Why do people attack characters?

[Just A Big Kid]

Ok, here's my dumb question of the day... If i saw someone abusing a character or a CM in general, and i took matters in my own hands of dealing with them in a rather nasty manner giving the fact they probably just really upset my kids, would i be asked to leave the park for defending a CM or a charater?

 

[RogueHabit]

Character attackers are simply morons, that's it. Bullying morons.

If either of my kids (2 & 7) attacked a character then they'd soon feel the sharp sting of a slap on the leg.

And any parent who just stands there and laughs, or as I see above, films the incident, is just a bad parent. (I would LOVE to see someone try and justofy why they thing their little timmy is allowed to do such a thing!)

 

[SnowWhite5669]

A little thread drift but what about a character attacking a guest? I was at Planet Watch in Animal Kingdom last Tuesday and Stanley grabbed me and "kissed" me on the lips and then made fun of my husband!! It was cute! The cast member walking with him said "Stanley you are only 6 years old!!" Also the 3 year old that was with us loves Pluto and when Pluto gave him a hug, he said boy you have Dog Breath!! It was so funny.:kiss:

 

[Erika]

Originally posted by SnowWhite5669
A little thread drift but what about a character attacking a guest? I was at Planet Watch in Animal Kingdom last Tuesday and Stanley grabbed me and "kissed" me on the lips and then made fun of my husband!! It was cute! The cast member walking with him said "Stanley you are only 6 years old!!" Also the 3 year old that was with us loves Pluto and when Pluto gave him a hug, he said boy you have Dog Breath!! It was so funny.:kiss:

I love when the characters "play" with you! Small things like that can really make your day.

 

[RickEff]

Originally posted by Erika
I love when the characters "play" with you!

<--- can be a character at times!

 

[tigsmom]

Cannot understand, for the life of me, why anyone would attack a character. I have never seen this happen, but I would probably say something if I did( maybe get abused myself). What about the CMs who are with them...can't they call security or something?
They should be arrested for battery (parents of minors) and forced to leave WDW.If my kids did this it would be their last trip to WDW and it would be a little uncomfortable for them to sit for an hour or so. Also a face to face with the person inside to apologize.

As far as the offenders being mostly male teens well, I think they have to prove themselves to their friends...thats just they way our society is. (I know not all guys are like this so no flames, please)

 

[meanmice]

I think that the characters should be armed with tazers. ok, maybe that was just a joke, but abuse of characters leads to fewer in the parks and is not good for disney because if one oc the cm's is hurt badely they can sue disney because it was on company time, or at least you could up here in ct.I would think that for this reason they would enfource a no beating the tigger rule. I've never seen anyone hurt a character before or any cm for that matter. It's sad that someone would do this.

 

[conntom]

About 3 years ago I was in the Magic Kingdom and I saw
a little boy walk up to Winnie the Pooh and kick he right
in the can. The parets didn't do a thing. I said don't do that
the Parets turn around and said mind your own business.
I love all the charactors how can a Paret let a child do that.
To me it's not just a character but a person making a liveing
and trying to bring a little joy in people lifes.








:xmas:

 

[MouseMadness]

I think my children could be considered guilty of harrassing characters.... I have it on tape. It's the world's longest hug. They wouldn't let pooh bear go! :lol: We love to watch that. They are hugging, and hugging, the tape cuts out, and comes back, and they are still hugging, and hugging...

If I ever saw a character getting mistreated in any way, I think I'd have to step out of my shell and say something. I'm normally pretty quiet, and keep to myself... but the characters have given way too much happiness to my kids (and myself) for me to stand by and let that happen.

 

[GenerationX]

As for why toddlers attack characters, my guess is that they are just curious. They think they're the center of the universe and have limited ability to tell right from wrong. The key here from a parenting perspective is to train them in what appropriate behavior is. If this is done correctly (in other words, actually disciplining the child for the bad behavior), the child will learn to respect other living creatures.

As for why teens attack characters, see the paragraph above and replace "disciplining" with "encouraging". Then, add 10 years, and you've got someone with an improperly developed conscience and with the ability to do some real damage.

 

[careship]

My family hasn't witnessed it thank goodness. I know my younger son would have a fit if he saw that. He loves the characters and even at 10 years old, he likes to think that they are still real. I think because he's gone since he was so little.

 

[DixieBelle97]

I have no clue why people would abuse the characters. It sounds pretty mean to do something like that to a normal person walking around in 100 degree weather in a heavy suit. :dazzle:

When I was 10, Roger Rabbit stole my hat and I threw a small tantrum. I was stomping my foot and he was doing the same...mocking me. Good thing he gave back the hat and I'm glad I wasn't old enough to hurt anyone or I would have attacked the guy. J/K:hammer:

 

[CommunicoreBabe]

I confess, I'm guilty

I confess, I may have abused Tigger and Goofy last October. I am only 5'4" but I'm not a thin 27 year old woman and I love Tigger and Goofy. When I saw Tigger at MGM I may have hugged him to hard - the same for Goofy at Epcot. I missed alot of my childhood and I act like a kid when I can catch one, i.e. big hug and picture etc. But I always tell the character I love them and Thank You for the picture. Should grown ups not hug the characters? It never occurred to me that I might be abusing a small woman or teenage girl in a suit. I have never kicked or hit a character, but I may have hugged to much for the little person inside the outfit. I don't know why someone would hit one, other than bad manners and stupidity?

 

[DixieBelle97]

Re: I confess, I'm guilty

Originally posted by CommunicoreBabe
I confess, I may have abused Tigger and Goofy last October. I am only 5'4" but I'm not a thin 27 year old woman and I love Tigger and Goofy. When I saw Tigger at MGM I may have hugged him to hard - the same for Goofy at Epcot. I missed alot of my childhood and I act like a kid when I can catch one, i.e. big hug and picture etc. But I always tell the character I love them and Thank You for the picture. Should grown ups not hug the characters? It never occurred to me that I might be abusing a small woman or teenage girl in a suit. I have never kicked or hit a character, but I may have hugged to much for the little person inside the outfit. I don't know why someone would hit one, other than bad manners and stupidity?

Don't feel bad about hugging a character too tight. When a person goes to WDW, it's like they're a kid again. Adults should have fun at the parks and they should act like a child. It's a fun place for everyone.

 

[wdwjmp239]

Policy On Protecting Characters?

Isn't there a cast member that walks with the characters when they're out in the parks? Isn't it there job to make sure that if the characters are attacked by kids that they can say, "Please don't hit <character name>."

And, if you assault a character, doesn't that get you an automatic one way ticket out of the park?

Any policies, rules, regulations in place? After all Disney characters are hard working people, too

As for me.. I'm just hardly working (posting this from my office) LOL

 

[mkt]

Originally posted by DisneyJill
Hey Rob, what happened today in particular that made your day so horrible? Just curious. And I don't know why people hit the characters. I'm a fairly small person, so even the smallest of characters could turn around and whoop me!

nothing happened... but it was a day that had that vibe going for it. A few close calls.... nothing bad. Plus.. this is one of the things we were discussing backstage after a while

 

[mkt]

Re: Policy On Protecting Characters?

Originally posted by ntn_haqqer
Isn't there a cast member that walks with the characters when they're out in the parks? Isn't it there job to make sure that if the characters are attacked by kids that they can say, "Please don't hit <character name>."

they do that... but the guests usually will A- deny it (which we aren't supposed to question. Usually, I'll just say a riiiiiiiight and give them a look), B- not listen and continue... which I repeat it again in front of everyone in hopes of embarrassing them, or C- they don't speak english... which then I scream NO (that word works well with most languages..)

Originally posted by ntn_haqqer
And, if you assault a character, doesn't that get you an automatic one way ticket out of the park?

that's A- if they get caught, which they usually don't, and B- usually, Disney is too scared to tarnish their image to boot the guest. Rather they will put a BOLO (Be on the lookout) on them property wide, which means security will be all over them. Unfortunately Disney security can't do anything other than follow them. Once Orange County is involved, the guests can be held and arrested if the CM decides to press charges which seldom ever happens since by pressing charges you are responsible for any legal action against them..

 

[sharky23]

pop!

I love to hit the characters! especially the mad hatter and his stupid putty nose! Why can't he have a helmet like tweedle dum and tweedle dee? why does he get putty? I'll knock that gob right off his face with a backhand!

I figure it's approx. 50 bucks to get into a park. If you smack 10 characters per visit, that's 5 bucks a pop. along with all the rides and shows, that makes for a serious return on investment!

I'm going in 2 weeks. too bad christopher robbins is never around...might be tempted to body slam that guy!

-B

 

[sharky23]

joke!

BTW, I am, of course absolutely joking around. I didn't even know people hit characters until reading this post. As you can see from my avatar, I tend to be a bit more...ahem...gentle with my character meetings!

 

[mkt]

I hated you..

then you posted your second post.

Now all is well..