I also think you did a good job handling it peacefully.

Having said that, I wonder to what degree one really has control beyond the verbal warning that is issued.

What I mean is that what if the guy (who was clearly not right in the head) was really crazy (drugs? psycho?), and the situation is escalated?

Would it be better to have taken your family and walk away? (I'm not saying this is what you should have done, but rather pose the question since I wonder about this stuff a lot.)
The legal problems that could follow, etc...

Wow, great composure. I know that your children are small, but you set a great example for not escalating a potentially ugly issue.

quote:

Originally posted by Black92LX:

quote:

Originally posted by BenderRodriguez:
"He then turns to my wife and advances on her pretty quickly with his index and ring finger pointed at her face."


I tried pointing using those two fingers and I guess the tendons in my hand aren't conditioned to act like a tough guy.

Sorry, it was late or autocorrect got me.
Should be index and middle finger.

Which, BTW, is how Disney instructs their personnel to point--apparently just using the index finger (as most of us do) is considered obscene in some cultures.

flashguy

You handled it perfectly. If he touched her, it would have been a whole new ballgame for that unfortunate guy.

Black92LX, good on you for maintaining Situational Awareness! and for keeping your cool when you needed to. It would've been incredibly easy to emotionally over-react and cause the situation to rapidly deteriorate.

Even if your wife had defensive training I imagine her options would have been limited to a defensive response (trying to escape, tucking in to protect the baby from any physical attack), given the baby on her chest. I've never given this scenario any thought before.

I haven't been to Disney in probably 30 years or more. I'm assuming that legally carried handguns are prohibited...any other weapons allowed? Knives, batons etc...?

quote:

Originally posted by FishOn:
You handled it perfectly. If he touched her, it would have been a whole new ballgame for that unfortunate guy.

this.

just not much upside to getting physical unless it is ABSOLUTELY necessary

even if you win - you can still lose BIGLY

---------------------------------------

A few years ago, Disney FL did not have magnetometers to check guests. Has that changed?

I don’t know WTF is wrong with people these days. It’s a sad commentary when a woman can’t take her children to a venue specifically designed for little kids, without being accosted by miscreants.

Sorry you had to deal with this. The last time I attended one of their theme parks I was being paid. I will never again spend my own money to go to any of their facilities.

quote:

Originally posted by irreverent:
Did your wife hear what was said? How did she respond? How fricking awful to have that happen, esp at Disney.
With her baby physically on her, she would have been defenseless.
What an ahole, and what a bitch to say something so snarky instead of trying to make room. Sad.

She did and replied, saying it has nothing to do with needing glasses but a grown adult standing directly in front of a 5yo in a stroller when there are other places to stand.

quote:

Originally posted by TigerDore:
It sounds like you handled it really well. The only thing I would have possibly added is to report them to security and find out if the family-oriented park has a policy regarding profanity.

So did this woman just walk up and stand in front of your son?



.

Yup, stood directly in front of him sitting in the stroller. He could have kicked her that is how close she was. It was crowded but plenty of other places for an adult to stand.

quote:

Originally posted by Modern Day Savage:
Black92LX, good on you for maintaining Situational Awareness! and for keeping your cool when you needed to. It would've been incredibly easy to emotionally over-react and cause the situation to rapidly deteriorate.

Even if your wife had defensive training I imagine her options would have been limited to a defensive response (trying to escape, tucking in to protect the baby from any physical attack), given the baby on her chest. I've never given this scenario any thought before.

I haven't been to Disney in probably 30 years or more. I'm assuming that legally carried handguns are prohibited...any other weapons allowed? Knives, batons etc...?

Correct on the prohibitions. I do carry a flashlight with pretty wicked bezel. I drop it in the tray at the metal detectors and no one has said anything.
But the big Cobra buckle on my belt has yet to set it off either.

Certainly would have been interesting had he actually touched her. Pretty sure my first move would be to shuffle the fam along. But we were on Main Street in the middle of the fireworks so shuffling the wife and 2 in strollers would have been a bit of a task.
If he followed in any fashion I have no doubt I would have taken him to the pavement.
Fortunately we did not make it there. Still pissed at the situation. The woman running her trap ohh well but a fella stepping in to curse and yell at a lady carrying a baby and one in a stroller.
He had no clue I was with her until I stepped to his face. Pretty sure If I was standing right next to them he would have likely said nothing as he was certainly taken back when I stepped up.

quote:

Originally posted by Sig2340:
When we were in Paris I had an aggressive African street vendor of Chinese produced Eiffel tower miniatures make a move toward my eight year old daughter as if he was going to be grabbing her wrist.

I said to him "Have you no further use for that arm?"

He erupted in English with words to the effect of "You crazy fucking Americans think you can get away with anything."

The bottom line was he backed off and did not touch my child and I did not have to defend her and all was well.

Often a verbal warning will cause even the most ardent idiot to reconsider what they were doing.

Good on you.

The Nigerians in Tokyo who are trying to get tourists to enter various clubs, shops, and restaurants behave similarly, with little regard for personal space.

quote:

Originally posted by Fenris:
A few years ago, Disney FL did not have magnetometers to check guests. Has that changed?

When we went in 2006 and 2011, they did not. By summer 2016, they did. We went right on the heels of the Orlando nightclub shooting. That may be the event that upped their security screening. In both ‘16 and ‘17, the metal-detector pass-through was random. After all guests with bags had those thoroughly checked, both those guests and those without bags were randomly (or, perhaps not-so-randomly) selected to go through the detector.

Next time show him your war face.

Ahh, the happiest place on earth!

Wouldn’t it have just been easier to move the stroller to avoid the obstruction and confrontation?

quote:

Originally posted by HuskySig:
Wouldn’t it have just been easier to move the stroller to avoid the obstruction and confrontation?

Fireworks had already begun and no real place for a person and a stroller to go without becoming the obstruction and the child in the stroller still being able to see.
Much easier for a single grown adult to position themselves better.

Not as easy as it would be to read the posts in the thread

quote:

Originally posted by Modern Day Savage:
I haven't been to Disney in probably 30 years or more. I'm assuming that legally carried handguns are prohibited...any other weapons allowed? Knives, batons etc...?

Weapons verboten, I bring a EDC light w/bezel, security doesn't bat an eye. They've had a couple arrests pertaining to pistols that freaked-out upper management/marketing ergo, metal detectors and no more weapons storage for resort guests with CCL. Being private property they're free to enforce their rules, this also applies to medical; happiest place on earth doesn't want to ruin the magic with sirens and ambulances on park property. I believe there was a lawsuit that went all the way to a judgement regarding Disney's emergency medical practices.

To OP: good on you for stepping up but not flipping the switch. Hope your wife wasn't too shaken. Would've been a good idea to go to Guest Services and vent, put it on them to 'create a safe environment at the happiest place on earth'. There was this guy at one of the walk-up restaurants who was being a giant ass, he had a cooler bag, banging into things and knocked my elbow spilling half of the contents of my lunch tray. He starts barking that I was in his way, I put everything down and got ready. Somebody called security and he was 'escorted away', naturally Disney didn't help me out with the spilled food, family was a bit hungry and I was worked-up; corndog lunch that day.

Sounds like you handled the situation very well.

quote:

Originally posted by 46and2:
What's wrong with people?

Where do we start?