Seriously Disney, What The Heck?

[CensoredAlso]

I just hope that these Disney interns aren't being exploited and have real opportunity in their future. Heck, listing them on a resume shows an employer that they've more than paid their dues.

Hehe, very true!

 

[Vic Romano]

At least Eisner's gone. Since reading that portion of Street Gang I can't ever like that man.

I know, right? What a scumbag! That's why I loved that book though, it did not shy from giving overly honest opinions about people. Even Jane Henson wasn't safe!

 

[Ilikemuppets]

That sucks for the people that have been let go.

As far as people who can't afford to pay the higher price, well, there are more important things in the world and in peoples lives than visiting a theme park...

 

[Drtooth]

As Dr Tooth said, here's a genuis crazy...dare I say edgy avant garde concept: LOWER the gate prices!

Hey, I ain't just saying Disney, lower gate prices... I'm saying round the board sweeping price declines in everything... mid sized action figures for 5-7 bucks (No way should a shrimpy G.I. Joe/Star Wars/Wolverine 3" AF go for 8 bucks! That's what we were paying 5 years ago for deluxe Muppet AF's), snack treats under a dollar... come on. They make this crap for literally pennies at Korean and Chinese sweat shops.... only things I ever see selling are things at deep discount clearances or sales. They're going to lose money anyway...

I hate the term "belt tightening" since the people that request it are fatter than cows (monitarily speaking). let's say they could take a modest pay cut and keep several jobs.... no way. They'd kill off 500000000 employees before they lose a penny off their own salaries. That's what got these companies in trouble, their own greed. People that buy beach houses in Maui they never go to just so they have the luxury of saying "I have a luxury beach house in Maui I never go to." The rich should take the heat now, since they've been doing underhanded, sneaky, unAmerican things to stay wealthy since the Regan administraition (I hear talk of a corporation building a time machine to make sure Teddy Roosevelt was never elected, and expose novels about the cruelty of factory owners to their workers never get written... but you didn't hear that from me ).

These same people took American jobs, gift wrapped them, gave them to China, Mexico, and India (with the exception of Mexico, this made them a stronger economic power than us) just because they could go behind those pesky commie ideas like unions, minimum wage, health benefits... and general safety concerns (them pinkos! Trying to give workers a fare share). And somehow, even with the shipping and duty and fueling it makes everything almost a buck cheaper per unit to produce. Which naturally means they keep everything at the same price. Now we're all suffering from it. but hey, we get to buy lightbulbs at Walmart for 6 cents less than if they were made in the US.

 

[beaker]

Would lower prices build up or run down the park? I can see cases for both.

I understand why Broadway musicals are $100 a pop; given the hoity toity exclusivity and limited audience each one has. But *especially* in this day and age, when the airline industry to everyone else is dropping prices...how can Disney keep prices to almost $100(for even California Adventure!)

For every family that decides to go to Disneyland(and were not just talking the insane gate fee, but the parking/hotel/gas/money they'll flood at the parks on food and merch, possible plane tickets, etc...so were talking thousands), theres probably 10 more that cant go(even ones who live not far away at all) because the prices are too high.

So I just cannot see how an aggressive campaign to get out the word about lower gate fees($65? I mean isnt that reasonable?
Last I actually paid to get in back in 1990 it was $35)

Geez, at least lower Calif Adventure entrance, Disney is always internally complaining about super low attendance at Calif Adv...its like, who wants to pay $89 for not very much?

 

[beaker]

Hey, I ain't just saying Disney, lower gate prices... I'm saying round the board sweeping price declines in everything... mid sized action figures for 5-7 bucks (No way should a shrimpy G.I. Joe/Star Wars/Wolverine 3" AF go for 8 bucks! That's what we were paying 5 years ago for deluxe Muppet AF's), snack treats under a dollar... come on. They make this crap for literally pennies at Korean and Chinese sweat shops.... only things I ever see selling are things at deep discount clearances or sales. They're going to lose money anyway...

Oh I know right? The whole new Marvel line SUCKS. I like small figures, but these are just cheap, scrawny and way too much.
Does Marvel(Toy Biz) even remember the 1992-1996 line? Actually the entire 80's to 90's DC and Marvel line was fantastic. To this day I enjoy picking up good condition DC/Marvel figures from the Super Powers/Secret Wars/90's line.
And yeah, I mean you go into Toys R Us or Target, and $10 for authentic 1989 TMNT figures? When ya can go to any flea market, ebay auction, used toy store, etc and get em for a buck? Noones buying those ones, and Playmates got so lazy after Fast Forward that all the new figures are stuck on the attrocious TMNT movie backing(I LOVED the Imagi 2007 TMNT film, but compared to the 2003-2006 figure line art it doesnt fly)
I really liked the colorful, well done figures Playmates was doing 2003-2006, *sigh*
But yeah, now days...its literally Transformers Animated(hate it),
GI Joe(never cared for it, cept Sigma 6), Star Wars(talk about over saturation ubiquity), Power Rangers(.....), Pro Wrestling(still?), DC/Marvel(small figures for too much), Naruto/DragonBall and other Jump properties(kind of cool figures), and then the Pokemon/Yu Gi Oh/Ben 10/Monster in my pocket ball stuff. I see not much outside of this paradigm, as Walmart and Target have dramatically cut back on toys, and overall the American toy market has really narrowed. Even the NECA/Meco collector's market. (Hence why I love seeing retro toy shops or sites and seeing a virtual museum of all the 70's, 80's and early 90's action figure lines and realizing how many properties there were out there)

I also cant stand artificial scarcity. Recently there was a conspiracy by personal online sellers(ebay types) to rush to every Toys R Us(excl retailer of Monsters vs Aliens), and grab up every single Monsters Vs Aliens toy and plush. I saw the movie and absolutely loved it, but noticed Toys R Us no longer had anymore MvA stuff despite the movie had just came out. Went online, and voila...all the stuff gone from TRU shelves was now being pilfered at high prices on ebay. I hate those ebay people sometimes. (Especially since almost every 90's and early 2000's video game based toy is going for upwards of a hundred bucks)

These same people took American jobs, gift wrapped them, gave them to China, Mexico, and India (with the exception of Mexico, this made them a stronger economic power than us) just because they could go behind those pesky commie ideas like unions, minimum wage, health benefits... and general safety concerns (them pinkos! Trying to give workers a fare share). And somehow, even with the shipping and duty and fueling it makes everything almost a buck cheaper per unit to produce. Which naturally means they keep everything at the same price. Now we're all suffering from it. but hey, we get to buy lightbulbs at Walmart for 6 cents less than if they were made in the US.

I personally wish more things were made in America. Even made in America, really mades all the parts were made and assembled in Indonesian and Vietnamese sweat shops then "packaged" here.

The US government has sunk trillions into horrific wars that only benefited the wealthy elite, as well as have given out trillions to greedy corrupt bankers and corporations...letting schools, cities, etc dilapitate and most of the big American companies moving overseas for cheap "fair trade" labor. And then insult to injury,
we have these horrific human rights abusing countries like China that have America by the you know what finanically, to the tune of over a trillion. Its bad enough China sends millions of poison products to America, like toys and dog food...they get caught proxying/financing African genocide for secret oil contracts and committing mass human rights abuses on their own people.
And then the other big country the US government is in bed with, Saudi Arabia not only has no rights for women, they keep getting caught sponsoring the very terrorists who attack America and American interests.

And so we have Sesame Street putting out these "This is why your daddy is back with a missing leg and a psychotic breakdown" specials, because the same Washington DC scoundrels who tried to pull the plug on PBS are the ones sending young kids off to die in wars to fight "Islamic militants" the US created and America's Middle Eastern allies secretly finance.

See what ya do Dr Tooth, ya bring the verbose ranter in me, ha.
Now where were we? Oh yes, Disney being stuck in their own box.

 

[frogboy4]

I personally wish more things were made in America. Even made in America, really mades all the parts were made and assembled in Indonesian and Vietnamese sweat shops then "packaged" here.

For someone interested in not firing workers and lower prices this statement just doesn't make practical sense in the US marketplace. A figure made in America will cost at least 4 times more than made in China. American companies have health care and other benefits to contend with and there are rumblings to achieve greater programs these days - as it should be. However, this all costs money and the company executives will not take a cut in salary. That's not how the free market system works as much as it is unfair. It's nice to want things - and the exploitation of foreign labor has been a dirty little secret for years. Its tentacles are so sharply hooked into the modern economy that it would collapse without it.

Either way you look at it, life is going to get a lot more expensive in this country and foreign labor is still going to be an issue. It's the way of the world and that isn't going to change.

However, I think Disney should have a "test season" of three months where they do just what you said and somehow lower prices. A good idea is to keep them as is, but offer rebates by way of coupons good in every Disney park store. That's the thing, once people are through the gate they're still spending money and that's where the real crunch hits folk.

 

[CensoredAlso]

I personally wish more products were made in America. Even made in America, really mades all the parts were made and assembled in Indonesian and Vietnamese sweat shops then "packaged" here.

I do think some of our poverty stricken areas would be improved if so many jobs weren't overseas. Plus it's more likely the toys we make wouldn't kill us!

 

[frogboy4]

I do think some of our poverty stricken areas would be improved if so many jobs weren't overseas. Plus it's more likely the toys we make wouldn't kill us!

Do you remember when Walmart stores were all about being "Made in America" as far as both products and their company? They've always been a bottom-line company, but they are the largest culprit behind outsourcing and cheap materials.

Still, would you be willing to pay $29.99 for a $7.99 action figure? That's the reality we're looking at with American made toys. There would be fewer alternative lines as well because that's more of a gamble than the pop-culture of the moment. The reason that Chinese factories use toxic chemicals is due to cutting corners for American corporations do win the competitive bid. To remedy this problem things will just have to cost more. It's not so much about testing the toys as it is improving the entire system.

Back to the firings and entry prices at Disneyland. I'm still weirded about the security at the theme parks. How good is it? How much does that factor into ticket prices? It is a scary thought that nobody talks about and I'm not really a "chicken little" about it or that concerned for safety. I just wonder how it has changed the parks in structure, expense and insurance.

 

[Ilikemuppets]

Do you remember when Walmart stores were all about being "Made in America" as far as both products and their company? They've always been a bottom-line company, but they are the largest culprit behind outsourcing and cheap materials.

I have this saying now where I look a where a product was made and I say something to the tune of "Boy, remember when a product that said Made In China meant quality? Those were the good old days..."

Enough of that. But Even though Sam Walton sand something that will forever make me mad with WalMart, I somtimes wander if he would have gone for this kind of thing. But seeing is it's just kind of reality now and the way things are done, I may never figure out the answer.