I would very much like the checkboxes in Android too, although obviously they'd place a greater burden on developers.
For example, I tried installing the official XBMC remote app a while back; it requested all sorts of crazy permissions ("read SMS" etc) which they were intending to use for debatably useful features but I ended up not installing it because of the privacy concerns. In the end I installed a third-party remote app which didn't ring as many alarm bells on installation, but I'd have been happier to stick with the 'official' one if I could selectively disable some of the permissions they wanted.
I can certainly see why that isn't an option; it'd make things much harder for developers if they suddenly have to test against different sets of security permissions. But it's on my wishlist.
XBMC remote needs that because it has a "show your texts on the TV" feature which you really, really shouldn't turn on. Trust me.
It's a shame that you can't pick and choose, as a user, because they can't remove that permission without breaking that feature for everyone [who?] that uses it. It's open-source though, so the good news is you could remove that permission and feature yourself if you really want it (you should: it's pretty nifty).
Oh, no, I don't need checkboxes (I realise it would make development hard). I only need a justification under each permission to see if the app has a good reason to want to read my texts, but I'm quite happy denying it as a whole.
I can certainly see why that isn't an option; it'd make things much harder for developers if they suddenly have to test against different sets of security permissions. But it's on my wishlist.