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American Morning
America's New War: A Look Inside New York's Infamous 'Red Zone'
Aired September 28, 2001 - 09:50 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: We're continue to watch how the financial markets are doing this morning. Knowing a lot of you out there probably lost a lot of money.
Joining us to talk about that and to answer some of your e-mail questions is Andy Serwer of "Fortune" magazine.
Let's get to their questions right now.
Andy, question number one: "I have heard that an American military invasion will create a sell-off in the financial markets. Why is this? And has the market discounted that very probable event?"
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE": I don't think a military invasion will create a sell-off. I think we saw the bulk of the sell- off already. And oftentimes, when the shooting starts, the market goes up, because it's an end to uncertainty.
ZAHN: See, I knew you could answer these questions.
Question number two: "My question is, what exactly does it mean to be in a recession? What is the significance of being in a recession?"
SERWER: Well, they say a recession is when your neighbor's out of work, and a depression is when you're out of work. We already know now the classic definition of a recession, two quarters in a row. We're going to throw that out. We probably are in a recession right now. Recession means tough times all around. We're going to have to see whether we're in one right now.
ZAHN: And then we obviously are going to have to see what the government is going to do to continue to stimulate this economy.
SERWER: Right, exactly.
ZAHN: Let's move on to Sasha's question. She says: "I have a $50,000 municipal bond that just came due. Do I sit on the money, buy another bond or put it in stocks, and if so, what stocks?
SERWER: All right, call me crazy, but I say you might want to invest in stocks right now. They're cheap, stocks are low; that's when you're supposed to by. And I would look for defensive stocks like pharmaceuticals, food companies, maybe some oil stocks.
ZAHN: Sasha, are you listening? I bet she is.
This one from Gordon: "We have already seen home prices edge down, pre and post war. Should we wait to buy, or is it safe to take the leap now? Will we find out a year from now that we paid $50,000 too much for our house?"
That is a very good question, particularly as we see hints interest rates may come down again.
SERWER: That's right. I'm not sure what part of country Gordon's living in, but housing prices haven't come down that much. I always think, when you're buying a home, you need to buy a home; it's not a financial or investment decision particularly. If you need to do it, go out and do it. Don't worry about whether you overpaid or underpaid by $50,000 or $25,000.
ZAHN: Oh, but you have to worry about that.
SERWER: If you are going to live there for 15 years, it doesn't matter. You just have to enjoy it and live there. It's not an investment; it's a place to live.
ZAHN: All right, I think in part, I understand what you are saying. But don't you expect real estate prices to continue -- if we're in this recession you would say we're in, wouldn't you feel better about spending $15,000 or $20,000 less two months from now.
(on camera): I would, but how much do you need to move into the home? And the other thing is, we try to time this. I know people who haven't bought home for three or four years because it's always been too expensive, and then prices keep going up. Are prices going to go down? I think so. Do I know that for sure? No, I don't.
ZAHN: One last question for you: "What companies stand to make the largest profit, thus an increase in their stock as New York City rebuilds. When will their stocks reflect that?" That comes from Kerry Fulton from Arlington, Texas. I like it when they give us the last name and where they're from.
SERWER: Yes, Kerry, good questions. I think the companies that will benefit the most from this will be New York construction companies. Unfortunately, most of them, all of them, aren't public. But we'll look into that. Actually, that's a good question. I'll see if there actually are public stocks, and we'll check that out for you.
ZAHN: The right man for the right mission here.
Andy Serwer, thanks for taking all those the questions, and we appreciate your sending all those smart questions our way.
Since the attack on the World Trade Centers more than two weeks ago, most of Manhattan has returned to near normalcy, but not in what's known as "the red zone."
CNN's Jeanne Moos takes us to the edge of it.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): While folks uptown snapped photos of tourist sites, it was a disaster site that folks focused on downtown.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Excuse me, sir, no cameras!
MOOS: Though police tried to stop them...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Please keep moving.
MOOS: ... to ease congestion on barricaded sidewalks so crowded passerby got entangled.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get that?
MOOS: Uptown, people tossed a frisbee behind a fence in Central Park. But downtown, two miles of donated fence surrounds what residents call "the red zone," a term that used to mean a place you can't park. Now, it's a place you can't forget.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm in shock. You know, it's like a nightmare. I had to get myself together to come down here today, to get it out of my system, you know.
MOOS: While uptown, cleaners swept up everyday litter, downtown, they dealt with that dust, the cloud of ash that blanketed lower Manhattan, now a canvas on which to scrawl tributes to fallen firefighters, and threats to Osama bin Laden. "Bin will pay." "One destroyed many, now many will destroy one," signed, "The Army."
Some prefer a more traditional surface. Bronx street painter Danny Hauben used chalk pastels to paint the ruins.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're trying to capture something that's, first of all, indescribable.
MOOS: Some tried to capture it through binoculars, or even a monocular. Burger King invited customers to watch breaking news on 27 TV's a mere block from where the news broke. On the edge of the red zone, you can buy flags or flag pins. You can even get a Twin Towers tattoo that says "we won't forget." Even the littlest kids haven't forgotten.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She wakes up at night, and was saying like, "it all fall down, it's all falling down."
MOOS: Things may be normal at the Central Park carousel, but Jo- Anna Wheeler's (ph) family was just recently allowed back into their apartment two blocks from the trade center. Her 3-year-old son Oliver was in the apartment when the towers fell.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He talks about it all the time. He builds blocks, and then knocks them down. MOOS: The collapse reminded her son of a grandparent who died recently.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: As soon as the towers fell, you know, he kind of said, "they're gone forever like, grandpa Bob."
MOOS: Emotions you can't capture on a hallmark card.
Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ZAHN: Thanks so much, Jeanne.
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