I continue to hate the Ribbon UI. The biggest problem is that it is nearly impossible for the average user (even advanced, really) to customize for their own preferences.
I've userd Office 2010 since it was releases, so I may be wrong here, but in 2007 you can customize the ribbon with the editor (you definitely can in 2010).
For Doug: I agree with your son. I was a bit disoriented with Ribbon when it was released, but I actually now would never go back. And, if that is the case for you to, just move to 2010, where Ribbon is so much better.