Thoughts on Hunters

I've thought about this for a long time, and, given the enormous opposition the idea would face, haven't considered posting about it. But what the hell.

Lets make the sport of Hunters transparent. The judges scorecards are posted at the end of each show day.
1) The judges need to feel safe enough to make their score sheets public. Therefore, there would be no protests based on the public posting of those sheets.
2) It would force judging to be consistent across the board. Currently - there is little to no accountability in judging hunter rounds. Making it public and transparent would change that.
3) Riders would actually have to educate themselves about how the round was judged (or their trainers would).

Lets test both the Champion and Reserve Champion of every Hunter division.
1) In horse racing, the top 2 (and in some places 3) finishers of EVERY race are tested, as well as some random tests. Its called accountability.
2) I don't want to hear about how much it would cost. I'd LOVE to feel like my USEF and USHJA dues were going to SOMETHING besides scholarships and programs for the already entitled.
3) First offense would be the proverbial slap on the wrist. Second offense drops the hammer. Make it serious and make it count.

Until changes like the above are made - this sport will continue to be perceived as biased, and for the priviledged few. If we really want to maintain any kind of horse community in this country, more people need to feel like horses and equestrian sports ARE a part of American life, and are somewhat attainable.