Just a quick clarification, the FAA has removed any mention of promoting GA from it's mission, goals, or duty. That's been, oh 20 years or more now.
As for attitude, or behavior, not just the FAA, but most if not all fed agencies with direct contact to the public have little or no regard for doing their job with any respect for the public at large. There is no downside to not being polite, or helpful, no one can or will get fired. On the other hand, if they are helpful, or accommodating to a pilot/A&P and something goes wrong, that could negatively affect their career so there's no incentive to make something good happen anymore. Strict code behavior.
Here's my latest interaction. The bill of sale form is a two/three part with the pink copy being retained by the buyer for use until the FAA comes through with the perm reg. You can't download it. I go to the local FSDO. It's in a heavily secured building with no signage or other indication except a solid steel door with; "Flight Standards District Office", and a long winded warning about trespassing, years in jail, video surveillance, etc. There's a cypher lock on the door, and a small button buzzer with the word 'visitor' over it. I push it, and a speaker squawks at me: "Yes?" I explain I am here to pick up a form xxx aircraft bill of sale. I wait. Nothing. I buzz again, different voice; 'Yes?', I explain I'm here to pick up a bill of sale form, and get an angry reply; 'well, you just need to wait - we are looking for it and when we find one you'll be the second to know'.
The FAA. We're not happy until you're not happy. But - it's in keeping with all other federal agencies, like the nice folk at EPA. Now, if you were a minority, and were seeking some kind of financial cash assistance from them, it's like old home week and they couldn't be nicer.
Well, the FAA isn't there to promote GA, it's there to keep it insurable; same for all of aviation. Without standards and some enforcement, then the actuaries can't make valid predictions and the insurability model ceases to exist. What would happen with no FAA is GA wouldn't be able to afford the insurance premium. GA has limits of liability though, so GA is not a critical concern. Pretty much every small GA payout is limited to hull value + $1MM liability.
Air carrier operations are basically unlimited liability, and Strict Liability at that. Air Carrier ops standards enforcement is the FAA's primary function, because that is where the real risk is in numbers. The entire SEL fleet could get totaled and it not cost the insurers what an accident like Tennerife would cost today. Their duty is to address the big ticket items first. They don't really even want to deal with GA, that's why SP and LSA are such that it's basically hands off from the FAA perspective. They have set on the minimum of standards and left all enforcement up to industry. All you need to show FAA is proof of training to a minimum standard to take a passenger, and to a bit of a higher standard to instruct and maintain your own plane.
It's sad what happened to the FSDOs post 9/11. I remember just going next door and walking in the LGB FSDO to get a simple question answered, and the dude at the desk was always happy to oblige.
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Can't really recall an ATC jerk either.
