Richard;
Point taken and accepted. As I mentioned, the practical side of me is with you on this.
As with any process, it needs to be managed. Your comments relate to the management of the scientific process and I, for one, am not aware of too many scientists renowned for their management prowess.
This however, I also see changing, with new up-and-comers.
(I'll bet there'll be hell for me to pay, after that comment, too.
)
Cheers