WDW Taking a Hit Over Gator and Massacre ...

[prfctlyximprct]

I blame social media. If this was 1986 no one would know, and no one would care.

I sound bitter. I am.

 

[jrogue]

I think you are discounting the psychological baggage that comes with parents and alligators right now. Disney's response had to be strong, and of course they are going to err on the side of being too strong. Parents with young kids don't want to see a gator chomping in an electrical parade on Seven Seas Lagoon right now. I respect Mr. Bricker a great deal, but I don't believe he is a parent. He can't put himself in their shoes. Are you a parent? Based on the flip comment quoted above, I just respectfully think you aren't understanding how close to home this even was for parents who take their young kids to Disney. I hope the playful gator references return, but in time. It's just too soon right now and I'm glad Disney is reacting in the way they are.

Perhaps it just depends on the parents? I know my parents were horrified to hear of what happened. They recounted all of our times staying at the Poly and actually playing and swimming in the water. We were all shocked and appalled at what happened, but I think all of our first thoughts went to having deep sympathy for the parents and the family realizing it could have been any of us vs what Disney was taking out because of it.

 

[truecoat]

I think all their reactions have been idiotic, honestly. The only thing I can and did get on board with was removing the joke on the JC, everything else is truly laughable. If people are sent into emotional distress over a parade float, they have some serious mental issues. I rode GMR a few days after Pulse and didn't feel distressed over the gun fire. Where do we draw the line between acknowledging a situation such as this by temporarily removing references and going full blown hypersensitive and trying to erase things entirely? Its just dumb, in my opinion and solves no issues.

Reminds me of seeing Penn and Teller in Vegas, 8 days after Sandy Hook. They ended the show with their famous dual bullet catch. After the show, they greet all fans in the lobby and one older woman wouldn't let it go about the guns. She was arguing with Penn for a good 5 minutes and he finally said, I heard you, gtfo. Probably a little nicer than that but you get the idea.

Needless to say, I got a picture with a ed off Penn.

 

[wdwfan22]

I think the media is making this a bigger case then it truly is. I doubt very much that there has been a surge in cancellations over the Gator attack. You can walk around the Grand Floridian right now and it looks just as busy as it normally does with people coming and going from the different building and pool area. I will say attendance has been down this spring/summer but that is due to a decrease in foreign travel and the continuing price increases.

 

[TheOrangeBird01]

I think all their reactions have been idiotic, honestly. The only thing I can and did get on board with was removing the joke on the JC, everything else is truly laughable. If people are sent into emotional distress over a parade float, they have some serious mental issues. I rode GMR a few days after Pulse and didn't feel distressed over the gun fire. Where do we draw the line between acknowledging a situation such as this by temporarily removing references and going full blown hypersensitive and trying to erase things entirely? Its just dumb, in my opinion and solves no issues.

Preach.

 

[mickey v-neck]

Perhaps it just depends on the parents? I know my parents were horrified to hear of what happened. They recounted all of our times staying at the Poly and actually playing and swimming in the water. We were all shocked and appalled at what happened, but I think all of our first thoughts went to having deep sympathy for the parents and the family realizing it could have been any of us vs what Disney was taking out because of it.

For sure.

 

[mickey v-neck]

I think all their reactions have been idiotic, honestly. The only thing I can and did get on board with was removing the joke on the JC, everything else is truly laughable. If people are sent into emotional distress over a parade float, they have some serious mental issues. I rode GMR a few days after Pulse and didn't feel distressed over the gun fire. Where do we draw the line between acknowledging a situation such as this by temporarily removing references and going full blown hypersensitive and trying to erase things entirely? Its just dumb, in my opinion and solves no issues.

How do you really feel? Glad no one with your lack of empathy is in charge of anything.

 

[Wdw62114]

As long as the sensitive softies are happy, thats all that matters right? Lets all continue living a harmless life full of sunshine and rainbows.

 

[SorcererMC]

If anyone wondered how WDW would handle a crisis, you are now seeing it in full view and it isn't pretty at all.

I think that Disney is underestimating the impact of these back-to-back tragedies, and that their PR has a real problem on their hands (that discounts can't compensate for). The Orlando attack is already being repeatedly cited by terrorism experts as 'the worst attack since 9-11', which it is. But this otherwise 'small-scale' attack is going to have an oversize impact as a hallmark b/c it was targeted toward LGBT community, and indicates an emerging shift in terrorism trends. I have been looking into the economic impact of comparable terrorist incidents (aka secondary effect) in tourist locations, eg Paris 11-13-15 and Bali nightclub ~10-12-02. Starbucks, for example, reported a 6% decline in revenue in January in EU/MENA and attributed to the attack. Bali had a decrease in attendance the following year, but then recovered.

A combination of factors at play, to be sure, but I expect an overall decrease for Florida tourism (and this is why officials immediately keep reiterating public safety). For DisneyCo, I don't think that 'moving forward' is the best strategy - aka 'nothing to see here'. I think that Iger is on the receiving end of some very bad advice (even his Teflon coating can wear thin) and I think that he should re-evaluate his team.

I also wonder if Zika is playing a role. No one thing is causing second thoughts, but the culmination of events, well there are other places to travel without having to think about tragic events.

I didn't want to bring up Zika....but this is another reason that Florida is in the news lately, and it's not a good one. People can easily choose other tourist locations where they don't feel that they are putting themselves 'at risk'. Tourists need specific information about their safety.

And with Disney's increase in prices...even more so that people will investigate their options. I don't doubt that there are cancellations.

It's a zero sum game and I think that Disney isn't playing it well.

 

[Disney Analyst]

*Off topic post ahead*
This has also reminded me of the way Lady Gaga censored her performance of "Government Hooker" during her Born This Way Ball back in 2013. Without going wayyy off topic, the song ended with her "shooting" a prison guard so she could escape the castle. She toured all over the world with that bit until she got to America, where she subsequently replaced the fake fun with a metal bar. How anti-climatic??

Spoiler: Gaga GH performance

How awesome is this scene? Too bad she ruined it

Well she replaced all the guns in the show after Sandy Hook... so yeah... seemed fair for someone as politically active as her.

 

[brb1006]

Reminds me of seeing Penn and Teller in Vegas, 8 days after Sandy Hook. They ended the show with their famous dual bullet catch. After the show, they greet all fans in the lobby and one older woman wouldn't let it go about the guns. She was arguing with Penn for a good 5 minutes and he finally said, I heard you, gtfo. Probably a little nicer than that but you get the idea.

Needless to say, I got a picture with a ****ed off Penn.

I need to see that image.

 

[Phicinfan]

As long as the sensitive softies are happy, thats all that matters right? Lets all continue living a harmless life full of sunshine and rainbows.

seriously? Disney is effected by public opinion and public views......not to mention having a life ended on their property. Now,before anyone posts I am NOT blaming Disney for a horrible accident. That being said, to do some little things to help in the PR area, like removal of clear in your face things like the jokes on JC and the float in the area of the accident....are some minor moves.

 

[AEfx]

Um ... did you read the rest of my post? I said it's a tragic thing that happened, and I really do feel sorry for the family, but it was one gator attack in 44 years and Disney can't keep this event over their heads forever. They need to regroup, learn from their mistakes and move on. Removing all gator aspects permanently from the park is over reacting. Taking them away for the rest of the month is fine, but Disney needs to understand when too far is too far.

No one said anything about permanently, but when reading some of these replies I think a lot of folks should take your final statement to heart themselves.

I mean, people are really sitting here complaining about this, like some throw-away joke on the Jungle Cruise (of which there are 100's of possible replacements) or the removal of a float depicting an attacking alligator in the same spot a child was killed by one, are some essential cornerstones of WDW.

Just a slow news day, I guess - and since the Frozen ride came out so well, people need something to get all uppity about.

 

[gmajew]

Odd. We rode last night and both jokes were missing.

As a matter of fact, during the Ginger Snaps joke, the skipper directed all attention from the boat to the vegetation on the left.

. Guess it is skipper based.

 

[AEfx]

I think all their reactions have been idiotic, honestly. The only thing I can and did get on board with was removing the joke on the JC, everything else is truly laughable. If people are sent into emotional distress over a parade float, they have some serious mental issues.

See, that's where the disconnect is and why I just can't believe folks are typing what they are.

You don't see a giant lit-up-literally-like-a-Christmas-tree chomping alligator is in poor taste to display RIGHT OVER where a child died of an alligator attack?

Really? Would you say that in front of your mom, or just on the Internet where it "doesn't count"?

It's not about emotional distress - it's about good taste.

 

[Nubs70]

Extremely wild speculation on my part here, but do you think that some of these changes are happening to avoid offending the Graves family, and perhaps once they reach a settlement some of these changed items will revert back to their original status? I just think they may be walking on eggshells until that case is behind them. (I know nothing's been filed, but at the very least a large settlement is bound to happen.)

WDW is trying to erase the fact that bad things can happen in life. Kind of like eliminate Mr. Toad. I think WDW is fearful of creating micro aggressions in those that are reptiliaphobic (apologies if I cite the wrong phylum).

 

[Phicinfan]

WDW is trying to erase the fact that bad things can happen in life. Kind of like eliminate Mr. Toad. I think WDW is fearful of creating micro aggressions in those that are reptiliaphobic (apologies if I cite the wrong phylum).

I don't see it that way, what I see is Disney trying to step away from the horror of what happened, and not have it right in people's faces. You can't make it disappear, as long as the internet exists. But you don't have to flaunt it right in guest's faces either.

 

[Rodan75]

Theater bothers me because I have a functioning brain. I know that no one thing 'caused' Lane's death. A whole lot of things converged in just horrific fashion. That said, I KNOW that Disney has had a problem with Guests feeding gators because I have reported the behavior when I have seen it and I know friends (some cast) who have done likewise. I also KNOW (it's also been reported in various media) that Disney has in fact had Guests feeding them since the Poly DVC bungalows opened last year, which is certainly part of the reason there were so many in the area of such size. And I know that Disney did absolutely nothing to stop this illegal behavior on its property.

So, they haven't been proactive. BTW, the above is a large part of why I believe George Kalogridis should be fired as WDW Prez. Theater is fine for the rubes when you actually are addressing the core issues. WDW did nothing of the sort. It ignored them. And that is partly the reason a child is dead.

I would hope you are right, but you never know. When Disney removes things (almost anything you can think of) there never is a plan to return them, just a nebulous 'this is temporary' thought line. It would be insane to have resorts on beaches and pretend the beaches don't exist and prevent Guests (many who come from colder climates) from sun and fun on those beaches. And those bungalows need not simply signage outside, but signed docs from Guests saying they won't feed them and likely a warning in the units as well.

I totally agree with you on the Theater...but there are a lot of folks who cling to the Theater and need that to feel safe and sane (I've grown to respect that outlook, even if I don't understand it). I would much rather have a proactive safety culture that I never see, than one that over-reacts to keep the twitterers quiet.

We don't know all of the info you know, but from what is out there now, I don't see how George K should fall on his sword for this. However, you likely know more about what he directly knew and how he handled it than the rest of us.

 

[CJR]

wouldn't fly.

Who wouldn't let it fly? The press? Sensitive people? The average guest probably wouldn't think anything of it.

I'm not saying that Disney shouldn't have temporarily pulled the float, but that the reason they pulled it has less to do with people thinking about the incident and more to do with respect for the boy and family.

People are going to think about the incident because of all the changes to the beach area, as well as signage that actually says "Danger, Alligators and Snakes In The Area" on them and that's probably not going to change much from here on out.

Just my opinion, but after a while, they should either re-theme the float (maybe reboot the whole show in the process) or quietly sneak it back in as is. Some people might get upset by the float coming back, but those same people probably get upset about a lot of things, in my opinion.

 

[Stevek]

I don't see why they would remove it at Disneyland as it didn't happen directly on their property. That would be like asking what would happen in the States of pirates somehow got into Shanghai and attacked the tourists, would POTC be closed forever?

I wasn't expecting or suggesting them to remove it but Disney does tend to go to the extreme at times.