Originally Posted By BlueOhanaTerror >>>"Game, match, point."<<< >>>If it is tennis then the proper sequence is: "(point,) game, set, match"<<< Thanks. Figures I'd get it wrong. I hate tennis.
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 <<TDLFAN and The Spirit may point out things that need improvement, but they are both quick to praise positive things they find too. They are not chronic nay-sayers.>> Thanks, to my fave Viking. And as someone who spent part of the weekend at DL and DCA, it is very apparent that my criticisms of WDW are dead on accurate. There's very little to complain about in Anaheim. You almost have to look for it. Versus what I see at WDW (especially the MK and Studios). I don't know if I'll have a chance to post a full scale report, but I'm gonna try and get some observations up this week depending upon work (yes, this was a business trip with a little DL fun added on). If I do, I'll post them here because I'll compare what I experienced/witnessed at DL in a WDW context. But, again, DL exudes magic and doesn't have to hit you over the head with marketing to prove it.
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 Great post 98. I believe you'll see pics of how horrible the Buzz Lightyear queue and attraction are kept on another site in the very near future.
Originally Posted By davewasbaloo Re post 103 - I couldn't agree more. Although there is alot of excellence in WDW - Epcot/DAK, overall DL has magic and show in all of the areas.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN >>And folks, NEVER listen to that old fool TDLFAN!<< Ok! THAT DOES IT!!! You can call me anything you want and I am fine with that but "OLD"???? Personally I wish YOU Dis-Phillip would take a dose of your own advise and NOT pay so much attention to me. You are a disturbed character-loving freak and a Pollyanna who has no clue about what Disney's difference is all about. So be careful when you pass out insults because I can pass them out just as good or better than most. I am on to you and personally, I think you need professional help in regards to your love of people in character outfits. Let me burst your bubble... they are just people in costume, pretty much the way you dress on Halloween.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN Now.. back to topic: EPCOT's bad show on December 31st. Did I mention the bad crowd control situation and lack of pre-planning in dealing with so-called "record-breaking" crowds??? I think I did..
Originally Posted By mrichmondj << Did I mention the bad crowd control situation and lack of pre-planning in dealing with so-called "record-breaking" crowds??? I think I did.. >> What I don't understand is why anyone who dislikes crowds would go to EPCOT on the single busiest day of the year. And then complains about the crowds and crowd control? Talk about bad pre-planning . . . I think it's widely known that NYE is the busiest day of the year. I hate crowds. I don't think there is any truly effective way to deal with them 100% of the time. I plan my trips to never go there when there are crowds. I wouldn't be caught dead in EPCOT on New Year's Eve. All the crowd control in the world couldn't make this event anything less than miserable for me.
Originally Posted By BlueOhanaTerror >>> Let me burst your bubble... they are just people in costume, pretty much the way you dress on Halloween.<<< ...and pretty much, every other day. >>> I wouldn't be caught dead in EPCOT on New Year's Eve. All the crowd control in the world couldn't make this event anything less than miserable for me.<<< Ugh. I didn't know my dad was posting to this site.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN >>What I don't understand is why anyone who dislikes crowds would go to EPCOT on the single busiest day of the year. And then complains about the crowds and crowd control?<< You know what?? I DO NOT MIND huge crowds. I have had extensive experience with huge crowds at all of the Disney parks to last me a life time. TDL gets crwods much bigger than WDW's on NYE, and I was there in the middle of the mayhem on July 17th when DL turned 50. In those instances, pre-planning to handle crowds have been crutial... DLR did a *FABULOUS* job with the over crowded conditions in the wee hrs of the morning on July 17th, 2005. TDR handles crowds on many days and seasonal holidays on a regular basis and they do it just as flawlessly... So why on Earth can't the management at WDW do the same? Seems to me a lot of people who are in charge there haven't got a clue about that. Reason why I rant about it gladly. But to mention the flip side of the coin... the one thing that I have noticed have improved at WDW is CM's involvement in telling people when to behave, especially during parades. More than ever before, I have seen CMs telling guests to "not cross the line" or "keep feet off the road" during parades and such. At EPCOT on NYE, a latino guest climbed one of the trees in front of Morroco to watch the 7:30pm Reflections show and a CM from the nearby French Pavillion was quick to tell him to come down. If the front line CMs can deliver this very basic of safety intructions to guests, why is management so clueless about other areas of crowd control management??? .. and that is my rant. NOT about huge crowds.
Originally Posted By danyoung >Personally I wish YOU Dis-Phillip would take a dose of your own advise and NOT pay so much attention to me. You are a disturbed character-loving freak and a Pollyanna who has no clue about what Disney's difference is all about.< I'd just like to say that I'm personally very happy that TDLFAN has a new target - it's usually me!
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 <<I'd just like to say that I'm personally very happy that TDLFAN has a new target - it's usually me!>> Well, Danny, when you wear that XXXXXXL MMC tee, it kinda does look like you've got a giant target painted on ya ;-)
Originally Posted By bayrr326 Well, I TDLFAN's point has been after all these years of dealing with large crowds on NYE you would think they would have proper staffing and planning to handle the crowds on NYE. It is another example of poor mgmt. at WDW. It just seems like we keep seeing more and more examples of this kind of mgmt. I don't think that just because it is NYE they get a pass.
Originally Posted By mrichmondj << . . . you would think they would have proper staffing . . . >> . . . a big assumption there. Businesses nationwide are understaffed. I can give you some stories in industries right now where they are advertising for blue collar labor, and no one even shows up for the interview. There is a dearth of available labor in this country right now. I suspect that WDW isn't immune to this problem, and it probably isn't all that easy to just plus up the staff on one of the biggest holiday evenings of the year when it is already impossible to get the appropriate staffing during regular workdays.
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 ^^WDW is understaffed because management refuses to pay a living wage based upon our current version of capitalism gone amuck where the goal is to cut as much quality (and jobs) and 'fat' to create 'efficiencies' and 'please Wall Street' otherwise known as institutional investors who only care what the stock closes at Friday, not what that penny-pinching, WalMarting, homeogenizing and marginalization does to the long-term value of the company. It is a vicious cycle that will only end when a few 'maverick' CEO types decide to go against the tide and not be afraid they'll lose their jobs because of it. There is no dearth of available labor in our country right now. There's a dearth of Americans who are willing to work as glorified slaves hence things like work visas, mining the islands, College Program and even having CMs an an 'international program' come from as far as Australia to work for $6.50 an hour scooping ice cream or cleaning resort rooms. Do you really think WDW would have such a staffing problem if the starting pay was $10 an hour? Or $12? Or more?
Originally Posted By mrichmondj << There is no dearth of available labor in our country right now. >> In a sense you are right. There's plenty of people willing to work when it's convenient to them, and if you don't ask them to do a whole lot. But the labor that shows up when you ask them to work on New Year's Eve rarely exists anymore -- even at higher wages. I work with a lot of very well paid employees who do work comparable to what a WDW cast member would be asked to do at a wage that is about 4 times higher -- I can rarely count on them to show up at work on the weekday, much less after hours. If I decide to get rid of them, it takes months to get a replacement and the replacement usually has just as little work ethic as the person who got canned. I wish you could just throw money at people and get them to respond, but that's not the case in 21st century America. For one thing, nobody needs money anymore when credit is so easily handed out to anyone with a paycheck. Who needs cash in the bank, when all you need is a minimum wage job to get the credit card that buys the flat screen TV and XBox?
Originally Posted By Inspector 57 mrichmondj, if you're having problems retaining employees at $28/hour, there's a problem with your company's policies.
Originally Posted By fkurucz >>It is a vicious cycle that will only end when a few 'maverick' CEO types decide to go against the tide and not be afraid they'll lose their jobs because of it.<< Steve Jobs comes to mind. Instead of aiming for mass mediocrity he aims for excellence, whether it be animation, computers or digital media. I really wish he becomes Disney's next CEO.
