Isn't a big part of the problem here that there isn't any measure of success?

"The FAM program (and the pointy object program) are clearly working because there hasn't been a single instance in which an elephant in pink tights has been seen flying on a domestic airline since 9/11."

Can anyone prove that if we didn't have FAM's, and if we didn't have the pointy object program, there would have been elephants in pink tights on airlines?

Everyone wants *some* form of rational security. But there is a big gap between perception and risk.