Is there a difference between an observer observing a system and a system interacting with itself?  Well yes the new system is (observer + system) governed by hbar.  If system can be thought of 2 interacting sub systems as (system a + system b) then by recursion the same must hold for the realtionship between system a and system b.  I think the clarification he wanted assert was that quantum mechanics is not the sole manifestation of the conundrum of observation but instead an inherent part of our reality when things interact as all things do.