As I have said many times before. It's A Security Theater.
Here is proof:
A passenger on a Detroit-bound Northwest Airlines flight tried to detonate an explosive device that was strapped to his leg and later told investigators that he was trying to blow up the plane and had affiliations with al Qaeda, according to a senior U.S. official.
The passenger was identified by authorities as Abdul Mudallad, a 23-year-old Nigerian national, according to Rep. Peter King, a New York Republican who is the ranking member of the House Homeland Security Committee.
The device was technologically advanced and potentially devastating, Mr. King said. "This was not a firecracker," he said.
And what is the response? As expected, more stuff that cannot possibly help but will further restrict our freedom and make air travel more of a hassle:
The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that airline passengers should expect to see additional screening measures put in place on both domestic and international flights.
Update: After the shoe bomber we had to take off our shoes when going through security and the security experts told us that we should just be glad that he didn't try to blow up the plane with a bomb hidden in his underwear. I think you should be able to extrapolate the "additional screening measures" we can soon expect to see without my assistance.