I contemplated posting this for a good 2 hours or so. I always like to avoid drama, but he makes some really good points.
An Open Letter to the Brony Community
Bring back the love!
(Feel free to discuss it in the comments, but please don't send me your versions :3)
769 comments:
"I actually do agree with Fon though. To think that furries actually compare fandumb "fursecution" to anti-semitism, the holocaust, and persectution of other religions actually makes me wanna puke."
ReplyDeleteI've only ever heard people like you say that furries claim that. I've never once heard a furry claim that comparison themselves and even if they did, that's a problem with that individual and not the community as a whole.
ok guys, im slightly dissapointed.
ReplyDeletefon shoalin is being a dick. dont argue this, you are being a dick.
but what you guys are forgetting to ask is why? why is he being kind of an ass?
he is scared and worried right now. he is worried that the fandom will fall.
when one of your freinds is scared and worried you COMFORT THEM. as funny as that back and forth using images from 0r0ch1 and fon shaolin was, we do need to remember to treat our freinds well. THATS WHAT WILL KEEP THIS SHITBOAT OF OURS FROM SINKING.
im not mad, just dissapointed.
I'm not really into the whole synchtube thing.
ReplyDeleteDiscussing whether one channel is better than another when they both are virtually identical is ridiculous and this kind of discussions are everywhere. It is not nice but it is barely controllable (like the flame wars between Debian and Ubuntu and other distributions in the Linux universe).
Ignoring the trolls is always the best option.
Regarding furries... They always exist somewhere. They always find something new, especially when there is something animal-related like ponies here.
I kinda tolerate some art, if and only if they are aesthetic and not sexualized. And if there is no spammming on the image boards.
I do not tolerate when these "furry" trolls post their stereotypically furry stuff onto ponychan or poniboruu (questionable and explicit tags are some kind very helpful).
It is not really a good place for such kind of pictures.
I want to say that these guys should respect the others and stop behaving like "fags".
In my opinion you should respect everyone and their feelings before you can make friends with them. After this step friendship could be really magic.
Although the letter's points have been argued to some extent (and some quite reasonably) in the comments about it, there are a few out of context points which it helped bring up.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I do agree there may be a point where a line must be drawn as far as what is tolerated, this is only for things that are unnecessary or do not need to be said. Just because you now have a shrine of x character in your home which you worship and pray to everyday does not mean you have to tell everyone about it. As stated, there aren't just adults here and although it's the internet and it's bound to happen, we don't need to be the ones who ruined the little fillies' mind. In short, diarrhea of the mouth is unnecessary and leads to giving the community more than they needed to know. It's okay to like whatever you like, just don't find it necessary to share every little bit of your life.
The other point being that yes, this place is built on love and tolerance, and yes, the general niceness among the people should be there, but there's a point where love and toleration is just as childish. We can love the community and we should tolerate all of it's bronies but taking that a step too far leads you to cross those borders that didn't need to be crossed in the first place. It may have seemed like a heroic deed, putting his name, state, e-mail, etc. and made a strong point, but what did that really do? In essence, he potentially put himself in danger, regardless of how little danger it was for no reason other than to attempt being a martyr for the brunt of the community and the impact it made. Just because you love and tolerate doesn't mean everyone will follow suit. Aside from this, if we all started following this "we're all proud and not afraid" spiel, potential new foals and the young fillies are going to think that it's okay to start putting their information out there because it's a way to fight the internet trolls.
TL;DR: Be a My Little Pony Fan, be proud of it, but don't share EVERYTHING about your life. Remember to love and tolerate, but remember to act like an adult too.
I'm sick of this. It's 5:20 and I have an exam tomorrow at 3pm. I don't need to convince anyone of anything tonight because, in the future, my points will be shown as the truth when you have people's fursonas fucking your favorite MLP characters.
ReplyDeleteI can only hope blogpony keeps that shit off Equestria Daily.
Personally, i think Mbulsht trolled the shit out of everyone. I've never seen such trench warfare in quite a while. Brings a tear to my eye in memories of past battles.
ReplyDeleteHmmm... I'm starting to think posting things like this on ED is a bad idea.
ReplyDeleteThe conversation has meaning and all and the letter has merit, but ED gets a bit more traffic than anywhere else I know of in this fandom.
It probably ought to try to stay above discussions like these, just so it stays a cleaner place.
(Ain't saying either side is right or wrong, just that I'm thinking more and more ED isn't the place for this.)
PONY IS LEGION
ReplyDeleteMy favorite pony ever is Rainbow Dash because she reminds me of some of the members of our community. Even though they may seem like jerks sometimes, they're actually nice people who deserve to be loved and tolerated like the rest of us.
ReplyDelete...Yeah, I'm looking at you, Fon Shaolin.
@Fon Shaolin
ReplyDeleteGood luck with your exam!
@BronieBrown
ReplyDeleteGosalia is the best duh! It has DNS cache!
Sorry, couldn't resist, being a Linux nerd and all. :D
@Bibo Neat! Pleasure talking to you too, good sir.
ReplyDeleteAs for pr0n and such: really no defense there that I know of - doesn't interest me, doesn't bother me - other than, like, not hang out on /b/. Ponychan and ED have solid enough filters for that stuff.
@ Fon Shaolin
ReplyDeleteYou seem to somehow think you need to defend the FiM fandom from whatever threat you percieve, and convince everyone who disagrees of your preminition.
I'm not saying you're fundamentally wrong or anything. But you can't change the course (or keep it on track) of a whole community of tens of thousands by arguing like this.
Considering your statement that you're up at 5:30 when you have an exam at 15:00, you really should reconsider if this is really a good use of your time.
Why is everyone pulling this out of proportion?
ReplyDeleteIt's just a public request for netiquette, nothing more.
Was it improperly executed? Yes.
There are several problems with the letter: You can just ask me to be nicer without trying to force my hand with gestures of martyrdom and revealing your real name so they can troll you and you can "suffer for the good of the community".
If I chose to heed the call for niceness, its my call. If I don't, it's also my call.
How can you lecture on tact when you can't address people tactfully in the first place? Much less then decorate the sum with a call for integrity - because by then i'll be looking at your sense of integrity and I'm afraid you fall short of your own standard.
Show tact by proposing things, not demanding them. Ask me to nice but don't Tell me to be nice. You do not control me, I'm free to reject all emotional and rational appeals if I chose to.
I'm not a furry, nor have I ever been, and I doubt I will ever be. I don't get their culture, I think it's weird, and I'd never be a part of it. And yet, I have absolutely no problems online or in real life. Good job Mr. Sims for taking a stand for love and friendship. I love you all. Good night.
ReplyDeleteI ha.. I mean.. tolerate you Blogger, for eating my long-flank post! Agh! Now to type something else..
ReplyDeleteFon Shaolin? Lay off it. Orochi is one of those artists who not only puts out a ton of art, both clean and Rule 34, but makes half of it to get "wtf" reactions out of people. Like what he linked to you. Stop taking stuff so seriously, you're acting like he just told you Santa doesn't exist or something and you're 5.
As for furry drama, the best way to solve it? Send in other furries. They're pretty much the best at trolling their own. There's entire communities on LJ and elsewhere dedicated to pointing & laughing at the crazy / disgusting stuff some people put out there. I don't normally mention I'm a furry to anyone BECAUSE of all the weirdos in the fandom, but most of us are quiet and normal who just happen to like x character designs.
Not all furries are fursuiters. And even those who are, only some actually take it beyond cosplay into the creepy zone. People who want to do inappropriate things to animals aren't furries, they're damn zoo-whateverishists and get reported to the police ASAP if found. etc. etc.
tl;dr: Furry fandom encompasses almost everything, so complaining about it isn't gonna accomplish anything. Just stick to mocking the weird ones (which other furries do too!) and then there will only be "standard Internet drama levels", nothing more, nothing less.
Again, I had a whole bunch to say about the ACTUAL topic but freakin' Blogger ate my post.. :(
-- Aramaru, aramaru.livejournal.com , since logging-in isn't working)
@Fon Shaolin
ReplyDeleteI do hope blogpony keeps you off ED
now take your fail into the exam with you, because with your mind towards things it looks like you don't need grades
@Vela
ReplyDeleteHmm, well put!
:thumbsup:
@Anonymous Fon Shaolin is actually providing the best example of the people he's crusading against - an outspoken minority who's out to dig up drama and stereotypes, and ignores the rest of the communities out there in claims that everything is going to hell in a handbasket.
ReplyDeleteI say over 3.5 million hits to a site that's sharing a fandom like this says otherwise.
Yeah, Best to lock the comments Seth.
ReplyDeletehttp://ponibooru.413chan.net/post/view/1917
It took about 2 hours for someone to call someone else Hitler.
ReplyDeleteDramatastic.
I thought that Cottonmouth was the most hateful member of our little fandom, but Fon is giving him a run for his money.
This is my first fandom as such. I've enjoyed things before, but never taken part in a community.
I came from /b/, so I probably enjoy drama, fights, and trolling more than most here. This whole thread has been very entertaining for me, and I love how many people have made utter asses of themselves (And after this post, we can add one more to the list!)
I enjoy clopfics and grimdark. I enjoy all sorts of depravity. They're amusing at the very least.
That's about all I have to say about that.
@Fon Shaolin - I disagree with your points, but it would be very hypocritical of me, after reading that letter, not to offer you a hoof of friendship. I suggest you go to sleep so you can do well on your exam. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteNew poll up! Go vote!
ReplyDeleteThis site is a democracy!
Today for the first time I saw mlp rule 34 on EQUESTRIA DAILY!
ReplyDeleteGet that stuff out of here Orochi, there are fillies present.
I voted no, it's interesting this thread
ReplyDelete@Sethisto - If the forums should be locked, it's only because it's freaking late and we should be going to sleep. However, discussion on things like this is necessary for the healing process to begin. Also, Twilight Sparkle.
ReplyDelete@Fire.Esper
ReplyDeleteThen I bid you a good night my good man, and I hope that a squadron of vaginas meet your crotch by days end (The Oatmeal).
I've been going to /b/ less and less for the pony threads and lately because the server have had nothing but trouble for the past few months. I've been going to Fillydelphia for images and inspiration, and ED for some stories. I've actually begun on my most artistic project yet, and ponies have become my subject matter.
Well I'm off to bed, I bid adieu to all my fellow bronies.
Oh look it's Godwin's Law.
ReplyDeleteWhile this drama was some nice amusement to spend my free time on, can everyone just be the better person and stop? I'm serious. go back to writing that disgusting clopfic, go back to being ridiculously intolerant to other people v just because the do the aforementioned or just go back to watching the show or something.
I don't recommend locking it. Stopping people from speaking their mind at this point won't do any good. It'll stop the yelling and argument temporarily, but it's not going to do anything in regards to silencing the root cause of the yelling in the first place.
ReplyDeleteIf anything, it's just going to leave those who still wanted to talk frustrated.
Those who want to stop talking and stop reading should do just that: Just stop. For many of us it's past 2, 3, 4, 5:30 in the morning. If you don't want to be here, get some rest. Just know that everything'll be better in the morning.
@mariomarc Internet Police has it all under control. Sleep well, citizen. We love you too.
ReplyDelete@Anonymous Valid point. But how do you communicate something like this? And is it really worry, or just irrational hatred? It's very hard to sympathize with someone who's, well, being a douche.
@Fon Shaolin Get some rest. We'll just watch over the fandom while you're gone. ;)
No, honestly, I know it'll sound like a mad idea, but "furries" have never ruined anything: it's just not physically possible. There are no ways to do that. It can't happen. No matter what you think about them.
In fact, Sonic and other fandoms you mentioned are quite alive and well, and FIM fandom itself is already indistinguishable - as I mentioned - from "furry" one in almost every regard.
Let go of your hate. Just have fun. I know this fandom will welcome you with open hands if you decide to just be nice and, based on that, I think furry one would too. 4chan... Not so much.
Good luck with your exam. Remember, school/college/university genuinely sucks, it's not just you. We've all been there.
well my mind is clear since it's only 7:40PM here
ReplyDeleteMm, Twilight Sparkle dominating the polls.
ReplyDeleteToo bad there's not a way to just change the text on every post into something friendship related.
While the love and tolerate the shit out of bronies has so far been the "enforced" rule by the majority of the community, I think it's getting time to ban the conflictive individuals, for the sake of peace rather than censoring.
ReplyDeleteRegardless of perception in what should and shouldn't be part of the community, in terms of furries, shipping, straight pairings, gay pairings, grimdark or etcetera, there seem to be a number of individuals arguing for the sake of argument (Fon Shaolin), most notoriously, which is in time degrading into flame wars back and forth of opinions.
Someone said that One's right and liberty ends where the others' begins. Much as both sides of the conflict have points in their favor and against, neither seem willing to concede that their view isn't universal, which is only leading to escalating conflicts, in a place that, by its nature, really shouldn't have to act as battleground in detriment of the community.
@Ebon Mane Usually takes less than 30 minutes when I'm around.
ReplyDeleteThis was actually shockingly civil, and the negative feedback to trolls is actually quite heart-warming.
@Bibo That is awesome... And also scary, because the only thing that comes to mind is Vagineer.
You won't be the first or the last to give their inner artist a nudge because of the show, either. It's a blessing, really.
May your dreams be filled with most colourful ponies.
huh... people left and it simmered down. other than the one drama queen who called fon shaolin hitler (come on, hes not bad just scared) this wasnt too meanspirited. could have been worse.
ReplyDeletenice job guys.
@Fire.Esper
ReplyDeleteOne last comment and I'm gone - you can't understand what it's like to see a fandom go down the drain until you've watched several do it. I've been writing fan fiction since 06 and I've seen the fall of many a great fandom because of OC bullshit, AUs, mary sues, and other things that furries disproportionately bring to a fandom. If we're talking about one specific furry-only thing I don't like, it's the fursonas (which are technically OCs) that detract from the main cast.
So, really, it's not completely furries, it's just the baggage that undeniably follows them around. We're already seeing massive original character stories on here -right now- and it's only increasing.
And to the moran who said I need to sleep instead of post on here, I'm writing out my study sheet and posting during breaks. No way am I staying up to 5am just to defend a fandom, no matter how much I enjoy it. :p
@Anonymous It's a problem that can be solved, just as it could be in real world, with nothing more than bureaucracy.
ReplyDeleteAnd by "bureaucracy" I mean: proper content filters. You know, like [Grimdark] or [Normal] tags on stories. That way everyone can like what they like and not be bothered by what they don't.
After some careful thinking on what exactly I wanted wanted to say I guess it is best summed up in the Simple words of love and tolerance. The man is write we shouldn't fight among each others, for better or worse we are all bronies. I understand that many of us have different ideas or beliefs,but I personally believe we should set aside that and simple enjoy what we do have in common. I have a philosophy when it comes to the internet, simply if you dont like it dont click on it. Simple as that, I personally dont like shipping or when characters are simply out of character, so I simply dont read fan fiction that includes the tags shipping. We should all try to capture the point of the letter and the show and be nicer towards each other, lest we want to be separated like so many other fandoms. With that in mind I wish to all the best of fortune and wish you all a good night.
ReplyDelete@Anonymous - The problem with banning people who 'disturb the peace' is, where do we draw the line? Systems like this always turn out alright at first, but eventually someone is going to decide that shipping or what have you 'disturbs the peace' or otherwise offend them and be able to get that content banned. That system only works well for the majority and ignores the minority.
ReplyDeleteThis guy is completely right, we all need to just be accepting of everyone else in our community and realize that we're all fellow bronies here and need to stick together. Sure, some of us go deeper into the fandom by being furries or liking shipping or grimdark, but you have to realize that, even within our community, there will still be people who are different than you, like the show for other reasons, or that you just plain don't like. When this happens, it's your responsibility as a brony to just love and tolerate it. Wether that means ignoring certain content, restraining yourself, or just flat out swallowing your hate, it will help out the community and even you.
ReplyDeleteNow I'll admit, I'm a furry, in fact, I'm a HUGE furry, and pretty much anyone who knows me knows that. Hell, multiple people who are reading these comments know me personally, some in person, and while most aren't furries as well and don't enjoy everything that appeals to me, does that make either of us a bad person? No. Does that mean we are ruining the community by not having the same opinions? No, not at all. I just have to realize that some people don't like that kind if stuff, and therefor not force them to look at that art or read that story, and just find a happy medium where you both enjoy it.
Sure, people are going to get offended once in a while, or someone is going to slip up and go too far, but that's where the second part comes in. We have to love and tolerate it. Understand that nopony is perfect and that there will always be disagreements once in a while, and just get over it. If someone posts something you don't approve of or just don't like, ignore it. If you must, ask politely for them too stop or to be more aware of your feelings of the matter. If they don't agree and keep trying, shame on them, that's a terrible attitude and NOT the way a brony should act.
Basically what I'm saying is that, regardless of what you and other bronies enjoy, you have to be sensible of everypony else's feelings and be accepting. If you're a furry, share your furry stuff with other furry bronies. If you're into grimdark, share the grimdark stuff with the other grimdark fans. Just don't try to force your ideals into everypony else and let them enjoy the fandom in the way they like it, that way everyone will get the most out of the community.
@Ravell
ReplyDeleteThank you, kind sir.~
@Fon Shaolin
ReplyDeleteSonic is still alive, so I don't know where you got that from
@Fon Shaolin
ReplyDeleteSonic is still alive, so I don't know where you got that from
Wait a minute. Fon, did you just seriously say that this stance you have is because you don't like original fan creations? Is it the bad ones you are talking about? The good ones? Why would you even be against that in the first place? Seriously, we want to know because that seems like a really extreme stance.
ReplyDelete@Fire.Esper
ReplyDeleteProblem is, there are still certain individuals that don't seem -or don't want- to grasp the concept people can like/dislike things they do/don't, for which attacking the other group appears to be the best course of action regardless of the consequences, most times resulting in higher detriment to the "fandom" or "the community" that would happen if they chose to simply not click things they don't like.
Removing said individuals of the equation, regardless of their right/wrong-ness in the matter, when proven the rest of the community will stick to what they like in a proper tagged context seems to be an appropriate solution.
so furries should be allowed to do whatever the want and people not liking furries should shut up?
ReplyDelete@Anonymous
ReplyDeletethat's about it, do you have an issue with that?
I don't think it was ever really a matter of whether or not they existed, but more the fact that there are a vocal group who don't want them to exist instead of letting them be.
ReplyDelete@Anonymous more like a "shut up, both of you (furries/anties), and let the rest of us keep watching the show"
ReplyDeleteThanks to the author for reminding the community of its roots.
ReplyDeleteOn that note, I feel that a lot of this "hate" we have seen stems from preference and overinvolvement: simply arguing too vehemently about distinctions that we ourselves have created.
"Which mane character is your favorite?" or “Which synchtube is the best?” are questions that create a dilemma where there was none. Also, you can’t force an emotional preference on people; so the arguments that often ensue are pointless.
@Fon Shaolin In case you missed it, I'm a furry: I've been around since before the fandom meaningfully started up - about 98 - and way long before it was hated. Growing up from a few dozen individuals posting on news bulletins to hundreds of dedicated sites with submission rates of couple hundred thousand a day, from being unknown to universally hated... Yes, that.
ReplyDeleteAnd guess what? It's still alive and well. The artists I loved from the beginning are still around. Good fans are still around.
Sure, now there's lots of weird stuff and lots of whiners and trolls... But that's what happens when what is 0,01% is now a thousand people.
This isn't death of a fandom. It's just the beginning.
Furries can't kill it even if they could: it's just not possible. There's no lever anyone can pull. There is, however, a ton of good artists that help it grow: think twice before expressing your dislike for them. That guy who linked you that pr0n pic? He's also responsible for no less than 50 very well-drawn and genuinely adorable drawfriend posts.
Concentrate on that exam for now. We can wait.
The writer of that latter has some brass ones.
ReplyDelete@Jack Pipsam
ReplyDeleteThat's not really fair though.
In all honesty, EVERYONE should shut up.
To me, this debate strongly mirrors a real-world one - the Gay Rights debate. The shippers and furries and grimdarkers play the role of the gays. If you look at a lot of the arguments against them, they are very similar to anti-gay arguments - 'They're forcing their lifestyle upon us' etc. And just like in the real world argument, this one comes down to - will you take away someone else's rights because they like different things than you?
ReplyDeleteThis calls for a fandom survey!
ReplyDelete@Jack papsam
ReplyDeleteso throw freedom of expression out of the window? if you're gonna allow all kinds of furry expression you should also allow all kinds of vocal expression.
you cannot selectively mute a certain group.
@Anonymous The argument works both ways.
ReplyDeleteWhat some bronies don't seem to grasp is that they have as much right to their opinions on what and what shouldn't be of the community than every other brony does.
@Anonymous Furries should be able to enjoy the fandom however they want, yes, but they shouldn't try and force their own ideas on to the people who don't like that kind if stuff. They can enjoy it and talk about it with the people who also enjoy it instead.
ReplyDeleteEveryone else should then just accept the fact that those specific people like that kind of stuff and tolerate it. They don't have to look at, read, or enjoy anything the others do, they just need to ignore the parts of the fandom they don't enjoy, not go against it and shut it down.
@Anonymous
ReplyDeleteAgreed. While the subject is just a fandom or two on the internet, the fact that there is hatred and prejudice is a serious issue. Those things can be very harmful for society in a whole. Mind you, it's an age old struggle, but it's still an issue.
Please stop comparing furries etc. to Jews and the gay community, people aren't killed for being furries on the interweb.
ReplyDelete@Anonymous they actually have been, in some cases, but that's neither here nor there.
ReplyDeleteWell said, Z'zgashi. After all, this is what ED has tags for, isn't it?
ReplyDelete@Anonymous
ReplyDeleteFurrys are not going at you for not been a furry, why should you go at them for being a furry.
@Anonymous
ReplyDeleteThat's a rather shallow way of looking at it, if you don't mind me saying. This is a different scale of intolerance, no one's getting killed, but the nature behind it is the same.
Because its their right to assault anyone for being anything.
ReplyDeleteFreedom of expression at its logical extreme, means that verbal oppression is ethically valid.
@Jack Pipsam
ReplyDeleteYou are still imposing limit on someone's expression for an arbitrary reason.
As the saying goes: It's easier to break something down than build it up.
ReplyDeleteWithout getting too tl:dr and profound: It's the difference between pleasure and happiness. While most of the other stuff out there can get a quick laugh outta you, a moment of pleasure, the effects can die out almost immediately. MLP just makes you feel good about everything and yourself, and geniunly tends to cheer you up, even after a bad day, and even long after the episode is over.
The reason why I like this show, and like this fandom, is because it has all been in good fun thus far. No one has really had to feel bad for me to feel good, and that's pretty unique.
Should My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic be swept up in furry culture just because furries happen to like it? I say thee neigh.
ReplyDeleteThey can like what they like, but people should be allowed to not like what furries like.
FYI horse puns add credence to whatever you say, everypony get on that.
@Anonymous Yes, it's pretty much the same, because it's the same damn thing: society just doesn't like new things, anything that's out of its rigid social order. Every single other fandom - hello rock n' roll, "music of the devil" - or social group has gone through it, or is going through it.
ReplyDeleteWe just kinda suck that way. "Kings of the world" my ass.
Say, I don't read Grimdark, but I'll be the first to stand up to writer's defense. Writing is hard work, pals.
I have things to say about this.
ReplyDeleteI'm a therian. I've mentioned this before, and I'm passionate about it. I'm not going to be elitist and rub it in anyone's face, I barely ever mention it, but I am. It's part of me.
A while back I had a bit of a breakdown and became somewhat mentally ill. It was a mixture of things. Like, for one thing, discovering that a piece of my brain is actually missing, and that the conditions I suffer with because of that will never go away. What I suffer with is fairly unpleasant, and I'll be dealing with it for the rest of my life.
The most supportive people who've helped me throughout that time? Therians, otherkin, and furries. This is why I'm fairly pro-furry. I don't know what it is, but it seems that every person who's genuinely creative and something of a romanticist (as many people of those communities are) have suffered themselves, they have sympathy and empathy in spades.
Without their help, I'd still be a broken pile of pieces, the way I was left after that little revelation.
What has a furry hater ever done for anyone? They're a ball with the vitriol, so they're good for a laugh, yeah? But what have they ever actually done to help anyone? Honestly? Most of the furry haters I've encountered are nasty little balls of hate, sociopathic to the core, and usually misogynistic and racist to boot.
Furries have their drama, yeah, they can be bloody embarrassing at times and we all know it, but then, so can I. So can anyone. But I find less hate there than I do from other communities, such as the gamer community.
So those who hate furries might just want to ask themselves what they've ever done for anyone, and if perhaps their hate is simply who they are? I won't hate them for it, but if you're going to hate that much, then you might want to just step back and take a look at your life and your values.
I'd say the same thing to misogynists and racists alike.
Sometimes, if you're full of hate for something, you just have to step back and ask why. Usually the reason for it is something completely ridiculous. Like, say, xenophobia. Which really isn't a good reason at all when you think about it.
And this is a community that's supposed to practise tolerance. They've shown me tolerance, and so, in turn, I have no small amount of love for them. It's only fair, isn't it?
There's so much suffering in the world, so much nasty shit going down all the time, and on top of that we have these pointless, petty hatreds. Can we please set those aside, at least?
We're all friends here, right?
I'm DuskWolf, and I wholeheartedly support the sentiment of the open letter.
@Anonymous - this is exactly what I'm talking about when I compare this to the Gay Rights issue. People who say, 'We should not be forced to believe what they believe' because they are scared that they're being invaded when in reality the other side just wants to coexist.
ReplyDeleteProblem is, everyone's making ad hominem arguments, both the furries and their haters, without so much a proper argument on the topic. Rather, all I've read so far are attacks on the people behind the comments from one or the other side, and the throwing back and forth of the same line, over and over again.
ReplyDeleteAnon @3:05 am, do you hate a particular food? What do you do when encountering it at a grocery store? do you walk to another section and get what you like; or do you pick it up, take it home, eat it, flip shit, and go back to the store to beat the manager's brains in?
ReplyDelete@Anonymous I think gay people are perfectly right to voice their concerns about treated as second-class citizens even if they're not being killed, for one. Did you know being ostracized is a form of torture and psychological warfare?..
ReplyDeleteThis isn't about gays or furries, either. You'll go through it too. Yes, you, bronies. Zeus help you.
Discounting /b/tards and trolls, an average furry is not hated by anyone. Everyone has their own weird ass quirks. But when someone gets on their damn soapbox and starts waving their furflag in everyone's faces, THAT shit is where problems start. Unfortunately for furry fandom, their most vocal minority is batshit insane bunch with a severe case of fursecution complex.
ReplyDelete@3:11 anon
ReplyDeletefirst of all, nice ad hominem there.
second, I believe in ultimate freedom of expression ON THE INTERNET. so don't even bother making an IRL analogy.
and third, you're comparing someone expressing their hatred by means of text to assaulting a store manager. I mean really?
@Anonymous Which is only made worse by the other's side vocal minority, which combats their martyr's complex with... persecution.
ReplyDeletePinkie Pie's definitely my favourite pony. You know, she once sang a song in this bustling little town in the desert. I think it was about this fanbase, and how everyone can find a way to fit into it. Augh, but how did it go? The chorus went... "You gotta ......." something, "You gotta" something else. Does any brony here remember how the chorus of that song went?
ReplyDelete@Anonymous you realize he's expressing his own ultimate freedom of expression too, regardless of whatever he says, right?
ReplyDelete@DuskWolf Cor aut mors.
ReplyDeleteIt's a bigger issue than just Internet fandoms, much bigger. It's great to see at least someone find a helping hand.
Good luck, brony!
@BronyMike
ReplyDeleteIndeed. ...indeed!
*applause.*
@ 3:16 anon
ReplyDeleteI know, do you see me saying he should not have expressed it? I merely stated that his "argument" holds no ground.
Internet and real life... the two are closer together than you think. It's a real life connection between real people on real computers typing in reality.
ReplyDelete@Anonymous at 3:15 - the analogy is sound. What he's saying is, just like nobody's forcing you to buy that food in the real world, nopony's forcing you to become a furry online. There's been no 34 content posted to this site (to my knowledge) and the only way you can find 34 stuff is if you actively look for it.
ReplyDelete@Anonymous I never said you said he shouldn't have expressed it, either.
ReplyDelete@Anonymous It can happen to the best of us. And also worst of us. And also all of us.
ReplyDelete@BronyMike "Just laugh and make it disappear?.." No, wait, that's not the one...
I don't really care what everybrony does in his or her spare time, but I'm all up for a group hug and cupcakes with every single brony here, I'm going to love and tolerate you!
ReplyDelete@BronyMike Winter wrap up, winter wrap up!
ReplyDelete@Fire.Esper
ReplyDeleteYeah, I'd always had a few friends from those communities and it was they who were there for me really when I got... more than a little bit strange. Discovering that part of your brain is missing and that you'll pretty much never be the same as anyone else will do that to you.
And they seemed to be able to tolerate it better than most, perhaps because they're just used to people being strange, and having people being friendly despite my personality doing a complete 180 was helpful for me on the road to recovery.
Without that... I don't like to think where I'd have been.
Just a little thing about the "Hitler" accusation:
ReplyDeleteI believe that the person that said actually meant "Hitlar" as in the famous troll that posted on ponychan for some time and not the real Adolf Hitler from WW2.
Other than that, my opinion was already expressed many times here and I've personally responded to the writer of the letter.
odd I could have sworn somepony made a post at 3:16.
ReplyDeleteand wth are people putting words in my mouth? I said you should always have the right to express yourself in any way and form on the internet, not that you should reply to every single little thing that annoys you.
@BronyMike - Cupcakes, so sweet and tasty...
ReplyDeleteThe solution is simple: Kill all furries (except the 0.001% who make good fan art)
ReplyDeleteFailing that, APARTHEID.
And yeah, sorry about that. I'll stop bringing the drama now. It's just that sometimes you have to suck it up and tell people why you care about something, you know? Everyone has a reason, and I have my reasons. They're incredibly valid to me.
ReplyDeleteAs it stands, I really love this community too. You're pretty much all awesome, and I'm happy to be here.
@Anonymous Uh, sir... we have a problem... you see, this furry here? *points*, He drew the Pinkie Lisa and the Capella Derpyna... but he also drew CelestiaXOptimusPrime porn. What should we do with him?
ReplyDeleteI am many things in this life.
ReplyDeleteConservative
Christian
Bisexual
Brony
Furry
Avid Reader
Writer
Middle Class
American
Does any of this mater? No it doesn't, not to the community. Well except one and that is being a fan of the show. I could converse about the show and no one I chat with may know that I sometimes have relations with other men, (though in a relationship so no more for me. =D )
I let people know about me if they are curious but it isn't something that needs to be brought up. I don't mind what people do, stroking off at clopfics or rule 34 pictures. Doesn't harm me at all. I like cute ponies, to me they are interesting characters with interesting stories to be told.
Leisure time is a wonderful thing, spending time talking about things you enjoy with others that share your interests is a nice relaxing way to spend time. What you are should really only be pertinent to your surroundings.
When I'm talking to friends in the furry community I talk about furry things; favorite artists, writers that cute dragon morph that someone thought of. Should this blend with my talks with other FiM fans? No, unless they too are furries themselves.
So don't give two shits about someone's tags, and if you really want to be what you describe yourself to be. "LIEK LETS TALK ABOUT FURRIES!" don't go to a medium that is unrelated. If you want to talk about ponies talk about ponies, if you want to talk about furries talk about furries. If you want to talk about both there are groups like that. Or be in multiple forums at one.
Specific groups won't be the fall of the community it will fall based off on individual persons. And those individual persons growing into a majority. But even then the 'community' would only change, not die.
I do not personally hate furries, but I worry about what they do to the fandom's image and of the drama they start. If your a furry and you watch the show, great, but I don't want to hear anything about your furry fandom and rule 34.
ReplyDeleteAnon#1@3:21am; then why does it seem that some people do exactly that? It astounds and saddens me, for one.
ReplyDelete3:11Anon
@Shidoshi
ReplyDeleteoh don't get me wrong, I meant Adolf Hitler from WW2.
I have not heard of this Hitlar
@DuskWolf You have my incredibly lazy support, too. :p
ReplyDeleteLife is never fair, unfortunately. We're very social creatures: being in a bad place and having support is still better than having no problems and having no support at all.
"Friendship is magic", or something like that. Not very social myself, but I still hope this fandom remains as friendly as it is.
@Anonymous Someone brought up Hitler already. You're too late.
Twilight wins!
ReplyDeleteGG!
I raged at people earlier blaming X for Y and then I realized, despite the fact that they may be blaming others and insulting them.
ReplyDeleteThey're still my bronies. Even if we hate each other, even if everything goes to shit. I'll still forgive you and you'll still be my bronies.
Link related: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xAbb6SR0w4
@Sethisto Woot!, Twilight!...
ReplyDelete@Anonymous Don't worry, we don't. Cross my heart and hope to die.
ReplyDelete@Sethisto I demand a rematch between Twilight and Trixie.
Love and tolerance, my fellow bronies, love and tolerance.
ReplyDeleteBlessings on you and your house, Cessie2003!
ReplyDelete3:11Anon
If your going to let Furries or anyone for that matter "destroy" your fandom you might as well never be a fan of anything ever again. Cause it it's not furries it's pedos or just plain weirdos. Im a Christian so gay shipping is out and Im not turned on by "sexy" drawn ponies so guess what I do, I ignore them SHOCK AND AWE!
ReplyDeleteIn this comment furries refers to the ones who take it to the sexual side of things not people who just like talking animals.
It seems like I'm one of the oldest bronie in here and had been there when both the furry and sonic fandom started so I'll give some of the haters in here a little history. The furry fandom was created by the downtrodden craped on derpys of the world so they can have a new face and name and be part of a community that didn't judge them for who they are or what they did or like. Between it being the pinnacle of oc and tolerance had ended up becoming its downfall as all those a fandom community doesn't want found out they would be welcome there and had permantly tainted te fandom. (If you think the furry fandom is bad now you should of seen it 15 years ago race wars, gays slamming straights, and any of the weird and twisted fur porn today is nothing compard to what they had back then). The sonic fandom started not to long ago after the furry fandom and was created by the die hard fans of the cartoons and videogames and where the furries evolved around oc the sonic fans hated them. All the fics and artwork had to be of the characters from the shows and games. Any one who did an oc had to do a recolor of sonic,tails,or knuckles and they couldn't come close to being better then them or take them out of the world they were currently in or even have there own story away from the main charcters. (This is starting to sound a little like a young fandom I'm apart of). The sonic fandom started to die off because its lack of creativity and was left with the fans who only liked to do porn of the main charcters. The only thing that would stop the furries from fighting with each other was there hatred of the sonic fans where they would troll the hell out of each other in the old chatrooms. There was a lot of people getting hit with the blue screen of death back then (a 100 points to anyone who knows what I'm talking about). It wasn't till the fall of the sonic community that some of the sonic fans went to the furry community and got sweept up by the constent warring. I'm not saying I know all the little details about the two fandoms but that pretty much there ascension and descension. I don't know much about the fando ms know since I got out of them a few years ago and they can keep what ever hell they got them selves into now . I'll stick to this community at. Least here is nice to each other most of the time and tries to help a brony when the get stuck on a fic or art work.
ReplyDeleteHow young are you that you think the blue screen of death is a reference we wouldn't get? I'm pretty sure everyone older than 12 knows about the blue screen.
ReplyDelete@crazyredemu
ReplyDeleteHow would you describe someone who is a weirdo?
300 comments. Fucking hell, bronies.
ReplyDeleteLolz at poll results. Thats why I love this community. While some are all out for the drama and global philosophy of the community, most are enjoying the ride with ponies. So am I.
ReplyDeleteTo whoever is taking all this too seriously - consider rethinking it. Its Internet, dont take it too seriously. You have the content and the community you enjoy. What else do you need?
Its not so much the blue screen of death but the old winnuke program I was talking about
ReplyDeleteI'd like to give Mbulsht a muffin right now.
ReplyDeleteI just find it terribly sad that half the comments on the post about not hating each other seem to have fallen to flames and parasprite-feeding.
~Display Name
@Jack Pipsam.........."How would I describe a weirdo?" they are weird! (can of worms I am not going to open up, lets just say my definition of a weirdo is going to be more strick then most people being a Christian, but have you ever seen me preach at anyone? nope cause that's not how I roll)
ReplyDeleteDifferent note: Im a sonic fan, I subscribe to the comics, I buy the games, even the crapy ones, I have my comics protected in them baggy things. I've seen some of the stuff out there, I didn't let it change what I like cause that's lame!
Fon Stailon: You like shipping fics and you're causing drama......YOU MUST BE A FURRY!!!!!!!
HEY GUYS WHAT'S GOING ON IN THIS THRE...oh
ReplyDeleteThis thread is hilarious. Thanks for the laugh before work guyz, teeheeeeez. /brohoof
ReplyDeleteI followed a link to here from VGCats. What's the first thing I read? "Twilight Day!" What's the second thing I read? A letter about the future of the community. I haven't read the letter (Google Docs wants me to log in), but I surmise from the comments it's related to community tolerance and acceptance and to avoid the commnity splintering.
ReplyDeleteSo what will I - or anyone else who comes to the site - see? The community already insulting each other and infighting. And according to Wikipedia, season 1 hasn't even finished screening yet.
Fao - your comments in particular are extremely hurtful. As someone who suffers a physical disability and has always been one of the "weird" ones who were always excluded, what right do you have to say who can and cannot be a part of anything? So based on your logic I should be denied a spot on a team, a job at a company or membership on a site just because I'm different to everyone else? People are different and always will be.
Against my better judgement, I'll post this comment. I only ask that others keep in mind that behind the posts are real people and words do hurt. A flame war does nothing but cause people to leave. And they won't necessarily be the people you want to leave.
Okay, I don't know if this has been put out there or not, but I feel the need to say it. All the furry hating here seems to be directed at a specific group of us. That group being the .09% that's hypersexed and really creepy. Not all of us are like that. You only seem to see that .09% because the rest of us really don't feel like advertising ourselves as furries, for that exact reason. But I'll go ahead and say it. I'm a furry. But I don't have sex in a fursuit, I don't post really creepy things detailing my actions, I don't do any of that. I simply enjoy anthropomorphic art. That's all. That's all it is for a bunch of us. Hell, the majority of us have never even seen a fursuit in real life.
ReplyDeleteIan McLeod, Kentucky, USA. I'm a brony, and I'm a furry. Let the trolling commence, I don't give a shit.
A friendly hint: porn, porn is what destroys the magic of the show.
ReplyDelete"I’m going to love and tolerate the shit out of you."
ReplyDeleteHardly possible IRL, very practical on the internet.
Hi, I'm Alex. I am (being bold) currently living in Singapore and had been & still am socially inept due so several reasons.
What I have to say is, history repeats itself. It's not hard to see the pattern, it's just how you react to it that matters.
I think an important point is that people don't hate furries on a personal level (for the most part), but rather enjoy MLP:FIM and don't want to see it dragged into the collective "furry fandom" by association, which they have no interest in and don't want to be identified with simply for being an MLP fan. Right now it's not too bad but if the majority of the MLP fanart shifts into anthro and 34, I think a lot of people will just kind of drift away from doing anything more than watching the episodes and leaving it at that. Also there is the potential concern that the shows creators or corporate backers could decide to pull the plug if the alternate demographic fanbase gets *too* weird and out of control.
ReplyDeleteall i can say is , DA has the mature-content warning for a reason , and Equestria-daily has the content warning for a reason , as accustomed to the internet , you are not going to just "stumble" onto something you dont like
ReplyDeletedont like , click back
as a side note im only 14 , and i , aswell as other young fans can take some cursing and other mature things , but we are not going to join something that shows alot of that stuff. if the herd is to grow in the younger demographic , the cursing must die down just a little , but the mature content warnings help alot , it just cant get any more lax with the warnings.
i know my grammer is crap but i hope someone got something from my comment
>post telling others to stop hate
ReplyDelete>300 comment flame war
im pretty sure there's something wrong with this picture
You can't have love without the hate.
ReplyDeleteThe people who go around demanding everyone gets along co-incidentally are the ones who are most often seeking validation for their actions.
It hurts, but sometimes you really do have to just look at yourself in the mirror.
Let's all get it into our heads:
ReplyDelete1) There's hate on furries not merely because some furries create offensive crap, but because it's now a long-standing /b/ tradition to flame anything furry-related in any way. For the lulz, naturally. Furries made the mistake of trying to defend themselves, which made them even bigger and longer-lasting targets.
2) There's a hate on bronies for much the same reason. As more and more offensive crap is created by a relatively few bronies, it will be actively sought out by /b/ and other troll havens for mockery purposes. It will be presented as representative of the whole. Those who try to defend themselves will be mocked and the misrepresentation will be reinforced. For the lulz.
3) Furries amongst the bronies are being targeted for hate right now, whether or not they produce anything offensive, because bronies don't want to become targets by association. It's already too late to avoid that (especially given the high percentage of pony art, clean and otherwise, created by furries).
4) Trolls are gonna troll. I've been a furry since BEFORE that fandom got a reputation for being fetishistic. Indeed, I was a furry before there WERE fetishists in the fandom. It didn't stop the trolls from calling us "skunkf***ers" and accusing us of raping animals. Which actually helped open the door to people who subsequently joined the fandom thinking it WAS about that kind of thing. As the porn appeared and got more common, it was duly mocked and so were the people creating or enjoying it. And furries as a whole suffered for that whether they created and enjoyed porn or not.
This is the same road furry fandom has traveled over the last couple decades. Bronies are at this crossroads now, as the fandom grows well beyond its point of critical mass.
Love and tolerance is all well and good...but let's ALSO see consideration and tact. If you like dirty pictures of Rarity, fine --- post them somewhere appropriate, and with the proper tags. Remember that not everyone is into what you are, and that they're not evil for that.
Tolerance must go both ways to work.
@Anonymous
ReplyDelete@angrytigerp
This guy knows what's up, not that Mbulsht moron who believes everything should be his personal army. Brohoof for a fellow /co/mrade
Wow, I must say I really respect that guy.
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree with everything he said.
Closing threads and comment boards is no solution, that's kinda a negative reaction. And it sends the trolls the wrong message.
@Fon Shaolin
ReplyDeleteWhat the hell is so wrong with OC's?
You know, when you start noticing the parallels between the pony community and a cult (especially the emphasis on unconditional love and friendship, social stigma, new identities, etc), it starts to get a bit worrying.
ReplyDeleteEveryone does know it's just a cartoon, right?
I hope you understand that I didn't read all of the 300+ comments here. Because of that, it may be likely that the things I'll state in the following all have been said already.
ReplyDeleteEven though I haven't experienced THAT much intolerance and hate in this community so far (which MAY be because I'm a pretty new brony), this guy doesn't seem like someone who just makes things up. But even if he made all of his accusations out of the blue, at least you could use this letter as a "How to" on making this community work.
Let's begin with the furries. First of all, My respect goes out to the author of the letter for openly admitting that he is one. And I'm just shaking my head at those who dismiss the furries, be it for "being bad for the community" or just "because". I'm not a furry. I don't understand furries. I don't get why they enjoy what they enjoy. But I leave them be. In the last two days, I witnessed a lot of hate-filled threads in the forum of a gaming-site. This hate was directed against us bronies. Some accused us of being trolls and not genuinely liking the show, but rather forcing its supposed blandness upon the community. Some, of course pulled the gay card and so on. And why? 'cause they don't understand us. And they didn't want to. I and the other bronies on the site always told them to at least watch a few episodes or just leave us alone if they're not interested. And I'm pretty sure that at least a few of you had to deal with similar reactions in your social networks when they found out you like this show.
Dismissing anything or anyone just because you don't understand him, her or it is always wrong. But it just gets absurd if it happens in a community of people who call themselves devoted fans of a show that teaches friendship, love and tolerance.
There will always be people who live out their fandom in ways that you don't like or understand. You don't like Grimdark-fics? Or shipping-fics? Don't read 'em. You don't want to see furry-porn of Twilight Sparkle? No one forces you to do so. Just don't tell the people who enjoy these things that the community would be better off without them. Do you really think you can obliterate, say, all the sexual picture and stories that are made with FiM as source-material? we're on the Internet here. And Rule 34 isn't just a joke. That fact still creeps me out, but it is, well, a fact. And as long as the bronies who enforce R34 for Pinkie Pie do that in places where the typical "I just really like the show"-guy isn't confronted with it, I'm okay with that. Who knows? Maybe the guy you were chatting with about how cute Fluttershy's Song in the Cutie Mark Chronicles was, was typing a pornographic fanfic about her and you'll never know. Would that make the discussion about the episode less entertaining for you?
My favorite pony is Twilight Sparkle, although Princess Luna, as depicted by the fandom, is a close second.
ReplyDeleteThis thread has well over 300 replies. That's a lot of teal deer.
I like furry art, I have an aversion to fursuits and clowns, cartoon porn is funny, not tittulating, and the fire in the hearts of bronies helped drive me to MLP:FIM.
Shine on you crazy diamonds.
I feel like this is applicable to ANY and EVERY fandom.
ReplyDeleteWe all like the same thing...so why can't we just get along?
You know what? I'm not into shipping, furries, clopfics, or realy even fanfiction in general. But instead of spewing contempt for these things, you know what I do?
I ignore them. Easy as that.
The letter was nice and made me think and have hope.
ReplyDeleteThe comments make me lose faith in humanity. As everything else I see daily does. So much hate.
I don't want to live on this planet anymore.
>fantastic show about anthropomorphic ponies starts getting talked about
ReplyDelete>furries like show because it's awesome and has anthropomorphic ponies, start producing art and stories about it
>/b/tards pitch hissy fit
>tolerance is called for
>film at eleven
Aw, Saraph, don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. This is a vibrant community. Hate will pass, and there will always be ponies. Please, have a muffin. 8^)
ReplyDeleteThis is why I have tended to avoid massive fandoms up till now. This fandom either wasn't as massive as it was when I first started getting into ponies, or I didn't realize it before now.
ReplyDeleteIt's hard for me to dislike something. I can sympathize with everyone, except for people who can't sympathize. It's really stressful for me to read people being bullies to eachother for the pettiest little things that don't really matter while I'm trying to enjoy my fanart and show discussion. (not going to complain about OC hate or whatever, I'll just go to my respective forums to indulge in that, because...)
I am for everyone liking what they like, so long as it's not at the expense of others. Zealous pony love or zealous furry hate- you all have your right to it, but could you please express it within your own circles where it is acceptable and not where it can hurt anyone else? This blog is like a public forum, a nexus where all aspects of the fandom meet... So can we set aside our differences while we're here?
Ugh, this is all so meta. Why can't we all just have fun talking about the show without trying to figure out if you're a better fan or not depending on whether you'd like to screw these things?...
At the end of the day, I couldn't care less about all this drama. If the community stays good then I'll be part of it, if it rots then I'll just watch the episodes and comment with smaller MLP groups.
ReplyDeletePeople take all this fandom thing too seriously and when you take things too seriously on the internet you are going to get trolled.
death to tolerance
ReplyDeleteAll fandoms have exclusionary views of elements "they" don't like - especially the fandoms that think they don't. Not that i endorse or condemn either side.
ReplyDeleteThis comment is probably going to get buried so quickly D:
ReplyDeleteAll the anti-furry comments on the hoodies I designed/drew was kinda funny, I am actually a furry, but I never even considered them to be furry hoodies - if you read through the ponychan thread you'd have seen where I got the idea from: http://browse.deviantart.com/?qh=§ion=&global=1&q=calgarycosplay#/d31gah5 someone elses design, but one I wanted to change and create MLP characters with, nothing more, nothing sinister and murry-purry :P just something cute n fun to wear around for the bronies that wanted an over the top MLP design to wear - hence the more simplistic, less cosplay like design posted in the thread too ;P
Much love to everyone in the community, despite the huge can of worms this is, there are a lot of positive and good responses <3
y'all niggas postin in a troll thread.
ReplyDeleteThe letter writer has some balls of steel for posting his university email. *golf clap*
ReplyDeleteI'm a bit concerned though, because university emails usually have a inbox limit - actual important school stuff might end up bouncing the because his inbox is flooded with troll emails.
Anyways - not a fan of sexualized anthropomorphisms. But guess what. I don't care if you like it. 'Cause I'm tolerant, bitches
I feel like I need to leave a comment on this. Mainly because I'm a furry.
ReplyDeleteI don't get all the furry hatred. Just like any fandom there are furries that use it as just a hobby and furries that take it to the extreme. No one should judge anyone on if they are a furry or not. You should judge them on if they are crazy. I personally stay away from the sex-crazed, batshit furries and hang out with the ones that don't take it seriously. I'm here to have fun. Just like the people in the MLP fandom.
So don't just go bashing a whole fandom based on the actions of a minority. Not every furry wants to read clopfic, I personally stay as far away from that as possible.
Sorry for all this. It just hits a bad note with me. I just hate being lumped in with "The creepy furries" even though all the furries I hang out with are normal, though slightly nerdy, people. Not sex feind drama makers that the fandom is so known for.
Hes right on pretty well everything, we're a community that needs to stay together, we accomplish nothing if we tear each others throats out, hell, in words of old "A House Divided, Cannot stand". So if we divide ourselves from some synchtube channels or even from furry lovers and furry haters, then we are no better then those on 4chan, and this is what they want to see happen to us.
ReplyDeleteI'll slow clap that.
ReplyDeleteAwesome. Pure awesome.
This confuses me
ReplyDeleteI have seen fandoms do this, do what the 300+ previous comments in this thread are doing. People from all sides will cry out "[insert negative concept here] is going to DESTROY our fandom/community/whatever!"
And then the people from all sides will argue and argue, and the one thing that remains constant in all of these fandoms that go through that is that at the end of the day, NOTHING ACTUALLY HAPPENS. People go on with their hating or their OC creating or their furry or their whatever. And the people arguing will continue to argue, and the people who have any sense left in this will get on with their lives and appreciate the community and fandom for what it is without taking sides and making divisions, without specifically including or excluding anything or anyone
The hating will go on. The OCs will go on. The furries will continue to post their content, no matter how fierce any arguments about it get. And nothing will happen. The community doesn't die. It changes, yes, it dilutes, or becomes more concentrated, it takes on new forms, and discards old ideals in favor of new ones. But it never dies. I have never seen any community truly die from hate on the inside, from OC creation, from furry versions of anything. They change, but they never die.
Because the one thing that will kill a community is not the hate, or the furries, or the OC creation. It's the people shouting about and keyboardwarring about it that will drive newcomers away, its the people who relentlessly argue about what should and shouldn't be in a community who drive current and older fans away. It's the people who have to take an ideal, be it of love and tolerance, or of content staying true to the source material, to an EXTREME that alienates people and tears the community into pieces. I suppose it reflects well on the devotion of the fanbase to the show if we treat things so seriously, but do we HAVE to take it so far? I mean, just think about it. If a new would-be brony were to log on to EqDaily and read this thread, what would he think of this place? What would he think of this fandom, this community? I doubt I would have it made it through the first fifty posts before leaving for somewhere else. What about all of you? So many of you were given nice warm welcomes into the community, and that's excellent, but is this the kind of image you're going to give to newcomers? A community who senselessly bickers and argues over things like this? And not just the newcomers. Reading these comments, you can find so many bronies, already ardent fans of the show and part of the community, losing hope and giving up in the idea that this was the place they were looking for. Do we really want to drive them away like that? I've seen it happen, and its a sorry sight to see long time members of a community leave because they can no longer handle the infighting and divisions.
So let the haters hate, we can ignore them. Let the OC creators OC around, we can ignore them. Let the furries post their content, we can ignore them. It's been done before, it can be done again.
It will be, and has to be done again, because we don't really have a choice. We can either tolerate and accept and LET IT BE, or we can bicker and argue and let the community kill itself as though we've been infected by some strange autoimmune disease.
It's a pretty easy choice to make, IMO
This is... interesting to say the least. I just appreciate the show for what it is to me. A charming cartoon that is well written and genuinely enjoyable. I enjoy coming to some of the fan-sites like this for the great media that some of the fandom has produced (PMVs and cartoons), but this fanfic stuff is beyond me. Honestly, I've never liked ANY kind of fanfic, and as an avid writer I have some negative opinions about fanfiction in general. HOWEVER, I don't bother people who write fan fiction, it's their decision to write and enjoy it and, that's great for them. I don't pester them with my dislike for fanfic, and I don't have to read what they write. This should go for just about anything. All in all, I'm just trying to say live and let live. Don't be that person who doesn't like something just because someone you don't care for likes it too. That's just pretentious.
ReplyDeleteSorry, no. Furries are going to turn this entire fucking fandom into another frenetic, porn-ridden cesspool of the internet where sad sacks of shit come to masturbate their egos by leaving their real identities and personal failings behind. They're already capitalizing on the "love and tolerance for all" theme.
ReplyDeleteListen up, furries: I don't care how much you like to think about having sex with Rarity or whatever else. I can tolerate you being a furry just fine, but don't shove your damn kinks down my throat.
And by identifying yourself as a furry THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT YOU'RE DOING.
Furries, listen up: The rest of the world dislikes you because they don't want to hear about your fucking paraphilia. Stop identifying yourself by your kink and making it PUBLIC and you won't take so much flack for it. Keep that shit private.
@Fon Shaolin
ReplyDeleteTo know that someone thinks that someone like me could destroy the fandom sure makes me feel like an evil genius. But I guess its possible, look at this sinister, world destroying, pony art I have produced http://traceurbazil.deviantart.com/#/d3f1ajk
Or maybe its the terribly sarcastic comments like this one that made only by furries that shall cause this blog and all other pony things to implode!?
His name was Ben Sims.
ReplyDelete2 things:
ReplyDeleteIt's the Internet, a representative of worldly opinions, ideas, and likes (as well as hates).
A furry is not going out of their way to do ANYTHING negative to the fandom. If something is wrong with what they do in your opinion, ignore it (you can do that on the internet you know :P); and if it's really disruptive, in most cases you won't see it unless you look for it.
Also I'm here for the ponies, be it vids, fanfics, comics, pics, etc. I'm not here to talk about hate and fandoms and "what I like is better than what you like", I'm here for friendship and camaraderie and randomness and of course ponies<<<< Remember, it's the ponies we are all here for!
As for the letter, many good observations, but a little pushy.
I think there's a lot of good people in this community. I like the general warmth and welcoming attitude this community has, along with it promoting the good stuff from MLP like "I'm going to tolerate the shit out of you" and other LOL material.
ReplyDeleteThis being the internet, there's always going to be negative comments and trolls. I think the writer of the open letter is just seeing the negative comments over the positive and letting it get to him. I think the best thing to do is just to ignore the negative, don't give it a second thought, and concentrate on the positive.
It's kind of like his example of the troll on synchtube, if you ignore it...then no big deal, it goes away. If you don't ignore it, then you're just feeding the problem.
Just give attention to the stuff you do like about this fandom, and pass the stuff you're not interested in.
@Anon 3 posts up.
ReplyDeleteFurry didn't start out as a kink, and I still don't view it that way. The majority of the fandom thinks of it as a hobby. The media, unfortunately, took it and turned it into how most people view it today. A group of people that get together for fursuit sex parties and so on.
There will always be people that ruin things for everyone else. These are PEOPLE not entire FANDOMS.
It's not a single person, it's not a single group, it's not a single subculture that will kill a fandom.
ReplyDeleteIt's this. This rampant hate. That's what ruins it and makes it so we can't have nice things.
@Anon 4 posts up
ReplyDeletefunny since you don't have the balls to say that logged into a account.
it's people like you who will kill us
Went to TL;DR because I have to go to work, but from that, I can already say I agree with what the writer's expressing.
ReplyDeleteedit 6 posts up I mean on my last thing sorry
ReplyDeleteBeing someone who tends to write walls of text when they're impassioned, I can definitely tell he cares (beyond his tone).
ReplyDeleteAs an expository writing student, I must say that using specific examples to make his points is a great technique that significantly improves the quality of his work.
And Fire.Esper, even if he's not a furry, his point still stands. In fact, if he's NOT a furry, then that's just a plus to his character. By that I mean, if he's not a furry and yet saying he is to stand up for furries, he's displaying the quality of loyalty.
Also, I happen to be a furry and like furries. So you know, whether or not he's lying, he's cool.
Actually, wait a minute, are we arguing and flaming and prodding everypony here for opinions on hate? I'm starting to see a problem here...
ReplyDeleteTolerance people, if you don't like it, don't look at it. And those that say others are destroying us, they are pushing the process along themselves.
So TL;DR, we are arguing and flaming about hate and intolerance on a fandom of a show about friendship... ... ;_;
what about the hate to tripfriends (better known as tripfags) many of the old ones are afraid to came back to /co/. there's always that anon shouting "I filtered all the tripfags, feels good man"
ReplyDelete@angrytigerpNow this is some seriously heated discussion.
ReplyDeleteFirst, kudos to the writer of the letter.
Second, my personal views: we all try to feel happy. For one it's about running a successful business career, some other reads books, another does taichi. Some like furry. So what? If they want to, why not.
Let everyone enjoy what they want to. As long as they don't hurt anyone while doing so and they don't try to force it on me, I don't care if someone finds happiness in clopping to cartoon ponies. He has the right to do so, he has the right to be happy.
Many of you seem to misunderstand the meaning of tolerance.
Many of you seem to judge others. By that you automatically claim some sort of superiority. You stick a good/bad label on things. Then you "endure" the bad thing and call yourself tolerant.
Tolerance is more. It means you don't automatically judge something as good or bad. Tolerance means acceptance. Acceptance that other people have different views and no matter how much it hurts your ego, it also means you accept you are not better than any of them. Your views, your taste, your ideas worth just as much as theirs and vica versa.
Also, I would like to reflect to what Angrytigerp and some others have mentioned.
This show is NOT teaching us morale values. It refreshes what we learned as a child. It's easy to forget what you learned as a child while being grinded in the big machine of everyday life.
I don't think the show has changed me but I for one believe I am being much nicer to people since I started watching the show and being part of this community. It takes very little to make life better, and the show reminds me about that every day.
Maybe you don't need such a thing. You are secure and complete as a person with no need for reminders or any kind of support. Your morale code is set in stone and you always act according to it.
Probably there is some problem with my upbringing or self-identity as you have mentioned. I don't know. And you know, I think I don't really care. I’m enjoying a show, the community around it and I believe to some extent this whole fandom is making me a better a person. I don’t see why I should I feel bad about it, nor why would you feel embarrassed for people like me.
I myself will keep using this phrase. Love and Tolerance. Coz I believe in it. I believe it can make the world better. Call me an idealist, a sick manchild or whatever you feel like.
Maybe I do take this whole brony thing as a religion. But let us be honest here, we all choose a religion. Some believe in a God. Some believe in numerous deities. Some believe in Captain Kirk. Others believe in science and the omnipotent might of the rational mind. (Yes, you BELIEVE in science.)
I believe in a moral code of mine and the general message of the show happens to go well with it so hey, I will give my morals a visual projection: ponies. They symbolize what I strive for. Am I a bad person now? Why is it any worse than people praising a man spiked to a cross? (no offence).
MLP:FiM is the first fandom I have found that spreads the message of love, tolerance and friendship in such a lovely way. Why is that a problem I do not see. Why is it a problem that people try to take it seriously, I don't get it either.
AngrytigerP, you said "See, this shit is what gets my blood boiling." May I ask why? Why does it even bother you?
Don't get me wrong, and I am really not meaning to start a flame war or anything, but don't you (and all the likeminded) think there's a slight chance of something being wrong with you as well if you have issues with and feel clearly irritated by people who take it seriously to spread love, tolerance and basic morals?
Anyways, once more, kudos to Ben Sims and thank you for caring so much for the community.
Forever a brony.
Figures that in the comments section regarding a letter to the pony community about expunging hate and returning to our loving and tolerating roots, there is an abundance of hate and hardly any love or tolerance.
ReplyDeleteUgh, what drivel. I can like ponies without being buddy-buddies with people that actually have a fetish and masturbate to the characters in the show. I find that sickening and want nothing to do with people so dissociated from life like that.
ReplyDeleteAnd seriously? Getting lessons from this show? I watch it because it's cute and colorful, not because of it's deep insight into life. Where even is there any shit about 'loving and tolerating all' in the show itself? Nowhere, because it's not fucking in the show. Gilda got told to fuck off for being a bitch for example. That's not loving and tolerating her unconditionally like this guy wants people to do to every fucker that decides they like ponies too.
Whatever, I'm all for being welcoming to any and all that want in (not that there's anything stopping them even if I wasn't), but I'm gonna tell people to fuck off if they're gonna act like a retard.
Dear Princess Celestia,
ReplyDeleteFandoms can be a wonderful thing. They can help us make new friends, grow our love for a show in surprising ways, encourage our creativity, and they can even become a community that we can feel at home in.
But as a fandom grows, it becomes more diverse. Bronies may emerge from places you never expected, and be interested in things you never liked yourself. They might be furries, or shippers, or clopfic writers, or who knows what else. And that may drive us to dislike them, or even blow things out of proportion and declare that people who enjoy different things than us are "ruining the fandom."
But the thing is, diversity doesn't ruin fandoms; fighting does. If we start fights and try to tell other bronies how to enjoy the show, we're hurting the fandom more than a thousand poorly-written OC shipping fanfics ever could.
So we have to remember, that while some of us may be furries, or shippers, or clopfic writers, ALL of us are Bronies. And that's the only thing that should matter.
Your Faithful Student,
Twilight Sparkle
PS: Did you see? ED gave me my own banner today! I'm so happy! Are you proud of me?
@angrytigerpNow this is some seriously heated discussion.
ReplyDeleteFirst, kudos to the writer of the letter.
Second, my personal views: we all try to feel happy. For one it's about running a successful business career, some other reads books, another does taichi. Some like furry. So what? If they want to, why not.
Let everyone enjoy what they want to. As long as they don't hurt anyone while doing so and they don't try to force it on me, I don't care if someone finds happiness in clopping to cartoon ponies. He has the right to do so, he has the right to be happy.
Many of you seem to misunderstand the meaning of tolerance.
Many of you seem to judge others. By that you automatically claim some sort of superiority. You stick a good/bad label on things. Then you "endure" the bad thing and call yourself tolerant.
Tolerance is more. It means you don't automatically judge something as good or bad. Tolerance means acceptance. Acceptance that other people have different views and no matter how much it hurts your ego, it also means you accept you are not better than any of them. Your views, your taste, your ideas worth just as much as theirs and vica versa.
Also, I would like to reflect to what Angrytigerp and some others have mentioned.
This show is NOT teaching us morale values. It refreshes what we learned as a child. It's easy to forget what you learned as a child while being grinded in the big machine of everyday life.
I don't think the show has changed me but I for one believe I am being much nicer to people since I started watching the show and being part of this community. It takes very little to make life better, and the show reminds me about that every day.
Maybe you don't need such a thing. You are secure and complete as a person with no need for reminders or any kind of support. Your morale code is set in stone and you always act according to it.
Probably there is some problem with my upbringing or self-identity as you have mentioned. I don't know. And you know, I think I don't really care. I’m enjoying a show, the community around it and I believe to some extent this whole fandom is making me a better a person. I don’t see why I should I feel bad about it, nor why would you feel embarrassed for people like me.
I myself will keep using this phrase. Love and Tolerance. Coz I believe in it. I believe it can make the world better. Call me an idealist, a sick manchild or whatever you feel like.
Maybe I do take this whole brony thing as a religion. But let us be honest here, we all choose a religion. Some believe in a God. Some believe in numerous deities. Some believe in Captain Kirk. Others believe in science and the omnipotent might of the rational mind. (Yes, you BELIEVE in science.)
I believe in a moral code of mine and the general message of the show happens to go well with it so hey, I will give my morals a visual projection: ponies. They symbolize what I strive for. Am I a bad person now? Why is it any worse than people praising a man spiked to a cross? (no offence).
MLP:FiM is the first fandom I have found that spreads the message of love, tolerance and friendship in such a lovely way. Why is that a problem I do not see. Why is it a problem that people try to take it seriously, I don't get it either.
AngrytigerP, you said "See, this shit is what gets my blood boiling." May I ask why? Why does it even bother you?
Don't get me wrong, and I am really not meaning to start a flame war or anything, but don't you (and all the likeminded) think there's a slight chance of something being wrong with you as well if you have issues with and feel clearly irritated by people who take it seriously to spread love, tolerance and basic morals?
Anyways, once more, kudos to Ben Sims and thank you for caring so much for the community.
Forever a brony.
@Anonymous two posts up:
ReplyDeleteI seem to recall Gilda running off of her own accord, due to her embarrassment over how big an ass she had made of herself. Also, Dash's offer. I'm sure that if she'd have stopped being a bitch there, they'd have given her a second shot.
Testing, testing.
ReplyDeleteI can't post comments? O.o
My opinion:
ReplyDeleteAs long as the fandom doesn't proceed to the point where the fringe elements make up a significant minority to the point that it really impairs the ability of someone to find just general material about the original cast and children themes, who cares?
You're going to have crazies (define it how you will) no matter what, so let's just hope that they shall always be the crazies and not the standard.
Now this is some seriously heated discussion.
ReplyDeleteFirst, kudos to the writer of the letter.
Second, my personal views: we all try to feel happy. For one it's about running a successful business career, some other reads books, another does taichi. Some like furry. So what? If they want to, why not.
Let everyone enjoy what they want to. As long as they don't hurt anyone while doing so and they don't try to force it on me, I don't care if someone finds happiness in clopping to cartoon ponies. He has the right to do so, he has the right to be happy.
Many of you seem to misunderstand the meaning of tolerance.
Many of you seem to judge others. By that you automatically claim some sort of superiority. You stick a good/bad label on things. Then you "endure" the bad thing and call yourself tolerant.
Tolerance is more. It means you don't automatically judge something as good or bad. Tolerance means acceptance. Acceptance that other people have different views and no matter how much it hurts your ego, it also means you accept you are not better than any of them. Your views, your taste, your ideas worth just as much as theirs and vica versa.
Also, I would like to reflect to what Angrytigerp and some others have mentioned.
This show is NOT teaching us morale values. It refreshes what we learned as a child. It's easy to forget what you learned as a child while being grinded in the big machine of everyday life.
I don't think the show has changed me but I for one believe I am being much nicer to people since I started watching the show and being part of this community. It takes very little to make life better, and the show reminds me about that every day.
Maybe you don't need such a thing. You are secure and complete as a person with no need for reminders or any kind of support. Your morale code is set in stone and you always act according to it.
Probably there is some problem with my upbringing or self-identity as you have mentioned. I don't know. And you know, I think I don't really care. I’m enjoying a show, the community around it and I believe to some extent this whole fandom is making me a better a person. I don’t see why I should I feel bad about it, nor why would you feel embarrassed for people like me.
I myself will keep using this phrase. Love and Tolerance. Coz I believe in it. I believe it can make the world better. Call me an idealist, a sick manchild or whatever you feel like.
Maybe I do take this whole brony thing as a religion. But let us be honest here, we all choose a religion. Some believe in a God. Some believe in numerous deities. Some believe in Captain Kirk. Others believe in science and the omnipotent might of the rational mind. (Yes, you BELIEVE in science.)
I believe in a moral code of mine and the general message of the show happens to go well with it so hey, I will give my morals a visual projection: ponies. They symbolize what I strive for. Am I a bad person now? Why is it any worse than people praising a man spiked to a cross? (no offence).
MLP:FiM is the first fandom I have found that spreads the message of love, tolerance and friendship in such a lovely way. Why is that a problem I do not see. Why is it a problem that people try to take it seriously, I don't get it either.
AngrytigerP, you said "See, this shit is what gets my blood boiling." May I ask why? Why does it even bother you?
Don't get me wrong, and I am really not meaning to start a flame war or anything, but don't you (and all the likeminded) think there's a slight chance of something being wrong with you as well if you have issues with and feel clearly irritated by people who take it seriously to spread love, tolerance and basic morals?
Anyways, once more, kudos to Ben Sims and thank you for caring so much for the community.
Forever a brony.
@Anon 7:17
ReplyDeleteand we want to watch the show without your useless comments
First off, I'm just going to point out that I totally called this happening in the hoodie thread with the "inb4 furries vs everyone else war" comment. This could have easily been avoided.
ReplyDeleteAnyways, as one of those people that has pretty much been around the watch where things have been going from the start, I'm not really sure why people are still arguing over this.
Yes, furries exist and are a part of this community. Yes, some people watch the show for various reasons. Yes, I still managed to call myself an old pony despite there being little difference between myself and someone new to the show.
Seriously you guys, you couldn't have done a better job creating butthurt and drama then this. And yes, by posting in this thread I am also adding to the drama by participating in this conversation.
Now please, can we drop the damn subject and do what we originally came here for? WATCH SOME GOD DAMN PONIES.
That will be all.
~Scratch, Vinyl Scratch, Dark!Wing, and Lurker
I guess it's time I added in my 2 cents.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading the letter, I realized how much of this stuff I was unaware of since I don't read comments or fanfics really. Fan works have never really interested me much, with a few exceptions here and there, and I occasionally read comments on only a few posts that I find interesting such as the AJ auction. I missed out on seeing the hate because of the synchtube stuff. I consider myself lucky for that, and it's not something I wanna see either.
I'm a male MLP fan who's 31 years old, living in an apt in Maryland with my cat. I love the fandom and purchased 8 rainbow dash shirts so I could have one to wear every day, in hopes of finding more fans. The problem I have though, is people who take stuff to extremes. In every fandom, be it sonic or anime or gaming or furry, you will have those people who take things too far. Such as saying that it has to be this way or you can only do this and anyone else is wrong. Those are the dangerous people and the ones that destroy a community. Those are the people the make the news or go on maury that make the rest of the community look like freaks. The destroy the public's perception of us. I know a few of you don't mind that, but a lot of us do. My little pony is a nice concept, with nice ideas and what has been a great community of fans where I've met lots of nice people. There have been 1 or 2 people that worry me and I choose not to engage them in their extreme views, and I wish others could do the same. Adding gasoline to a fire is not something I want to do.
All that being said, I think this letter was a nice eye opener to some, something to ignore for others, and for the extremists, something to crap on. I'm gonna end with an analogy. The song Safety dance has the lyrics
"We can dance if we want to
We can leave your friends behind
'Cause your friends don't dance and if they don't dance
Well they're no friends of mine"
To me, and I may be getting the interpretation wrong, it's saying that we're doing something we like, and if others don't agree with us or get our views on something, forget about them. That's the way I feel about the community. I am open to anyone who knows me on ponychan or rainbowdash net, and have met some good bronies i consider friends. If you wanna hate on me, then that's your decision, but then you're not the type of person I'd probably wanna be friends with then.
For all others, *Brohoofs and ponyhugs* to all of ya. :D
For crying out loud. Has anyone noticed what this open letter has done?
ReplyDelete350+ posts composed of back and forth arguments about the ethics of being a furry and discrimination against furries.
@Fon Shaolin:
ReplyDeleteI'd like you to take a step back and realize that at the moment you are stirring up the most drama in here, not furries. People who over-react to them can have just as bad an impact as the worst examples of furries themselves.
Like I said before, I'm not a furry, but I get that some people like it. I don't go hunting the stuff down, and as such Sonic has NOT been ruined for me, nor have any of the Disney movies featuring animals. It's possible to step around the stuff you don't like to still find content that suits you, even when there's a lot to be stepped around.
Be the change you want to see, Fon. If you don't want drama to be brought into the fandom, please stop bringing it in yourself.
Dear Princess Celestia,
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to believe that two ponies that seem to have so little in common could ever get along. But I found out that if you embrace each other's differences, you just might be surprised to discover a way to be friends after all...
Well, as a casualfag to the fanbase (I contribute nothing and don't even read fanfics) who will probably be gone just a few minutes after the season ends I might just as well voice my general opinions:
ReplyDelete1. The moderate user who knowns enough about the internets does not dislike furries for their like of anthropomorphic animals or what have you but rather the drama they always provoke. On the sweater article someone was offended by how the blogbrony treated furries (which is to say, non-offensively). Really? Now we have this letter and its only effect has been causing 350+ posts of nonsensical drama between furries and non-furries. THIS IS WHY. Stop being so sensitive. Ignore the fuckers that try to incite shitstorms. This blog was created by one of the biggest trolls on a particular 4chan board and 4chan itself is the cradle of the 18+ male MLP fanbase. I know there's people from outside of 4chan that visit this blog but now's a good time to grow a thicker skin.
2. If you do your research, OCs have always been part of the MLP franchise pre-G4. Whining about them is like whining about OCs in the D&D universe. That's not to say creating mary sues out of them and shipping them with main characters shouldn't be discouraged though.
3. I assume the "love and tolerance" thing came from /b/ because it sure as hell was not preached in /co/ threads. Pinkie Pie wasn't particularly tolerant of Gilda at the end of Griffin Brush-Off so I don't see where people got that saying from. This is just a phrase that gets thrown around a lot that vexes me.
I'm not saying the fanbase should be culled or what have you, I just wish you all would lower your power levels a bit.
lol he mad.
ReplyDeletejk. 372 comments huh? Wow. Anyway, I agree with him about the synchtube thing. Chasing out newbies seems like the opposite of what should be done. Those hoodies were ridiculous though, I wouldn't want wings and ears getting in the way and getting caught on things all the time, you know?
I still think furries are fuckin' weird though. I guess I don't HATE them but I wouldn't want to be around one... especially not the ones at my school. *shivers*
*puts on a top hat, monocle, and white gloves*
ReplyDeleteThat was exquisitely written and has his every flaw I've seen emerging in the community spot on!
*tears a little and claps raucously*
His letter pretty much mirrors my sentiments on the issue. I'm not really a fan of clopfic and furrydom in our community, but I tolerate it.
ReplyDeleteYou know why? Because we are the MLP community.
We have always held ourselves to a higher standard. When we started on /b/ and /co/, we kept ourselves to one thread and tried to keep it moderated.
We stood against the trolls, not with anger, but with love and acceptance.
We accepted new members, anonymous and nameponies alike.
And we beat 4chan. We beat the trolls. We beat the mods persecution.
Now as we are expanding and growing, new members are flocking to our community. Some great, some not so much.
But above it all, I feel it is our duty, as members of the community and as the community as a whole, to stand above the cesspool of the internet, to love and tolerate, and not to be the scum that is most communities.
As is common, the trolls and the haters will be the most vocal. But I urge all true bronies, don't sink to their level.
Rise above. Love, friendship, and kindness. We have endured persecution, trolls invading our community, and hatred before. We will endure it in the future. It is the nature of trolls to attack anything good on the internet.
Just remember.
This too will pass.
All this flaming is pretty disappointing guys...
ReplyDeleteI find it funny that Fon and others care about which direction a fandome goes. Personaly I don't think it will ever be run over by furries, sites like ED filter it out. And even if it does get run over... so? Oh damn my favorite show is now about OC sex. Welp, better find another.
ReplyDeleteI'm still going to go to ED, ponibooru, RDN, etc. everyday and won't be effected by it one bit.
Wow, look at all this hate. It must be the furries fault.
ReplyDeleteBut really, the easiest way to stop the hate is to stop hating.
*cue Why Can't We be Friends playing in the background*
Arguing for tolerance is always such a funny thing. The author chastises a poster for saying that certain people (namely, furries) have no place in the community. But in the article, he also says in so many words that trolls and haters don't belong in the community, or at the very least, that they're outsiders. Isn't intolerance of intolerance still intolerance?
ReplyDeleteAs a side note, tolerating something is not the same thing as accepting or approving of it. The author or that violent fan-fiction probably didn't approve of shipping; does that mean that he was intolerant of it? Not necessarily, especially if it was intended as tongue-in-cheek satire and not genuine hatred.
I believe in respect, civility, and human dignity, but I think they're values that individuals have to find for themselves. They can't be forced onto others, not even by ponies. The best one can do is love and tolerate and hope the recipient comes to reciprocate it, but if they don't, what more can be done? Nothing that doesn't go against the original virtues of love and tolerance.
Although I'm sure the author understands that. He seems perfectly aware of the irony of looking down on others for looking down on others, and his message is, as he says, a warning and not condemnation. A plead. And I can respect that.
Peace.
You furries really do get off on this "fursecution" thing dont you?
ReplyDeleteToo much hate.
ReplyDeleteToo much feeding parasprites.
I am dissapoint.
I think the reason the MLP fandom dislikes furries is because of what they did with Tiny Toons- http://en.wikifur.com/wiki/Steve_Martin
ReplyDeletewhich may have been a factor in getting the show canceled. We don't even need some kook to go show off the 34 he drew to producers now, though. If someone at Hasbro decides all these furry creeps coalescing around MLP is bad for business (and they would) that would be the end of MLP FiM.
Now that we have a more advanced internet, that is.
ReplyDeleteEquestriaDaily and FiM/Ponychan attracts the dredges of the internet, no offense to Seph.
ReplyDeletePeople on /c/ summarized my reaction pretty well:
"That "An Open Letter to the Brony Community" stuff is pretty hilarious. Not the letter itself, that's just the usual "I'm a massive furry" affair. But reading all the reactions...
Honestly, at this point I'm feeling glad there's only a few more weeks left of the season."
"I just read it. Christ, it's this personal army "love and tolerance" thing that's really killing the fandom. When it was just on /co/ we were just a bunch of dudes watching a show for little girls and not taking it seriously, unlike that butthurt furfag."
Communities die when people don't want to be in them any more. Usually it's because of drama and self-appointed community police rooting out the "dissidents" and "undesirables." Older, wiser members of the community get tired of the persecution and go off somewhere else, and newer members are treated with such suspicion that they don't ever have a chance to establish themselves.
ReplyDeleteWhat is left is the cold, bitter remnants of the community, a stagnant, small pool of people too stubborn to accept others or budge from their dogma.
On the topic of love and tolerance, I'm reminded of a few Bible verses...
ReplyDeleteMatthew 5
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect."
---
Romans 12
"Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: 'It is mine to avenge; I will repay,' says the Lord. On the contrary:
'If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.'
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."
---
For the less religiously inclined...
"He who fights monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster." -Friedrich Nietzsche
I typically like to read all of the previous comments before saying anything, but being that there are 300+, I'm not going to do that here.
ReplyDeleteAll that I have to say is that I agree with the author of the "open letter". I don't understand the hate that has started to go down. I personally remember the post about the hoodie. I actually liked it, and would probably wear it if it didn't get me laughed out of everywhere. This being said, I'm not a DIE HARD furry or anything, I just liked the hoodie. I say live and let live.
I've noticed most of the hate has been directed at furries, and I'll tell you that I agree that they're different. But it's not like they're going to come and rape you in a fursuit or something. Hell less then 10% of them even own/want to own a fursuit. The fact of the matter is, is that the furries aren't pushing themselves on the fandom, the only ones bringing up the furries are the furry-haters. It's like you're egging them on. Why? What is the point of starting the drama?
TL;DR Love and Tolerate, Don't Hate.
I personally find furries and shippers weird and off-putting, but who's to say the things I find entertaining aren't weird and off-putting to them? The diversity is what makes this group great, and if you really dislike it that much, you don't have to interact with those people. Live and let live
ReplyDeleteThis is what you get for expanding outside of 4chan.
ReplyDeleteFurry scum.
....We are on a site that's dedicated to talking ponies WE ARE ALL FURRIES!!!!
ReplyDeleteHey... Ben... Have you even watched the show? The Ponies aren't friends with everybody. If somebody acts like an ass, Gilda or Trixie for example, do the ponies smother them with love and kindness? No, they tell them to fuck off. You're 21. Act your age and grow the fuck up. Quit being such a fucking drama bitch.
ReplyDeleteWeighing in here:
ReplyDeleteI'm a furry. I very seldom read clopfics. I don't own (or, uhh, rent?) a fursuit. I'm in the fandom to make cool stuff and check out the cool stuff others have made. It isn't a religion, it's way cooler than that. At least 20% cooler.
The furry bashing is because people have this idea in their heads that furries are all these creepy smelly losers who live in mom's basement and have sex with stuffed animals and/or real animals. I'm none of the above. The overwhelming majority of other furs I know are likewise.
It's just like any other kind of prejudice, like people who think that all Jewish people have huge noses and are greedy and (etc. etc. etc.) (and I chose that example intentionally, as I am Jewish).
@Anonymous
ReplyDeleteWell it's fun to fuck around with you people. I mean really, what are you gonna do? lol
@Anonymous
ReplyDeleteWell you silly people make it so fun to mess around with; cause really, what ARE you gonna do?
Wow. I know this is the internet and everything, but come on guys, have a little self control. Even if you disagree with each other, it's really not that hard to maintain a civil tone.
ReplyDelete