The copilot came on the com after we took off and said it took him four and a half hours to drive to work due to a concatenation of accidents along his route.

While I sympathize with the traffic struggle, I don't find this to be a great excuse. We stayed at the Renaissance Hotel by LAX so we could be at the airport promptly without wrestling with traffic. We could have stayed further out with family, but I doubt they would have held the plane for US if we were half hour late.

In the big picture, there was only a twenty minute delay, and I doubt many people missed their connections. And I am grateful to have arrived safely at my destination.

Maybe putting up with crappy traffic conditions, and keeping people delayed, is acceptable in LA. Not sure it would be acceptable here in the upper Midwest.