Oh dear Michael,
Blaming EASA for crashes , because of 14 exams, seems very silly . The EASA license is valid for life , like your FAA license.
If anything the FAA knowledge test is a joke , buy a book , read it for a day and pass
The Australian license has now become like the EASA licence , very hard process to do , not done in a week
Most of the Airliners worldwide prefer FAA because it's a very complete license EXCEPT EASA AIRLINES