I'm a pretty laid back guy, but I find T.S.A. and airport security as annoying as anybody. This New York Times article gives me a little more understanding the next time I pass through. While the article fails to question public sector enforcement, it does end up explaining the rationale behind limiting travelers to little bottles in little baggies.

Tests showed that a container of a certain size is needed for an effective explosion. Separate three-ounce containers limited in number to what will fit inside a single one-quart bag do not have “enough critical diameter” to blow up an aircraft, he said.

The rule was ridiculed. Critics scoffed, Mr. Hawley said. “Holy smokes! Three ounces in a one-quart baggie! Who made that one up?”

But the science, he said, is clear. “With certain explosives you need to have a certain critical diameter in order to achieve an explosion that will cause a certain amount of damage.”

“The size of the container itself,” he added, “is part of the security measure.”

He added: “It is incredibly complex and doesn’t lend itself to a sound bite. And we’ve certainly paid the price for that.”

What I want to know is, why haven't sundry suppliers begun to market packages of 3.4 ounces or less? I can't find toothpaste between 0.5 and 4 ounces.