Let me assure you that modern SOPs have increased aviation standards and safety tremendiously
It is not that modern SOP's have increased standards and safety but more likely the introduction of wonderfully accurate, reliable and sophisticated automatics that have reduced over recent years, the relative risk factor of flying from A to B.
Computerised flight plans, unbelievably accurate track and height keeping through dual or triple GPS, EGPWS, QAR's and a host of other computerised information available to crews are what have increased flight safety on modern aircraft. Not the mouthing of superfluous "support" calls that repeat ad nauseum what is plainly obvious if you have two eyes and ears.
Go back in history to the introduction of the first Boeing 737 as a two pilot cockpit The certification process for a two pilot cockpit required a maximum number of switch selections and eye movements beyond which a third cockpit crew member or flight engineer was required (B727 for example).
Automatic switching solved the problem of many systems selections. Remember the auto switching of the seat belts and no smoking signs? But it wasn't long after these aircraft entered service that chief pilots and their ilk began to include additional switch movements that rapidly went beyond the intention of the designers. Soon more "SOP's" to cover the additional switch selections were introduced which increased crew workload. Of course a third crew member was not recruited to cover the extra items deemed so vital to safety. And in the years that followed there has been a further increase in superfluous switching flicking, talking and a new term was invented called CRM and nowadays TEM. Briefings became more verbose perhaps as a cover against litigation.
When a pilot is more concerned on learning off by heart all the mandated "support" or advisory calls to the extent he unconsciously depends on these calls to safely navigate the aeroplane to landing, then surely his priorities need re-examining. From the posts so far it is evident that opinons vary significantly. Personally I prefer less talk and the accent on silent but efficient monitoring.
I can just see it now; the aircraft is out of control in a jet upset and neither pilot knows how to recover (read the Adam Air accident report) and as the aircraft is a second from hitting the ground the PM calls dutifully "One thousand to go....." Well he certainly knew his SOP's but a fat lot of good that did him.