Interesting commentary my friend
@alchemy void, which I mostly agree with.

LOL, re your not liking bolded text. I understand.

I only do it to try and highlight the most important parts of my lengthy rants. I fully admit to having a hard time editing myself because there's actually so much to say, and never enough time or bandwidth...
I am hoping
@clairecloutier might find the time to more fully address this latest ISU proposed intent on her blog.

You are such an excellent writer Claire, and a lot of people in the sport read your blog. I'm not sure our more worthwhile debates and rants on FSU ever gain credible interest and traction among decisionmakers, aside from a few ideas and gossip making the rounds.
I'm surprised that Gale Tanger and Peggy Fleming don't recognize that this proposal is too close to what the former professional tour was about. Can't they see this won't work for eligible competition, and can't they recognize the reasons why it won't work?!
OTOH, I take a bit of exception to your comment
@alchemy void about skating being more sport than art. The fact is figure skating is a unique sport which consciously and specifically
balances art and athleticism (even if right now the balance is out of whack because the rules are ineptly written, inexpertly applied and manipulatively judged). If you feel that figure skating is first and foremost mainly a sport, then we need to get rid of the music and the costumes. If we do that, we will have an entirely different sport. Where is Dick Button when we need him? He has repeatedly noted that the debate between art and sport in figure skating has existed since the time the sport began. He's right. The father of figure skating, Jackson Haines, faced that dilemma in the late 1800s. That's why Haines had to leave the U.S. for Vienna, Austria, where skating aficionados welcomed to competitions on ice, the addition of music and bodily expressiveness inspired by dance.
To be honest, there are many other sports* which combine art with athleticism, such as diving and gymnastics. But those sports are less complicated than figure skating which is more distinctly and directly a combination of athletic technique and aesthetics.
Where we are at currently in figure skating has unfortunately been complicated by the poor decisionmaking led by speed skaters who have controlled the sport of figure skating for far too long. I'm not optimistic that figure skating will ever be released from the tight-held grip of speed skating honchos, so an effort needs to be made to educate, charm and persuade those in control to be more inclusive, to understand what figure skating is, and is not. And to find better ways forward that will not end up creating more complicated problems. As it stands now, the sport is staying afloat on the backs of talented young people who are given few opportunities to excel and limited rewards. In the process, many are just pushed to the wayside and trampled over. Even for those who do marginally or substantially succeed, once it's over, it's over and they are left to figure out how to manage the rest of their lives. Not everyone can segue into coaching, choreographing, cruise boat skating, endorsements, entertainment avenues, highly selective & scarce shows or commentating opportunities.
Since the ISU and federations decided to destroy professional competitions out of fear that veteran stars would overshadow the eligible ranks, they need to now recognize that everything is connected. If it's about power and control, then work with veteran skaters to develop a viable professional tour, so that skaters who have reached an impasse can more freely decide to retire and move on. The reason why skaters hedge their options and rarely announce retirement is because they have no viable pro competition opportunities and few lucrative exhibition possibilities once they've reached the pinnacle, and so they don't want to close off the opportunity to return to the arena they've always known and have a hard time giving up. Therefore, some skaters take a break and decide whether to return, while others must leave the sport entirely. This state of affairs, IMHO, is not healthy for the overall growth of the sport.
Develop a viable professional tour
Make the short program suffice for technical requirements, even if by lengthening it slightly
Free the free program for creative innovation & artistic growth -- right now free program layouts are too predictable
Set up an unbiased committee to review current problems & chart ways to test viable solutions
Consider developing a long term plan to revamp the current competitive structure and requirements
There should be a viable senior B competitive structure for lower skill level skaters to have an opportunity to compete. Rethink country-based strictures which should go a long way toward easing the current conflicts of interest. To that effort, put together a separate event that's like Davis Cup in tennis, that would feature country-based competition. And then for major events simply allow skaters to skate and to partner at will, with the most talented rising to the top to compete at the highest level. I think it's rather ironic and instructive that the current Olympic pairs champions won the gold for Germany, when neither were born in Germany, nor have either been German citizens for the majority of their lives.