Today's news *is* Disney-specific, though -- and, as a new mother who is counting the days until she can take her child to Disney, I cannot even begin to imagine what it must be like to be in this situation.
The details, by now, are all over the news: a family of four from Nebraska was vacationing at Disney and staying at the Grand Floridian. The monorail resort is on the shores of the Seven Seas Lagoon, a man-made lake (along with the Polynesian). Last night, the family was by the water, the little boy waded in and...I can't even type the words. You can read The Orlando Sentinel's account here and NPR's account here.
I'm purposefully staying away from the comments section on this story, because (1) my heart can't take it; (2) I also can't handle another internet-parent-shaming vitriol and (3) I don't want to read about the Disney-blaming which I'm sure will ensue.
My $0.02:
It was an accident. A horrific, terrible, tragic accident. No, there aren't signs posted warning about alligators in the lagoon (although I'm sure there will be now), but then, there wasn't really a reason for there to be. It's a man-made lagoon and Disney doesn't keep alligators in there (for obvious reasons). There are signs prohibiting swimming in the lagoon, but I'm sure the lack of specific warning will fan some fires.
I did read a piece on CNN about the attack being a "perfect storm," namely the time of day, the time of the year, and the prevalence of alligators in Florida. (The ABC news segment I watched this morning -- which of course I can't find the link to now -- even mentioned that the number of alligators in unusual places is rising, perhaps due to encroachment.)
But, what I was reminded of today was a piece from Carl Hiassen's Team Rodent: How Disney Devours The World. I'm considering focusing on evil/villainy in my Decoding Disney course next semester, and one of the things I wanted to discuss was the conversation surrounding Disney-the-Company-as-Evil, and Hiassen is a big part of this conversation. He writes:
"Imagine promoting a universe in which raw Nature doesn't fit because it doesn't measure up; isn't safe enough, accessible enough, predictable enough, even beautiful enough for company standards. Disney isn't in the business of exploiting Nature so much as striving to improve upon it, constantly fine-tuning God's work.
Lakes, for instance. Florida's heartland is dappled with lovely tree-lined lakes, but the waters are often tea-colored from cypress bark. For postcard purposes, tea-colored water was deemed unsuitable for Disney's World's centerpiece, Bay Lake, so in the early 1970s Team Rodent sprang into action--yanking out many of the cypresses, draining the lake, scraping out the bottom muck, replacing it with imported sand, then refilling the crater. All this was done to make the water bluish and therefore more inviting to tourists. For good measure, Disney even added beaches.
(My own Bay Lake fantasy: sneak in one night and dump a truckload of hungry bull gators in that lovely deep-blue water. I know friends who'd be thrilled to help, and who also have experience in the transport of large crocodilians. My conscience is all that's stopping me--the Magic Kingdom is not a safe place for a reptile, and I fear the alligators would be systematically hunted down and trapped, or worse.) [my emphasis]While Hiassen's fears are founded (the NPR piece mentions that five alligators were found on the property today and euthanized--a not uncommon practice, it seems), this passage seems particularly chilling--and I can't help but wonder how Hiassen feels. I'm sure he feels for the family--but does he feel that Disney is getting what it deserves? (It is very clear that he is no fan of the company.) Does he regret the hypothetical? Or did he just assume that it was so preposterous that it was safe to play the "what if" game? And, having read Hiassen's book, I can't help but wonder...what effect will this have on Disney? The company can't escape the press coverage, but will its reputation be affected? (I imagine the Grand Floridian will see a drop-off in bookings...)
Again, another conversation/post I wish I didn't have to have...my heartfelt sympathies to the family and to anyone else involved.
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