I am not sure about this. For example Israel is probably in much bigger danger than the US and they certainly do some questionable things while trying to keep it safe. Yet it seems to me that they handle it way more reasonably. Maybe it's just because the US is bigger and better media target or maybe Israelis hide their secrets better... I don't know.

But if Americans - the whole nation - were a person I would think that person suffers from some kind of post-traumatic disorder after 9-11, hysterically seeking safety at all cost.

That's a pretty shallow reading of Western European/Middle East relationships.

I don't really want to start a big argument about international political history, because that's not what HN is for, but your reason for anger (a hundred years of meddling) isn't the real one. If you were going to make that argument, by the way, you should pick up a history book pre-1900 and see that Western Europe has been 'meddling' in the Middle East for a few thousand years.

This is pure pretext. No one denies that the US has made itself any friends in the Muslim world, but the security apparatus in the states has achieved levels far beyond a reasonable level given the threat.