It's not the screening, nobody objects to that. It is the insanity that surrounds the whole procedure. Aircrew SHOULD be given different rules, they SHOULD be allowed to carry screwdrivers, small knives (Leatherman etc) and such. Whenever possible, they SHOULD be given separate screening lines. Attention needs to be shifted from nailfiles to better detection of REAL threats. So much effort is put into the present utterly stupid procedures (making women drink their own breast milk, removing shoes, etc etc) that there is no time to just step back and see what is going on, and more particularly, to identify those who do constitute a treat and come up with procedures to handle that.
So far, with only the "front door" being secured, and no idea of how to handle a terrorist or terrorist group if it ever was caught in the act (and that has NEVER happened, and probably never will), it is simply an exercise in panic. The authorities are like terrified dogs, running around and barking, upsetting the traveling public with their noise and activity, driving people away from flying with the result that aviation has been damaged so much many major carriers are in, or about to enter, bankruptcy.
Only now, after four years, has aviation in the US reached the pre-2001 level, and the standards, service and such are so far below that level it is like a different industry. On other fronts, freedoms and rights have been taken away and the US has used its power to force other nations to comply with their draconian rules, such as deciding on who will be allowed to fly a foreign-registered airplane into the US, virtually shutting down training schools by denying visas to foreigners, and imposing thirty mile restricted airspace over the US president whenever he travels (OK those are not airline related, but the heavy hand of government does not care. If it flies, swat it!).
And has it resulted in an improvement in security? No.
The TSA's own inspectors are finding that they can smuggle the SAME percentage of guns and knives onto airplanes as was the case with the previous private security firms before 9/11. We all know of ways to beat the system, and to get dangerous weapons on board, and no matter how tough they get it will always be possible to take over an airplane in flight using available tools (bottles, etc) or just physical strength and bluff (look at the hijackings and attempted hijackings that have occurred recently; none used a gun, one used a pocket knife (failed attempt), none used a computer or shoes or keys or belt, one used a TV remote control (successful), one used a pair of wooden chopsticks, one attempt, almost successful, had three men break into the flight deck and beat up the pilots. The point is that the TSA and other airport security agents can do NOTHING to protect us from these threats.
So should we do away with screening? No, of course not. It weeds out the obvious, removes most of the threat from guns and large knives, maybe from explosives as well, but that remains to be seen. It needs to be no more intrusive than it was before 9/11 (the screeners of that time did their job and stopped all illegal weapons, even tried to stop the perpetrators. Today's screeners will do no better, despite the aggressive approach). The successful systems, such as the EL AL model, need to be studied and adopted. More use of phsychological screening needs to be done, and the oppressive presence of the authorities should be scaled down so that there are no long lines (terrorist heaven) at major airports and people are not made afraid to fly. If the back doors of the airports cannot be screened at a similar level, then prepare for the inevitable confrontation rather than make crew and passengers suffer. An even-handed, common sense approach.
And remember that hijackings, by definition, happen in the air. That is where we must concentrate. NO hijacking has ever been stopped on the ground (nobody who has had a gun taken during preflight checks has been charged with being a terrorist or even with attempted hijacking; they are all seen as boobs who tried to beat the system or were unaware that there was a weapon in their bag or pocket). 9/11 WOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED if we, the pilots, had been told of the threat, and if the FAA had cancelled their policy of "cooperation" when they learned of it (and they did, we now know). Some hijackers will always manage to beat the system, so we need to be prepared and ready. Trusting in airport security alone is wrong-headed.
There is still a way to go, with training and tools for the flight crews (especially the cabin crew) needed, but so long as the threat is seen as being an airport one rather than an airplane problem, we will never get there and the present unbearable stupidity will continue to destroy the industry we all care so much about.