I actually do it intentionally in the sense that if I know my sunblock is more than 3oz and I don't want to throw it out, I just hope they don't find it. I get it on the plane about 50% of the time.
When I flew out of SJC on the 24th, they weren't even reminding people to take their liquids out; I left mine in my luggage with no issues.
When I flew back from BWI on the 29th, there was a guy a little bit in front of me who walked through the metal detector with his coat on. The machine went off, and they had him go back and take his belt off and empty his pockets... but said nothing about the coat, despite the facts that the signs along the line specifically say to take off your coat and put it in a bin.
If the TSA doesn't even enforce their own policies, what's the point?
How can they deny that this is security theater, when they're only reacting to the most recent threats, while older attack vectors just scroll off the regulations?
A. I don't think anyone has seen a reason to believe that the TSA really are experts. For example, everyone I know has some experience in accidentally carrying contraband onto an airplane, and has seen countless ways to do so intentionally based on gaping holes in the processes.
B. We don't live in a Platonic republic, governed by experts. Our government is of, by, and for the people. Even in instances when we the people have decided to delegate some authority to an expert, it's still inherently the responsibility of that expert to prove to us that they're doing the right thing. TSA has failed dismally at that.