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The cult of Dihydrogen Monoxide
Sep. 14th, 2009 09:16 amI just got back from Disneyland Aneheim, and Micky Mouse® images were everywhere... He's been simplified and stripped down to resemble a water molecule. If the trademark battles keep going to the stupid, I could imagine DisneyCorp asserting their rights over every nanoscopic version of their character, no matter how numerous or how small.
On the morning of the first day, the loudpeakers gave their little pep talk, juicing us up for when the gates would finally open. Nothing meaningful was said, but one phrase in particular stuck in my mind: "Celebrate Today!"
...which is said in the exact same tone of voice, same inflection, as it's said on the day previous, and the day after. It doesn't matter what excuse you choose to celebrate.
The other time I'd heard that kind of vapid sentiment was the noise from Rajneesh Puram. A bunch of people with more money than sense, happily gifting it to their guru.
There's nothing unique about this kind of observation, the "Welcome to Duloc" sequence in Shrek said it better than I can.
I was also thinking about people I know who were at Burning Man instead of where I was. I've told people who've never been that burning man is like Disneyland with cancer. Total sensory saturation, but without any imagineers to balance out the experience.
But going to the source, I realized that Disneyland has cancer too, just of a different flavor.
I was amazed at how many people can come to use the park, without it feeling oppressive. For the most part, it was kind of like an elevator experience, where we all face forward and ignore each other so we can have our relationship with Walt and his mouse. There were exactly two moments for me where that wasn't the case, but the dominant paradigm snapped back into place immediately afterwords.
This is a little bit different from burning man, where we are both the consumers and the builders of the experience. But the experience itself isn't as different as one might hope.
It's hard to figure out what to say about this... I noticed something blindingly simple, and it feels like a Fenchurch meme, that perfect idea that explains everything and points the way to fix it all. (Just before it's tragically interrupted!)
I have to remind myself that it can't be rushed. As long as it's taken to build this mess, it's not going to be resolved after one trip to a theme park.
On the morning of the first day, the loudpeakers gave their little pep talk, juicing us up for when the gates would finally open. Nothing meaningful was said, but one phrase in particular stuck in my mind: "Celebrate Today!"
...which is said in the exact same tone of voice, same inflection, as it's said on the day previous, and the day after. It doesn't matter what excuse you choose to celebrate.
The other time I'd heard that kind of vapid sentiment was the noise from Rajneesh Puram. A bunch of people with more money than sense, happily gifting it to their guru.
There's nothing unique about this kind of observation, the "Welcome to Duloc" sequence in Shrek said it better than I can.
I was also thinking about people I know who were at Burning Man instead of where I was. I've told people who've never been that burning man is like Disneyland with cancer. Total sensory saturation, but without any imagineers to balance out the experience.
But going to the source, I realized that Disneyland has cancer too, just of a different flavor.
I was amazed at how many people can come to use the park, without it feeling oppressive. For the most part, it was kind of like an elevator experience, where we all face forward and ignore each other so we can have our relationship with Walt and his mouse. There were exactly two moments for me where that wasn't the case, but the dominant paradigm snapped back into place immediately afterwords.
This is a little bit different from burning man, where we are both the consumers and the builders of the experience. But the experience itself isn't as different as one might hope.
It's hard to figure out what to say about this... I noticed something blindingly simple, and it feels like a Fenchurch meme, that perfect idea that explains everything and points the way to fix it all. (Just before it's tragically interrupted!)
I have to remind myself that it can't be rushed. As long as it's taken to build this mess, it's not going to be resolved after one trip to a theme park.
