Hey everyone,

I'm wondering what is EPN's opinion of Zion now that New Zion has been built.  One of the points that I thought about EPN's anger with Zion was that they didn't seem to be taking any action to protect themselves.   I know that EPN and Zion are now allied, but I think I'm looking for thr more personal view towards Lock and the Council's seeming to be lazy during the Truce.  Does anyone still think that Lock is incompetent?

3.  Niobe made some stupid decisions.  Like...   really stupid.  I'm not saying there's a right or a wrong way to go about things, or that she's incapable...  but there's times to be cautious, and there's times to throw caution to the wind...  and I think she's backwards on when to do which.

Phrack wrote:

3.  Niobe made some stupid decisions.  Like...   really stupid.  I'm not saying there's a right or a wrong way to go about things, or that she's incapable...  but there's times to be cautious, and there's times to throw caution to the wind...  and I think she's backwards on when to do which.

Are you talking about training the Commandos, planning to use the Cheat Codes, and putting Anome in as a Mission Controller?

I miss Zion for all its mundane enlosement has to offer. I am proud that Zion has the diligence to create a new city with the defenses and location New Zion has. The leaks on the development of the new city were minimal until that critical point.

As Phrack has mentioned so many times in conversation, there is a difference between Zion and Zion Command. There are no words truer.

Zion is the homeland. It is the last human city consisting of elite humans, those hand picked by the One before Neo, their offspring and those that have the intuition to reject the System.

Zion Command is too conservative for my taste, which is why I chose to leave. Their conservativeness does offer a balance to our approach and that of Morpheus. Just as Lock and Morpheus had their conflicting philosophies, so does EPN and Zion today.

Like the yin and yang, there is a balance between the 2 approaches/philosophies. There is a reflection of the conservative Zion philosophy in EPN's actions, but there seem not to be reflection of EPN's philosphy in Zion's approach. That lack of balance is why I left.

Recently I spoke to Rylet (Recursion Zion Liaison) about returning home to Zion to live while continuing to work for EPN. No official word was given, however it was treated as a feasible option.

((The way I've always seen it, is that EPN and Zion have essentially the same long term goals - freeing as much of humanity as they can and ensuring a future for them in the real world. The difference lies in structure and methods.

 Wheras, the Cypherites/Machinist  relationship is a bit different. They have similair short term goals and common enemies, but in the long run they're quite opposite. The Cypherites act for revenge - they hated Zion/EPN for awakening them, so they act against them, to prevent the same thing from happening to others. When reinsertion was still believed to exist, their ultimate goal was the return to the pods, to blissful ignorance - to make their own lives better.  The Machinists instead seek to improve not their lives, but the lives of others. Working to ensure the well being of the bluepills and machine civilization.  Selfishness and selflessness.

Or, in the short metaphorical way, Zion and EPN are walking on different roads to the same destination. Machinists and Cypherites are walking on the same road, but in opposite directions.

))

To be perfectly honest with you?  Without trying to incite a 45-page rant/argument back and forth?

I can't speak for all of EPN...  but being the longest-playing-member of EPN, I can give you my personal insight on the issue.

1.  Zion is our home in a lot of way.  EPN has family there, friends who grew up there, and we're constantly concerned for it's safety.  If New Zion protects the city, then we're ecstatic that the people in New Zion are safe.  If nothing else, it shows that Zion has finally gotten brave enough to stand up to the Machines and say "No, we're not going to bow down to your every demand out of fear that you'll destroy our city."

2.  Zion usually has a lot on their plate.  The Merovingians, the Machines, the Cypherites...  we'll back Zion up whenever the need be, to make sure that the interests of human life are protected.  All we ask is a little gratitude and respect in return.  There's been a few times now where EPN has been put in a position to clean up Zion's mess, and we have no intention of holding it over Zion's head...  until we find ourselves being insulted by their operatives.

3.  Niobe made some stupid decisions.  Like...   really stupid.  I'm not saying there's a right or a wrong way to go about things, or that she's incapable...  but there's times to be cautious, and there's times to throw caution to the wind...  and I think she's backwards on when to do which.