A few points :

1) Yes they can see the small LAG in the bags on xray.
2) The rules have not changed, regardless of your personal experiences (take what you will from that!)
3) 3.4oz is the largest acceptable size for personal use LAGs that are not medicinal (medicnal items can be larger and are supposed to be removed from the carry-on and declared upon entry at the checkpoint).

Hopefully that will give you a bit more information, as the rules have not changed (with regards to the LAG regulations), I am not certain what the situation is with your specific experiences.