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CNN Live At Daybreak
Surprise Visit; Oh Little Town; Holiday Travel; Gender Bias
Aired December 24, 2004 - 05:30 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.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, welcome to the second half-hour of DAYBREAK. From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.
Now in the News.
Donald Rumsfeld told U.S. troops in Iraq today that the insurgency there will be defeated. The defense secretary paid a surprise visit to the U.S. base near Mosul where a suicide bomber killed 22 people. Rumsfeld then went on to Tikrit where he told U.S. troops to keep doing what they are doing.
Mortar rounds and rocket-propelled grenades fell near police stations today outside of Baquba northeast of Baghdad. No casualties reported here.
And Colin Powell warned last month that there were not enough troops in Iraq. "The Washington Post" says Powell's warning came in talks with President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
Sixty-two million Americans will try to travel this weekend and the weather presents challenges in some areas. Snow is clogging roads in the Midwest and airport crews are trying to clear runways and de- ice planes, so good luck and Merry Christmas.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, and the good news is this morning, Carol, is that a lot of the wind that we had yesterday blowing that snow around in Indiana, Illinois, Ohio and even into Kentucky, now that wind has calmed down.
COSTELLO: Good.
MYERS: So the road crews are able to get out there.
Now the only problem is at Cincinnati with a wind chill of -5, air temperature actually right around 0, the salt doesn't work that well. So this is good news/bad news, but at least the roads are getting cleared.
There are thousands, I can't even give you a number, thousands of stranded drivers, stranded travelers across southern Indiana, southern Ohio into parts of Kentucky and Illinois all now into hotels, sleeping in their cars, trying to stay warm. Today is a better day for you to get out there and try to move.
If you are traveling today, be prepared for an ugly day one way or the other, because it only takes one accident ahead of you to slow you down, to stop your travel for hours and hours. Make sure your car is gassed up and stays gassed up.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Boy, you've got that right.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Thank you -- Chad.
MYERS: You're welcome.
COSTELLO: Donald Rumsfeld says he just wants to wish U.S. troops in Iraq a Merry Christmas, but a top priority during his surprise visit were the troops being treated near Mosul for wounds suffered at Tuesday's bomb attack on a mess hall.
CNN's Karl Penhaul in Baghdad with a report on Rumsfeld's trip to the war front.
Hello -- Karl.
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Carol.
This is turning into a tour of all Iraq's major trouble spots. We're told that in the last few minutes Mr. Rumsfeld has visited Falluja to meet the Marines from the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force there. It's not known how long he spent on the ground there or if he had time to overfly the city of Falluja itself, much of which was destroyed in the November offensive.
We do know there that refugees have been returning to the city amid continuing firefights between Marines and insurgent cells. Only yesterday the Marines told us that three Marines had been killed in fighting in al Ambob (ph) Province. That's the province that Mr. Rumsfeld is in now.
Of course earlier in the day his first stop was the city of Mosul. He flew in there under cover of darkness and visited Camp Marez. That was the scene of Tuesday's devastating explosion. He met troops there. He also visited the hospital facility that had treated the wounded from Tuesday's blast. From there it was on to the city of Tikrit where he met soldiers from the 1st Infantry Division.
Little of real substance in terms of announcements coming out of these meetings, but the trip is certainly important for the troops in terms of boosting their morale. One might also suggest that it's important for Mr. Rumsfeld's own political image since his stewardship of the war in Iraq has come under criticism.
What he has said, though, is that he believes this insurgency in Iraq can be defeated. He didn't put any timeline on it, but he urged the naysayers to have a little more faith and that the job would get done. And that's certainly what he urged the troops to do, to keep on doing their job -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Karl Penhaul, live in Baghdad this morning, thank you. Tourists are slowly coming back to Bethlehem after years of fears, but leaders hope the prospect of possible peace will once again lead the faithful back to one of the holiest places.
CNN's John Vause has more for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Inside the Church of the Nativity at the place where Christians believe Christ was born, here the faithful will soon gather to celebrate another Christmas.
But outside the church, Christmas cheer for the people of Bethlehem comes down to one very important factor, tourists. After a year of relative calm, thousands are once again making a pilgrimage to this holy city.
Eileen Dunne from Britain has been coming here through good times and bad.
EILEEN DUNNE, BRITISH TOURIST: Yes, I get the atmosphere even walking down here. It's more friendly and the shops are opening up and it's lovely to see that.
VAUSE: Good news for the street vendors.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, too small. I want a big one.
VAUSE: They've struggled for years to make a living.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're giving good bargain, 99 percent discount, 6 months to get it (ph).
JIRES CANAVATI, TOUR GUIDE: This place is the most important part.
VAUSE: And the tour guides, like Jires Canavati.
CANAVATI: This arm (ph) marks the exact spot where Jesus Christ was born.
VAUSE: But like everyone else here, he remembers the good days before the outbreak of violence four years ago.
CANAVATI: You know we used to get 4,000 or 5,000 people in one day, that's normal, you know, minimum. Christmas you find thousands, 30,000, 40,000, 50,000.
VAUSE: There is also a sense of hope that maybe peace talks will begin again, that all of this is tempered by the giant concrete slabs which are slowly surrounding this city, Israel's barrier designed to stop suicide bombers and other militant attacks.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bethlehem belongs to the world, to the Christian world, this war should be stopped. VAUSE: And this is a city divided. Israel has built another barrier around Rachel's tomb to protect Jewish worshipers. Rachel is considered one of the matriarchs of the Jewish people. To the Palestinians, though, it's another Israeli land grab.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Always under the pretext of security they are taking land, confiscating land.
VAUSE: This Christmas may be the best in years, but there are fears once the pilgrims are gone there will still be hard times ahead.
John Vause, CNN, Bethlehem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Winter woes just in time for your holiday travels. In five minutes, we'll see if your Christmas dreams will be met with nightmares.
Also,...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KIERN HARRIS, DAUGHTER: Yes. I like him for a Christmas present, a really good Christmas present.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: I bet she does. Christmas came early for eager family and friends at Fort Lewis. We'll hear from them in 20 minutes.
Which leads us to our e-mail Question of the Day, what is your holiday greeting for U.S. troops? DAYBREAK@CNN.com, DAYBREAK@CNN.com.
But first, here is a look at what else is making news this Friday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports. It's 5:40 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.
Security, secrecy and surprise marked Donald Rumsfeld's visit to a U.S. military base near Mosul, Iraq. The defense secretary visited some of those wounded in Tuesday's suicide bomb attack and then he went south to meet with troops in Tikrit.
Two carloads of gunmen opened fire on a public bus last night in northern Honduras. When the shooting stopped at least 23 passengers were dead or dying. The gunmen claimed to be members of a revolutionary group that, get this, opposes the death penalty.
In money news, small towns in the Great Plains are trying to stem the population slide. Some are offering free building lots to families that pre-qualify and agree to build within two years. In culture, with the ratings down 23 percent from last spring, NBC is giving Donald Trump's show "The Apprentice" a new twist. The latest slate of applicants pits college graduates against high school graduates.
In sports, the richest pro football player is now quarterback Michael Vick of the Atlanta Falcons. Vick has signed a 10-year contract, 10 years, and this guy is prone to injury. Anyway, that 10- year contract is worth $130 million, plus another $37 million in bonuses.
Chad.
MYERS: But that $37 million is all that he's guaranteed, Carol, if he does get injured.
COSTELLO: Poor Michael.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: You know I wanted to read you an e-mail, because that's what I was doing in the break. This is from Nashville, Tennessee. My daughter is caught in the ice and snow north of Nashville.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: They had to spend the night in their autos. Nothing is being said about how bad Interstate 24 is, please.
MYERS: Well one of our executive producers tried to drive from St. Louis to Atlanta. What is that a 9 hour, 10-hour drive. Took him 30 hours.
Yes, it is ugly. I-64, I-24, I-65, 74, 71 no picnic, all of that right north of the Ohio River and into parts of Kentucky.
Well, you know it comes and it goes, Carol, because all of a sudden there will be one tractor-trailer that jackknifes, there will be a couple of cars that spinout and then all those cars get backed up and it takes a long time to get that accident cleared up.
Well on I-64, we had a call yesterday from a lady who was on I-64 from 5:00 -- I got to think about what day this is -- from 5:00 Wednesday afternoon until noon yesterday when they finally saw some humvees from the National Guard come to pick them up and take them to a local hotel. Then there were 1,000 cars stuck on the freeway just like they were.
COSTELLO: That's just wrong.
MYERS: Well, we told you not to go there. And then our producer, Dave Hennen (ph) here, he got stuck in Tennessee-Kentucky on the way up there. No reason, nothing that he did, but there was an accident in front of him and then the whole interstate. You know you got two lanes or one lane sometimes, and you got all these cars trying to go the same direction. All of a sudden that one lane is blocked. Well obviously you know what happens, well, blocked.
COSTELLO: It's unbelievable. Hey, let's go back out...
MYERS: Look, because Indiana, Liberty, Indiana had 31 inches, Carol. Salem, Indiana had 30 inches. So, you know.
COSTELLO: I know it's crazy. Quit getting upset, people still have to get home for Christmas. They won't listen to you...
MYERS: Just use your head.
COSTELLO: ... even though you're giving them the best of possible advice.
MYERS: OK. Yes, go.
COSTELLO: Let's go up to Cincinnati again, shall we, Chad, to Amy Wagner of CNN affiliate WLWT.
Good morning -- Amy.
AMY WAGNER, WLWT-TV REPORTER: Good morning, Carol.
You know we just can't catch a break here in Cincinnati. For two days straight we had all of that snow and ice dumped down on us. Take a look at the streets here. Now this is a back road, but it is a solid sheet of ice. All of that snow that fell down here is basically just one solid sheet of ice now.
But then on the main roads and the interstates that were pretty clear by the snowplows and the salt trucks, well it's about 5 degrees here this morning so all of that has now frozen over. So drivers that are getting out there on the roads in the Cincinnati area here this morning are dealing with black ice everywhere.
And I can tell you that on my way to work this morning I saw more cars in ditches, which is something that has not been strange to us in the past couple of days here. You see them left and right. And as the snowplows come through, some huge SUVs are now completely under snow on the sides of the roads here. It's just a mess.
And I can tell you that this weekend it's only going to get colder. So we're in a deep freeze here and not looking to thaw out really until next week. So this snow and ice is here to stay for a while.
COSTELLO: Amy Wagner with CNN affiliate WLWT. Thanks so much, Amy.
We're going to take a short break. DAYBREAK will be back with much more after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: In Health Headlines for you this morning, Medicare plans to help older smokers kick the habit. Beginning next year, Medicare will pay for up to four counseling sessions for beneficiaries who smoke and have smoking-related diseases. The American Cancer Society says counseling is cost effective and it is successful.
Ever wonder why your hair turns gray? You thought it was because of your kids or your spouse, right? Well cancer researchers trying to find a treatment for melanoma have come up with some clues. It turns out melanoma involves cells in our hair follicles called melanocytes. When these cells become depleted, often with age, gray hair grows. So in essence, as you age, your hair turns gray. There you go.
Infants who have respiratory problems may develop asthma when they become adults. Spanish researchers say babies who come down with broncholitis (ph) or bronchitis, rather, are more likely to have respiratory symptoms and asthma when they grow up. Broncholitis, bronchitis is a respiratory virus infection that causes inflammation of the lungs. I guess that's what they call bronchitis when you're a little baby.
You're a man and you go to the doctor, there's a good chance he'll listen carefully to your complaints and prescribe the right treatment. But if you're a woman, it might be a different story. We're talking about gender bias in the doctor's office.
Here's CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When Phyllis Cruz had a heart attack last year she went to the emergency room and sat there and sat there and sat there. No EKG, no blood tests, no nothing, just a nurse telling her to be patient.
PHYLLIS CRUZ, HEART ATTACK SURVIVOR: And I said to her, but I have pain, you know, chest pain. I can't breathe.
She said, well, there's a lot of people here. Sit down.
COHEN: After six hours of waiting, Phyllis finally had an EKG, which showed that she had had a heart attack. Now she sees cardiologist Dr. Nieca Goldberg who specializes in women and heart disease.
(on camera): When women come to you, what's the most common complaint they have?
DR. NIECA GOLDBERG, AUTHOR, "WOMEN ARE NOT SMALL MEN": They think they're not being taken seriously in the doctor's office. And you know what, most of the time they're right.
COHEN (voice-over): Phyllis says her previous doctor attributed her breathlessness and fatigue to hormones. Jean Horgan (ph) says her former doctor said her heart palpitations were due to nerves. Debbie Tillis (ph) was told the answer to her chest pain was tranquilizers and an antidepressant, but all three had heart disease.
Why would doctors take women less seriously? Some of it, women's health experts say, is just plain old-fashioned sexism.
Dr. Marianne Legato is director of the Partnership for Gender- Specific Medicine at Columbia University.
DR. MARIANNE LEGATO, AUTHOR, "EVE'S RIB": I think women are often disrespected and their symptoms attributed to hysteria.
COHEN: But it's more complicated than that. Male and female bodies are different, not just in the obvious ways but in the ways they experience disease. For example, women don't always have the crushing chest pain men have when they have a heart attack. Instead, they just feel tired and short of breath. But today's doctors weren't taught that difference in medical school.
GOLDBERG: They showed us a picture of the typical patient with heart disease and it was a middle aged businessman clutching his chest on a cold winter's night carrying a briefcase.
COHEN: A recent published study shows that women who don't have this male style heart attack are three times more likely to die probably because doctors don't recognize their symptoms. And it isn't just heart disease. Consider this. Men and women metabolize drugs differently. Women have stronger immune responses. The male and female brains react differently to dopamine, a brain chemical that regulates mood and pain.
And lung cancer is different in women. Dr. Legato says women's tumors are often on the edges of the lungs and harder to see.
(on camera): Why would men and women have different forms of lung cancer?
LEGATO: Like many differences in human biology, we're just beginning to note that they are there. Why is the $64 million question that we're all trying to find out.
COHEN (voice-over): Some theories, men and women differ genetically. Women are born with two X chromosomes, men have an X and a Y.
LEGATO: And on that Y chromosome are at least 21 unique genes unique to males which control many of the body's operations down to the level of the cell.
COHEN: For example she says genes, not body size, are the reason why men can drink more alcohol than women without becoming intoxicated.
LEGATO: Women do not have the enzyme in their stomach that degrades alcohol which men have.
COHEN: Another reason for the difference between the sexes, women's hormones fluctuate during the course of the month. So, for example, some asthma and seizure medications can be less effective around the time of a woman's period. LEGATO: Some women will tell the doctor they only get their seizures just around the time of their menstrual cycle. Many women are told that's because they have premenstrual tension.
COHEN: And these male/female differences aren't always appreciated.
LEGATO: Most physicians, myself included, were trained to study only males. We assumed that women were close enough or smaller versions of men, but certainly not qualitatively different.
COHEN: Already, though, there are signs of improvement. Researchers are studying women more than they did in the past and women like Debbie Tillis are speaking out and taking their health into their own hands.
DEBBIE TILLIS, HEART ATTACK SURVIVOR: I just fired my last doctor.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How long has that been going on?
COHEN: And they're not taking hormones or hysteria as explanations anymore for their real health problems.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: That report from CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen. Heart disease is the No. 1 killer of both men and women.
For more on this or any other health story, head to our Web site. The address, CNN.com/health.
Coming up in the next hour of DAYBREAK, the holiday season means holiday travel. But with Mother Nature putting on a winter show, we'll show you how to navigate through the slick stuff.
A video gaming experience that's out of this world. We'll take a glimpse inside video virtual reality, but can it be a crippling addiction?
This is DAYBREAK for a Friday.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Santa Claus brought early Christmas gifts to Fort Lewis, Washington. He delivered 195 soldiers home for the holidays from Iraq. These troops from the 502nd Military Intelligence Battalion spent the last 12 months in Iraq. Needless to say, the Army families wrapped their arms around these presents with glee.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SPEC. WEASLEY EATON, U.S. ARMY: It feels good, especially for the holidays. I mean this is the time that everyone wants to be back and we actually made it back. It feels good to know that, you know, that I did something for my country in a big way. You know a lot of people go through the Army for four to six years and don't really get to do anything. But you know I'm proud to say that I served my country and you know I did it well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BONNIE HARRIS, ARMY WIFE: The feeling I had an upset stomach since I got up this morning. I'm shaky. I don't know rather to cry or be happy. You know it's just so -- it feels like I have butterflies in my stomach. I haven't seen him in so long. It's like you know when you first start dating somebody. It's just an awesome feeling.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
K. HARRIS: I want to give him a kiss and a hug. And I wanted to see him really bad for a long time. And like one week or one year we haven't seen him. I like him for a Christmas present, a really good Christmas present.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: That just brings a tear to your eye, doesn't it, Chad?
We've been soliciting e-mails this morning with holiday messages to troops overseas because DAYBREAK is seen in Kuwait and in parts of Iraq, and we've gotten a lot of holiday greetings. I'm sure you have some, too.
MYERS: We have.
COSTELLO: You want to start?
MYERS: Well I'm going to do the best I can because I may not make it through this.
COSTELLO: Yes.
MYERS: My prayers are for the troops to have a few days of peace and calm during this Christmas season and for each one to return home safely. That's from Maggie (ph) in California.
Got one from Honolulu, too, I want to read, but go ahead with one -- Carol.
COSTELLO: OK. This is from Sam from Las Vegas. Just wanted to say thank you for the great work you're doing out there in Iraq. And wanted also to say Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Short and sweet and right to the point.
MYERS: Duty is the highest form of service to America and your presence in the Middle East exemplifies our hopes and aspirations for a better world. Merry Christmas. Steve from New Hampshire. COSTELLO: This is from Bobbi (ph) in Detroit. Good morning. Whenever I see one of our soldiers I usually walk up to them and ask if I can give them a hug. That's in the airport, as you were mentioning, Chad. She says I never had one say no. My only problem is I can't stop that one tear that falls because I love them so very much. I always say thank you with my hugs.
MYERS: Ken says thank you for your sacrifice, thank you for your faith. Get it done, get out of the way and get home safe.
COSTELLO: All right, I want to read this one from Sgt. Miguel Hatten (ph), and I hope I'm pronouncing your name right, Sergeant.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: He's in Kuwait. I myself am a soldier serving in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. My message is for both my fellow soldiers and for those back home who support us with kind words and care packages. Thank you and thank you is in capital letters.
I was stationed in Iraq, now I'm in Kuwait, and the reason I have to fight is very simple, I fight each day to be able to come home and see my son, Liam (ph), who was born while I was away. He is what I continue to fight for. And I keep aiming for the day when I can come home to hold him again. So to Liam I say this, daddy is coming home real soon, little man, and I love you. Also I love you to all of my friends and family.
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Aired December 24, 2004 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, welcome to the second half-hour of DAYBREAK. From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.
Now in the News.
Donald Rumsfeld told U.S. troops in Iraq today that the insurgency there will be defeated. The defense secretary paid a surprise visit to the U.S. base near Mosul where a suicide bomber killed 22 people. Rumsfeld then went on to Tikrit where he told U.S. troops to keep doing what they are doing.
Mortar rounds and rocket-propelled grenades fell near police stations today outside of Baquba northeast of Baghdad. No casualties reported here.
And Colin Powell warned last month that there were not enough troops in Iraq. "The Washington Post" says Powell's warning came in talks with President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
Sixty-two million Americans will try to travel this weekend and the weather presents challenges in some areas. Snow is clogging roads in the Midwest and airport crews are trying to clear runways and de- ice planes, so good luck and Merry Christmas.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, and the good news is this morning, Carol, is that a lot of the wind that we had yesterday blowing that snow around in Indiana, Illinois, Ohio and even into Kentucky, now that wind has calmed down.
COSTELLO: Good.
MYERS: So the road crews are able to get out there.
Now the only problem is at Cincinnati with a wind chill of -5, air temperature actually right around 0, the salt doesn't work that well. So this is good news/bad news, but at least the roads are getting cleared.
There are thousands, I can't even give you a number, thousands of stranded drivers, stranded travelers across southern Indiana, southern Ohio into parts of Kentucky and Illinois all now into hotels, sleeping in their cars, trying to stay warm. Today is a better day for you to get out there and try to move.
If you are traveling today, be prepared for an ugly day one way or the other, because it only takes one accident ahead of you to slow you down, to stop your travel for hours and hours. Make sure your car is gassed up and stays gassed up.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Boy, you've got that right.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Thank you -- Chad.
MYERS: You're welcome.
COSTELLO: Donald Rumsfeld says he just wants to wish U.S. troops in Iraq a Merry Christmas, but a top priority during his surprise visit were the troops being treated near Mosul for wounds suffered at Tuesday's bomb attack on a mess hall.
CNN's Karl Penhaul in Baghdad with a report on Rumsfeld's trip to the war front.
Hello -- Karl.
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Carol.
This is turning into a tour of all Iraq's major trouble spots. We're told that in the last few minutes Mr. Rumsfeld has visited Falluja to meet the Marines from the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force there. It's not known how long he spent on the ground there or if he had time to overfly the city of Falluja itself, much of which was destroyed in the November offensive.
We do know there that refugees have been returning to the city amid continuing firefights between Marines and insurgent cells. Only yesterday the Marines told us that three Marines had been killed in fighting in al Ambob (ph) Province. That's the province that Mr. Rumsfeld is in now.
Of course earlier in the day his first stop was the city of Mosul. He flew in there under cover of darkness and visited Camp Marez. That was the scene of Tuesday's devastating explosion. He met troops there. He also visited the hospital facility that had treated the wounded from Tuesday's blast. From there it was on to the city of Tikrit where he met soldiers from the 1st Infantry Division.
Little of real substance in terms of announcements coming out of these meetings, but the trip is certainly important for the troops in terms of boosting their morale. One might also suggest that it's important for Mr. Rumsfeld's own political image since his stewardship of the war in Iraq has come under criticism.
What he has said, though, is that he believes this insurgency in Iraq can be defeated. He didn't put any timeline on it, but he urged the naysayers to have a little more faith and that the job would get done. And that's certainly what he urged the troops to do, to keep on doing their job -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Karl Penhaul, live in Baghdad this morning, thank you. Tourists are slowly coming back to Bethlehem after years of fears, but leaders hope the prospect of possible peace will once again lead the faithful back to one of the holiest places.
CNN's John Vause has more for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Inside the Church of the Nativity at the place where Christians believe Christ was born, here the faithful will soon gather to celebrate another Christmas.
But outside the church, Christmas cheer for the people of Bethlehem comes down to one very important factor, tourists. After a year of relative calm, thousands are once again making a pilgrimage to this holy city.
Eileen Dunne from Britain has been coming here through good times and bad.
EILEEN DUNNE, BRITISH TOURIST: Yes, I get the atmosphere even walking down here. It's more friendly and the shops are opening up and it's lovely to see that.
VAUSE: Good news for the street vendors.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, too small. I want a big one.
VAUSE: They've struggled for years to make a living.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're giving good bargain, 99 percent discount, 6 months to get it (ph).
JIRES CANAVATI, TOUR GUIDE: This place is the most important part.
VAUSE: And the tour guides, like Jires Canavati.
CANAVATI: This arm (ph) marks the exact spot where Jesus Christ was born.
VAUSE: But like everyone else here, he remembers the good days before the outbreak of violence four years ago.
CANAVATI: You know we used to get 4,000 or 5,000 people in one day, that's normal, you know, minimum. Christmas you find thousands, 30,000, 40,000, 50,000.
VAUSE: There is also a sense of hope that maybe peace talks will begin again, that all of this is tempered by the giant concrete slabs which are slowly surrounding this city, Israel's barrier designed to stop suicide bombers and other militant attacks.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bethlehem belongs to the world, to the Christian world, this war should be stopped. VAUSE: And this is a city divided. Israel has built another barrier around Rachel's tomb to protect Jewish worshipers. Rachel is considered one of the matriarchs of the Jewish people. To the Palestinians, though, it's another Israeli land grab.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Always under the pretext of security they are taking land, confiscating land.
VAUSE: This Christmas may be the best in years, but there are fears once the pilgrims are gone there will still be hard times ahead.
John Vause, CNN, Bethlehem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Winter woes just in time for your holiday travels. In five minutes, we'll see if your Christmas dreams will be met with nightmares.
Also,...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KIERN HARRIS, DAUGHTER: Yes. I like him for a Christmas present, a really good Christmas present.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: I bet she does. Christmas came early for eager family and friends at Fort Lewis. We'll hear from them in 20 minutes.
Which leads us to our e-mail Question of the Day, what is your holiday greeting for U.S. troops? DAYBREAK@CNN.com, DAYBREAK@CNN.com.
But first, here is a look at what else is making news this Friday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports. It's 5:40 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.
Security, secrecy and surprise marked Donald Rumsfeld's visit to a U.S. military base near Mosul, Iraq. The defense secretary visited some of those wounded in Tuesday's suicide bomb attack and then he went south to meet with troops in Tikrit.
Two carloads of gunmen opened fire on a public bus last night in northern Honduras. When the shooting stopped at least 23 passengers were dead or dying. The gunmen claimed to be members of a revolutionary group that, get this, opposes the death penalty.
In money news, small towns in the Great Plains are trying to stem the population slide. Some are offering free building lots to families that pre-qualify and agree to build within two years. In culture, with the ratings down 23 percent from last spring, NBC is giving Donald Trump's show "The Apprentice" a new twist. The latest slate of applicants pits college graduates against high school graduates.
In sports, the richest pro football player is now quarterback Michael Vick of the Atlanta Falcons. Vick has signed a 10-year contract, 10 years, and this guy is prone to injury. Anyway, that 10- year contract is worth $130 million, plus another $37 million in bonuses.
Chad.
MYERS: But that $37 million is all that he's guaranteed, Carol, if he does get injured.
COSTELLO: Poor Michael.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: You know I wanted to read you an e-mail, because that's what I was doing in the break. This is from Nashville, Tennessee. My daughter is caught in the ice and snow north of Nashville.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: They had to spend the night in their autos. Nothing is being said about how bad Interstate 24 is, please.
MYERS: Well one of our executive producers tried to drive from St. Louis to Atlanta. What is that a 9 hour, 10-hour drive. Took him 30 hours.
Yes, it is ugly. I-64, I-24, I-65, 74, 71 no picnic, all of that right north of the Ohio River and into parts of Kentucky.
Well, you know it comes and it goes, Carol, because all of a sudden there will be one tractor-trailer that jackknifes, there will be a couple of cars that spinout and then all those cars get backed up and it takes a long time to get that accident cleared up.
Well on I-64, we had a call yesterday from a lady who was on I-64 from 5:00 -- I got to think about what day this is -- from 5:00 Wednesday afternoon until noon yesterday when they finally saw some humvees from the National Guard come to pick them up and take them to a local hotel. Then there were 1,000 cars stuck on the freeway just like they were.
COSTELLO: That's just wrong.
MYERS: Well, we told you not to go there. And then our producer, Dave Hennen (ph) here, he got stuck in Tennessee-Kentucky on the way up there. No reason, nothing that he did, but there was an accident in front of him and then the whole interstate. You know you got two lanes or one lane sometimes, and you got all these cars trying to go the same direction. All of a sudden that one lane is blocked. Well obviously you know what happens, well, blocked.
COSTELLO: It's unbelievable. Hey, let's go back out...
MYERS: Look, because Indiana, Liberty, Indiana had 31 inches, Carol. Salem, Indiana had 30 inches. So, you know.
COSTELLO: I know it's crazy. Quit getting upset, people still have to get home for Christmas. They won't listen to you...
MYERS: Just use your head.
COSTELLO: ... even though you're giving them the best of possible advice.
MYERS: OK. Yes, go.
COSTELLO: Let's go up to Cincinnati again, shall we, Chad, to Amy Wagner of CNN affiliate WLWT.
Good morning -- Amy.
AMY WAGNER, WLWT-TV REPORTER: Good morning, Carol.
You know we just can't catch a break here in Cincinnati. For two days straight we had all of that snow and ice dumped down on us. Take a look at the streets here. Now this is a back road, but it is a solid sheet of ice. All of that snow that fell down here is basically just one solid sheet of ice now.
But then on the main roads and the interstates that were pretty clear by the snowplows and the salt trucks, well it's about 5 degrees here this morning so all of that has now frozen over. So drivers that are getting out there on the roads in the Cincinnati area here this morning are dealing with black ice everywhere.
And I can tell you that on my way to work this morning I saw more cars in ditches, which is something that has not been strange to us in the past couple of days here. You see them left and right. And as the snowplows come through, some huge SUVs are now completely under snow on the sides of the roads here. It's just a mess.
And I can tell you that this weekend it's only going to get colder. So we're in a deep freeze here and not looking to thaw out really until next week. So this snow and ice is here to stay for a while.
COSTELLO: Amy Wagner with CNN affiliate WLWT. Thanks so much, Amy.
We're going to take a short break. DAYBREAK will be back with much more after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: In Health Headlines for you this morning, Medicare plans to help older smokers kick the habit. Beginning next year, Medicare will pay for up to four counseling sessions for beneficiaries who smoke and have smoking-related diseases. The American Cancer Society says counseling is cost effective and it is successful.
Ever wonder why your hair turns gray? You thought it was because of your kids or your spouse, right? Well cancer researchers trying to find a treatment for melanoma have come up with some clues. It turns out melanoma involves cells in our hair follicles called melanocytes. When these cells become depleted, often with age, gray hair grows. So in essence, as you age, your hair turns gray. There you go.
Infants who have respiratory problems may develop asthma when they become adults. Spanish researchers say babies who come down with broncholitis (ph) or bronchitis, rather, are more likely to have respiratory symptoms and asthma when they grow up. Broncholitis, bronchitis is a respiratory virus infection that causes inflammation of the lungs. I guess that's what they call bronchitis when you're a little baby.
You're a man and you go to the doctor, there's a good chance he'll listen carefully to your complaints and prescribe the right treatment. But if you're a woman, it might be a different story. We're talking about gender bias in the doctor's office.
Here's CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When Phyllis Cruz had a heart attack last year she went to the emergency room and sat there and sat there and sat there. No EKG, no blood tests, no nothing, just a nurse telling her to be patient.
PHYLLIS CRUZ, HEART ATTACK SURVIVOR: And I said to her, but I have pain, you know, chest pain. I can't breathe.
She said, well, there's a lot of people here. Sit down.
COHEN: After six hours of waiting, Phyllis finally had an EKG, which showed that she had had a heart attack. Now she sees cardiologist Dr. Nieca Goldberg who specializes in women and heart disease.
(on camera): When women come to you, what's the most common complaint they have?
DR. NIECA GOLDBERG, AUTHOR, "WOMEN ARE NOT SMALL MEN": They think they're not being taken seriously in the doctor's office. And you know what, most of the time they're right.
COHEN (voice-over): Phyllis says her previous doctor attributed her breathlessness and fatigue to hormones. Jean Horgan (ph) says her former doctor said her heart palpitations were due to nerves. Debbie Tillis (ph) was told the answer to her chest pain was tranquilizers and an antidepressant, but all three had heart disease.
Why would doctors take women less seriously? Some of it, women's health experts say, is just plain old-fashioned sexism.
Dr. Marianne Legato is director of the Partnership for Gender- Specific Medicine at Columbia University.
DR. MARIANNE LEGATO, AUTHOR, "EVE'S RIB": I think women are often disrespected and their symptoms attributed to hysteria.
COHEN: But it's more complicated than that. Male and female bodies are different, not just in the obvious ways but in the ways they experience disease. For example, women don't always have the crushing chest pain men have when they have a heart attack. Instead, they just feel tired and short of breath. But today's doctors weren't taught that difference in medical school.
GOLDBERG: They showed us a picture of the typical patient with heart disease and it was a middle aged businessman clutching his chest on a cold winter's night carrying a briefcase.
COHEN: A recent published study shows that women who don't have this male style heart attack are three times more likely to die probably because doctors don't recognize their symptoms. And it isn't just heart disease. Consider this. Men and women metabolize drugs differently. Women have stronger immune responses. The male and female brains react differently to dopamine, a brain chemical that regulates mood and pain.
And lung cancer is different in women. Dr. Legato says women's tumors are often on the edges of the lungs and harder to see.
(on camera): Why would men and women have different forms of lung cancer?
LEGATO: Like many differences in human biology, we're just beginning to note that they are there. Why is the $64 million question that we're all trying to find out.
COHEN (voice-over): Some theories, men and women differ genetically. Women are born with two X chromosomes, men have an X and a Y.
LEGATO: And on that Y chromosome are at least 21 unique genes unique to males which control many of the body's operations down to the level of the cell.
COHEN: For example she says genes, not body size, are the reason why men can drink more alcohol than women without becoming intoxicated.
LEGATO: Women do not have the enzyme in their stomach that degrades alcohol which men have.
COHEN: Another reason for the difference between the sexes, women's hormones fluctuate during the course of the month. So, for example, some asthma and seizure medications can be less effective around the time of a woman's period. LEGATO: Some women will tell the doctor they only get their seizures just around the time of their menstrual cycle. Many women are told that's because they have premenstrual tension.
COHEN: And these male/female differences aren't always appreciated.
LEGATO: Most physicians, myself included, were trained to study only males. We assumed that women were close enough or smaller versions of men, but certainly not qualitatively different.
COHEN: Already, though, there are signs of improvement. Researchers are studying women more than they did in the past and women like Debbie Tillis are speaking out and taking their health into their own hands.
DEBBIE TILLIS, HEART ATTACK SURVIVOR: I just fired my last doctor.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How long has that been going on?
COHEN: And they're not taking hormones or hysteria as explanations anymore for their real health problems.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: That report from CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen. Heart disease is the No. 1 killer of both men and women.
For more on this or any other health story, head to our Web site. The address, CNN.com/health.
Coming up in the next hour of DAYBREAK, the holiday season means holiday travel. But with Mother Nature putting on a winter show, we'll show you how to navigate through the slick stuff.
A video gaming experience that's out of this world. We'll take a glimpse inside video virtual reality, but can it be a crippling addiction?
This is DAYBREAK for a Friday.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Santa Claus brought early Christmas gifts to Fort Lewis, Washington. He delivered 195 soldiers home for the holidays from Iraq. These troops from the 502nd Military Intelligence Battalion spent the last 12 months in Iraq. Needless to say, the Army families wrapped their arms around these presents with glee.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SPEC. WEASLEY EATON, U.S. ARMY: It feels good, especially for the holidays. I mean this is the time that everyone wants to be back and we actually made it back. It feels good to know that, you know, that I did something for my country in a big way. You know a lot of people go through the Army for four to six years and don't really get to do anything. But you know I'm proud to say that I served my country and you know I did it well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BONNIE HARRIS, ARMY WIFE: The feeling I had an upset stomach since I got up this morning. I'm shaky. I don't know rather to cry or be happy. You know it's just so -- it feels like I have butterflies in my stomach. I haven't seen him in so long. It's like you know when you first start dating somebody. It's just an awesome feeling.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
K. HARRIS: I want to give him a kiss and a hug. And I wanted to see him really bad for a long time. And like one week or one year we haven't seen him. I like him for a Christmas present, a really good Christmas present.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: That just brings a tear to your eye, doesn't it, Chad?
We've been soliciting e-mails this morning with holiday messages to troops overseas because DAYBREAK is seen in Kuwait and in parts of Iraq, and we've gotten a lot of holiday greetings. I'm sure you have some, too.
MYERS: We have.
COSTELLO: You want to start?
MYERS: Well I'm going to do the best I can because I may not make it through this.
COSTELLO: Yes.
MYERS: My prayers are for the troops to have a few days of peace and calm during this Christmas season and for each one to return home safely. That's from Maggie (ph) in California.
Got one from Honolulu, too, I want to read, but go ahead with one -- Carol.
COSTELLO: OK. This is from Sam from Las Vegas. Just wanted to say thank you for the great work you're doing out there in Iraq. And wanted also to say Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Short and sweet and right to the point.
MYERS: Duty is the highest form of service to America and your presence in the Middle East exemplifies our hopes and aspirations for a better world. Merry Christmas. Steve from New Hampshire. COSTELLO: This is from Bobbi (ph) in Detroit. Good morning. Whenever I see one of our soldiers I usually walk up to them and ask if I can give them a hug. That's in the airport, as you were mentioning, Chad. She says I never had one say no. My only problem is I can't stop that one tear that falls because I love them so very much. I always say thank you with my hugs.
MYERS: Ken says thank you for your sacrifice, thank you for your faith. Get it done, get out of the way and get home safe.
COSTELLO: All right, I want to read this one from Sgt. Miguel Hatten (ph), and I hope I'm pronouncing your name right, Sergeant.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: He's in Kuwait. I myself am a soldier serving in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. My message is for both my fellow soldiers and for those back home who support us with kind words and care packages. Thank you and thank you is in capital letters.
I was stationed in Iraq, now I'm in Kuwait, and the reason I have to fight is very simple, I fight each day to be able to come home and see my son, Liam (ph), who was born while I was away. He is what I continue to fight for. And I keep aiming for the day when I can come home to hold him again. So to Liam I say this, daddy is coming home real soon, little man, and I love you. Also I love you to all of my friends and family.
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