"Obvious ethical issues"?
"Glaring Ethical deficiencies"?
"Obvious lack of adequate knowledge on the part of some judges"?
Some pretty strong accusations being made from outside of the system. Why criticize from the outside? Why not join the program to improve things? There are so many things I would like to reply to this but I won't. From a simple post about an orchid with two flowers on it, it has come down to this?
Actually yes there were ethical issues, in some judging centers, by some judging teams. There was a flock of awards from at least 2 centers I know of that were sold at top premium prices to some foreigners, simply because they were awarded. It was obvious that the flower quality was poor to disastrous. At a point too the judging system needs to admit its faults, there were judges that were revoked, awards that were rescinded, etc.. over the years. One FCC rothschildianum was actually so awful that it was obvious there was no point score involved at any stage. The award was eventually canceled, and only some traces exist on Facebook of this amazingly beautiful flower...
Inadequate knowledge, well it varies too. Some judging centers are pristine clean, some did award mass propagated pot plant, below the pot plant B2 grading standard, so of course for the reputation, it is not the best... As well, quite a few awarded plants have fatal flaws, surprisingly, in the older/old awards, there are way less fatal flaws that can be pointed out. Awards from the 80s and 90s rarely have something like a reverted dorsal, or 'windows' between the petals and the dorsal for Phalaenopsis, etc... Of course the breeding improved, and there has been progress in breeding, in many genera. This said, some AM or FCC from the 70s or 80s are still to their standard, even today.
From the outside, it appears very opaque, sometimes there are plants awarded where hundreds of hobbyists and commercial growers alike have seen way better, everywhere. Of course, few people today have handled a vast number of plants, crosses, seedlings, etc... Those people were from another era. There are a few nurseries in the USA that do active breeding, and give great results for sure, like Paph Paradise. But, thinking well, the judging teams 30 years ago had a lot of commercial growers ( that are essential to the judging system, as they see hundreds of thousands of plants in all kind of shape, colors, etc...), where a hobbyist do not realize at all the vastness of the possibilities, or what really exists, outside the AOS awards database, and posts on Facebook, which do not represent everything that exists.
Giving an FCC to a hangianum with a non-flat flower and narrow, twisted petals is an absolute no-no when one has seen a few thousands hangianum in bloom, as an example. Nearly every single one would be better than the plant submitted for the FCC.
As to 'why', well there are policies, The Orchid Zone had a double policy regarding awarded plants. They did it, very rarely, for a few things, to 'warn the customers' or improve the value of the plants. According to Terry Root himself though, the AQ/AOS rothschildianum awarded got their quality award at random, some low grade being FCC, and some HCC being simply amazing. The second reason is that, including for my business, when people see the photos or my plants in person, that the plant has an FCC or nothing has no importance on the sales, or the price, at all. I got quite a few AOS judges who visited me and may well vouch for that.
As for the AOS judging system, it would be important as well to append the judging center to the awards, and when there are 'hiccups' ( we will call it like that, and I know exactly what I am talking about...), like corrupt judges that are fired, or awards that are canceled, etc... that it is made public and clear. Transparency is essential for the survival of any judging system, whether for orchids or screwedrivers...
If there are 'good' or 'bad' judges, yes there are for certain. There are some judges for sure that I would fully trust if they say ' it is an AM'. Some others, well, sorry, but it is like a doctor. Do you want your surgery done at Mayo Clinic, or at a dispensary in Kabul? Note well, they are both surgeons, and both got their medical diplomas... That is another point that cannot be avoided.
This said, making to AOS members the database of awards 'public' allows as well everyone to maybe criticize, that's not an FCC, this one is crap, etc... but as well to see with our own eyes what we can expect of this cultivar or that cultivar. Sometimes there are weird things, like some HCC that are worth way more, AM or FCC, and some FCC that are worth a pot plant notation. That's life... but with the pictures, measurements, and experience, it is possible to distinguish the gems from the common things...
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