Thanksgiving kicks off fight for holiday sales

The holiday shopping season starts in earnest on Thursday, with retailers anxious to see if U.S. consumers are willing to spend despite an endless stream of scary headlines about the fragile economy and their own precarious finances.

However, in the eyes of retailers, the shopping period has been churning along for some time as retailers like Wal-Mart Stores Inc and Toys R Us started early by offering layaway ... Reuters