What's This About Fencing And A Fencing Peerage

Granted i haven't followed SCA politics all that closely since life intervened after Aaron was born, but I'm surprised that the SCA is still debating the "peerage for the fencers" thing. To quote John Oliver, "how is this still a thing?"

I'm also somewhat surprised that the White Scarf treaty didn't take care of all this. Or how what Aethelmarc proposes to do is different from simply ratifying the White Scarf Treaty.

Anyone?