Thursday, May 06, 2004
A Big F&*( You to Disney, They should be ashamed of themselves.
I'm really not doing a very good job of sticking to tech only theme here but sometimes something in the news pisses me off.
What got me started this time was the news that Disney was going to block Miramax from distributing Michael Moore's new movie which is critical of Bush. Putting aside Michael Moore's politics, what pissed me off was the fact that Disney is refusing to distribute it because it might unsettle its audience. Last time I checked, the movie would have Miramax's name all over it, not Disney's. Given that I don't believe this excuse, I think that the real reason Disney doesn't want to distribute the film is that they are worried about rocking the political boat. Moore's agent is claiming that Disney is worried about loosing tax break's it gets in florida.
In a Herald Tribune article, Jeb Bush is quoted as saying: "What tax break?"
What tax break? Is he just dumb or just sleezy? While Disney pays over $100 million in taxes in florida, they get some very special treatment in that state.
According to an article in the Orlando Sentinel: "State to review Disney's domain", the state of Florida is conducting a review of Disney's role in state government. The state of florida created a special district for disney:
"Legislature created the district in 1967 as part of an effort to lure the company to Florida. It grants Disney powers typically reserved for public governments, such as regulating its own buildings and issuing municipal bonds."
"Through the years, some critics have complained that Disney abuses its unique government powers. Through the district, Disney can avoid many growth regulations and is exempt from certain taxes and fees. It also employs its own building inspectors."
No wonder Disney doesn't want to piss the Bush family off. It might not technically be a tax break but there is definately much at stake for Disney in Florida.
America is supposed to stand for freedom. Freedom of information. A system that rewards some companies for "good behavior" is a system that works on bribary. If Disney doesn't want to release something because they are scared it is too political than I think it should pack its bags and get the hell out. Personally I will now boycott disney because of the damage they are doing to our political system.
Now as an interesting side note the Orlando Sentinel seems to have pulled the story from their website (which is why I linked to the google cached version). Even searching their article archives produces nothing. Weird
Okay, back to your regularly scheduled tech blather.
What got me started this time was the news that Disney was going to block Miramax from distributing Michael Moore's new movie which is critical of Bush. Putting aside Michael Moore's politics, what pissed me off was the fact that Disney is refusing to distribute it because it might unsettle its audience. Last time I checked, the movie would have Miramax's name all over it, not Disney's. Given that I don't believe this excuse, I think that the real reason Disney doesn't want to distribute the film is that they are worried about rocking the political boat. Moore's agent is claiming that Disney is worried about loosing tax break's it gets in florida.
In a Herald Tribune article, Jeb Bush is quoted as saying: "What tax break?"
What tax break? Is he just dumb or just sleezy? While Disney pays over $100 million in taxes in florida, they get some very special treatment in that state.
According to an article in the Orlando Sentinel: "State to review Disney's domain", the state of Florida is conducting a review of Disney's role in state government. The state of florida created a special district for disney:
"Legislature created the district in 1967 as part of an effort to lure the company to Florida. It grants Disney powers typically reserved for public governments, such as regulating its own buildings and issuing municipal bonds."
"Through the years, some critics have complained that Disney abuses its unique government powers. Through the district, Disney can avoid many growth regulations and is exempt from certain taxes and fees. It also employs its own building inspectors."
No wonder Disney doesn't want to piss the Bush family off. It might not technically be a tax break but there is definately much at stake for Disney in Florida.
America is supposed to stand for freedom. Freedom of information. A system that rewards some companies for "good behavior" is a system that works on bribary. If Disney doesn't want to release something because they are scared it is too political than I think it should pack its bags and get the hell out. Personally I will now boycott disney because of the damage they are doing to our political system.
Now as an interesting side note the Orlando Sentinel seems to have pulled the story from their website (which is why I linked to the google cached version). Even searching their article archives produces nothing. Weird
Okay, back to your regularly scheduled tech blather.
