Thanks for reporting this bug and making Ubuntu better. I was able to reproduce this problem and got the same error when starting etherape from the menu. By running "gksudo etherape", I was able to use the program.
** Changed in: etherape (Ubuntu) Status: New => Confirmed -- You received this bug notification because you are a member of Ubuntu Bugs, which is subscribed to Ubuntu. https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/700268 Title: Etherape not run as root from application launcher -- ubuntu-bugs mailing list ubuntu-bugs@lists.ubuntu.com https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-bugs