malanda
I find it sad. President Bush and his administration has rightly said that they are attacking terrorism on three fronts: financial, diplomatic (or intelligence) and military. Unfortunately, they seem to be forgetting the fourth, and possibly the most important one, and that is in the hearts and minds of the people back home.
The primary objective of terrorism is to strike fear into people - that's why it's called terrorism, oterwise it would simply be called "mass murder" (which it undoubtedly is also). Our only response to it should be to say: "No! You are not going to stop us from going about our business as normal".
Obviously, it is important to get the balance right here. You need to balance the need for heightened security with the need to prevent fear in the population. IMHO, the heavy-handed and extreme reaction in some areas of the new American security regime is simply playing into the hands of the terrorists.
No amount of security measures from any government is going to protect us completely from terrorism; so it is futile to try. It's the law of diminishing returns again. There is some point on the curve of "security measures" versus "safety of the population" that you get your maximum benefit. Those in authority need to think more carefully about where that point is, and maybe withdraw a little in some areas where their actions are simply making people more frightened than they need to be.
Not allowing people to stand up on aeroplanes (if this is truly the current policy) is quite clearly a case in point.