Disappointed

[GAN]

I'm sorry, but I truly do not understand what is so egregious about wanting more information from a business that is currently in a very moral and ethical crisis before deciding if we want to continue supporting it.

If you're disgusted by what happened and you're a DU client, a Patreon subscriber, etc., you don't think you're entitled to know if Pete is benefiting from your continued financial support of this company? You don't think you're entitled to know how the company is planning to respond to these terrible things? And also, even if you're a supporter of the boards and show, you don't think you deserve to hear from the team? It's a "privilege"? Really? So you would be okay if this entire thing was swept under the rug and forgotten about?

Now with all that being said, I am totally comfortable with giving them time and appreciate some of the responses so far, particularly Ryno's. And until evidence or the "smell test" tells me otherwise, I have no problem believing most of the people on the team had no idea what was going on.

I think everyone knows enough at this point to make their own decision ...not sure how more information would make that decision easier. Bottom line -PW opened a credit card under the business name, apparently without the authorization of the other owners, and dropped a $1M on it. The courts will decide how it plays out. Other than Patreon, what financial support what would someone be giving them? Ad revenue?Personally, I'm not ready to punish the hard work of many for the actions of one. Everyone makes their own decision.

Granted, I think most Public Relations professionals would advise that they "control the announcement" -it's never a good idea to let this be exposed by the social media megaphone. Based on the court filings, it would seem they had the opportunity and let it pass, but no one knows the internal behind the scenes or the legal avenues that are being pursued. It sounds like the "business" is being advised by some form of legal counsel and that's who's calling the shots. From this point on it's business as (close to)usual and I'm sure a statement will be forthcoming.

 

[kylenne]

Does anyone remember Pet's anti-Gay Days column from almost 20 years ago? I think he ultimately deleted from everywhere online because it got a lot of pick up and traction from the (pre-MAGA) conservative crowd. I remember it being very preachy and sanctimonious (if I recall, the crux of it was that the attendees were way too in-your-face).

If any of you internet super sleuths could find it, I'd be curious to read it again. Not related to this topic directly, but I wonder how it sounds now in hindsight with all of this.

Oh I absolutely remember it.

And tbh it does relate to the current situation, because I generally find as a multiply marginalized person that the people who scream the loudest about enforcing respectability politics and "you people are making us look bad" are the absolute worst behind closed doors.

 

[Alztybrn]

Remember… the owners of Dreams will get their cut (commission) from the vacation you booked with them (at appropriate time).

John needs to announce when PW is disinvested…

Also waiting for PW to disinvest from all that is DIS and his videos subsequently scrubbed… I do not think the DIS can continue/survive otherwise.

Will he ever admit he did anything wrong? Not likely-that goes along with the narcissistic monster behavior. (we had one in our family.)

I’ve been a member of the boards since 2004, and would watch the disunplugged videos at work during lunch every Tuesday. I remember when Dustin left. Thought nothing of it other than it was a great loss to the program, and Craig had big shoes to fill. And then the litany of other young men came and went… For me I always thought it was odd,
but the older adults stayed? The ones who knew PW for a very long time. Why? And then there was a dining review from the private room in Citroco’s . Mind blown. Big giant red flag went up then. Then a lot of things start making sense and fall into place… from then I usually did not make it past the first five minutes of the show.

Last week’s announcement sent me quickly down a rabbit hole…

What the actual…
Disgusted and saddened.

@Dustin - so very sorry.
Sean as well.
The ones that had the means and courage to leave.
…and all the other victims that have withstood abuse in various degrees… you are stronger than you think.

This is where I am wondering where things go forward. Obviously, nobody knows at this point. But, these boards and DU will not survive if PW continues to be an owner and financially benefitting from them. So, it seems obvious that John, Corey and the other owners would be interested in buying him out of his share. But, that assumes 2 big things...they are in a financial position to do so, and that Pete agrees to sell. I don't see Pete going down without a fight. The narcissism level is too high for him to admit any wrongdoing. If he doesn't agree to sell, then what?

 

[Jamie77]

That's definitely an understandable opinion, but I can safely say that is not me haha, a quick look at my posting history shows me (now embarrassingly to the point of kinda feeling bad about it) absolutely gushing over how much I loved Pete. Check out the thread I made when I met him! Check out the comment I made regarding his announcement of going to rehab this year! I cringe now thinking about how I was so fooled.

You're not the only one. I was very grateful to Pete for keeping a semblance of normalcy during the height of the pandemic by continuing the show through teleconference when no one could meet at the Bob Varley studio. I remember trying to meet him at Mousefest 2008 and still hoping I'd get to meet him some day. I looked forward to him being the voice of many during his rants against some of Disney's idiosyncrasies. But just before the scandal broke, I remember watching one of the latest shows and something he said to a panel member triggered a feeling I got when dealing with a former employer and I remember saying to myself that there was no way I could work for this guy. Now it's been confirmed why we should pay no attention to the man behind the curtain. That other site was Toto running behind the scenes to see where all that fire and smoke was coming from.

 

[JELLYROLLS4LIFE]

Those charts are so good, probably the most important chart in all of DVC (other then the point charts themselves). Important to current members planning their trips and essential to new members deciding if to buy and if so where and how much to buy depending on their plans and travel habit.

The other forum delved into this and supposedly he was doing all these charts by hand/manually and it was getting very time consuming. He had originally just did it for his own contracts/home resort but they are just so good everyone wanted him to do their home resort too. To make it easier he wanted it to host it somewhere off of Dis, not sure if he was going to monetize it (he definitely deserved it) but he really just wanted to make it easier for him to update the charts and make it as up to date as possible.

I know Pete S. pretty well. This is mostly true. Pete S. was never an employee of PW, he just came on the show because he was invited and it was fun. He was approached by another person separately to help automate the charts and they started setting up a website. Charts took a ton of time to produce (I think there were like 4 or 5 people doing them manually each month - not sure how much time it took each of them.) So he decided to set them up on a website. They went to PW with it with no real intention to monetize it. PW blew up about it that Pete S was trying to steal his business and kicked him off the show and eventually the DIS. The site is also banned from mention here as well, which is too bad because it's pretty informative even beyond the charts but not that hard to find with a search. He's involved with another DVC group on-line now which I also won't mention as I have no idea what gets you banned and what doesn't. Far from the worst thing PW did to anyone, but that's why the guy disappeared so suddenly.

 

[rmoxgt]

Even though I don't agree with everything Tonyz has said or is asking for, I don't think there is anything problematic about the request. He's acknowledging it may take time or even may never come. Also, you could get "more" just by visiting the other site, so if anything asking management to answer for the situation here is a bit more respectable than crossing the border into the gossip web and digging up anything and everything. The reason people keep going round and round with him is that they're outraged he would even ask for more. However for the most part I don't think any of the discourse has been inappropriate given how much time and money some people (maybe Tonyz) have sunk into this community.

i for one am tired of tonyz opinion. we can harp on this later, because right now everyone directly involved is going through it: “my boss/business partner is/was a SA perpetrator and my friends/coworkers/acquaintances went through this in silence”.

keep your vacations booked or don’t, many people have already decided this crosses the line for them which is perfectly fine. many others have decided they don't want to upend their vacations which is also perfectly fine. follow your heart/gut. you already know how you feel about it. some PR drafted statement from someone who shouldve known better (there i said it!) shouldnt sway you.

and please save your replies, i wont read another “yes i understand what they went through…but my vacation and as a viewer and as a subscriber…”. i can’t read those anymore. let’s agree to disagree

 

[EdmondD]

That's definitely an understandable opinion, but I can safely say that is not me haha, a quick look at my posting history shows me (now embarrassingly to the point of kinda feeling bad about it) absolutely gushing over how much I loved Pete. Check out the thread I made when I met him! Check out the comment I made regarding his announcement of going to rehab this year! I cringe now thinking about how I was so fooled.

Understood. And maybe it's that affection that's driving the desire for answers.

For the record, I always really enjoyed Pete, too (even though starting with Dustin's departure I always thought, "oh there must be a bucketload of HR violations going on in that place.").

 

[take36]

I know Pete S. pretty well. This is mostly true. Pete S. was never an employee of PW, he just came on the show because he was invited and it was fun. He was approached by another person separately to help automate the charts and they started setting up a website. Charts took a ton of time to produce (I think there were like 4 or 5 people doing them manually each month - not sure how much time it took each of them.) So he decided to set them up on a website. They went to PW with it with no real intention to monetize it. PW blew up about it that Pete S was trying to steal his business and kicked him off the show and eventually the DIS. The site is also banned from mention here as well, which is too bad because it's pretty informative even beyond the charts but not that hard to find with a search. He's involved with another DVC group on-line now which I also won't mention as I have no idea what gets you banned and what doesn't. Far from the worst thing PW did to anyone, but that's why the guy disappeared so suddenly.

Thanks for the update. I do follow Pete S. on his other podcast and website and I find it the best DVC resource out there. Pete S. always seemed like the type that just wanted to help the DVC community. Like Pete W. , he gave his opinion whether good or bad, was willing to answer questions and (unlike Pete W) consider opposing viewpoints. Please give him my best wishes, regards, and thanks for his work and I hope to hear more of him from that other podcast.

P.S. was he also part of that hardcore DVC group to found out DVD was playing around with the point charts that led to another group trying to start a lawsuit and confronting DVD at the annual meeting? That was some dedication and sleuthing to say the least.

 

[mustinjourney]

P3te Sheidle was another person that disappeared overnight from these boards and the Dis DVC shows. I never pulled the trigger but at a time I was looking at DVC his content was amazing. He's on another podcast now for DVC related content. It's entirely possible he did something that warranted banning, but at the time he was "disappeared" I politely asked what happened on these boards with a few other people, received no answer and some folks who took it a few steps further were also banned. He's another person with a username you can't even type here.

he was in the midst of starting up a DVC help website. He mentioned it to Pete, and Pete blew up on him and accused him of trying to mooch off his business (or something like that). Sounds like standard operating procedure based on other people's stories.

 

[rmoxgt]

he was in the midst of starting up a DVC help website. He mentioned it to Pete, and Pete blew up on him and accused him of trying to mooch off his business (or something like that). Sounds like standard operating procedure based on other people's stories.

SOP at The Dis: Get verbally attacked by PW for not being able to read his mind.

 

[pianomanzano]

All this back and forth about who knew what when and who needs to make statements (for the sake of deciding whether or not to continue Patreon, support Dreams Unlimited, etc). Meanwhile, Pete is getting 100% of all this increased ad revenue from the constant refreshing and posting on this 30+ page thread.

 

[ExWDWfanandCM]

i for one am tired of tonyz opinion. we can harp on this later, because right now everyone directly involved is going through it: “my boss/business partner is/was a SA perpetrator and my friends/coworkers/acquaintances went through this in silence”.

keep your vacations booked or don’t, many people have already decided this crosses the line for them which is perfectly fine. many others have decided they don't want to upend their vacations which is also perfectly fine. follow your heart/gut. you already know how you feel about it. some PR drafted statement from someone who shouldve known better (there i said it!) shouldnt sway you.

and please save your replies, i wont read another “yes i understand what they went through…but my vacation and as a viewer and as a subscriber…”. i can’t read those anymore. let’s agree to disagree

I have been following this thread (among others on a different site) but signed up to say...Bravo! Great post

 

[McCoy]

All this back and forth about who knew what when and who needs to make statements (for the sake of deciding whether or not to continue Patreon, support Dreams Unlimited, etc). Meanwhile, Pete is getting 100% of all this increased ad revenue from the constant refreshing and posting on this 30+ page thread.

I often struggle with the decision as to whether to allow ads on certain websites I frequent, including this one, but at this time I have no concerns blocking the ads on this site. ABP is a great browser addin/extension.

 

[JELLYROLLS4LIFE]

P.S. was he also part of that hardcore DVC group to found out DVD was playing around with the point charts that led to another group trying to start a lawsuit and confronting DVD at the annual meeting? That was some dedication and sleuthing to say the least.

Pretty sure he was involved in that but not the "leader" - quite a few folks here on the DIS were as well, many of whom are still here.

 

[trompettecon]

Oh I absolutely remember it.

And tbh it does relate to the current situation, because I generally find as a multiply marginalized person that the people who scream the loudest about enforcing respectability politics and "you people are making us look bad" are the absolute worst behind closed doors.

I have been off the boards for a while but came back to read what has been going on... Logged back on after reading your comment to tell you, Kylenne, that I love you.

 

[GAN]

All this back and forth about who knew what when and who needs to make statements (for the sake of deciding whether or not to continue Patreon, support Dreams Unlimited, etc). Meanwhile, Pete is getting 100% of all this increased ad revenue from the constant refreshing and posting on this 30+ page thread.

It's pure genius is what your saying?

 

[DLgal]

I often struggle with the decision as to whether to allow ads on certain websites I frequent, including this one, but at this time I have no concerns blocking the ads on this site. ABP is a great browser addin/extension.

I haven't posted to these boards with any frequency over the last week or 2 since I first heard about this whole, disgusting situation.

For the benefit of all the people who have not read through the story on the other site:

Pete makes ALL his income off being affiliated with the DIS, DUT, Moving to Orlando, and all affiliates. He gets a massive check from Google every month. Not just based on ad clicks, but PAGE clicks and You Tube views from his various channels. Just being here, reading and posting or clicking puts money in his pocket. He takes a cut of every Dreams trip commision.

Until it is announced officially that he has sold his interest in all these companies, he is still benefiting financially from all the activities. So just be aware of that and make your choices according to your personal moral compass on the matter.

I'm only going to post once here and say my thoughts are with Sean, Dustin, and ANYONE ELSE who was victimized by this sorry excuse for a human being. I fully support the rest of the current public facing team and hope they are able to find or create better places of employment where they are free from the control of a narcissistic abuser.

 

[ainswokp]

It's pure genius is what your saying?

We're so close to a false flag conspiracy post.

 

[rmoxgt]

We're so close to a false flag conspiracy post.

WELL THEN IM CONVINCED

i'm running back to the forum-which-must-not-be-named then, see ya!

 

[rchristiansen]

All this back and forth about who knew what when and who needs to make statements (for the sake of deciding whether or not to continue Patreon, support Dreams Unlimited, etc). Meanwhile, Pete is getting 100% of all this increased ad revenue from the constant refreshing and posting on this 30+ page thread.

Don’t worry. Ad revenue that has been accumulated for this thread is probably like $0.15