Hey Sarge,
to a certain extent I agree with you, but some people imagine that private owner operators are a bunch of homicidal lunatics which is a long way from reality.
Go to some of the discussions on this sight on engine handling for example, sure there are the usual egomaniacs trying the, my dick is bigger than yours stuff, but the majority are informed, well researched enthusiasts who have accumulated knowledge way beyond what your average LAME would know.
My experience in the US and Canada is their aircraft, overall, leave ours for dead in terms of maintenance, and the vast majority of them are maintained by enthusiastic amateurs.