Our Legacy

[Night Sky 880]

Recently I've been seeing memes circulating on Tumblr that have really upset me. 

I don't see the merit of linking to any of these, or calling any pony out. 

The straw that broke the camel's back for me was a meme which stated that it would be necessary to assassinate Twilight Sparkle because she's a noble, a great deal of regret notwithstanding.

I don't think it's funny. 

I have also seen other memes which seem to take a sadistic glee in showing a FIM character who is now traumatized, because they botched an interaction with a pony of one or another LGBTQIA+/- identity.

These memes and artwork are being made by ponies who represent that they themselves identify as LGBTQIA+/-

I think those are even less funny.

It seems that nowadays we have some ponies who advocate for tolerance and democracy, who are also advocating for violence and murder.

We also have ponies who claim to have been mistreated, and claim that they are only asking for inclusion, who seem to be weaponizing their status as vulnerable ponies to make others feel bad about themselves. 

I don't presume to psychoanalyze anyone's motives, I have no interest in doing so and I shouldn't be burdened with having to do that. 

I am merely examining the apparent messaging of what is being placed in front of me, according to my own values and perspective.

I have that right as much as anyone else does.    

Both of these genres of memes are being made by profiles decorated by statements espousing progressive values. 

I find the tone of these so-called jokes to be dissonant and disturbing. 

Really, it's necessary to assassinate Twilight Sparkle, because she's a Princess? 

Really, you expect to be treated a certain way, but you feel entitled to torture people when their good faith efforts don't match your expectations?

This has been a valuable opportunity for me to check in with myself.

What have I learned from MLP FIM? 

How might that inform a different way of responding to content like this?  

I can only speak my own truth, and the best way I can do that is through my own art.

The Piece attached to this post is titled: Our Legacy

The Tetrarchy of Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Princess Cadence and Princess Twilight Sparkle was based upon real relationships.

Yes, those relationships were severely tested, but ultimately every pony emerged the better for it. 

The Four Alicorn Princesses ruled well and defended Equestria, they did their duty.

And they accomplished this with far less violence, artifice and politicking than any regime in the entire history of our species ever has. 

Maybe it's not even about whether or not democratic forms of government are superior to any form of monarchy.

Maybe, regardless of which system of governance they espouse, our leaders here in this world leave far more to be desired than any of the Alicorn Princesses.

Because regardless of who's fault it is, our world is a wreck.

Equestria has endured its share of trials and tribulations and setbacks.

Equestria is not a wreck.

Must we wreck it, must we make it more like how we are and less like how we know we could be?

What is the legacy of the democracies of the 20th century? 

What flowers have blossomed from the seeds they planted? 

A second Peloponnesian war, this time on a truly global scale?

I will pause here and direct your attention to the number of question marks in this post. 

Sure, I've made a few statements, but I'm mainly asking questions.

We're told that we're supposed to be having a "new conversation".

But how can we have that conversation when every single question ends up being a landmine, sooner or later?

What is the legacy of the Equestrian Tetrarchy? 

Simple answer, Flurry Heart.

She is an Angel who caps a pyramid of good leadership.

The foundation that the four princesses established, the fertile ground that they nurtured, and the goodness they fostered gave rise to a pure Avatara.

And we weren't ready for her.

We aren't ready for her.

It is no accident that the show did not continue on to detail Flurry Heart's reign of at least the Crystal Empire.

Perhaps Flurry Heart went on to rule all of Equestria after Princess Twilight Sparkle retired or otherwise met her fate.

Maybe some pony else took those reins.

Thanks to Generation 5, in typical human fashion, we've imagined that it all fell apart. 

That says more about us and less about ponydom.  

I say it figures, but that's just me.

It's not about what we do and don't deserve.

I am so sick of hearing everyone talk about what every other kind of person does or does not deserve.

We were not ready for Flurry Heart, and we are still not ready for her. 

It seems to me that a great many people have seemingly forgotten about her.

I can never allow myself to do so. 

I have said elsewhere that MLP FIM parallels every great epic tale of good versus evil that we've ever dreamed of, in a manner which has never been seen before.

Flurry Heart is the living embodiment of Equestria's triumph. 

To ignore Flurry Heart is to miss the point of Equestria entirely. 

If it had not been for the Four Alicorn Princesses and Prince Shining Armor, Flurry Heart would never have appeared.

And we would never have had to behold a character who represents what we could look like, if we stopped trying to change Equestria to be more like us, and instead tried to change ourselves to be more like ponies.  

   

 

  

 

 

Edited Sunday at 08:54 PM by Night Sky

[Dawnshine Wonder 2,790]

I don't know what to think of this one, however my advice is try to ignore posts like that, trust me it is not worth getting stressed out over, people make jokes, even bad ones, and I've come to accept it's a fact of life we need to learn to adapt to, as we cannot change what other people are thinking or saying.

I do agree with you that Flurry Heart is important to Equestria as well, it seems foal characters get hated on the most and in my opinion, for very flawed reasons. People may not mean it that way, but I have said it before that I consider it ageist for people to imply children are to be seen but not heard from. Some people may consider Flurry Heart annoying, I don't know, but I don't and I'd have the same attitude about this even if I were to live in the fictional world Equestria as a pony myself.

About the MLP G4 fan fiction I would hope to get finished someday if I find the motivation to finish it in my notepad with pencil, is that one of the reasons I'd desire to be reborn there, even though it can never happen is this, to restore childhood innocence, to be young again, adventures are at their best with that purity in my opinion as in that case, we are not corrupted by negative influences, and I would not want to carry any of the negative influences from our world, there, I'd want my personality to be like Fluttershy's, shy and respectful, even if it came at the price of being perceived as weak by bullies.

 

I would not want Equestria to be ruined by the selfishness that exists here, though thankfully that can never happen, unless somebody writes a dark story that makes that happen in that fictional universe. I'm sorry that you're going through a bad time right now, I wish you the best, I don't have all the answers, nor do I claim to do so, I just know that whatever you're going through, what other's have said rubbed you the wrong way, I am a sensitive individual myself, I too, can be irked and complain about the negative opinions of other's, but in the end, it's a waste of time, and all it does is brings us down.

Our world is not entirely hopeless though, I have found compassionate individuals who do genuinely care about the well being of other individuals and want to help us see the light together, what I mean is, the ethos of friendship is magic, exists here in our world, even though the characters from the show don't. Let us find solace in that friendship, don't let other's negativity destroy you, there is bravery in defiance.

I agree with what you said about about Alicorn Princesses in MLP FIM, despite how they rule Equestria, they managed to do so with less violence, and it's one reason I wish to be in that world, to learn from them, not pick fights with them and I certainly don't wish them dead, in fact wishing anyone dead is awful and it goes against everything Twilight Sparkle and her friends stand for. In the TV show MLP FIM even back when Princess Luna was Nightmare Moon, I did not want her dead, I only wanted that character to be stopped for antagonizing her sister and her subjects, and I found her redemption to be beautiful and it proved Luna is not a monster, like anyone else, she had feelings, I don't believe it's funny of anyone else to write stories about killing any MLP character, either.