Dick ... first let me bang my head against a brick wall ..
Agh, that feels better.
Now, your are absolutely right. CASA/OAR/ASA/ATSB/DOT/BLF/etc are not going to change policy because of what an annonymous poster says on PPRUNE.
In fact, they probably won't change based on a non-anonymous posting either. Hell, I don't even know if your ARE the real Dick Smith ... but I suspect so!
What "rational" argument on PPRUNE does provide is food for thought for those who formally petition government through their Associations, Unions, Employers etc.
These people will read posts and decide, on their individual merits, whether the opinion is worth considering or not. That's the way I do it. I don't particularly consider the name of the poster ... but what, and how, they present a case. ALL these opinions help me form my position.