Yes I would agree CASA is hopeless 9 times out of 10.
My most memorable incident of CASA stupidity was asking a regulatory question to one of the managers at the CASA office in brisbane. I wanted to know if companies that do the traffic reporting flights on the radio need an AOC as they are getting their revenue from the sale of advertising at the end of the traffic report, not the actual flying. The CASA employee told me it was a 'grey area' and I would need to seek my own legal advise from a lawyer to get the answer. How rediculous is that? You make the rules, then you don't want to explain them?