@flyingchanges:
That's a different thing, really. The Airbus FBW architecture means that you can use the detents for pitch and power in the UAS scenario (see the image in my previous post). Autotrim is still active in all sub-modes of Alternate Law, so if you use the sidestick to set the pitch attitude, it'll stay there.
Regarding use of manual thrust in FBW Airbii, I dug up a thread from a couple of years ago which suggests that it happens more than you seem to believe:
http://www.pprune.org/tech-log/51486...al-thrust.html
I guess what I was trying to say is that there's nothing inherent to the Airbus FBW technology that prevents pilots from doing what you describe.