DesignBiz,
Wow, you sure like opening up cans of worms!
To address your original post, I don't think that all of the statements in 6.5 and 6.5.1 can be reconciled when a default profile callout is used. Default profile callouts apply profile (I assume we're talking about surface profile) in a way that is fundamentally different from what was envisioned when the text of Section 6 was written.
If you read sections 6.5, 6.5.1 and 6.5.2 (which it looks like you have), the disconnect between the definition of profile and the way it is commonly applied becomes apparent. A basic profile is defined as a 2-dimensional outline in a given view or section view. Surface profile was intended to apply to surfaces with constant cross section - line profile was suggested for surfaces with varying cross section. However, most of the applications of surface profile that I've seen - and where it is really useful - are on complex surfaces. In these applications, the true profile is a three-dimensional feature and the surface profile zone is a three-dimensional shell around it. This is quite practical with 3D CAD models and 3D metrology systems, but one could argue that it goes against the definitions in Section 6.
The default profile tolerance approach takes this idea of the 3D shell and applies it to the entire part. The true profile is the CAD model - an integrated set of surfaces. The profile zone is a three-dimensional shell around the entire CAD model - an integrated set of zones if you will.
Regarding datum references, most default profile tolerances I've seen had datum references but some didn't. If there are no datum references, then the zone is still a 3D shell but it doesn't have to be aligned to any particular feature. It's kind of like the all-around profile tolerance in Fig 6-12, but without the datum reference.
Verifying these general profile tolerances can be a pain, but it is possible. It used to be done on flat, thin parts using a template method, where a 1:1 plot is made of the nominal part geometry and the offset profile zone, and the part is laid on the template. If you can get all of the edges to fit within the zone simultaneously then the part passes the profile tolerance. In 3D, this can be done using coordinate metrology, where points are scanned on the part and then the software fits the point cloud to the model.
Like it or not, you're going to see default profile tolerances more and more.
Evan Janeshewski
Axymetrix Quality Engineering Inc.