While there may be a wrist rest in SOME airplanes, and SOME sidesticks use no arm movement, that is definitely NOT a universal truth! A brace for the forearm or elbow may well replace a wrist rest. I doubt you could fly a Cobra without arm movement, though it may be possible in an F-16 or A3xx (I've flown neither of the last 2).
Well, the F-16 side-stick moves just about 1/8" total throw.... It is a force demand input, not a deflection demand. A regular poster here, Gums, can very eloquently explain, after spending a good many hours in the Viper. FWIW - all F-16 SS's are right-handed and I never heard of a left-handed pilot finding this a problem
I still think you are missing the point regarding center "sticks" and the different muscle sets used to move them - if a center stick provides roll control, then it pivots at the stick head (I presume you mean yoke type control, a pic or reference to aircraft type would help), your entire arm moves to effect the movement, pivoting at the ball socket of your shoulder. With a joystick this is never so.
Again, I think that AB spent many, many hours looking into the human factors aspect of the cockpit design (along with Porsche I recall) and I'm confident that this is not the root of all evil related to the AF447 accident.
I will give you the lack of positional feedback for the PNF, does, on the surface, seem to be an issue worth inspection - when the original Airbus sidestick driven aircraft were introduced, the technology to *reliably* drive the non-active stick was likely considered a significant risk. Since basically all AB cockpits are a simple derivative of the previous, the SS arrangement has been retained A320 through A380, probably not without good thought.
But, really, were not all the required indications available to both PNF and Captain - surely the ADI and altitude readout alone should have been the only two instruments necessary to figure out the situation, along with the fact the engines were working:
1) I'm pitched up (What was it? 15 degrees or thereabouts?)
2) I'm falling at 10K/min
3) I have engine power
Hmmm, what could be wrong....
Did the PNF or Captain ever state - "The aircraft is stalled, pitch-down! Lower the nose!"
Was it because the PF had the SS nailed to the rear stop? Would that have been the vital clue to all in that cockpit? Or was the problem well past that?