<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by hfly:
On the other hand, I will NEVER EVER show up hours and hours before a flight. I do not have the time in my life to wait for hours and hours in line, especially as most of my travel is international and I see how many other countries have set-ups much superior to those in the US and do not require hours of waiting to implement them. I do however realize that it is a risk, although your story is a bit different as you were in general rather than elite lines.</font>
I believe this is the entire point. There are too many people who would NEVER EVER show up with the required amount of time to get through security, imposing their desire not to wait upon the rest of us. Whether elite or not, you are "stealing" when you deliberately take something that shouldn't be yours from someone else. Be it money or time (Aren't they the same?), it's theft nonetheless. We're all busy, too.
Now, of course, a connecting flight is a different story, but I would think that is a very small fraction of the infractions.