The Mouse That Roared, Part II

 Riley displaying her Magna Cum Laude certificate from Seminole High School

Our Riley with Mom, Susie

Below, two gems found on Facebook:

 

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Grace note FYI:  I wrote both posts on The Mouse That Roared three weeks ago. Since then, Governor DeSantis has not only vowed to fight Disney's end run in the courts (at taxpayer expense) and in the legislature, he has signed into law the ban on abortion after six weeks, extended the ban on speaking of gay issues all the way through 12th grade, and granted the right to carry a concealed weapon without a permit. As well as continuing his drive to remove any books that might be even remotely controversial from all school and public libraries.

Nonetheless, below are the promised excerpts from the Orlando Sentinel, exactly as written three weeks ago, and which include a peek at a Disney that is not entirely blameless in this controversy.

 

THE MOUSE THAT ROARED, PART II 

Scott Maxwell has been writing outstanding columns for the Orlando Sentinel for years. I respect his opinion. And in this particular fight, he does not hesitate to point out that Disney has had more than its share of privileges over the years and that the mighty power of the Mouse has ranged too far afield. Therefore, I am including some of Maxwell's negatives as well as his smirks over the Disney/DeSanctimonius debacle.

Excerpts from Scott Maxwell's column, Orlando Sentinel, April 2, 2023:

If you look at Mickey Mouse's hands, you'll notice he doesn't have a middle finger. But if he did, he most surely flipped it at Ron DeSantis last week.

. . . . Basically, Disney was playing 4-D chess while the governor's legal team was fumbling with a bag of checkers. . . . DeSantis is so used to picking on easy targets—drag queens and transgender teenagers—that he wasn't prepared to do battle with someone with the power to fight back. . . . Ron DeSantis and GOP lawmakers are trying to use bully power and petty politics to punish a private company for expressing opinions they dislike—in this case, Disney's opinion that LGBTQ families should be treated like human beings. . . .

Still, Disney doesn't deserve to run its own government. Many of us have argued as much for years. Unfortunately, lawmakers in this state have been happy to do Disney special favors for decades—as long as Disney cuts them checks. . . . While the company has done some great philanthropic things in this community, it has also used money, power and even free park tickets to warp public policy in this state for decades. . . . I'm not cheering for the powerful corporation or the pandering politicians. I'm rooting for good government that doesn't cater to special interests—the one thing neither side seems to want.

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Excerpts from an Editorial in the Orlando Sentinel, April 2, 2023:

. . . . Clearly, the governor thought he'd written the perfect fairy tale and cast himself as the hero—only to discover that Disney executives flipped the script.

. . . . And some huge, real world responsibilities, including permitting, planning and critical utilities for Disney's four theme parks, two water parks, a sports complex, a collection of hotels that total more then 40,000 guest rooms and Disney Springs, with its 24-screen movie theater, House of Blues and Cirque du Soleil. The district operates two incorporated cities, full-fledged fire and EVAC departments complete with cranky unions, 170 miles of roads, a huge electric plant and natural-gas distribution system, water and wastewater systems.

Many—including this editorial board—have been uneasy about the power that the Reedy Creek district allows Disney to wield, or the untold magnitude of tax payments it's avoided over the years by taking advantage of its ability to issue government bonds. . . . But there's no doubt the company backed its power with its own cash. Its handpicked board levied property taxes that are triple or quadruple what other Central Florida cities and counties charge.

. . . . Unfortunately, those high-priced lawyers [for the state] and DeSantis' own staff apparently didn't bother to pay attention to the agreements the old Reedy Creek board signed off on in the meetings before the state Legislature approved the governor's hotheaded demands. We're not sure why. The meetings were open to the public and duly noticed.

. . . . A Word to DeSantis

And that's where this should end. This was a foolish, petty and ultimately selfish political vendetta that could have ended up far worse. . . . All you've managed to do so far is create a situation where Disney has more control, and potentially more secrecy than it ever did. No matter how you try to play this, it seems apparent that you were outplayed. So take your advice from the Queen (and in this case we mean Queen Elsa). Let. It. Go.

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Strongly Opinionated Grace note:  Keep in mind this man—bigoted, capable of going off half-cocked, as he also did when he sent an airplane to Texas, hijacked a load of trusting immigrants, and flew them to the island of Martha's Vineyard—thinks he should be President, the man with his finger on the nuclear trigger. Heaven forfend! Evidently, all he learned at Yale was elitism and self-indulgence. I once thought, "Anyone but Trump." I now realize how mistaken I was. (Not that I would ever vote for the Donald, but back before the GOP went mad, I was a registered Republican, and it hurts to see any political party fall so low.)

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April 22, 2023:

No matter what your opinion of the Disney/DeSantis dispute, keep in mind the broader picture:  polls show that the majority of Americans do not agree with DeSantis on the many far-right issues he is pushing. And when the Minority prevails, we are not living in a Democracy. 

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For a link to Blair's website, click here.

 

Thanks for stopping by,

Grace (Blair Bancroft)