Do you really think that an environment with everyone walking around with a gun on SEMI all the time and thinking this means safe would be a good thing? Let me try and explain why "your" method might be mechanically safer in theory, but in reality it is much more dangerous
What about the idiot waiting in line for lunch that thinks his gun in unchambered and taps his favorite song with his trigger finger while the selector is on SEMI?
If a soldier accidentally leaves a chambered round in his rifle or accidentally takes someone elses rifle that has a chambered round in it and touches the trigger when it is on SAFE, nothing will happen. He must first move the selector to SEMI and then touch the trigger. If on the other hand the same rifle was left on SEMI...
Moving the selector to SEMI shoot should require a conscience decision that says "I am putting the weapon rifle in a state where it now will only take a pull of the trigger to potentially send a bullet out the end at 3000 fps"
You do not want soldiers to get conditioned to seeing the rifle with the selector in SEMI position as the routine unloaded state
Soldiers must be educated that SAFE means that the trigger is blocked, but does not guarantee that there is not a round in the chamber, just as having no magazine inserted does not guarantee that there is not a round in the chamber
And why would you need a method where you could constantly check if you have a chambered round by trying to move the selector?
There is only one way to definitely know if you have a round chambered - tilt the rifle to the left, pull the bolt back a few centimeters and look inside the ejection port
I seriously doubt that will find any Army where it is official policy to keep the M16 unloaded, with the hammer forward and on SEMI. These "improved methods" are invented by bored smart-asses. The safest method is the standard way
Unfortunately, some of these people must have been promoted, otherwise I cannot explain the decision by the IDF to drop the "nikira" step from the current M16 unloading procedure
KISS - Keep It Simple Stupid --especially in regards to safety, is my mantra
Sorry for my sarcasm. My rant was against promoting this bad and potentially dangerous method and not meant to be personal
Chag Samach