I thought it was just Disneyland that kept driving me away . . .

I thought it was just at Disneyland, that (in the years since I abandoned my annual pass) for everything they did that made me consider reinstating my pass, they'd do two or three things to make me want to go a full year without setting foot in the place. (e.g., they did a West Coast version of Runaway Railway, but they also inflicted "Pain in the Night" on guests (Light Magic was hardly the MSEP, but at least I didn't find it overtly offensive!)

But no, Disney seems to be doing it in Florida, too: the new night parade may or may not be another MSEP, and may or may not be another Spectro, but at least it looks like it will be better than "Pain."

But the very same day that I first found out about it, and found out that they're keeping Hall of Presidents closed for now (hopefully until Trump trades the White House for the "Big House"), I also see that they're tearing out Rivers of America (and with it, the Liberty Belle and Tom Sawyer's Island), to put in a Cars-themed land. (Wouldn't that be a better fit at Studios?)

And looking for more information on that, I see they're also working on a Villains-themed land?!? Don't we have enough of that in real life, these days?!?

Now don't get me wrong, I like the idea of DL and WDW-MK being different. And of DLR and WDW being different. I didn't mind ETR: Under New Managment's run at WDW-MK, because DL never closed the original ETR. I'm only mildly irritated that there currently appears to be nothing at all in the DL Carousel Theatre, because WDW-MK still has CoP. And I like the fact that every Magic Kingdom has its own unique version of HM.

But not when it's completely pointless. Not bovine scat like DL essentially destroying the Peoplemover track in a vain, ill-conceived attempt to "do Test Track on the cheap." And not like tearing out most of Liberty Square to build something that would be a better fit someplace else (like Studios).

 

There is a writing concept known as "Hitler's Whistle." By giving a villain some attribute other than pure evil, that character gains depth and believability . . . and becomes that much more disturbing. Anakin Skywalker's fall, engineered by Palpatine, was the result of his inability to accept the deaths of loved ones. And his final act, literally giving Palpatine the shaft, was driven by his inability to accept the death of his own son.

If you've read Mary Trump's book about her uncle, you learn three things about the Trump family: (1) Fred Trump had a pathological hatred of government. Not of local government, not of State government, not of the Federal Government; a pathological hatred of the very concept of government. (2) Fred considered ruthlessness to be a positive trait, and compassion to be a negative trait, and all but disowned any of his offspring who weren't sufficiently ruthless. (3) Donald Trump worshiped his father.

 

To explain is not to excuse. To understand is not to condone. To forgive is not to enable.

And that Mary Trump could have come from that family (albeit the offspring of the closest thing Fred's brood had to a "white sheep") affirms that "The Donald" was not in any way coerced into worshiping his father.

I will note that I make no secret of my contempt and loathing for what I term "revisionist Oz," and I categorically refuse to see the 1939 movie version, because of the utterly stupid and pointless liberties it took with details, but mainly because it turned Oz into a dream, whereas Baum ultimately resolved the ambiguity in favor of it being a real place. But my contempt for that pales in comparison with my contempt for Maguire's making the Wicked Witches of the East and West into misunderstood heroines, and turning the Wizard into a power-mad dictator.

But to get back to WDW, the idea of tearing out RoA to make room for something that would be a better fit at Studios is just stupid.