I think that the recent snowstorms were a good example of how the new processes work. Yes, they did cancel flights all over the place and for some people the next available flight (3 days out?) didn't work. My son was flying between DSM and LGA over Christmas and being delayed in one direction would have shortened his time with family; in the other it would have required him to be out of work when he'd run out of vacation days. (His job is not one that can de done anywhere from a laptop.) Luckily, he got in and out on schedule.

Still, once you're shut up in a flight that's backed away from the gate with no food or water and lavs that filled up hours ago, you have zero options unless you want to start behavior that makes the crew get out the plastic handcuffs. Outright cancellation is preferable. A couple of ways to improve things: add more flights after the airport is up and running again to move the backlog of pax, and require that any fines paid for tarmac delays go to the affected pax!