It's easy to see why the FAA are getting hacked off by JAA protectionism. They really must be sitting there wondering what the hell is going on amongst the JAA mameber States who can't even agree amongst themselves let alone the rest of the world!.
The fact of the matter is that the FAA are not some tin pot organisation who don't give a damn about standards or saftey! They are efficient, it's as simple as that! Now efficient is a word you can't use to describe CAA or JAA!
Beagle makes some very good points regarding why GA is a sucsess in the States and he is dead right.
If we had the weather , low fuel prices and a positive attitude to GA, there would be dozens of schools starting up here, many of them with the same failings as some the well known Florida cowboys.
To decry all US training and be even slightly surprised at the FAA's reaction to the farce that is JAA, I have to say is small minded. Sad cries of 'it's not fair' and 'we're not playing co's they've got it right and we've got it wrong' are all to common on this site.
The NPPL is fine, and as Beagle says kind of is on a parallel with not sitting your driving licence outside the UK. However, for those that wish to fly further than 100miles from home base, why shouldn't you be able sit your licence outside our tiny little island?
It's a big world out there..and that's what planes are for!