Airport Protests Fizzle

In the end, very few people opted to participate in National Opt-Out day. Activists had promised chaos, but people protesting TSA pat-downs and full-body scanners only appeared in ones and twos at the nation's airports, and no unusual delays were reported. Opt-out organizers claimed that the lack of lines proved that travelers were refusing to fly, though TSA officials say yesterday was, as expected, one of the busiest air travel days of the year, the Washington Post notes.

"I would go so far as to say that National Opt-Out Day was a big bust," a spokeswoman for travel firm Travelocity told the AP. Holiday travel wasn't without its delays, however: Delaware lifted the toll for drivers on Interstate 95 after traffic backups grew to 30 miles in some places. In the western US, a powerful storm system dumped snow, sleet, and ice across a wide area, closing roads and delaying flights. (More Thanksgiving travel stories.)