Yes, it is almost normal in the morning and late at nights, but a slight sluggishness still remains. That doesn't change the fact that during the 'peak' times, they can be become close to or actually completely inoperable at times. But since a lot of people are only on during the peak times, the inoperable ah/mail become the face of the game for them, which I think is a fairly big problem.
Agree. This points to load issue. Somewhere a "pipe" is clogged.
I bugged Beren and he said it is not US server only issue. Either it is software problem, or perhaps identical problematic reconfiguration done on both sides of the pond.