My favorite episode of the season so far, with a nice light-hearted feel consistently across the episode.

Not perfect, mind you, as Rainbow's reactions seem a bit extreme, but I think that was sort of necessary to stop things from getting overly heavy. Plus Dash overreacting to a seasonal hibernation seems better than if she hadn't, as playing it like Dash was mourning a death would still seem like Dash is going too far. Sabotaging winter as opposed to just making a warm place for Tank in her home, the total crying breakdown, but I'll forgive that as "needs of the plot". Song wasn't stellar, but not bad either. Was cool to see more of the weather factory, with the background music that felt like it was part Mission Impossible and part Rainbow Factory. Also liked some of the references, such as the "Who's on first" bit.

And, of course, hockey ponies. Rar, Flames!

Luna gets a different voice and personality every episode she's in ;)

An okay episode. Besides being predictable, it lacked charm. Strikes me like an episode that, if you binged watch a bunch, would stand out from the rest due to not fitting in. It was nice to hear that Babs got her cutie mark, but that could have better handled as well. Emo pony with a cutie mark in cutting... that made me shake my head. But beyond that, I would hope the CMC come up with an alumni chapter to mentor the existing ones rather than just declaring them ex-members with a "but we can still be friends" speech ;)

Overall, an episode that will be mostly forgotten in the long run, I expect. Not hated, not liked.

Also, anyone else think the shadow's voice sounded a lot like HIM from PPG?

This will be a comic I'm definitely getting. Good to see the people in charge of the comics aren't numbered amongst the oft-hypocritical haters of the terrible twosome.

Just an FYI, but Bill Gates's parents were pretty well off. That's part of why he could afford to quit school and start up his own business. He's not a rags to riches story. He's more of a "it takes money to make money" one. Also worth noting that he's one of the rich guys that started up the movement to give away most of their money before they die, the ones who basically asked themselves "How much do I really need?"

Overall, I'm a fan of people keeping what they earn, but I'm not a fan of how much money influences politics or the idea that a CEO, on average, pulls in 331x what their workers make. It's insane and unnecessary. There do need to be some limits.

What makes you believe there isn't government in other places? We've had the mayor of Cloudsdale mentioned, as one example. Plus with their weather system and things like Winter wrap-up, well, these are all things that require organization. We just don't see much of it because bureaucracy is boring.

Also, you're quite wrong on the master race list. Of the three pony races, pegasi are the ones we've seen with the least influence/power/wealth. Outside of Daring Do as an author, if it doesn't require flying, it isn't a pegasi. It's earth ponies, alicorns, and unicorns in those positions. Pegasi seem to be the most "blue collar" of all the races, with most of them being involved in weather control. Just like earth ponies are inclined to farming, pegasi are inclined to pushing clouds. Nor are unicorns exactly godlike. Unicorn magic is typically limited to minor magic related to their talent, while non-unicorns are also able to do "magical" things that are talent related, like Shy's stare. So, not a master race, but more a race of waiters, scribes, and domestic servants (except nannies, because Earth ponies would be better at that). People just tend to apply their own prejudices ("I don't want to be a farmer, but flying would be cool") to Equestria, rather than looking at what the show shows us. And, for that matter, they tend to judge unicorn power on Twilight for some crazy reason, even though that makes as much sense as judging Earth ponies on Pinkie (faster on the ground than Dash is at level flight, access to hammer space, 4th wall breaking, etc).

That said, I do agree most people don't really consider the consequences of such a move. You'd lose a lot of tech. Pony talents also mean that you'd most likely be subpar at whatever field you do decide to go into. So for most people, not a good choice. But on the flip side, it would provide a new world to explore, so for explorer types, or those that want a fresh start, it would provide an interesting opportunity.

And if we looked at a relatively small town located somewhere in the middle of the USA (near the spot Ponyville is on the Equestrian map),they would most likely have fewer problems than what we see from Ponyville in MLP. A lot fewer when you keep in mind that the events of the first three seasons all supposedly happen within the same year. Even on a national level, you had three attempted takeovers in a year, one of them even successful for a bit. Oh, and that swarm that most likely carved a path of destruction from Ponyville all the way to Fillydelphia, on the east coast.

Now, I seriously doubt Equestria averages three attempted takeovers per year. Or that every town gets hammered as often as Ponyville does. If those things were true, well, Equestria would suck to live in. You have to account for the nature of the show to a certain degree. Sometimes that makes Equestria look a bit worse than what the show presents, and sometimes it makes it look a bit better.

War - Not necessarily true. They just aren't in one at the moment that we know of (other than those brief ones against the Changelings and the buffalo).
Famine - now that the races are working together, you mean. But yes, between pegasi and earth ponies, they do seem to have this well in hand.
Debilitating diseases - we don't know that. They've certainly got hospitals, so they probably have disease. And they've got a fear of the Cutie Pox, so they've definitely had diseases in the past, and could well have them again. But overall, they seem to be a first-world country, so like for most of us, it isn't a huge issue.

Also keep in mind what they have that most of us don't:
Nations posed to invade them - like the changelings did.
Monsters - from the Evergreen Forest, escaping from Tartarus, windigoes, Discord, and so on.
Magical catastrophes - we've seen a few of those happen.
A population very disposed to panicking.

Overall, they've got their issues, same as we do. They do bounce back from their faster, of course, but episodic kids show.

The usual "down on the earth ponies" stuff, which the show has shown isn't valid.

The show has stated that most unicorn magic is very limited ("a little magic that matches their special talents"). Twi's power level and flexibility are exceptional, as shown by the ease with which she awes even another unicorn who's talent is magic and who makes her living off magic. Plus the ability to pick a field of apples that all happen to be ripe at exactly the same time... that's AJ and family at work. Not a unicorn. They lack the knack. Your typical unicorn is far better suited to be a waiter than a farmer. Even Flim and Flam, who's talent seems to be related to making contraptions (and hence can power them while pretty much every other unicorn cannot) need to buy apples. And what their machine does could be done with steam, water, or electrical power (at least two of which ponies have). So what's to say an earth pony couldn't invent a similar machine? Except he'll be better at growing apples, but still better off letting a specialist, like AJ, do that.

Then look at pegasi. Observe who the show shows as influential ponies. Unless the position requires flight (Wonderbolt, mayor of Cloudsdale), it isn't a pegasus. Earth ponies and unicorns are shown at the top. And look at their typical job: weather management. It isn't glorious. Pegasi are cloud-pushers. That's blue collar, every bit as much as farmers. And flight? Trains exist (and pegasi use them). Flying contraptions exist. And certain spells exist (most likely even in potion form). So the advantages of flight are being brought to the other races by technology. They're also the most replaceable race. Griffons can cloud walk and fly...

And just like things exist that allow non-pegasi to fly, there are magic options open to non-unicorns. We've seen them used on multiple occasions with Apple Bloom's potion making and Zecora with her potions and powders. Magic is not the exclusive domain of unicorns. It is just that they are, in general, a bit more adept and inclined to it, and it is how their talent expresses itself.

And speaking of talents, a pony's talent seems to trump their racial bonus (though talent aligning with race results in the exceptional). We see this with Fluttershy, who's talent is outside the norm for pegasi. She's in the earth pony area. She's the exception though. But if she exists, then so can others. So yes, there could be a unicorn out there with a knack for apple growing who uses magic to do so. But there could also be an earth pony out there with a knack for potions and powders putting Trixie to shame.

So short version: each species has a working man area they're good at, each one's gift can be duplicated through other means, and talent trumps species (but not talent+species). And pegasi are the ones that seem to be at the bottom in terms of social status ;)

Really, if you want to look at racial inequality, you're better off looking at the other species. The use of mule as a derogatory term implies that acceptance of donkey + pony marriage is a relatively recent thing. Sheep get chased and penned, even though they are sapient. Who knows about the living conditions of cows, but we haven't seen any living inside the borders of Ponyville yet. The whole conflict with buffalo as ponies expanded into their lands. And let's not forget the fear of Zecora. Those things say a lot about the culture.

Lastly: "If you pulled what they pulled here on earth, expect the lawsuits."

Sadly, not really the case. We've got faith-healers on one side and people who believe that diluting things makes for magical water on the other. And then there's the latest fad diet, often embraced by the corporations. Things like gluten-free pasted on everything even though very few people are actually allergic to gluten, the whole fat-free thing we're still afflicted with even though it tends to result in more overweight people, rather than fewer, and so on. We've got idiots not vaccinating their kids because they trust a porn-star more than their doctor, resulting in outbreaks of certain diseases. Flim and Flam would do perfectly fine here.

Regardless, Seth says Cadance was born with wing and horn. The show hasn't shown that, which means that isn't canon. And with soft-canon saying the opposite, DrForester's objection is quite reasonable.