skbl17

Ten minutes after arriving home and checking the TV for the latest news, Compass Meridian put down the television remote as a weird thought came to him. It was odd to see a commercial on one of PBE's channels, Compass thought. He knew it was a public service broadcaster and that commercials were forbidden, so he was sure somepony at their control room would never hear the end of it. "That's not important," Compass mumbled. "Something odd is going on." There were now protests in Applelanta and a few dozen other cities nationwide. Protests and a deadly attack on a subway train...something was wrong. For his own safety, he decided to stay away from the downtown area for the rest of the day, confident that everything would blow over by tomorrow and he could safely get to class. Compass retired to his bed to take a quick nap, but before he fell asleep, he heard one or two loud booms, followed by his bedside lamp going out. Startled out of bed, he dashed to the window to see what was going on. Oddly enough, he couldn't see any smoke or property damage, but he did notice that the vehicles had stopped running and that nopony had any power. Unnerved, he decided to see if the globalnet still worked...but his computer wouldn't turn on. Compass was no scientist, but he knew that every piece of electronic equipment was out for only one reason. "Electrom..." --------------- "...agnetic pulse. Great." What a development! Yeah, just as she was trying to enjoy her day off, High Voltage had gotten a frantic call from her superiors. Apparently, there had been a large-scale EMP attack in a few cities nationwide, and Applelanta was one of them. Power was out and the local electric crew was overwhelmed, so she and a few hundred other lineponies were to be dispatched from across the region to restore electricity. So much for her one day off this week. She arrived at a TPL staging facility, where she was greeted by some of her coworkers. However, their chatter would be cut short as their manager approached a hastily assembled podium and began to address the crowd of TPL employees. "Mares and gentleponies, can I have your attention? A short while ago, EMP bursts affected the power grids in several cities in our region, Haytona and Applelanta among them. Unfortunately, the widespread nature of these bursts has made the local TPL crews ask for assistance, as they've been...overwhelmed to say the least. If there's one thing Tropicala Power & Light will never do, it's leave our customers in the dark when they need power the most. "As such, I'm splitting you all into two groups. One group will go to Haytona and assist crews there, while the other group will head to Applelanta and assist crews there. You all will draw from this hat to select your staging location. Good luck, and may Celestia protect you!" With that, she left the podium. Each employee was asked to pull a slip of paper out of a hat, with the location listed on each slip. High Voltage pulled a slip out of the hat, read the location name, then turned to reach her utility truck. As she started the truck and prepared to pull out of the staging facility, she only had one thought on her mind. Well, this oughta be fun. Applelanta, here I come!

Lemme tell y'all 'bout a little place called the South, where the chicken's fried, the tea's sweet, and the hospitality's...Southern. In reality, I haven't picked up that accent. Maybe it's because I'm a filthy Yankee transplant, who knows?

Fifty minutes later, Compass arrived at the Granite Street subway station. He noticed how much the station had changed since he graduated from secondary school three months earlier; previously, the station was a microcosm of the subway system in general: seedy, unreliable, and crime-ridden. It was shameful, and even he had some close calls with some thugs in the past. He never thought he'd ever use the subway again, but two factors drove his decision. First, the Applelanta Metropolitan Transport Authority (AMTA) had hired a new general manager, and his first act was to launch the harshest crackdown on crime the agency had ever seen. Since then, passengers have noted a major improvement in service, and there are police officers everywhere. The second factor: he was running late. The bus broke down not far from the station, but the accident delayed everypony's trip by twenty minutes. If he was going to be at class on time, he had no choice but to use the AMTA subway. With all the reliability improvements and the presence of police, he didn't think he had anything to worry about. After paying for a preloaded Gallop fare card, Compass made his way through the turnstiles and into the secure area of the station. Things were going well, he thought he would actually make it...that is, until he saw a large crowd of passengers looking at pictures from a large television screen. It looked as if the screen was tuned to Channel One, but something was off. Normally around this time, Channel One would be broadcasting PBE's morning show, Sunrise in Equestria, complete with the hosts' creepy smiles and overly bubbly personalities, laughing and chatting away at the day's events and gossip. Only there wasn't any laughing or mindless banter today. Instead, the usually bubbly hosts were grim-faced and seemingly delivering information in an almost serious and professional manner. As for what they were talking about... ...and here's the latest information: we can confirm that a subway train in Applelanta has derailed just west of the downtown area. Neither AMTA, the local transport authority, nor local police can confirm if there are any casua...actually, hold on a moment. PBE News has just learned from AMTA police that the derailment has taken the lives of at least forty riders, with injuries "possibly numbering in the hundreds". The train had departed from the Granite Street station four minutes prior to the derailment... All Compass could do was join the shaken ponies in shock. If he had arrived at the Granite Street station just a few minutes earlier... Ten minutes later, AMTA announced that all rail services in the Applelanta area were to be suspended while cleanup and investigations into the cause of the derailment continued. Realizing that he wouldn't make it to class that morning, Compass turned around and left the station. Bus service was still available, so he decided to head back home, still shaken over the fact that if he had been just a bit quicker, he would have been on that train. ----------------------------------- (The same day; Radio F1 hourly bulletin - 5pm Equestrian time) Good afternoon, here is the latest from PBE News. A train derailment in the Tropicalan city of Applelanta during this morning's rush hour has claimed the lives of 52 passengers, with an additional 176 injuries. Police believe that the derailment was the result of sabotage, but no group or individual has taken responsibility. The local transport authority, AMTA, suspended subway services immediately after the derailment; so far, they have not announced when subway service will resume. A temporary memorial site has been set up at the Granite Street subway station for passengers and local residents to pay their respects. Equestria and Saddle Arabia have made little progress in bilateral talks aimed at improving relations between the two countries. At a roundtable meeting in the Arctican city of Vanhoover, diplomats between the two nations agreed to ease some travel restrictions for authorized citizens, but no progress has been made on the ongoing trade sanctions between the two countries. A Saddle Arabian diplomat present at the meeting described the proceedings as "shameful", while an Equestrian diplomat described the meeting as "deceptive, negative, and of little benefit". Further talks are scheduled for next week. In Canterlot today, a group of high-profile nobles and royals met with Princess Twilight Sparkle on the possibility of rolling back some of the reforms implemented in the Equestria Forward program. Prince Blueblood, an outspoken opponent of the program, argued that the program is "deceptive" and that it will only serve to "erode the delicate social balance of the nation". This comes as the Unicornian Regional Assembly passed a resolution condemning the program as being "wasteful and unnecessary", with one regional representative hinting that Princess Twilight should be removed from her throne. The national government indicated in a press release earlier today that they support the program, and that "the benefits to Equestrian society and the economy outweigh the pitfalls." ​In stocks today, the EQEX closed down 24 points, while the COMDEX 500 closed down 20 points. More news is available online at pbe.org.eq/news.

My opinion on those who smoke marijuana is the exact same as those who smoke cigarettes: "I don't support your lifestyle, and I will try to find ways to avoid you while you're smoking, but I will not support any legislative measure to ban your lifestyle." That's the main reason why I support the legalization of marijuana for recreational use, even though I find smoking for non-medicinal reasons pretty appalling. An infamous Canadian prime minister once said, "The state has no business in the bedrooms of the nation." I agree, as long as you aren't murdering or assaulting anyone. (Disclaimer: Since this is a thread that will likely prompt debate on marijuana, a controversial political, economic, and social topic, shouldn't this be moved to the Debate Pit?)

I'm not the biggest fan of needles, but I would say shots. They're quick, and nothing's being sucked out of you.

(META POST AHEAD) I'm still trying to figure this out: when did the Debate Pit become General Discussion? First the debate on Michelle Obama's school lunch initiative and now a debate over anarchism?! From the pinned post in that subforum: My question is this: since this is a debate about the merits of anarchism, a political ideology, shouldn't this thread be moved to the Debate Pit?

Pancakes. I don't get the appeal; when I first tried one, it really felt like I was tasting flavored paper.

Welcome to Equestria Forward, an open-ended roleplay set in a technologically advanced Equestria! For further information and to register to participate, see the OOC thread! BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, BEE---*click* Compass Meridian rose from his slumber, half-tired and a bit annoyed, as his loud alarm clock put an end to any happy dreams he may have been having. To add to his frustration, today was that day of the week; the one day that he wishes would disappear from existence for all eternity, shortening the length of time it takes for the weekend to arrive by one less annoying day. To most ponies, it was Monday. To him, it was Monday. Still half-asleep, Compass stumbled into his bathroom, cursing both his alarm clock and whatever selfish god had decided to punish him by creating the very concept of Mondays. He brushed his teeth and took a short shower before making breakfast, getting together his stuff, and heading out the front door, where he was immediately greeted by the bright rays of the morning sun. As the AMTA transit bus rounded the corner, he took note of the humidity in the air, the mild temperatures, and the fact that being 1,000 feet above sea level didn't help out with any of that. As the bus came to a stop and opened the door, allowing him to board, Compass had but one thought. Summertime in Applelanta. It's humid, it's hot, I've only been out for five minutes, and I already want to go home. The doors closed, and the bus sped off.

There doesn't need to be a definite "rule" on alicorns. If you want to create an alicorn, go ahead. Where most alicorns fall flat is the extent to which they are overpowered. When bronies create alicorn OCs, they tend to imagine a pony with Celestia-tier level power without providing acceptable context for why that's the case, which is disappointing. I have no problems with alicorns on their own, but the abilities and traits of the alicorns are cause for concern.

I personally lean toward the head, but with a little bit of the heart thrown in. Most of that can be due to the fact that I tend to overanalyze decisions, so even when my heart says that what I'm doing or about to do is right or is acceptable, I still tend to take into account all of the possibilities and consequences of taking said action.

I thought, "What would I look like if I was a pony?", and made that my profile picture.