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<font color=green>Will work for travel ;-)<br><fon
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Orlando Sentinel
Published March 21, 2003
Mike Thomas
Ta-da! Disney's magic makes war disappear
Mar 21, 2003
There are dozens of bagels piled on top of the newsroom filing cabinet.
It's an old journalistic tradition.
When everything is going to hell -- free food all around! We've been eating well the past year and a half.
The newsroom is ringed by televisions. Various analysts are discussing if shock and awe actually has begun or if this is pre shock and awe.
Giving TV news a phrase like shock and awe is like giving a pit bull puppy a leather chew toy.
I have had enough.
I'm going to Walt Disney World.
There is no traffic jam on the way -- not a good omen for Disney. As I hop on the paddleboat to the Magic Kingdom, Chip and Dale disembark. Two children giggle. Little do they know that Chip is John Ashcroft.
He's keeping an eye on Aladdin and Jasmine.
The eeriest experience I had after 9-11 was walking into Space Mountain and being alone in the darkness as I walked to the launch center.
That is nowhere near the case today. Main Street is bustling, if not mobbed. The line for Space Mountain extends out of the building and stretches 100 yards.
But where I take the pulse of the Central Florida economy is at Winnie the Pooh. I have ridden Winnie the Pooh approximately 300 times in the past three years and now know just how long the wait should be at what time of year. If there is no line at Winnie the Pooh during spring break, sell your Disney stock.
The line is 45 minutes. That is worth at least a hold rating.
The line to get a Mickey ice cream sandwich is 10 minutes. I sit on the bench and begin licking between his ears.
And then I realize the genius of Disney. There is no war here. That's because there are no televisions, no radios and no newspapers. Citizens in Baghdad have more access to news.
The scenes are familiar and comforting.
Two kids fight over a Magic Kingdom map. A mom yells at her boy to walk faster. A dad tells his family to sit tight while he goes in search of food.
I listen in on dozens of different conversations and never hear the word war.
It's like Tinker Bell sprinkled her pixie dust and we've all been transported to Never Land.
Make that Tomorrowland.
"Hi there Tomorrowland travelers," says an amplified voice from overhead. "This is Mr. Johnson. Everything is perfect on the Tomorrowland superhighway."
And so it is.
Despite its designation as a potential terrorist target, there are no fears of WMD at WDW.
The only weapons of mass destruction I see are smoked turkey legs the size of Scuds.
I talk to Tom Ruth, a West Palm Beach teacher, for 15 minutes and the only Bush who comes up in the conversation is Jeb.
Finally, I mention Iraq.
"I was watching TV last night and they were interviewing the British undersecretary of war materials," Tom says sarcastically. "It's the perfect time to be on vacation."
My vacation is over.
I get back in the car, turn on the radio and listen to an ABC correspondent compare the size of various smoke plumes rising from Baghdad.
But it's not shock and awe yet.
Back at the office, a box of doughnuts sits on the filing cabinet.
Mike Thomas can be reached at 407-420-5525 or mthomas@orlandosentinel.com.
Published March 21, 2003
Mike Thomas
Ta-da! Disney's magic makes war disappear
Mar 21, 2003
There are dozens of bagels piled on top of the newsroom filing cabinet.
It's an old journalistic tradition.
When everything is going to hell -- free food all around! We've been eating well the past year and a half.
The newsroom is ringed by televisions. Various analysts are discussing if shock and awe actually has begun or if this is pre shock and awe.
Giving TV news a phrase like shock and awe is like giving a pit bull puppy a leather chew toy.
I have had enough.
I'm going to Walt Disney World.
There is no traffic jam on the way -- not a good omen for Disney. As I hop on the paddleboat to the Magic Kingdom, Chip and Dale disembark. Two children giggle. Little do they know that Chip is John Ashcroft.
He's keeping an eye on Aladdin and Jasmine.
The eeriest experience I had after 9-11 was walking into Space Mountain and being alone in the darkness as I walked to the launch center.
That is nowhere near the case today. Main Street is bustling, if not mobbed. The line for Space Mountain extends out of the building and stretches 100 yards.
But where I take the pulse of the Central Florida economy is at Winnie the Pooh. I have ridden Winnie the Pooh approximately 300 times in the past three years and now know just how long the wait should be at what time of year. If there is no line at Winnie the Pooh during spring break, sell your Disney stock.
The line is 45 minutes. That is worth at least a hold rating.
The line to get a Mickey ice cream sandwich is 10 minutes. I sit on the bench and begin licking between his ears.
And then I realize the genius of Disney. There is no war here. That's because there are no televisions, no radios and no newspapers. Citizens in Baghdad have more access to news.
The scenes are familiar and comforting.
Two kids fight over a Magic Kingdom map. A mom yells at her boy to walk faster. A dad tells his family to sit tight while he goes in search of food.
I listen in on dozens of different conversations and never hear the word war.
It's like Tinker Bell sprinkled her pixie dust and we've all been transported to Never Land.
Make that Tomorrowland.
"Hi there Tomorrowland travelers," says an amplified voice from overhead. "This is Mr. Johnson. Everything is perfect on the Tomorrowland superhighway."
And so it is.
Despite its designation as a potential terrorist target, there are no fears of WMD at WDW.
The only weapons of mass destruction I see are smoked turkey legs the size of Scuds.
I talk to Tom Ruth, a West Palm Beach teacher, for 15 minutes and the only Bush who comes up in the conversation is Jeb.
Finally, I mention Iraq.
"I was watching TV last night and they were interviewing the British undersecretary of war materials," Tom says sarcastically. "It's the perfect time to be on vacation."
My vacation is over.
I get back in the car, turn on the radio and listen to an ABC correspondent compare the size of various smoke plumes rising from Baghdad.
But it's not shock and awe yet.
Back at the office, a box of doughnuts sits on the filing cabinet.
Mike Thomas can be reached at 407-420-5525 or mthomas@orlandosentinel.com.
