It's very well for some of you to say "if you don't like it then don't fly", but for those of us who have to cross an ocean to visit family that's not always an option. The alternative is a long swim or very long boat ride, now that might not be so bad.

But have all these scans, gropes and searches made flying any safer? Can any of you honestly say you feel safer now than you did a few years ago? It has made no difference to how I see flying as a safe way to travel. If we fly to Canada to visit our son again I would rather not go via USA. Unfortunately not doing so would make our trip more expensive (it costs a lot more to fly from Sydney, Oz to Toronto, Canada via Vancouver than via Los Angeles, and now that we are retired we don't have an endless supply of money) so we may have to choose that option. It would be with great reluctance though.

America claims that tourist numbers to their shores have dropped off, is it any wonder when visitors are treated with such disdain? No one wants to go where they don't feel welcome. I certainly don't want to visit the USA.