How about "Some people want to feel safe, so if people are willing to pay to get screened before boarding a flight, then the service should be available.". For the rest of us I don't mind a basic metal detector + bag scan without all the shoe and liquid nonsense.

After deregulation, In all EU countries there is an "infrastructure manager" (IM) They are responsible for maintaining and expanding the telecom infrastructure. They charge ISPs for using their infrastructure. The ISPs buy this capacity and resell to individual consumers.

Why does this work? The IM is ONLY responsible for infrastructure and it's in their interest to fulfill the market need for more capacity if such a demand exists. Thus it's in their interest to EXPAND coverage and infrastructure because that's how they make money. They're a regulated monopoly.

In the US...

The monopolies (AT&T, Comcast, Verizon) are responsible for both expanding infrastructure AND selling access to end-users. This means that it's in their interest to sell as much end-user service as they can, using the least amount of investment possible. It's not in their interest to expand capacity, unless someone kicks them in the ass because of a lack of capacity.

NB. In the EU, the IM can be an old state telecom that has been privatized. Sometimes a part of the company is also an ISP, but the accounting books must be separated. This type of deregulation works a lot better in some countries than others. The system is not perfect, but IMO it's a lot better than the one in the US.

Petrol is not taxed (as heavily) in the US as it is in Germany, it's not subsidized. This, however, does give an advantage to the automobile. Oh yea, the USofA also goes to war over petrol while Germany and some other EU members try to stop using petrol. But I digress.

This is more of a cultural issue. I bet in Germany the % of those paying would be a lot higher, unlike in the anglo-saxon counterpart countries.

Old Soviet Jokes about the Chinese Space Program: 1. There is a knock on the door in the MIR space station. The cosmonauts open the door and see a Chinese guy. They ask him: "How did you get here". He responds: "Simple you see. We built a human pyramid" 2. TV Bulletin: "Yesterday, the Chinese launched their first satellite into space. During the launch, 2.45 million Chinese suffered a hernia."

Last year I flew around 115K. Domestically, mostly in First, because of free upgrades. Internationally, upgrades are harder, but if you have status, it gets easier.

I switched, that's worth something, right?

Aahh... this brings back great memories! Back in High School, a mate and I cleaned out a couple of local radio shacks, made minor hardware mods to the beasts, and sold them on eBay. This was a great entrepreneurial experience!