I don't think anyone disputes that a pilot should be able to fly a raw data approach. But if a checker has a legitimate need to see it done, then it should be done by turning off the FD, not pulling circuit breakers!
And sudden unexpected failures should be reserved for the sim, you never know when a real failure is going to crawl out of the woodwork. Or if it already has, and you just killed the redundant system.
And as an aside, on the topic of raw data flying: Whilst being able to do it is clearly essential before any gets too smug about their ability to manage it do bear in mind that if you have too, then it usually means the aeroplane is a lot sicker than just not showing its magenta bars.
pb