John - Taking your last point, I would not normally tell the taxi driver how to get around London, unless it is obvious that he is either dangerous or incompetent, at which point I reserve the right to step in with some wall-to-wall counselling.
Contrary to popular belief, your licence does not cover you for every situation you might encounter - rather, it gives you enough training to be able to make your own decisions, hopefully good ones, hence the importance of training.
I, too am concerned about technical training - I'm a helicopter TRE and it frightens me how many people are flying around having been taught on myth and legend.
phil