[Bloody Sam Roberts]

...and we looked back at our star, we would probably not detect any planet but jupiter/saturn if that.

I think the best analogy I've heard is that it is like trying to detect a speck of dust orbiting a 100 watt light buld from 100 meters away.

[Centurion2000]

I think the best analogy I've heard is that it is like trying to detect a speck of dust orbiting a 100 watt light buld from 100 meters away.

It's a lot worse than that. If stars were basketballs you could put one on the White House lawn to represent the sun. Earth would be across the street and literally be a dust grain.
Alpha Centauri (second closest star to Earth at 4.36LY) would be in Red Square if the model were to scale.