The Spirited Seventh Heaven ...

[lazyboy97o]

It's Cedar Fair. No -e.

 

[wdisney9000]

Take into account the unknown properties of this virus, geometric progression, and governmental inability to get ahead of a situation.

I honestly feel that if the govt is not getting ahead of the situation, its because they choose not to, not because they lack the ability. I would not be surprised if they let it get worse just to sell more fear to keep us looking in the wrong direction. Then again, its the same govt that was able to find Osama hiding in a cave but couldnt find a huge airplane with locator beacons that went missing (mh370)????

 

[lazyboy97o]

I honestly feel that if the govt is not getting ahead of the situation, its because they choose not to, not because they lack the ability. I would not be surprised if they let it get worse just to sell more fear to keep us looking in the wrong direction. Then again, its the same govt that was able to find Osama hiding in a cave but couldnt find a huge airplane with locator beacons that went missing (mh370)????

bin Laden was found after a decade of searching. Ever lose a cell signal or radio station while driving? Locator beacons are not magic.

 

[ford91exploder]

It's Cedar Fair. No -e.

Appreciate the correction will use proper spelling going forward!

 

[wdisney9000]

bin Laden was found after a decade of searching. Ever lose a cell signal or radio station while driving? Locator beacons are not magic.

Im sure we knew were Bin Laden was the whole time, they probly knew/know where the plane is too. They can shape the news either way to get the reaction or the distraction they require. "The aliens are here to save us", or "the aliens are here to eat us", the public would never know the honest truth until it was at their doorstep. I was just talking along the lines of what '74 was saying.

 

[ford91exploder]

I honestly feel that if the govt is not getting ahead of the situation, its because they choose not to, not because they lack the ability. I would not be surprised if they let it get worse just to sell more fear to keep us looking in the wrong direction. Then again, its the same govt that was able to find Osama hiding in a cave but couldnt find a huge airplane with locator beacons that went missing (mh370)????

No it's sheer incompetence, Peoples relatives getting promoted because of political connections, One of the state Emergency Management heads was a counter guy at Radio Shack and a police dispatcher before they were promoted to their current position and this was AFTER 9/11.

A lot of QUALIFIED people quit the agency after that promotion and went to work for the private sector for firms which do the same work for multinationals and other governments. This is why governments screw this kind of thing up. Legislators needing sinecures for their ne-er-do-well relatives they put them in positions which are not important until something like this comes along and it's too late to replace them with someone competent.

If the idiot relative is smart they let the professionals run the show, If not well bad things happen and the qualified leave to be replaced by more idiots.

 

[Mike S]

Im sure we knew were Bin Laden was the whole time, they probly knew/know where the plane is too. They can shape the news either way to get the reaction or the distraction they require. "The aliens are here to save us", or "the aliens are here to eat us", the public would never know the honest truth until it was at their doorstep. I was just talking along the lines of what '74 was saying.

They also know exactly what happened in Roswell in 1947

 

[Bairstow]

I honestly feel that if the govt is not getting ahead of the situation, its because they choose not to, not because they lack the ability. I would not be surprised if they let it get worse just to sell more fear to keep us looking in the wrong direction. Then again, its the same govt that was able to find Osama hiding in a cave but couldnt find a huge airplane with locator beacons that went missing (mh370)????

It's the news media who are fear mongering on Ebola, not the CDC. This fear is being used primarily to levy criticism at the current administration, so if any of the alleged mishandling of the outbreak is intentional it's having the opposite effect as intended.

At any rate, I'm not about to cancel my trip to Universal next week on account of it.

 

[lazyboy97o]

Im sure we knew were Bin Laden was the whole time, they probly knew/know where the plane is too. They can shape the news either way to get the reaction or the distraction they require. "The aliens are here to save us", or "the aliens are here to eat us", the public would never know the honest truth until it was at their doorstep. I was just talking along the lines of what '74 was saying.

So Malaysia and a bunch of other countries, including China, are just playing along to support US image making? Might as well say it was the Masons or the Illuminati.

 

[CDavid]

It's the news media who are fear mongering on Ebola, not the CDC.

Yes, this. Before I'll believe that there is an agenda among the powers that be (let alone a conspiracy), I remember that the (ratings obsessed) national news media tends to hype stories and stoke public interest. Now, that certainly doesn't mean government agencies - or, indeed, private sector business interests - may not take full advantage of the public distraction. Much like "burying" a news story at the start of the weekend, with media attention focused elsewhere, it's a really good time to slip something through or announce unpopular news.

Although there certainly are "agendas" (to put it mildly) within our government agencies and elected officials, never believe (most) conspiracy theories when the same actions can be explained by stupidity or incompetence.

 

[AEfx]

Ah, the one who comes in and screams that the guest is the problem. Classic. Never gets old.

And hopefully in this case the sarcasm was noted.

 

[wdisney9000]

So Malaysia and a bunch of other countries, including China, are just playing along to support US image making? Might as well say it was the Masons or the Illuminati.

Im talking about what the news shows us. Not conspiracy crap. Im not saying they didnt search for the plane. Im sure they did. The media can make the search effort look lager than it really is or smaller if they want. What did we really see? Press conferences and footage of planes and ships. Govts arent above wasting money and resources like that. They fake the news all the time. Why? I dont know. but they do.

ETA: i dont watch that show on youtube, just used the vid for the link.

 

[Goofyernmost]

Withholding dollars will certainly get their attention more than anything else. However, I believe that contacting WDW via whatever communication method you choose, can still have a positive impact. It's not so much the individual letter, email, etc., but there's strength in numbers. The more people that voice their concerns (or compliments), the more that trends begin to appear. Trends are what (most) companies analyze.

Can't say that I believe WDW has given enough attention to certain trends over the years; yet, it won't stop me (and hopefully others) from expressing concerns to them. Makes no sense to me that they'd just completely ignore absolutely everything, that guests bring to their attention.

I agree with what you are saying but as long as those complaining can only hold out the threat that.. "if you ignore my complaint, I'm going to, by god, complain again", is not going to really make a dent in their opinion.

 

[wdisney9000]

No it's sheer incompetence, Peoples relatives getting promoted because of political connections, One of the state Emergency Management heads was a counter guy at Radio Shack and a police dispatcher before they were promoted to their current position and this was AFTER 9/11.

A lot of QUALIFIED people quit the agency after that promotion and went to work for the private sector for firms which do the same work for multinationals and other governments. This is why governments screw this kind of thing up. Legislators needing sinecures for their ne-er-do-well relatives they put them in positions which are not important until something like this comes along and it's too late to replace them with someone competent.

If the idiot relative is smart they let the professionals run the show, If not well bad things happen and the qualified leave to be replaced by more idiots.

I agree. Incompetence is a huge factor as well and not enough oversight in certain areas. But I also believe that we get 80% truth mixed with 20% misdirection. Whether its to cover up the incompetence or just to hide an agenda, who knows?

 

[michmousefan]

You know I like you, but are you seriously advocating TWDC lease WDW to Six Flags or Cedar Faire, whose parks are known for being filthy, overly loud, cash grabs? I live not that far from Great America in IL - the place is disgusting. It's exactly what Disneyland was made to avoid, very little for people who like roller coasters to do, poorly run/managed, and constant media attention for accidents.

Please do not lump Six Flags and CedarFair together. CedarFair is managed and operated at a much higher level of competency across the board. The signs around Great America that used to say it's "the cleanest theme park in the world" or something like that are good for a chuckle.

 

[stevehousse]

Maybe it's just my Six Flags but I don't even put them in the same league. Yes, Six Flags adds new rides, but they aren't technical advancements or themed in anyway.

Te only themed ride to come to great America in IL several years ago was te dark knight coaster which is basically a joke! Lol I honestly haven't been to GA for about 7 years!

 

[ford91exploder]

I agree. Incompetence is a huge factor as well and not enough oversight in certain areas. But I also believe that we get 80% truth mixed with 20% misdirection. Whether its to cover up the incompetence or just to hide an agenda, who knows?

99.999% of the time it's to cover for gross incompetence. I've worked for the government twice in a senior position and I've run away screaming both times.

 

[ParentsOf4]

I guess my point is, he can't please everyone. I for one think he plans to go out with a bang, Shanghai opening, announcements for DHS/completion of Avatar. Was MM+ a costly endeavor? Sure. But can we truly call it an error yet? We're just mad we aren't getting new rides. As the technology proves itself and perhaps streamlines the process within the park, we may just realize it's not that bad.

It's a CEO's job to make sure all aspects of the business are firing on all cylinders all the time. That's why Iger and CEO's like him collect 8-figure incomes.

They sure as heck better take care of a huge business segment like Parks & Resorts (P&R), which generates 31% of company revenue.

Unless you are suggesting that a CEO is "too busy" to take care of one-third of his business.

Iger's failure to properly invest in P&R in general and WDW in particular has resulted in 7 or the company's 10 worst years of P&R gross margin.

Iger has been CEO for only 9 years.

Yep, in only 9 years, Iger's failure to understand the theme park business has resulted in 7 of P&R's 10 worst years.

Since Iger took over as CEO, Disney has spent about $38 billion on stock repurchases.

Maybe, just maybe, if he spent $36 billion on stock repurchases and used the remaining $2 billion to actually do something with WDW (which generates over half of P&R's revenue), P&R's gross margins wouldn't be at historic lows.

But nope, let's switch over to generic napkins. Let's let Disco Yeti stand idle for years. Let's stop serving free nuts at the bars at the $500/night Deluxe Resorts. Let's have customers report about the poor conditions of those $500/night rooms. Let's not replace burned out bulbs at WDW's flagship hotel. Let's delay a new land at DAK for 6 years even as our competition up the road builds one in less than half the time. As every good CEO knows, these are all great strategies to improve margins at a resort that generates $8 billion in revenue annually.

Let's keep nickel-and-diming our 'guests' as we relentlessly raise prices on them.

But, no matter what we do, lets not invest in order to actually improve our product.

Iger has been CEO for 9 years. It shouldn't take a CEO 9 years to figure out how to run one-third of his business.

When it comes to P&R, please, please, please stop making excuses for Iger.

 

[alphac2005]

Spirited Societal Musing:

When the government wants people to be afraid of ebola (something that hasn't made one US resident ill here while thousands die of the flu every year), what you must wonder is what are they trying to keep our attention off?

Syria? Iraq? Isis? Wall Street? Some regulations or policies being slipped through?

Because, make no mistake, ebola as a legit news story in the USA is a non-starter. And they want it (and have it) leading newscasts nightly.

So ... again, what are they hiding?

Gotta add two cents... and trying to avoid going off-topic. To be honest, the government would most likely like nothing more than to not talk about Ebola, but the "media" here has gone into full bat**** crazy mode with this story. They've been forced into having to give briefings because of the pure hysterical nature of these news/talk/garbage channels and the fear that they instill in the masses. Just like always, who cares about the rest of the world, but if even one incident of something reaches our shores, it's pure chaos. We've become a nation of reactionary blowhards scared by the boogeyman. Great tip, don't watch domestic news; You'll see the real stories of the world and the measured coverage that the Ebola case merits from here.

 

[alphac2005]

It's a CEO's job to make sure all aspects of the business are firing on all cylinders all the time. That's why Iger and other CEO's like him collect 8-figure incomes.

They sure as heck better take care of a huge business segment like Parks & Resorts (P&R), which generates 31% of company revenue.

Unless you are suggesting that a CEO is "too busy" to take care of one-third of his business.

Iger's failure to properly invest in P&R in general and WDW in particular has resulted in 7 or the company's 10 worst years of P&R gross margin.

Iger has been CEO for only 9 years.

Yep, in only 9 years, Iger's failure to understand the theme park business has resulted in 7 of P&R's 10 worst years.

Since Iger took over as CEO, Disney has spent about $38 billion on stock repurchases.

Maybe, just maybe, if he spent $36 billion on stock repurchases and used the remaining $2 billion to actually do something with WDW (which generates over half of P&R's revenue), P&R's gross margins wouldn't be at historic lows.

But nope, let's switch over to generic napkins. Let's let Disco Yeti stand idle for 8 years. Let's stop serving free nuts at the bars at the $500/night Deluxe Resorts. Let's have customers report about the poor conditions of those $500/night rooms. Let's not replace burned out bulbs at WDW's flagship hotel. Let's delay a new land at DAK even as our competitor up the road builds one in half the time. As every good CEO knows, these are all great strategies to improve margins.

Iger has been CEO for 9 years. It shouldn't take a CEO 9 years to figure out how to run one-third of his business.

When it comes to P&R, please, please, please, stop making excuses for Iger.

Shouldn't a good CEO know that in this environment, if the company isn't paying for construction with current holdings, now is the time to spend big on capital improvements with monetary policies making loans extraordinarily cheap? Oh yes, we know the answer. Yes.