I have to agree with bouncer. Partial or cosmetic changes to make people feel secure are stupid and in the long run counter productive. I am sure people hate the term but you have to do a cost analysis. Saying that we will check every bag in so many months when the people in charge know it is not possible is crazy. To keep believing that every person is an equal threat is also stupid. And to keep blaming the security companies, when with all their problems, 9-11 had really nothing to do with them.

I do not believe that many of the changes that are being instituted will be dropped. The only thing we are likely to see dropped is the national guard at the airports. The only logical reason for them to be there is for area security against an armed attack. Similar to Rome, yet the positioning, armament and lack of vest/helmets means they are not set for that role.

Finally, I still do not believe that if Reid had gone into the bathroom he could have been able to light and then detonate his shoes. Without a campfire style lighter, I doubt he would have been able to light the det cord. Even with the "rumor" about special chemical additive, something does not seem correct. C-4 can burn without exploding, some demo experts use it to warm coffee and I still have not heard a definite conclusion about it being C-4. Also much of the complexity of the bomb is that the shoe was hollowed out without being too obvious. That shows great shoe repair ability not necessarily bomb making ability. I also do not see how he ever hoped to blow up both shoes. Det cord burns quickly. With how little cord could have been placed in each shoe, once he actually had one lit, it would detonate before he had the other lit. I still say he might have had help but not from a "bomb expert".

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Robert