I think the above is a good thing to keep in mind. Yes there are skilled thieves and yes all locks can be cut with the proper tools, but if you lock your bike up in a heavily populated public area where it is easily seen the risk of bike theft is going to be drastically lower (well that's my logic). I know when I bring my bike to school tomorrow (which will be the first time it'll be locked in an area that isn't specifically supervised by video surveillance (we have two bike garages that I don't have access to this term) it'll be locked right infront of a light rail stop and right outside of my school's bike shop which has floor to ceiling windows. I figure, there are people standing around that area all day long, occasionally there are public transportation police there, there are bikes much nicer than mine regularly locked in the same area, and it's in full view of people working in a bike shop.