George Kimball/America At Large:In certain parts of the world when a stranger suddenly moves to disrobe in the midst of a crowd he (or she) can expect a bullet between the eyes, on the entirely reasonable presumption that he (or she) might be a suicide bomber.

We're not suggesting here that somebody should have shot Janet Jackson for flashing a breast during last Sunday's Super Bowl half-time show in Houston, but in the case of Mark Roberts, it might not have been a bad idea.

With her brief flash of semi-nudity Ms Jackson not only upstaged the New England Patriots' 32-29 come-from-behind win in Super Bowl XXXVIII, but accomplished the unthinkable by becoming the most talked-about member of her own family.

She has in the process managed to divert the attention of George W Bush ("It's important for families to be able to expect a high standard when it comes to programming") from his misguided exercise in Iraq, and to attract the disapprobation of everyone from National Football League Commissioner Paul Tagliabue to Michael Powell, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, whose father Colin happens to be the Secretary of State.

The Houston constabulary received dozens of calls from Bible-thumping locals who wanted Jackson and her co-conspirator Justin Timberlake arrested for their impromptu striptease, in which Timberlake, after repeatedly mouthing the refrain "Got to have you naked by the end of this song" proceeded to deliver, ripping down the right half of Jackson's bustier to expose her right breast, which was adorned with some sort of sunburst tassle dangling from her pierced nipple.

We are taking all of this on faith, of course. Not more than a handful of the 71,125 in attendance at Reliant Stadium Sunday evening had the vaguest inkling that this had taken place, although the millions watching on television, including the president, evidently had a better view.

The television audience was only vaguely aware, on the other hand, that Roberts, the 39-year-old Liverpudlian who pulled a similar stunt at Croke Park last summer, delayed the beginning of the second half by several minutes, but everyone in the stadium saw way too much of him.

Roberts sneaked on to the field by disguising himself in a tear-away costume crafted to resemble one of the game officials' outfits.

The moment he shed it, the television cameras cut away, but here's the problem: what if Roberts had had Semtex - or a gun - under his coat instead of a G-string? As the Carolina Panthers lined up for the second-half kick-off, it became apparent that they were in danger of being flagged for having too many men on the field. The 12th proved to be Roberts, who shed his zebra-striped coat and began dancing around, wearing just a football-shaped codpiece.

It was only after Carolina placekicker John Kasay pointed him out that any of the hundreds of yellow-jacketed security guards on duty even began to move in Roberts' direction. Once the NFL's hired muscle gave chase, a couple of Houston policemen half-heartedly jogged out behind them.

Even then, it wasn't one of the gendarmes who brought him to earth, it was Patriots' linebacker Matt Chatham, who levelled him when he reached the New England end of the field.

The English interloper was handcuffed, hog-tied, and bundled off to the local jail. He has been charged with criminal trespass and public intoxication.

Upon being booked, Roberts gave his occupation as "international streaker". But couldn't he as easily have been an international terrorist?

Security for this Super Bowl was supposed to be the tightest in history. Every patron entering the stadium Sunday night had his hand-baggage searched, twice, and had to pass through two separate metal detectors. There were concrete barriers, security fences, and a no-fly zone in the vicinity of Reliant, none of which deterred Roberts from gaining access to the field.

According to Houston police, he had simply bought a front-row ticket and hopped over the fence.

(Given the exorbitant price of tickets - Roberts' had a face value of $500, but would have fetched at least $3,500 on the street - you might wonder how he came to be seated in such a choice location.

One clue is that he had the imprimatur of an Internet gambling casino stenciled across his chest and back.)

One would think that such an embarrassing breach of security would have NFL officials falling all over themselves to explain it away, but there was barely a peep out of the league about the streaker.

The NFL people have been too busy apologising about Janet Jackson's breasts.

Within 15 minutes of l'affaire Jackson, a communiqué from CBS apologising for the incident was being circulated throughout the press box, and, terming the Timberlake-Jackson pax de deux "totally inconsistent with assurances our office was given about the content of the show", NFL vice-president Joe Browne said: "It is unlikely that MTV will produce another Super Bowl half-time (show)."

Unsurprisingly, switchboards at CBS affiliates across the country lit up, fielding phone calls from indignant viewers. Powell, whose board oversees radio and television stations throughout the land, termed it a "classless, crass and deplorable stunt".

New England quarterback Tom Brady threw three touchdown passes and was named Super Bowl XXXVIII's Most Valuable Player, but, he joked the next morning: "I thought the tackle on the streaker was the best part" of the game.

A few days before he left for Houston Brady had travelled to Washington as Bush's guest for the State of the Union Address, but he did not appear to share the president's horror over Janet Jackson's overexposure.

"I didn't see the half-time show, but I heard about it," said Brady. "I wish I had seen it."