While doing my ATPL exams on my colleagues was a lecturer in Aerodynamics and Aeronautical Engineering at a prominent UK university.
He conveyed that if the JAA exams were to be audited to the same standard the UK universities are by the professional bodies who accredit the specific subject then it would fail that audit hands down.
Also the fact the results for month A come out 3/4 days after the cut off for month B and you then have to wait till month C if you are unfortunate to fail anything.
The US has its faults, however it has a different attitude to aviation, due to its culture, its vastness and the costs associated, in Europe its still seen as a kind of exclusive, modern day golf club due to the price restriction and some peoples attitudes.
In the US however the ATPL exam is 100 questions, you get your answer immediately and you don't have to pay 14x £60, memorise the erroneous questions after the exam and note them as soon as you leave the room if you want to appeal and study a lot of stuff that was useful to know when we navigated by the stars and sextants. We use GPS, FMC's stuffed full of nav info now.......Hello JAA, you listening!
Why are the two systems different? Its all about territory and politics, its why the UK and Eire drives on the left and the rest of Europe and the US drive on the right, to piss us off when we were the major world power. Its why Catholics and Protestants fight over what entrance kids go to school. It's essentially a how big is your d1ck contest, but to unify under one system, God forbid less your nation of origin loses some face by adopting another ones good ideas.
One thing I do know, an aircraft stalls at exactly the same airspeed in US airspace as it does in any other nation and with £1/€1.25 to $2 it is very attractive.
Also I recently changed my address, I went onto the FAA website, did what was asked of me, 4 minutes later I had paid $2 and a week later I had a little credit card with Wilbur and Orville which fits into my wallet nicely, not the War and Peace-esque plastic pain in the @rse that cost me £450 and an extra £105 for my type rating endorsement (incidentally 1 sheet of A5 folded in half).
I hope my bi-partisan stance on this subject is appreciated.