Holiday Travel Gets Off To Smooth Start

Short Lines And Fewer Weather Delays Leave Many Passengers Pleasantly Surprised

(CBS/AP)  Some trains were sold out and light snow slowed traffic in Denver, but short airport lines and a few major delays surprised people on the eve of Thanksgiving.

“I was expecting it to be a lot harder,” said William Hanson, 21, a University of Denver student who had only a brief wait at Denver International Airport on his way home to Milwaukee.

Brian Barnett said he came to the airport prepared for the worst, reports CBS News correspondent Dean Reynolds.

“We’ve got our books, and we’ve got our snacks, and we're ready to understand that we could have some delays,” he said.

While heading from Philadelphia to Miami to visit his parents, Scott Brady sailed through the terminal and had to remind himself that it was one of the biggest travel days of the year.

“I've never traveled ever when the traffic was this light” said Brady, of Bridgeport, Pa., who was killing time waiting for his flight at Philadelphia International Airport. “You would not even guess that this was Thanksgiving.”

Triphenya Bailey, a spokesman at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, said she was not aware of any problems. Lines through security stayed short and moved steadily.

“It's been a really good day before Thanksgiving. I think it's one of the better ones we've had,” Bailey said.

Surveys indicated a record 38.7 million U.S. residents were likely to travel 50 miles or more for the holiday between Wednesday and Sunday, up about 1.5 percent over last year, according to the AAA auto club.

Nearly 80 percent of them were expected to drive despite gas prices that were nearly 85 cents more per gallon than they were a year earlier. The national average for regular gasoline on Nov. 16 was $3.09 a gallon, up from $2.23 on Nov. 17, 2006.

“The question becomes 'Is $10 or $15 more for gas enough to change travel plans?' and obviously most Americans said 'no,”' said AAA Mid-Atlantic spokesman Lon Anderson in Washington.

Gas prices entered into Christopher Bruce's decision to take a circuitous, 11-hour train ride instead of driving from western Pennsylvania to Baltimore.

“Yeah, it takes the whole day, but it's cheaper in the long run, by the time I fill up the tank, get a meal and everything,” Bruce, a student at Seton Hill University in Greensburg, Pa., said at Philadelphia's 30th Street Station.

Airports took steps to move people quickly. Arizona's Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport had about 400 volunteers on hand to answer passenger questions and help direct traffic, spokeswoman Deborah Ostreicher said.

Some travelers also got entertainment. Four Rockettes dancers circulated around Chicago's O'Hare International, demonstrating their high kicks, handing out candy canes, and posing for photos with travelers such as 9-year-old Zac Wasendorf and 2-year-old brother Erik, who were heading to Orlando, Fla.

“This is gonna be the best holiday card ever,” the boys' mother, Amber Wasendorf of Chicago, said of the photo.

O’Hare also hosted a quartet to help passengers pass the time, reports Reynolds.

Another reason for the smoother-than-expected sailing on Wednesday seemed to be that more people are turning Thanksgiving into an extended vacation rather than a long weekend, said Chicago Department of Aviation spokeswoman Karen Pride.

“It looks like people started the holiday on the 16th, the Friday before,” Pride said. But while O'Hare expected about 206,000 travelers Wednesday - some 3,000 less than an average day - Monday is likely to be hectic with 237,000 people, she said.

Amtrak said several trains were sold out Wednesday. Amtrak expected more than 115,000 riders for the day, about a 70 percent increase over a usual Wednesday, spokesman Cliff Cole said.

In New York, the subways that feed into Penn Station were packed with commuters - and luggage - heading out for the holiday. The trains were so crowded that arguments broke out between passengers pushing for more space.

Weather was not a big factor Wednesday, said Michael Musher, a National Weather Service meteorologist. Although snow bogged down traffic in parts of Denver, and made some Colorado mountain roads slushy, snowy or icy, only two flights were listed as delayed at Denver International Airport, the nation's fourth busiest. Airport officials spent $31 million on snow-removal equipment this year, following a storm last December that shut the airport down for two days.

Up to 9 inches of snow fell in parts of Colorado, to the relief of skiers who had been getting antsy. Some resorts had postponed their opening dates because of little snowfall and warm temperatures, but Vail Mountain opened a run Wednesday and resorts across the West planned to open runs over the weekend.

“Everybody knew it would come. It's just a matter of patience,” said Jason Roberts, 31, of Avon, Colo., after skiing down Vail's Born Free trail.

Weather made a difference for other reasons for Pam Girard of Huntley, Ill., who was flying from Chicago to Southern California with her husband and two daughters, ages 3 years and 4 months.

“It's not raining, it's nice, it's got mountains, it's got the beach. C'mon it's California,” Huntley said.

[consumercare]

This is a hectic time for everyone.
I found a great website that is giving away FREE healthy energy boosting supplement Samples to get us thru this holiday season, go to Nano-coffee.com

[lastdance4]

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[shanev137]

SageProphet needs to be banned.

[shanev137]

Hey CBS....SageProphet needs to be banned.

[sageprophet]

"The means of defense against foreign danger historically have become the instruments of tyranny at home."
- James Madison

"We have nothing to fear but fear itself, and those who would exploit our fear for power and their own personal, selfish, cynical gain."
- Franklin D. Roosevelt

"When the people fear their government, you have tyranny. When the government fears the people, you have liberty."
- Thomas Jefferson

[sageprophet]

"The means of defense against foreign danger historically have become the instruments of tyranny at home."
- James Madison

"We have nothing to fear but fear itself, and those who would exploit our fear for power and their own personal, selfish, cynical gain."
- Franklin D. Roosevelt

"When the people fear their government, you have tyranny. When the government fears the people, you have liberty."
- Thomas Jefferson

[lastdance4]

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For Spammers only !

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Chronic ...Habitual...and Harassing - Spam
Brought to you by :
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Forever diligent in the Work Morals and Ethics of
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Produced By :
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3) aka-MegaProphet ......4)aka-KJVProphet
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All Week long within most of the topics on
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[homjett]

Just go ahead and enjoy your thanksgiving...

But can I ask why the media burrying the story about Scott McClellen confirming that Bush authorized the leak and told Scott to lie about it.




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by Vet_SK at 02:21 PM : Nov 21, 2007

Its because its a non story, as the publisher noted a correction. Only MSNBC an CNN took an ran with it, an I can assume that they will apologize for missleading their viewers. My guess pigs will fly first.

[one_american]

No delays at the airport?

It''s all George Bush''s "fault".

Give thanks.

[jerr11]

An open message to Ron Paul:

V i a g r a pushers spam.

Scammers from Nigeria spam.

P o r n sites spam.

Serious political candidates do not spam.

They build good websites and they disseminate their ideas in appropriate forums.

They do not hijack public boards to spew their endless drivel.

[sageprophet]

CLINTON MAKES BUSH DICTATOR
With the full support of Senators Clinton, Obama and McCain, President Bush recently signed into Law the John Warner Defense Authorization Act, which, according to Senator Leahy (VT), will actually "encourage the President to declare Martial Law." It does so by revising the Insurrection Act, a Laws which limits the President''s ability to deploy troops within the United States. The Insurrection Act has historically, along with the Posse Comitatus Act, helped to enforce strict prohibitions on military involvement in domestic Law enforcement. With one cloaked swipe of his pen, Bush has now undone all of those prohibitions. The John Warner Defense Authorization Act, which was signed by the President in an unpublicized ceremony, allows the President to declare a "public emergency," suspend Congress; The Constitution; and to take control of state-based National Guard units without the consent of your Governor or local authorities, in order to "suppress public disorder." President Bush seized this unprecedented power on the very same day that he signed the equally odious Military Commissions Act. The two Laws compliment one another. One allows for torture and detention abroad of those who dissent and are stripped of their citizenship, while the other seeks to enforce acquiescence at home by allowing the President to order the military onto our streets in a domestic Law enforcement role, which is already being done. Vote for Liberty. Vote for Ron Paul.

[sageprophet]

CAMPING-OUT WITH HILLARY
The John Warner Defense Authorization Act, which was supported by Clinton, Obama and McCain, permits militarized police round-ups and detention of "protesters" and other "undesirables" for detention in facilities which are already contracted for and under construction by Kellog, Brown & Root, a subsidiary of Halliburton. This Law, which was sold to an emergency managed and willfully gullible public in the wake of the 9/11 attacks as a necessary measure needed by our President in order to fight his "global war on terrorism," permits the indefinite detention of American citizens who resists the foreign and domestic agenda of our President. The Journal of Counterterrorism & Homeland Security International reported recently that global engineering and technical services powerhouse, Kellog, Brown & Root announced during January 2006 that its Government and Infrastructure division had been awarded a (no bid) Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity contract to build these detainment camps with a maximum total value of $385 million over a five year term, and that this contract called for the company to build "temporary detention and processing capabilities" to augment existing U.S. government Detention and Removal Operations and to support "the rapid development of new programs." New Programs? Could it possibly get any worse? Why would the president be so concerned about Americans protesting? Aren''t we all happy campers?

[rushlimpdrug]

Reporting from the airport no one has sighted Ron Paul.
It is suspected he is holed up somewhere with SageProphet.
No news there, just the wacko Ron paul spammer boy.

[sageprophet]

RON PAUL SURGES AHEAD OF THOMPSON; TIED WITH MCCAIN
Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul is gaining momentum in New Hampshire and Iowa, according to a poll released November 13 by the New York Times. The Texas congressman has garnered an estimated 8% in New Hampshire, surpassing former GOP front-runner Fred Thompson, and is now tied with John McCain in Iowa. Polls released over the weekend by the Boston Globe in association with the University of New Hampshire Survey Center, and the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion, both confirmed Congressman Paul%u2019s support to be higher than Thompson%u2019s as well. "The polls confirm what we already know: Congressman Paul is catching on in the early primary states," said Paul campaign spokesman Jesse Benton. "His unifying message of freedom, peace, and prosperity is resonating strongly with voters in Iowa and New Hampshire, and we%u2019re rapidly gaining support nationwide." The New York Times poll was conducted November 2-12. On November 5, the Ron Paul campaign brought in a record-breaking $4.2 million in grass root donations online, and an additional $1 million to end the week.

[sageprophet]

RON PAUL WINS NATIONAL POLL
The results of a nationwide telephone poll, announced by Zogby on November 19th, reveals that Americans want to vote for a candidate who protects liberty; who wants to shrink government; and who wants to immediately withdraw our troops from Iraq - positions of Ron Paul. As part of a "blind-bio", spread poll, 1009 likely voters [from all parties] were provided with descriptions of four different candidates and asked to choose who they would vote for based on each one''s attributes and political platform. 33% of pollees chose Ron Paul, 19% chose Rudy Giuliani, 15% chose Mitt Romney and 13% chose Fred Thompson. The results clearly illustrate that the country is crying out for Ron Paul, which is why mainstream media has launched a PR offensive to marginalize his accomplishments and suppress the Congressman''s name recognition. In a seperate question, over 49% of pollees said they would be more likely to vote for a candidate who would begin an immediate withdrawal from Iraq. In fact, Ron Paul won in every demographic in this poll (religious voters, NASCAR fans, military families, etc.).

[sageprophet]

RON PAUL RESPECTS YOUR PRIVACY
Like Ron Paul, I believe the biggest threat to your privacy is the government. We must drastically limit the ability of government to collect and store data regarding a citizens'' personal matters. We must stop the move toward a national ID card system (e.g., The Real ID Act). Under this new Law, states are currently issuing new driver''s licenses embedded with standard identifier data (RFID chips). Although, many states are refusing to comply. A national ID with new tracking technologies means we''re heading into an Orwellian world of no privacy. Ron Paul was one of the few members of Congess who voted against the Real ID Act. Also, under current medical privacy protection rules, which Ron Paul also opposed, insurance companies and other entities have access to your personal medical information. Finally, there''s the so-called Patriot Act, which Congressman, Ron Paul also voted against. As originally proposed, it expanded the federal government''s ability to use wiretaps without judicial oversight; allowed nationwide search warrants non-specific to any given location, nor subject to any local judicial oversight; made it far easier for the government to monitor private Internet usage; authorized sneak and peek warrants enabling federal authorities to search a person''s home, office, or personal property without that person''s knowledge; and required libraries to turn over records of books read by patrons. Ron Paul sponsored a Bill to overturn the Patriot Act.

[sageprophet]

A FOREIGN POLICY OF FREEDOM
All of the other presidential candidates want to continue our illegal police action in Iraq indefinitely, and they do not rule out a preemptive (nuclear) first strike against Iran. Conversely, Ron Paul voted against our (undeclared) war in Iraq, which was sold to us with lies. The area is more dangerous now than when we entered it. We destroyed a regime hated by our direct enemies--the jihadists, and created thousands of new recruits for them. The war in Iraq has cost more than 3,500 American lives and almost a trillion dollars. We need a leader in the White House who will ensure this never happens again. Both Jefferson and Washington warned us about entangling ourselves in the affairs of other nations. Today, we have 750 foreign bases and troops in 130 countries. We are spread so thin that we have too few troops defending America. And now, there are new calls for a draft. We can continue to fund and fight no-win police actions around the globe, or we can refocus on securing our borders against illegal aliens who are invading us from the South. No war should ever be fought without a Declaration of War voted upon by the Congress, as required by The Constitution. Under no circumstances should the U.S. again go to war as the result of a resolution that comes from an unelected, foreign body, such as the United Nations. Too often, we give foreign aid and intervene on behalf of governments that are despised. Then, we become despised.

[sageprophet]

RON PAUL WILL RESTORE U.S. SOVEREIGNTY
All of the trade deals and world government organizations, which all of the presidential candidates support (except Ron Paul), such as the ICC, NAFTA, GATT, WTO, and CAFTA, are all a major threat to our nation''s sovereignty. They transfer power from our government to unelected foreign elites. The ICC wants to try our soldiers as war criminals. Both the WTO and CAFTA could force Americans to get a prescription to take herbs and vitamins. The WTO has forced Congress to change our laws to meet their needs, and not our own. If anything, the WTO makes trade relations worse by giving foreign competitors a new way to attack U.S. jobs. The NAFTA superhighway, being built by a Spanish company, is just one part of a plan to erase our borders and create the North American Union, a single nation State like the EU, out of Canada, the U.S. and Mexico, with a new, unelected bureaucracy and money system. Forget about controlling immigration under the NAU scheme. There won''t be any borders anymore, or a free America. Our limited, constitutional government will be gone forever. Let''s not forget the UN either. It wants to impose a direct Carbon Tax on us. Ron Paul successfully fought this move in Congress last year, but if we are going to stop ongoing attempts of this world government body to rule over us, we need someone in the White House who knows how to say "No." We must withdraw from any organizations or treaty that infringes upon our nation''s sovereignty.

[stephengosson]

Locally, Portland, Ore TV stations have their "live" reporters stationed on freeways, at the train station, and airport and they''re solemnly reporting that, actually, nothing much is going on.
Back to you in the studio!!!

[sageprophet]

RON PAUL KNOWS HOW TO STOP ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION
The talk must stop. We must secure our borders now. A nation without secure borders is no nation at all. It makes no sense to fight terrorists abroad when our own front door is left unlocked. Ron Paul has a plan: (1.) Physically secure our borders and coastlines. We must do whatever it takes to control entry into our country before we undertake complicated immigration reform proposals. (2.) Enforce Visa rules. Immigration officials must track Visa holders and deport anyone who overstays their Visa or otherwise violates U.S. Law. This is especially important when we recall that a number of 9/11 terrorists had expired Visas. (3.) No amnesty. Estimates suggest that 10 to 20 million people are in our country illegally. That''s a lot of people to reward for breaking our Laws. (4.) No welfare for illegal aliens. Americans have welcomed immigrants who seek opportunity, work hard, and play by the rules, but taxpayers should not pay for illegal immigrants who use hospitals, clinics, schools, roads, and social services. (5.) End birthright citizenship. As long as illegal immigrants know their children born here will be citizens, the incentive to enter the U.S. illegally will remain strong. (6.) Pass true immigration reform. The current system, and those proposed by ALL other candidates, is incoherent and unfair, and would allow up to 60 million more immigrants into our country.