0 :lol:

OOH OOH OOH I think I just noticed something: Almost every entry that has ever won a contest has been submitted by a HUMAN! *gasp* Do you realize what this means? This means that no ponies have won! No aligators, no dogs, no mongooses (mongeese?) ! The games are fixed. Only humans ever win them. The shame of it all!

I'll bet it's because those mean old judges are trying to suppress the creative talents of the smaller ranks! Or maybe it's because they pick the best entries, and it just so happens that most are from high-ranking tankers. Maybe the judges aren't out to get anyone; maybe they're just doing their jobs fairly and bad stuff gets READ INTO what they do.

Evil? Not anymore.

Tears streamed down my little sister’s burning cheeks and fell noiselessly onto the bed. Her voice trembled as she tried to tell me what had happened. “There was a guy on the website.... He called me names, and... he told me I’m (censored).” She bit her lip as more tears came. “He said he was going to... to get me-.” Her voice broke. She buried her face in my shoulder and cried harder than an eight-year-old should ever have reason to cry. I am quickly losing my patience with humans. This is the second time that one has hurt my sister. It won’t happen again: Cirrus has turned off her computer for the last time. She is now scarred for life because two horrible individuals had nothing better to do than prey upon the young and innocent. I can’t describe the pain of seeing the suffering of a loved one for whom I’ve laid my life on the line. There is no physical hurt strong enough to compare it to. But what hurts just as much is remembering when I caused somepony else to suffer. I am, by definition, a monster. I come from a species whose primary characteristics are wanton gluttony and a sick delight in causing problems. Less than two years ago, both were deeply embedded in me, and I loved it. But I’m over that now. My new family and friends have helped me escape my old nature and start a new life as everypony’s friend and companion. I still occasionally have relapses, but for all practical purposes, I have totally changed. And I’m thirteen years old. Your species has been around for millennia. Would you mind explaining why you can’t change in your thousands of years when I have changed in less than two? Bullies are present in both our worlds, but yours are much more proficient at using the internet. Yours actually taught me some new tricks when I was a bully. I have a lot of experience with internet bullies, and I plan to take advantage of it now, to give the honorable among you a look at what they do, why they do, and what to do about them. 1.) What they do An internet bully uses the... wait for it... internet as a means of communicating hateful and damaging messages, media, etc. They spend quite a bit of time on the computer and usually group together like wolves, doing whatever the other bullies are doing and to the same victim. a. Insult The whole “sticks and stones” business is garbage. Words do hurt, and nothing hurts quite like being personally attacked. The bully isn’t saying that something you said or did is bad; he’s saying that you yourself are inherently bad in an unfair and undefinable way. b. Intimidate The bully makes a frightening statement, a threat for example, intended to keep you from doing something that he doesn’t want you to, like report his words or actions. Most threats are groundless and empty, but are phrased in such a way that the victim is taken aback to the point of distraction and doesn’t see the lack of power that the bully really has. c. Incite A bully’s favorite thing to do is light a match and watch the fire spread out of control. He will say something, maybe a single sentence, which will throw the website into a chaotic frenzy that leaves hearts broken and lives scarred. 2.) Why they do what they do a. Pleasure The mind of a bully is a dark, nasty place. He finds amusement in causing others pain. To him, it is a way of life. Even when he’s off of the computer, he’s thinking about what to say or do next that will cause the most problems. The bully observes when another acts like him online and compliments him. He might join him in whatever destructive thing he’s doing; they may even become the best of friends. He laughs when someone online tries to defend himself. Some use logic to try to convince the bully to change, but he isn’t being abusive due to flawed logic. Some lash back at him, fighting fire with fire, and he simply hits back harder. It’s all a game to him. b. Personal Gain Some more intelligent bullies use their ability to intimidate to make victims, especially young ones, give up important information. He’ll throw out vulgarities and threats in an attempt to scare the victim, then he’ll demand things like account passwords and private financial details. This is what the bully did to my sister a few days ago. The threats are usually empty, since the bully’s only means of accessing the victim is via internet. As I mentioned, he has no way to carry out the dastardly things he says, but he words it in such a way that the victim doesn’t realize that. 3.) How to deal with them Talking to a bully is dangerous, but that’s always the route most will take. Some think they can change his mind, while others think they can turn the tables on him. Neither is effective. These, however, are: a. Avoid Did the bully send you a violent email? Then stop reading it and delete it! He needs you to read it in order to hurt you, so if you don’t, he is defeated. Is he on a discussion forum, luring you into an argument? Go somewhere else. Bullies don’t argue rationally, they simply say whatever they think will agitate you more, so you won’t get anywhere by taking the bait and talking to him. Let me take a brief aside here to provide a personal anecdote. Some may remember what I said in the reply section of Issue 37’s “Equipment Advertising” contest results. A number of contestants didn’t win and were mad about it, and a few bullies were filling the reply section with angry posts. I responded by lashing back, which probably has you wondering why I’m saying you shouldn’t. I responded because, back then, I didn’t know that they wouldn’t relent. I did know that they might send me hate-filled PMs (and they did), so I consulted with my aunt Luna before making my response. She warned me that bullies wouldn’t care what I said, but she did give me the tranquilizing hex that I asked her for. With the hex in place, I could make my reply and resist the urge to counter the flood of emails I got. The end result of taking my valiant stand for the cause of justice? The bullies overran the Equipment Ad with angry (yet pitifully hilarious) replies, and Lhamster had to lock it down. Oops. Lesson learned: avoiding the bully is the most effective way to fight back. b. Report Sometimes a bully takes a step too far. He’ll make a threat, or violate some law, and then you have him dead to rights. On Tanki, you can take a screenshot of in-game chats and report them to the Chat Violators page. In the forum, simply click the Report button at the bottom of the bully’s post. Other sites have different rules. Some need you to email to report the bully’s actions, others may require you to call a help line, but rest assured that most sites have a way to report violations. I’m going to let you in on a dirty little secret. Call me a sick cookie if you want, but I have a folder hidden deep within my computer documents labeled Prison. Within the folder are screenshots of every Tanki violator I have reported and gotten banned. The folder grows steadily all week, every week. One of my favorite pastimes on Tanki is to watch chat rooms and take screenshots of all the chat violators I see. Violator Hunting is a satisfying, perfectly legal way for me to avenge my sister; I enjoy it thoroughly. Try it sometime. c. Get off of the computer Occasionally, though, the bully is too smart to slip up. He seems to stalk you around the site, nagging you and trying to irritate you enough to make you slip up yourself. This is when you should hit that power button. It’s a radical move, but Cirrus did it, and look what it got her: she escaped the bully. No one on the internet can hurt you if you aren’t on the internet. * * * * * * * * Internet bullies are just like every other bully: they seem to love their life of anger and hate. The average Joe cannot fathom how they can live with themselves. Watching the Evil run free with a clear conscience can be very discouraging to the Good. Don’t be deceived. All is not well within the heart of the bully. He is full of fear. Every night he tosses and turns upon his bed, wallowing in the agonizing dread that someone somewhere saw what he has said and done and reported him. He rises from a sleepless night and holds his breath as he logs onto his computer, half-expecting to be permanently banned. He cannot escape his guilt. He tries to bury it deep enough within himself so he doesn’t feel it, but it is still there, constantly reminding him of the pain he has caused. As long as he continues his wicked lifestyle, the guilt will continue to eat him from the inside out. The bully must live without true friendship. He thought he could be mean online but still have friends in real life, but he learned too late how wrong he was. What you are on the inside will come out, no matter who you are with. He emerged from his computer and couldn’t help but treat his friends just as viciously as if they were online. So they left him. Above all, the bully looks to his future and sees nothing. He has no friends. His conscience tortures him day and night. His life has no meaning. Deep down, his soul is just like yours and mine. He wants to be happy and enjoy life, but he is also depraved and prone to moral error. You can pity him, but not too much. The only way he’ll ever change is when he gets fed up with the pain that comes with being a bully. Until that happens, stay away from him. You’ll be doing him a favor.

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In my opinion, none of the Golds in Highland are practically guaranteed. Maybe other tankers have no trouble with certain of them, but neither I nor anytanki else I've seen can consistently grab any of them without competition.

Stratus; I'm a changeling.

Was slaughtered by Darren in a Duel yesterday. The only thing that saved me was Rarity coming over to remind me I promised to help her decorate. Phew!

Oh, a human thing, gotcha. Thanks :)

Eh heh, I didn't think you were here just to read my article. Oh, so you have changed your mind about me being a hypocrite for speaking against spamming? Very well. Since your "rebuttal" has lost its rebuttal characteristics, my work here is done. Have a good day my friend, and remember to tip your waiter (or waitress, as the case may be).

A letter is what I just typed several times. Put enough of them together and you get news.

Thank you my friend Bomb.

Oh, I am so sorry, I forgot that the definition of spamming is "Using Caps Lock in 6 of your 206 posts". Uh, wait, that isn't the definition. According to Wikipedia, the definition of forum spamming is "Excessive multiple posting, that is, the repeated posting of a message (or substantially similar messages). Wow, maybe I actually know what I'm talking about....

It's technically a newsletter.

What is an elbow?

Caught a Gold yesterday at Polygon. I was in my M2 Dictator and M2 Railgun, and the Gold fell next to the pit. I wedged my tank in between two enemies and climbed on top of everytanki. Was almost destroyed, so I used a Repair kit.

Yes, I eat sandwiches quite frequently.

Ah, but FLAMING, arguing until you've forgotten the original point of the article, is not allowed and is a bannable offense.

@Come.at.me.brah: Internet Explorer is almost as horrible as an onion sandwich without mayo. I can't even quote on it, as you can see. I have to log out and sign in on Google Chrome in order to quote. AND THANK YOU SO MUCH for the compliments everypony!!! I feel so smushy.... :)

I'm not living in Canterlot RIGHT NOW, im living in Ponyville as I have for about two years.

TNT, what do you mean, my identity?!?!?! :blink:

Oh my goodness, THANK YOU so very much! I'm so flattered, I... I think I'm starting to cry... again.... My favorite penguin :wub:

Ain't nothin' like Momma's cookin'! No, I do NOT talk like that. Been hanging around with Applejack too much lately. And what do you mean, KING Stratus? :lol: :D

Brownies are quite tasty, depending on who bakes them. My neighbor Pinkie Pie is an absolute culinary genius; she makes the best brownies.