That's a LOT of complaining. Why can't you just say, "Eh, D23 isn't for me." Whether you like it or not (and CLEARLY you don't), D23 is the OFFICIAL Disney fan club. You wanted it to be perfect and suited to YOU right out of the gate, but instead of supporting it and trying to find a way to NURTURE it and maybe even go to some events and talk to Steven and the people behind it, you bash it in the media.
For the record, I love my D23 membership. The magazine is fantastic; it has the kind of articles and PHOTOS that really, really are enjoyable to me, and it comes with a free gift each time -- sure, a small thing, but probably worth $5 or $6. Purely on the MATH, the magazine and the gifts make up for the cost of membership.
But you don't like it. Fair enough. Do you have to go and try to ruin it for everyone else? You kind of come across looking like a "crazy fan" in this, not someone who loves Disney and wants to spread the same feeling of happiness and joy.
I don't know what Walt would have thought of D23, but I'm pretty sure he wouldn't have taken his complaints to some small alt-weekly in South Florida to shout from the mountains what he doesn't like and how slighted he felt.
Reading this article depressed me so much because now people will think ALL Disney fans are this crazy. They're not. Some of us love the fact that Disney is trying at ALL to create some kind of organization for us, after so many years of doing nothing at all. And some of us just really love Disney and its message of optimism and hope, which is exactly the OPPOSITE of what you have conveyed in this article. I was depressed enough to actually JOIN DIS Boards to post this reply. I'm sure you'll remove it, because that's what kind of a person you seem to be -- someone who is ALWAYS RIGHT, no matter what anyone else thinks. If you do remove it, at least YOU will have read this. If you keep it up, I hope others will chime in if they agree.
You do NOT represent Disney fans. You've got a nice little Internet forum thing going here, but you are NOT the Disney fan to represent my opinion and my feelings, that's for SURE.