Part of the reason for this knee-jerk assumption of "exaggeration" is our recent history of political manipulation -- previous alerts have coincided with politically sensitive periods, such as elections, giving rise to the cynical perception that Bush et al have actually exaggerated for their own benefit.

Not that I believe so..most of the time. I am cynical about Bush's machinations, but not of the British police. If the Brits found something worth shutting down airports over, then I know they had something substantial.

On this side of the pond, though, the typical overreaction is still reverberating through the air travel and public transit industries.