching and outing these people they will stay away.

I have no idea if Disney does any of this already. From the responses I've seen it doesn't seem to be the case, but the news piece didn't address whether they felt Disney was lacking or at fault.

I know it isn't an easy thing to change a corporate culture or create a reputation, but if done properly it can be effective. It won't stop all of them. More importantly if you don't set that tone you can create a very bad situation. Look at MLB and the steroid issue. All those guys knew that baseball looked the other way so they did roids. I know it's not as disgusting an act or as serious a crime, but it's a good example of an organization setting a poor tone.

 

[flynnibus]

I agree your post is a sweet sentiment but how are you implementing protecting ALL the children. As a long term school board member I ask, just how do we do our jobs better? We run background checks, we have them printed and run the prints as does Disney. It comes back clean if they happen to be a creeper that has yet to be caught.

Because management can't be done by a computer program and managers need to be involved - not directing from afar.

When people cite how much effort they put into hiring someone... Try asking how much they know from people around them... Or their personal lives.

The issue is with employment laws - they push you to the other extreme. The law wants you to only see a person as their job skills alone and not as an individual you need to decide if you want to associate with.

Our politically correct scrubbing of human interactions makes it harder and harder to see who people are as individuals and outside the box

 

[PhotoDave219]

Are we there yet? the new thread I mean!! This is the first time ever where I feel like a lock is warranted... Sorry to be that guy

Last night was rather nice. A nice, intelligent, mature discussion that didn't go off the rails nor into the realm of hyperbole.

Of course, NOW its a flaming dumpster fire now that the children woke up....