Why is it...

[Glamourcide]

I definitely agree with you Rouge, and that thought is the second thing that runs through my mind every time Munch throws a fit over (what the casual observer would see as) nothing. The first thought, for the record, is either 'Oh, Christ, not AGAIN...' or it's the urge to laugh at the absurdity of her throwing herself on the floor because of something small.
But, as you say, it's never 'just the banana', and I totally understand that. My dad once told me that the 'terrible twos' is actually a stage where new brain connections are being formed, leading to a similar thing that teenagers go through - attitude, rebelliousness, confusion, irritability, and actual physical pain that wasn't there before because the nerve connections didn't exist. How bewildering it must be a for a small child to be dealing with all of these things going on, and not having the ability to communicate it appropriately to the grown-ups in their world? I do have my moments when I completely blow a fuse over DD1's tantrums, but for the most part I try to be as understanding and empathetic towards her as I would expect someone to act towards me when I'm having a hard time dealing with what's going on around me or inside me.

Great point, Rouge. Thank-you for starting this discussion

ETA: Your question actually reminds me of another situation that some other parents may not agree with - my personal definition of 'crying it out' with babies. I believe that just like adults, babies get overstimulated (as we all know) and sometimes need to have a cry to 'vent' their emotions, and to help them wind down after a long, hard day. I don't believe it is healthy to pacify a baby or child every single time they whinge or cry - it teaches them that expressing negative emotion is 'bad' and that bottling it up is 'good' - that feelings of anger/sadness/frustration/etc are only appropriate to express behind closed doors... and that leads to very unhealthy habits later in life, especially if this attitude is enforced throughout the duration of their formative years. I don't ever leave my babies to cry by themselves, I offer them the comfort of my arms and my care, but when I know that they've had a long day and are probably just 'venting', I won't go any further with comforting than just holding them and letting them get it all out so they can get it off their chest and move on, so to speak.
I don't know if that made any sense, but just something else to think about