Storms, not airport security, slow holiday travel ( Blame every thing on the weather. LOL)

Storms, not airport security, slow holiday travel
By JAMES MacPHERSON Associated Press The Associated Press
Thursday, November 25, 2010 7:05 AM EST

http://www.charter.net/news/read.php?rip_id=%3CD9JN2JIO1%40news.ap....

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A planned boycott of airport security scanners was a bust, but holiday travelers in the western U.S. had to contend with a chaotic mix of snow, sleet and ice.

The powerful storm system closed roads and delayed flights from Anchorage to Salt Lake City, and promised to bring messy wintery weather to much of the Dakotas on Thanksgiving Day. Freezing rain glazed roads across the Midwest, and at least three traffic deaths in Iowa were blamed on the weather.

But the cascading delays and monumental lines that many feared would result at airports from the so-called National Opt-Out Day didn't materialize Wednesday, one of the busiest travel days of the year.

The loosely organized Internet campaign encouraged travelers to protest new security screening by boycotting body scanners that can see through people's clothing and insisting on the more time consuming pat-downs. But few passengers seemed to heed the call.

"It was a day at the beach, a box of chocolates," Greg Hancock, 61, said after going through a body scanner Wednesday at the Phoenix airport. He was sent through the scanner after a golf ball marker set off the metal detector.

His wife, Marti Hancock, 58, said that ever since she was in the air on Sept. 11, 2001, and feared there was a bomb on her plane, she has been fully supportive of stringent security: "If that's what you have to do to keep us safe, that's what you have to do."

Some protesters showed up, including one man seen walking around the Salt Lake City airport in a skimpy, Speedo-style bathing suit. At other airports, they carried signs denouncing the Transportation Security Administration's screening methods as unnecessarily intrusive and embarrassing.

By most accounts, though, the lines moved smoothly, and there was no more or less congestion at major U.S. airports than in previous years on the day before Thanksgiving.

"I would go so far as to say that National Opt-Out Day was a big bust," said Genevieve Shaw Brown, a spokeswoman for the travel company Travelocity, which had staff at 12 of the nation's largest airports watching for problems.


Protest organizers — some of whom had no plans themselves to fly on Wednesday — were not prepared to declare the event a flop, saying the publicity alone cranked up pressure on the White House and the TSA to review their security measures.

The TSA maintains that the need for such measures was demonstrated last Christmas, when a Nigerian man allegedly tried to blow up a Detroit-bound plane with explosives hidden in his underwear.

More than 40 million people plan to travel over the Thanksgiving holiday, according to AAA, with more than 1.6 million flying — a 3.5 percent increase from last year.

Some travelers who opted for the ground said they did so in part because of anticipated headaches at airports, but they were delayed anyway by the weather. Early-season snowstorms buried Seattle, and shut down highways for a time in Idaho, Wyoming and Utah. It also brought strong winds Wednesday from New Mexico to Missouri.

At an Amtrak station in Chicago, Pam Edwards said she decided to travel by train from Jackson, Miss., even though it would take 15 hours instead of two.

"With all the things with the TSA, I just decided it might be a little bit easier, stress-wise, to take the train," the 61-year-old retired preschool teacher said as she stepped off the train.

Marie Martin, taking a break at a gas station in Oklahoma City during her family's road trip from Arizona to Georgia, noted that it was "a lot cheaper for a family of five to drive rather than fly," but also said it eliminated the hassle of flying.

"You don't have to deal with the crowds. You don't have to deal with the baggage check-in," she said. "You don't have to deal with the pat-downs."

———

Associated Press writers Michael Tarm in Chicago; Tim Talley in Oklahoma City; Steve Karnowski in Minneapolis; Blake Nicholson in Bismarck; Ted Shaffrey in New York; Eileen Sullivan in Washington; Ray Henry, Cara Rubinsky and Kate Brumback in Atlanta; Barbara Rodriguez in Chicago; Jay Reeves in Birmingham, Ala.; Tony Winton in Miami; Ron Todt in Philadelphia; Amanda Lee Myers in Phoenix; and Ivan Moreno in Denver contributed to this report.

Views: 82

Comment

You need to be a member of 12160 Social Network to add comments!

Join 12160 Social Network

"Destroying the New World Order"

TOP CONTENT THIS WEEK

THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THE SITE!

mobile page

12160.info/m

12160 Administrators

 

Latest Activity

Doc Vega commented on Doc Vega's blog post One of Many Witnesses to the JFK Assassination Not Listed in the Warren Report
"tjdavis Thanks for your support! "
10 hours ago
Doc Vega posted blog posts
10 hours ago
tjdavis favorited Doc Vega's blog post One of Many Witnesses to the JFK Assassination Not Listed in the Warren Report
yesterday
Burbia commented on KLC's group MUSICWARS
Thursday
Doc Vega posted a blog post

The Unnerving Frequency of Disappearances on the Appalachian Trail Pt. 1

There’s another one of the cluster zones of missing persons reports that fails to render the…See More
Wednesday
cheeki kea commented on cheeki kea's photo
Thumbnail

Waste runs deep

"Make USAID - go away."
Wednesday
cheeki kea posted a photo
Wednesday
cheeki kea commented on cheeki kea's photo
Thumbnail

$ Paid Annual Leave $

"Now is the Time for American Workers to Unite! Take back the squandered taxes and demand time off…"
Monday
cheeki kea posted a photo
Monday
Burbia commented on Burbia's blog post Mystery illness strikes Russia with fever, blood symptoms, and no cure in sight.
Monday
Burbia posted a blog post

Mystery illness strikes Russia with fever, blood symptoms, and no cure in sight.

I guess releasing this bio-weapon upon Israeli neighbors would be hitting too close to home. I…See More
Monday
tjdavis posted videos
Monday
tjdavis posted a video

The Electric State | Final Trailer | Netflix

Together, robots & humans can take the whole system down. THE ELECTRIC STATE starring Millie Bobby Brown, Chris Pratt and directed by the Russo Brothers, onl...
Mar 29
Less Prone favorited Sandy's video
Mar 29
Doc Vega's 7 blog posts were featured
Mar 29
tjdavis's blog post was featured
Mar 29
Sandy posted a video

"Mommy Tells Me I'm a Girl"-Jeff Younger

Soft White Underbelly interview and portrait of Jeff Younger, a father who is fighting to protect his son from transitioning into a girl. Get 40% off access ...
Mar 29
tjdavis posted a video

MindWar: Full Spectrum Cognitive Dominance [Michael Aquino Analysis]

This is my analysis and my thoughts on Michael Aquino's "MindWar". This document is a must-read if you are looking to understand the psyop tactics and cognit...
Mar 28
Doc Vega posted a blog post

A Horrid Murder at Land Between the Lakes (Sasquatch?)

 Most of us hear that Sasquatch-Bigfoot are intelligent yet reclusive creatures that are closely…See More
Mar 28
Doc Vega posted blog posts
Mar 27

© 2025   Created by truth.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service

content and site copyright 12160.info 2007-2019 - all rights reserved. unless otherwise noted