The Trot"Con" Fallacy: Anyway, No Refunds

Brony conventions are finally heating up again!  COVID appears to be on the decline, and we're finally able to meet up with our horsefriends in person.  But as you're buying your tickets, remember to practice that old adage: caveat emptor.  One of the newest things conventions are doing is changing their terms of sale after you've bought your ticket (and possibly even after "refund windows" have expired) but before the event is held.  If you can't meet these new changes in their terms, their response is often a simple, "Guess you're fucked lol."

TrotCon — a popular fandom convention being held this July in Columbus, OH — is one of these conventions.  They recently modified their vaccination policy from requiring attendees be "fully vaccinated" to being "up-to-date," meaning a third shot is now required for most attendees.  This change was made after the last refund window closed, and people asking about it are being redirected to this excerpt from their COVID policy FAQ:

Post-Pandemic Convention Report 3: Ponycon Holland 2021. Part 1.

 A Dam Good Time with Dr. Foal Duke

Warning: this following post contains images of mayonnaise. 

Back in October, I was able to attend the first convention in the Netherlands since the end of Hearth's Warming Con. The convention itself was rather like its predecessor; quite simple and easygoing, without many over-complications. This made it flexible and was part of the reason they could reschedule from summer of 2020 to October of 2021. But how would the change in season and management affect the convention?

Well, it turns out that it wasn't affected too bad. Apart from the limitations one might expect from a first-time convention, such as new management being overcautious and laying on less events than they could get away with financially, the con was pretty plain sailing. Apart from the crowd's compulsion to shout 'big bong' every time somebody mentioned 'magic' or 'mayonnaise'. And the Dutch love mayonnaise. They keep jars in their pockets. It's the law. Read more after the jump.

You can read about the charity, Muziekids, here, and the con book is here.

 

Told you.

Post-Pandemic Convention Report 3: Ponycon Holland 2021. Part 2.

 Day 2: Sunday Events

6740 Euros raised for MuzieKids... Imalou Spills the Beans... Con to Return 1 & 2 Oct 2022

Day Two of Ponycon Holland was no less laid back than the first, and while events were a little more sparse, there was more flexibility for fans to enjoy the surrounding area. It was refreshing to see this one come together in spite of everything.

Note that for more convention reports, you can read them here.

"The chance which now seems lost may present itself at the last moment."

Jules Verne.

 

Frontline Dispatches: Triumphs and Atrocities - The Real Horrors Unmasked

Warning: the following article contains images and links that show war crimes.

Note: if you want to assist humans who are suffering in the crisis, here is a list of reputable charities to consider donating to.

Click here for previous coverage. 

In the past twenty four hours, comedian and entertainer Cheese Sandwich, mayor of Ewe-Crying, has announced that his security teams have managed to successfully retake not only the entirety of Cave, the central business district of the town, but resist attempts by Mares' Co forces to retake other areas over six times. The furthest they had reached into the neighborhood was the hedge behind the CAVE Comedy Club just to the Western end of the area, and have since been forced back.

This is partly due to an audacious defense, but also because Mares' Co forces have been pulling out of the entire locale and moving back to the Don'task neighborhood to refocus on taking the area, following negotiations on March 30^th.

 

Politics News Weekend Roundup: NO U, mon brave.

Leader of Prance Pulls a NO U Amidst Tight Race in Polls

Over the weekend, the fighting in Ewe-Crying has been more intense in the Eastern neighborhood of Don'task than it has been since it started. In the meantime, changes have been happening all over Equestria. Lets take a look at the latest updates.

The current sitting governor of the Prance province, Fallabelle Megatron, is currently in a tight race for the polls against incumbent right-wing candidate Neighpoleon, leader of the National Rally. He has so far held his position, but this time it is reported that the squat, dumpy nag known as Neighpoleon is close enough that a projected victory for her is within the margins of error.

Falabelle has pulled a major NO U, also known as a turnabout or tu quoque (pronounced “Two Coke-ay”).

 An artist's impression, by Smoldix on Derpibooru.

"Two nearly identical politicians having an argument, through the eyes of the voter."

Frontline Dispatches: Griffish Isles PM to Send Ewe-Crying Munitions

 Frontline Dispatches: Griffish Isles to Send Ewe-Crying Munitions

In a surprise (and very risky) move, Griffish Prime Minster Birdhorse Johnson has visited the unincorporated Equestrian shepherd town of Ewe-Crying. The PM has pledged 120 armored vehicles and anti-airship systems, and over ß100 million worth of military equipment.

The PM has hailed this as a triumph. However, he has gained flack in recent days, comparing the struggle to his own country's Eggsit Referendum – the country's ongoing feud over employing foreign au pairs who are not griffins to take care of unhatched children. More details after the jump.

 

Cameras were not allowed, so we had to make do with this artist's impression.

Post-Convention Report: Griffish Isles 2021/2 - Part 2

Part 2: Sunday Events (21^st November 2021) 

£3381 raised for Only Foals and Horses

Note: For more convention reports, you can read them here, or use the search label 'convention'. 

The second day of events at Griffish Isles were a more relaxed affair, with the morning free of any main hall events after the long day we'd all had yesterday. As you might be able to see from the schedules after the jump, there were less games, and the room was devoted to just the Official CCG Card game and tutorials (plus other random activities). It would've been nice to have the games balanced as per the previous day, but here was more time to play the games in the morning as a breather before the afternoon.

Post-Convention Report: Griffish Isles 2021/2 - Part 1

 That's Griffins, not Grifting – we're In Manchester, not Essex.

By Dr. Foal Duke

What ho and pip-pip, dear readers! This one's a little bit late because of various... factors that might in fact have some relevance to world events – you know: a terrible winter, the Megatron variant, the inevitable (sigh) family and friends you have to deal with at Christmas. And not to mention Vladmir Putin deciding that he'd do a Scrooge and make all of Ukraine part of his honorary family and treat them to lots of shiny army toys. In direct competition with their adopted family in NATO who could only provide Javelins.

Of course, that was nothing compared to a three day jaunt in Manchester for the third Griffish Isles, the oddly named and oddly impactful little convention that goes beyond its comfy atmosphere to have quite a nice feel of slightly larger cons like Harmonycon in Dallas, with their effective use of venue space. It's been a funny old year for them, and despite having to call off summer 2020, they were able to bounce back in Winter 2021, a first for them. So, without further ado, mind the terrible word play, and let's dive right in.

Convention Report: HarmonyCon Retrospective Part 2

Part 2: Saturday Events (19^th February 2021)

$12,000 Raised for DASH Immigration Charity.

Note: For more convention reports, you can read them here, or use the search label 'convention'. Part One is here.

You can read about the DASH Immigration Charity here. 

Day Two of HarmonyCon 2022 was the most fun day by far, with plenty of fun to be had. There were plenty of unusual characters, including this rather unusual gentleman trying to find as many mares as possible. As you can see, he has quite an interesting theory worked out about the government's plans to deprive humanity of this important resource. More details to follow as soon as we get them. In the meantime, here's some more about the event he crashed.

Brave renegade Alex T Pones detailing how mares are real, block radar, and for this reason are being hidden by the Government

Convention Report: HarmonyCon Retrospective Part 1

 A Retrospective: Convention Report 1 

HarmonyCon, Dallas, TX 

by Dr. Foal Duke

The title of the convention was Harmony, but the atmosphere it created was anything but.

This was the third convention they had held, and the first in the United States after the pandemic. Naturally, this being close to our main office, we had to go along and take a look. The convention has survived a hoax SWAT call, a fire alarm, a hotel closure, and a two-year fucking pandemic. And yet it still rings out loudly in the mist, defiant and proud. So, how did it celebrate a return to form? what happened? Just about everything. And then Elley Ray.

Also this disturbing thing.