Grant, I think you're pretty close to the right track here. And it will keep happening as long as the membership (and the appointing Worldcons) ignore the MPC. For all that it seems like a minor thing, the MPC has a huge potential power, since the responsibility to protect, defend, and register the WSFS marks logically includes the authority to promote said marks.

The MPC has effectively repudiated the last few years' work. Fortunately, some of that work is now sufficiently entrenched that they are unlikely to undo it; for instance, The new MPC Chair has asked me to move forward on the registration of the WSFS marks once I get home, in part because this year's Business Meeting gave initial approval to add the logo (and the rocket design) to the official list of claimed marks.