Just as a FWIW on detecting things... I've been out of IAD 5 times in the last two months- Same carry on bag, same briefcase. Last week I was told I had a lighter in the bag, and one in the briefcase. I told them have a ball, as I had, to the best of my knowledge, taken the lighters out of everything; and I showed her the matches I was carrying with my cigarettes.

Guess what- They found two lighters I was embarassed, until I got to thinking about it... One was buried in the bottom of a pocket in the center of the briefcase, the other had slipped inside a bag of mints in the carry on bag.

Then I got a little ticked- 5 times and this was the FIRST catch? So at least 15 screeners had looked at those two bags- IAD, LAX, SFO, NRT, SYD and not a single one caught anything???? I asked for the TSA Supervisor, they refused to get him, so I went and talked to the Duty Airport PD Sgt. He laughed and said he was not surprised... They had seen people come through with knives and other assorted paraphenalia quite a bit.

I think the only thing you are really doing with the "new" screening process is keeping the honest people honest... Just like the PC number of certain ethnicities you can screen per flight, so you "have" to check the little old ladies, or take the Medal of Honor away from an 86 year old veteran named Joe Foss and pass it around, then say he can't have it back because it has sharp edges. Give us a break.