Harmonic Revelations

I remember you, actually. It's nice to see a familiar face floating around Jeric.

Mind reading, undoubtedly. But I'd want it to be something I had to actually put effort in to accomplish, since hearing everyone's thoughts all the time would be maddening. But knowing what people are thinking, and more importantly, their inner desires and feelings, can create understanding, and understanding is the greatest ingredient for successful social contact, from relationships all the way to business negotiation. The other reason I'd make this choice is it's not an obvious enough power I'd get outed and abducted by the government or something.

Thank you. It's a bit surreal how little this place has changed compared to how much I have changed as a person in the past seven years. It's a bit like stepping into the past. The main reason I was reminded this place exists is I found an old art of my OC from back in the day on one of my old hard drives and the memories came flooding back. Not sure how well I'll fit in but from the looks of it some of the people I used to talk to are still active even today, surprisingly, so at least I'll get a chance to say hi.

Hello everyone. It's me, Harmonic. I have returned from the grave. Well, that's a little bit misleading. So much has changed since I was here last that I'm basically an entirely different person (including physically since long enough has passed that all the cells in my body have been replaced at least once since back then.) It's good to be back and to see how the forum is fairing. Seven years is a lot of opportunity for more people to join, people I'm excited to meet and make friends with. I suppose I should take this time to give a little info about who I am and the kinds of things I enjoy. I'm Harmonic, people in the old day called me Harmy but I honestly don't mind if people just use my first name Colt to refer to me. I'm something of an MLP boomer since I got in on the fandom really early, relatively speaking, before the end of season 1. I fell out of touch with the fandom around the middle of season 4, and haven't watched it since. I plan to eventually binge the episodes I missed so I can be caught up on all the lore and pony memes I undoubtedly will not understand until I've finished watching the series. As for interests other than ponies, I have quite a few. I'm a writer by trade and as such many creative hobbies, like RP, interior design, graphic design etc appeal to me, though I'm still far from a master of any visual art medium. I gave painting a try when I was sixteen or so but nothing substantial ever really came of it. My most successful foray into visual art has definitely been my 3D modeling which I will likely show on the forums at some point. Something that has changed since I was last here is I'm now something of an outdoorsman (Well, when there isn't a global pandemic, the past year has been rough), with both hunting and fishing being hobbies I enjoy, as well as merely exploring the woods. Where I live there's quite a lot of forest to explore for miles and miles around so it's not exactly difficult to spend so long out there. The beauty of nature is something greatly appealing to me and feeling like I'm in touch with the world around me is something I cherish greatly. On the nerdier side of things, I'm a big gamer, with a relatively eclectic taste in games. Growing up, Halo was my favorite game series, mostly for it's lore and campaigns, and that's pretty much still true today, but I have an interest in a large range of games. For some examples of games I play, S.T.A.L.K.E.R., F.E.A.R., Fallout, Civ, Phasmophobia, Mortal Kombat 11, Company of Heroes, Dead Space, Half-Life, Slime Rancher, Stardew Valley, Starbound, Besiege. Pretty much I just play whatever I'm in the mood for at any particular moment, and I enjoy at least one game in every genre. In terms of movies and TV, horror is my go to, especially B Horror like Bodymelt, John Carpenter's The Thing, Cabin Fever, etc. I hope to meet many new friends here, and it's great to be back.

I will be participating in it.

It's alright.

Your entire argument is based one one huge false assumption: That a lack of legitimate reasons to insult us would cause the haters to stop. It would not. They say these things even if they're ungrounded in order to upset and offend us. They do not care if it's actually true. So by ostracizing the other parts of the fandom, you're only making BOTH the haters AND the "dark side" of the fandom your enemies. The world doesn't care if there is actually any basis to their claims as long as they get under our skin. Thus, public opinion would be no different even if pony porn wasn't a thing. They'd still say it was a thing.

Overreacting to insignificant opinions? The March Madness thread comes to mind.

Well, there's always the option not to view it.

You're acting like that isn't something every fandom creates. Bronies are the only fandom I know that makes such a big deal about it. Mainly because of the rampant immaturity running throughout. Who cares what those outside the fandom think? If you joined the fandom for the public opinion, this post isn't relevant to you.

I know it won't, but if it even changes one person a little bit, it was worth posting. Not caring and not doing anything about it is why the problem exists in the first place. I happen to like and care about these forums, and the fandom as a whole, quite a lot. That's why I'm trying. I don't happen to be a misanthrope or a pessimist, and I think that while the problem isn't possible to fix entirely, it can be less of a problem than it currently is.

I never said that such things should be tolerated. Those generally count as the bullying I was describing not being acceptable. I did say that you should treat each other with human dignity and respect, which means that you shouldn't post bigoted, sexist, or racist things. I am simply saying that people often overreact to things that they have no reason to be offended over, maybe because they simply like the drama it creates. Such drama does not belong in the fandom, but for a more reasonable expectation, it should at least be kept out of the forums.

Here comes an actually serious blog post. It's an issue that affects everybody here in one way or another, so please take the time to read it. I'm ashamed of the fandom for many reasons, and I'd like to walk you through them. One of the big ones is how people respond to those who leave the fandom (Not the people who say that they are going to and don't, those people don't count). They often says things like "Good riddance" or "Don't let the door hit your ass on the way out", without keeping in mind that the people they're talking to are in fact humans, with feelings and opinions, not just a name and a user icon, and that their actions might have driven them out of the fandom. Even if these people haven't left yet, they most likely want to, I am ashamed and down right saddened that Down With Molestia got as much support as it did. They drove a great and talented artist away because of their sensibilities. An artist who, mind you, they were not forced to look at the work of. This is hardly a one-time occurrence, it's become more and more common as time has worn on. Even on these forums. That's a big problem in this fandom, people complain that the "Dark side" of the fandom is bad, and antagonize them. Well I have a shocking revelation for you: Usually the people who enjoy the adult content produced by the fandom are adults. When you start demonizing that, all you're left with are whiny children (Or people who act like whiny children). So after demonizing the adults of the fandom and forcing them, say, off of this forum, these same people who caused so many children to join the fandom complain when no mature people are left. That's just stupid. You can disagree with the actions of others, but it is beyond wrong to try to force them to stop doing what you disagree with them about, especially since it does not affect you in any significant way. If you don't like what you see, close the page and move on. Instead people end up grouping up and targeting people who are unfortunate enough to lack the means to defend themselves. Just like those outside the fandom tend to do to us. It's hypocritical and disgusting, that's what it is. Every day we have to deal with people who hate us for the very fact that we watch ponies, and what do we do? We turn around and fight each other. That's not right, no matter which way you look at it. I'm not one of those people who says "Love and tolerate", or even that we should adhere to the messages of the show by default, but what I do understand is that since we all face the same troubles due to our shared interest, we should at least show each other a little bit of respect. No matter what your ideology, you should accept that not everybody will share your viewpoint and move on. There's no need to start a riot every time you see something you disagree with. But you know when a good time to riot is? When the things you do agree with are taken down. Because that's censorship. Having things you enjoy censored is a fantastic reason to leave the fandom, in fact, it's made me consider doing that several times myself. When it comes down to it, you have no reason or right to try to force other people out of the fandom because you disagree with their beliefs or the things they say and do. It's a show, not a religious cult. These problems have become horrible on the forums lately. I've noticed, and so have many others. So please try to treat your other users with at least some dignity and respect. If every post you make is inflammatory, dramatic, or immature in some way, this probably is not the forum for you. Everybody gets a little irritated and sometimes it's understandable to make a few posts like that, but what is not acceptable is when all of your posts are like that, because it doesn't contribute to the forums in any meaningful way and it makes your fellow users uncomfortable and upset. Note; It's okay to think these things, but not to post them. Nobody is forcing your opinion one way or the other, but you should take full responsibility for the things you say and do. On the other side of every username here is a human being, and it would do well to remember that. It is not okay to target people and use mass opinion to bully them, it is despicable and makes those responsible just as bad as the people who harass us for our love of the show. You can't force others to be politically correct because what is politically correct is subjective. You don't have any knowledge of the beliefs of this other person or their experiences beyond what they've told you; they could very well have a great reason for thinking or believing what they do. On the other side of the coin, it is not okay to antagonize people because they post things that the majority don't agree with. Their opinion is not any less valid than yours just because it's not commonly accepted. Ultimately, if what they say is not politically correct, you shouldn't care, because you choose who you talk to. If you don't like it, you can always turn the computer off and walk away, or talk to people who share your own beliefs. Imposing your own beliefs on others in an aggressive and hostile way makes the experience of posting here negative for everybody involved, and ultimately, if you try to express your opinion by yelling at everybody who doesn't agree, you won't change any minds, and just end up discrediting your own beliefs. Hatred hurts everybody except for the person you actually hate, so it's best to keep it to yourself. At times even I myself forget this. What matters is that you do the absolutely best you can to keep it in mind, and take responsibility for and try to repair the damage you do cause. The number of people who whole-heartedly disagree with this blog post proves my point about just how widespread this issue is, since all I'm really saying is that they should take the time to treat each other like human beings instead of emotional punching bags and to take responsibility for themselves. Thanks for reading.

I listen to audible music.

My art style hasn't changed that much. Last year: Now:

I hate how sensitive I am. It's actually very easy to make me upset if you know how to do so. Also, my temper comes to mind.