Thought provoking story, but I am not sure that it necessarily proves that non "Fed" examiners accept lower standards of those being tested. It may be a bit more complicated than this.
When I started examining ab-initio PPL(H)s a while ago, I was astonished at how worked-up some candidates could get. This caused them to fly very badly, much worse than I had seen them fly previously. By changing the way that examiners deal with candidates, they can very much affect the performance of the person they are testing. A more sympathetic approach can cause a pilot to perform as well as he/she can - you don't change the standards that you accept, but how the pilot performs.
With the boot on the other foot, so to speak, I have been tested by many examiners over the years myself. I have found some quite intimidating and flew a lot less well than with other examiners.