RELATED RESOURCES

Like Al's ideas? Hear more in our broadcast and online seminars. Sign up to receive Al's Morning Meeting by e-mail: * Click here (sent Monday-Friday at 7 a.m.) Buy Al's book, "Aim for the Heart" (Poynter receives a small cut as an Amazon affiliate).

Here is something to pass along to travelers this week. Airlines are starting to get tougher on carry-on bags that are too big. Even if the bags fit in overhead compartments, airlines are concerned about weight. Meg Martin, who copyedits Al's Morning Meeting every day (poor thing), spotted this in the Orlando Sentinel:

New limits on the amount, size and weight of luggage were introduced after 9-11, prompted by the need for thorough and time-consuming security checks.

More recently, the increasing number of passengers -- and the ballooning size and weight of those passengers -- has led to additional curbs on luggage and vigorous enforcement of the rules.

And now, says Judy Graham-Weaver, a spokeswoman for AirTran Airways, "with the price of fuel as high as it is, every pound counts." This is definitely something to keep in mind as we head into holiday-travel season.

Since early this year, says Michele Marini Pittenger, president of the Travel Goods Association, airlines have been more weight-conscious about checked baggage.

"Their rationale was that heavier bags were causing injuries to baggage handlers," she says. "Many airlines responded by reducing their weight limits from 70 pounds per bag and began charging passengers for bags that weighed in excess of 50 pounds. They also reduced the number of checked bags that they previously permitted."

For carry-on luggage, most domestic flights allow one carry-on bag and one personal item -- a purse, briefcase, camera bag, diaper bag, small backpack or laptop computer.

The size limit for carry-on items is generally between 45 inches and 55 inches -- small enough to fit in an overhead bin or under a seat. (The size is determined by adding the length, width and height of the item.) The weight limit varies from 40 pounds to 50 pounds.

For checked luggage, the rules differ slightly from airline to airline, but most domestic airlines limit passengers to two pieces. Weight limits range from 50 pounds to 70 pounds per piece. Size limits are generally about 62 inches.

Most sports equipment, such as golf bags and snow skis, can be checked in lieu of a piece of luggage if the item doesn't exceed the size and weight limits. Bicycles must be in boxes.

Overweight fees for checked luggage range from $25 to $150 per piece. Oversize fees run from $25 to $90. The charge for extra luggage can be as high as $180 per piece.

If a bag is oversize and overweight, both fees apply. If an extra bag is also oversize and overweight... well, the penalty fees can exceed the price of a ticket.

 

It's Another Gift-Card Christmas

The National Retail Federation says that consumers will spend almost $18.5 billion on gift cards this holiday season.  In fact, so much gets spent on gift cards now that it is not until the cards get used up that we can get a clear picture of what holiday sales really look like. The NRF says:

More than two-thirds (75.5 percent) of consumers polled said that they plan on purchasing at least one gift card, and more than half (52.3 percent) of consumers would like to receive gift cards this holiday season.

I was surprised by a separate NRF survey, which said credit-card use for holiday shopping is in decline. 

While debit/check cards (34.3 percent) will remain the favored form of payment this holiday season, fewer people will be relying on credit cards when purchasing holiday merchandise (28.2 pervent versus 29.5 percent in 2004). In fact, cash has replaced credit cards as the second most-popular payment method, as one in four shoppers (28.5 percent) plans to primarily use cash during the winter holidays, up from 25.9 percent last year. A small percentage (9.1 percent) of shoppers will be writing checks at the register.

We saw a similar trend last year, when Deloitte & Touche projected that gift cards would outsell every other holiday gift, even clothing.

Thanksgiving Resources

The Census Bureau has more than you will need.

 

Sexual Orientation and Bullying

Recently, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network released a new national (online) survey, focusing on the link between sexual orientation and bullying. Kids who were or were thought to be gay said they took a lot of abuse:

The online survey, conducted between January 13 and January 31, 2005, reveals that bullying is common in America's schools, and that some students are frequent targets for verbal and physical harassment:

• Two-thirds (65 percent) of teens report that they have been verbally or physically harassed or assaulted during the past year because of their perceived or actual appearance, gender, sexual orientation, gender expression, race/ethnicity, disability or religion.
• The reason most commonly cited for being harassed frequently is a student's appearance, as four in ten (39 percent) teens report that students are frequently harassed for the way they look or their body size.
• The next most common reason for frequent harassment is sexual orientation. One-third (33 percent) of teens report that students are frequently harassed because they are or are perceived to be lesbian, gay or bisexual.

The survey finds that LGBT [lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender] students are three times as likely as non-LGBT students to say that they do not feel safe at school (22 percent versus 7 percent) and 90 percent of LGBT students (versus 62 percent of non-LGBT teens) have been harassed or assaulted during the past year.

This Land is My Land

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch tapped into the public anger over how governments use eminent domain laws to take private property.

Five months after the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed government's right to force the sale of personal property for economic development, an increasing number of people are frustrated with what they see as a betrayal of American values.

A little more than a month ago, St. Louis voters removed Alderman Thomas Bauer in a recall election fueled by his support for the use of eminent domain. Bauer supported using the law to clear the way for a gas station near the corner of Manchester and McCausland avenues.

Just last week, Ohio's governor signed a bill into law that will freeze the use of eminent domain powers for a year, while the state sorts out when and how such powers should be used.

We are always looking for your great ideas. Send Al a few sentences and hot links.

Editor's Note: Al's Morning Meeting is a compendium of ideas, edited story excerpts and other materials from a variety of Web sites, as well as original concepts and analysis. When the information comes directly from another source, it will be attributed and a link will be provided whenever possible.

E-mail this item | Add Your Comments | QuickLink this item: A92366


Al's Morning Meeting Archive

View items published between:		and
	(MM/DD/YYYY)		(MM/DD/YYYY)

MAIN | Back to Top