It’s been amazing to witness the Walt Disney Company squander almost 100 years of goodwill in a matter of mere months. The Magic Kingdom is losing its magic touch.
That’s what happens when woke executives prioritize activism instead of entertainment. Once the company came out as openly partisan, lawmakers started scrutinizing the political perks Disney received while they were still regarded as wholesome and profitable fun.
In the latest challenge to a sweet Disney deal, Texas Republican Rep. Troy Nehls is working to strip the special no-fly zones Disney’s theme parks have enjoyed since 2003.
According to the Daily Caller, nearly 20 years ago, Congress passed legislation that set up restricted airspace over Disney’s California and Florida resorts.
Rep. Nehls sent a letter in May to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg that observed, “most flight restrictions in the United States reside over places of high security, such as military bases, or hazards like wildfires and hurricanes.
“Yet, because aircraft can be noisy or disruptive, interest groups may lobby Congress to enact restrictions for their benefit. The principle of fairness requires that the federal government does not favor one organization over another, or thereover, enact flight restrictions to benefit one favored organization.”
Yet Disney received just that kind of favored treatment. “No other theme parks have restrictions on airspace, including neighboring competitors like Universal Studios,” Nehls pointed out.
Since Buttigieg is not dealing with the gas price crisis or the supply chain crisis, perhaps he will have time to read the letter.
Nehls is also introducing legislation to undo the Disney deal: the Airlines Independent of Restrictions, or AIR Act. So far, the bill has five co-sponsors.
Should Disney have its no-fly zones revoked?
If the no-fly zones are abolished, it would be the latest consequential blow to Disney’s privileged status.
The once-beloved company’s troubles began in earnest when it went into overdrive opposing common-sense anti-grooming education legislation in Florida.
Leftists misrepresented the Parental Rights in Education Bill as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. Disney executives like chairman of Disney General Entertainment Content Peter Rice denounced it as violating human rights.
Rice is now unemployed, because not only did the legislation pass, it was popular with voters — even Democrats.
Disney’s strident opposition to protecting kids from inappropriate sexual content made many question the mega-corporation’s motives. Franklin Graham, the son of evangelist Billy Graham, called Disney “a moral failure.”
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis fought back by removing Disney’s special self-governing and tax privilege status, which was said to be worth $1 billion to the corporation.
Some companies are learning the lessons on display in Disney’s fall from grace: get woke, go broke.
Yet Disney itself is intent on doubling down.
Disney’s Pixar animated film “Lightyear” is supposed to be a kid’s movie, a prequel to the “Toy Story” films. Yet the feature is being banned in countries around the world because Disney refuses to remove a lesbian kiss scene.
Disney also continues to ruin its legacy with poorly executed CGI and live-action remakes of its classic animated features.
The next one, “Pinocchio,” recently revealed the ethereal Blue Fairy of the Walt Disney production has been swapped with a nearly bald black actress known to identify as queer. It’s a contemporary twist that is out of step with both the intense 1940 cartoon and the original weird story, written in 1883.
Disney may need to lose some more perks before they learn to put entertainment over ideology.
