Please send letters to any airlines that you would have flown to the US, as well as hotels, and local tourist offices.

Glad things went well :)

Totally agree. SPEAK UP ABOUT IT when you get a chance. Contact as many as you can (airlines and hotels definitely) and make it perfectly clear that they lose out because of the TSA.

I have. thank you.

so as an update, we flew SFO-DFW today and it went well. We left from T3 of SFO and used the United checkpoint. The guy guarding the entrance (not TSA) really wanted us to go to the American checkpoint but I'd already scoped it out and there it full of Cancer Machines and the United had just the metal detector. So I told the guy that we were there aready and were going through that checkpoint. Everyone else he redirected went to the other checkpoint but I wanted only metal detectors. Also, there were a lot fewer people going through United.

We were the nightmare family - 4 kids, dog, 6 carryon bags (and 6 checked :)) and 7 personal items (yeah, we were over by 1 but no-one noticed) and 4 laptops. I really tried moving everyone through the line - I had the boys team up with the girls and 2 people actually told us we'd done well as they passed us (still gathering up stuff) after getting through the checkpoint. My husband set off the detector with the dog somehow but only once so no one got groped and it all worked VERY well thanks to the advice in this thread. Thanks again!

Once we got everyone to the gate I had to take the dog out and you know the United line gatekeeper was pissed I was back there. He kept telling me I needed a permit for the dog (I told him we didn't even live in the country let alone the city and there was no way I needed a permit) and then came and complained to the TSO (same one we had JUST gone through with) that I had no permit. The TSO was dumbfounded and even said he'd never heard such a thing (the gatekeeper REALLY wanted me to go the the American checkpoint and I absoultely REFUSED to do so) and called the supervisor over. Supervisor went over docs and listened to me say we'd JUST been through security with no problem and finally let me through. It was actually a good experience.

Tomorrow we'll hit A12 at DFW (which is "safe") as we found on the outbound flight on 12/15 adn then we'll not be flying in the US until this insanity is over.

Thanks again everyone for your advice - it was essential for us.