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American Morning

$12 Million Grant to Create Center for Study of Terrorism; '90- Second Pop'

Aired January 12, 2005 - 09:30   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.


BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: 9:30 here in New York City, raining right now, but it's going to warm up in the next 36 hours, in a big way, too. On the West Coast, though, different story. Back to the snowy Sierras in a few moment. Rob Marciano is there, telling us how they're going to get rid of all that snow, and the dangers now from avalanches. There's an idea that in Tahoe you can dump all the snow into the lake. That's if the lake isn't frozen. We'll get to Rob in a moment there in California.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: As you said, avalanches are a huge, huge problem there as well for all the skiers.

Also this morning, reports about a really alarming study linking children who use cell phone to some serious medical problems. Sanjay's going to join us to talk about what might explain these findings, and just how seriously people are taking this news.

HEMMER: Back to the headlines now, and Kelly Wallace.

O'BRIEN: Good morning again.

KELLY WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning again to you. Good morning again, everyone.

Now in the news, news about California. The state's governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, scheduled to get a firsthand look this morning at the devastation from that deadly mudslide in La Conchita. Crews earlier pulled out three small bodies from the debris. The death toll now stands at 10. And a new look at the mudslide shows the full extent of the damage. You see it there. About a dozen people are said to be still missing at this hour.

In western Colorado now, they are still searching for a cross- country skier who's been missing for more than three days. Crews found the man's wife and daughter yesterday morning. The man apparently separated from them Sunday night to look for help after the family got lost during a ski outing. High winds and sub-zero temperatures in that area have made those rescue efforts very difficult.

News now about Michael Jackson. His lawyers heading to court today. This is a hearing to decide if evidence of prior alleged sexual offenses will be admissible in the pop star's upcoming trial. Also on the agenda, whether the public should hear the proceedings. Prosecutors want the courtroom open. Jackson's attorneys want the press and the public out.

And this final story incredible -- a pregnant woman in Missouri was due to deliver today, but she got an early surprise. You might say, OK, that's not incredible. Listen here, Ann McDonald said she knew she couldn't make it to the hospital, so she pulled the car over and delivered at the golden arches of the fast food restaurant McDonald's. The baby boy, named Chase, and his mom are said to be doing well. But Ronald had been suggested as a possible choice for that little boy.

O'BRIEN: Thank God, the mother said thank you, but no thank you, we're going to name him Chase.

WALLACE: Ronald's not bad.

O'BRIEN: Ronald McDonald.

WALLACE: All those Ronalds out there are saying, what, I'm OK.

O'BRIEN: It's a great name, but followed by McDonald's, probably not a good...

HEMMER: My father's middle name is Ronald.

WALLACE: I know. You know, you're right, you're a step ahead of me. I'm like, Ronald is fine, but you're right, Ronald McDonald.

O'BRIEN: That's Her last name is McDonald.

HEMMER: That's right, that's a drive-thru.

And who wants to have their baby in the drive-thru. Don't get me started. Good story, though, thanks, Kelly.

O'BRIEN: In our CNN Security Watch this morning, a $12 million grant to create a center for the study of terrorism. Homeland security chief Tom Ridge announcing the grant to the University of Maryland this week. That, as Michael Chertoff, president Bush's nominee to replace Ridge, prepares for Senate confirmation hearings.

Gary Lafree is the now Terrorism Center's Director and he joins us to talk about what this grant is going to accomplish. Twelve- million dollar grant, Gary. Nice to have you. How is this going to make us all safer, though?

GARY LAFREE, UNIV. OF MARYLAND: Well, we're certainly going to work hard to get a much better understanding of how terrorism operates, how terrorists are recruited. And also, we're going to be spending a lot of time studying the most effective ways for governments to communicate information about the risk of terrorism to citizens.

O'BRIEN: Do you go into all of this with a hypothesis, an idea about what exactly causes young men primarily to be recruited as terrorists? LAFREE: Well, we come up with a lot of ideas. What we're trying to do in this work -- and the reason we're so excited about it -- is it's trying to draw on a the low research from a variety of disciplines to get a better understanding about how terrorists are recruited, what allows terrorist groups to continue, and also what the best sorts of responses to the terrorist attacks are. We're drawing on psychology, on sociology, political science, history, virtual all of the social and behavioral sciences to do this work.

O'BRIEN: When you come up with an answer, let's say the answer is, well, young men who feel alienated and feel like they don't have a future, they're prime targets for terrorists, they're likely to become terrorists. What do you do with that information? Who gets it? Who do you give it to?

LAFREE: Well, what homeland security has tried to do in this effort is to make sure that the grantee, in this case, our consortium, do a lot to actually work directly with agencies. We'll plan to be working with agencies in justice, with first responders, with homeland security, with the other centers of course that homeland security has funded. A lot of the members of our team have had a lot of experience working, not just on academic-type issues, but also doing policy recommendations. So we really intend to be doing typical university research, but also to be offering some more policy-related kind of information as well.

O'BRIEN: Is the goal then to catch terrorists or to prevent terrorists?

LAFREE: It's a little bit of both. What we think -- if you think about it, in order to defeat an enemy, you have to know the enemy. And we're interested not just in the relatively small number of people who actually become terrorists, but a lot of the much bigger number of people who maybe vaguely support some of the causes of terrorism or who are potential recruits. And we think to combat terrorism we have to know a lot more about how someone goes from being just mildly supportive to actually joining an organization and carrying out specific kinds of acts.

O'BRIEN: How long do you think this is going to take you to come up with some kind of answer? The question at the end of the day, which is, how do you become a terrorist?

LAFREE: Well, we'll be working, of course, on other questions as well, but we're hoping to get out of the ground on this in the next few months. And we've got a whole bunch of different projects. Some of them, though, will be winding up already within the first year.

I think part of the reason that homeland security liked our consortium is we have a lot of data already collected that we're just starting to analyze and we will, of course, be collecting a lot more data on into the future.

O'BRIEN: I bet it's going to be fascinating stuff. We'd love to hear about it as it goes along.

LAFREE: We'd like to tell you about it.

O'BRIEN: Gary Lafree joining us from the University of Maryland this morning. Thank you, sir, appreciate it.

LAFREE: Thank you.

O'BRIEN: I want to remind you to stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HEMMER: That wicked weather has been causing havoc in California, doing the same further east in the state of Utah. A listen here and look. This is near St. George, near St. George, Utah, southern part of the state there, massive flooding, taking some homes with it, stranding residents, damaging roads. The floods in the St. George area, the worst there in 15 years, the region bracing for even more rain today. They do not need that.

Remember this picture from yesterday, too, a massive 25-foot tall boulder, almost as tall as a telephone pole, along this road, rumbled down on to the street in Malibu, California. The only way crews could get it out was to blow it out, and they did. That boulder fell into the Topanga Canyon Boulevard, about a mile from the PCH, the Pacific Coast Highway. Also in California, folks in the mountains still digging out. They will for a while now, after this pounding of snow.

(WEATHER REPORT)

O'BRIEN: "House Call" now. A new warning from Great Britain, keep young children away from your cell phones. Dr. Sanjay Gupta is looking at the research now. He's at the CNN Center this morning. Hey, Sanjay, good morning.

SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.

We've talked a lot about this issue. Cell phones and brain tumors. Is there a link there? Let me just start off by saying any of the studies out there -- and there are several now, still all inconclusive. Still, the British government for five years now specifically concerned about cell phone usage in children. Here's an example, first of all, about how many children in one London school class are actually using cell phones.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED GROUP OF CHILDREN: I've got a mobile phone!

GUPTA: And about half the cell phone users using those for all sorts of different purposes, not just for making calls, for example.

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: I use it for texting my friends or phoning them or I phone my parents if I'm -- since I walk home on my own.

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: I normally use it for games and texting. UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: Well, I use it for texting my friends. It's quite -- if you've got nothing to do you can just play games on it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GUPTA: So not just, obviously, for making phone calls. The number of cell phone users, specifically among children, has increased fivefold over the last several years. So a lot of researchers trying to figure out, are children particularly more vulnerable to cell phone usage, again in terms of tumors? They've released a specific statement, now, specifically about children and the use of cell phones.

This is coming from the National Radiation Protection Agency in London. Warning against children using mobile phones because of the unknown effects of microwave radiation on developing brains. Specifically, Soledad, we read the story, the report. They're talking about children under the age of eight. They're saying they just shouldn't use them any more, Soledad.

O'BRIEN: So there's no actual proven link yet through the studies that are inconclusive thus far. Is that right, Sanjay?

GUPTA: No proven link. Here's the thing. This sort of radio frequency radiation that's used in cell phones, the theory is that maybe that could potentially cause problems long term. They haven't seen that. It's sort of an extrapolation of data, specifically, Soledad.

O'BRIEN: If you're going to extrapolate the data, then, why wouldn't you say, OK, if it's a problem in children, why wouldn't it be consistent to say it could be a maybe even a bigger problem in adults who, I would imagine, are maybe on their cell phones even more than children?

GUPTA: Yes, I mean, first of all, there's been studies on adults, as well. And that has been a consideration and it could be causing similar problems in adults. Children, though, they say could be more vulnerable for a couple different reasons. First of all, they may be using these cell phones their entire lives. Two is that the skull is actually not as fully thickened, especially in young children, so it may not be as protected. And finally, the brain may not be as developed, and therefore more vulnerable potentially to brain tumors as well, Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Well, it will be interesting to see when some of these more conclusive studies come out as to what they actually have to say.

GUPTA: That's right.

O'BRIEN: Sanjay Gupta at the CNN Center for us this morning. Sanjay, thank you.

HEMMER: A break here in a moment. Somebody thinks your kids are eating too much junk, but you will not believe who is saying that. Andy's "Minding Your Business." Back with that story. O'BRIEN: Plus, a match made in reality TV heaven. Are you ready for the newest odd couple? "90 Second Pop"'s ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: I love this song. My kids love this song. We all dance around the living room. That's another story for another day. Welcome back, everybody. It's time once again for "90-Second Pop." The gang's all here this morning. Andy Borowitz from BorowitzReport.com. Sarah Bernard, contributing editor for "New York" magazine. And Toure, CNN pop culture correspondent.

Good morning.

TOURE, CNN POP CULTURE CORRESPONDENT: How you doing?

SARAH BERNARD, CONTRIBUTING EDITOR, "NEW YORK" MAGAZINE: good morning.

O'BRIEN: I'm doing great. But I've got to tell you, you know, sometimes VH1 calls something by a name, like Strangelove. And you say, oh, that's so overrated. That's so hyperbolic. That is just -- no, not this time.

BERNARD: No. It's perfect.

TOURE: It's so right, dead on. It's so strange. It's the relationship between Flavor Flav from Public Enemy and Brigitte Nielsen, blonde goddess, ex-wife of Sylvester Stallone. It's very strange. Flavor is going to Italy to try to win her back from her fiance, who is Italian. He's a young Italian boy. It is strange, and a lot of people are wondering if it's love. It's real love.

O'BRIEN: So back up. It's a spin-off.

TOURE: It's a spin-off from "The Surreal Life".

O'BRIEN: Which is where they kind of met and fell in love, dare I say.

TOURE: Let me tell you what love is. This is love. Flavor Flav says on the show, we have such a connection, we feel what the other feels. When she's uncomfortable, I'm uncomfortable.

O'BRIEN: That's a little weird.

TOURE: That is love!

ANDY BOROWITZ, BOROWITZREPORT.COM: And, you know, throughout the entire show the audience is uncomfortable...

(CROSSTALK)

BERNARD: I just think it's really funny that everyone is obsessed with whether it's real or not. I mean...

O'BRIEN: I'm obsessed with it. Why not? It's so bizarre.

BOROWITZ: Well, you know...

BERNARD: I think this is just as real as "The Bachelorette." I mean, basically...

BOROWITZ: Sarah, keep your eye on the clock around Flavor Flav, because when that starts ringing the relationship is over.

O'BRIEN: They do.

BERNARD: But it's an egg timer?

BOROWITZ: It's like an egg timer, yes.

O'BRIEN: But there is -- I mean, there is something a little just -- outside of just the weird element of it, it's done very well.

TOURE: Yes.

O'BRIEN: I mean, people obviously like to watch sort of the car wreck aspect of it. I mean, it's just a mess.

TOURE: But it's fun. I mean, Flavor Flav is emotionally honest and open. And he was such a weirdo before, and Brigitte was so tough. And she's emotionally open and honest. And they're in the same characters that they were before. It's so much fun to watch. I mean, she's like, you know, trying to tell him, you know, I have to go back to my boyfriend...

BERNARD: Yes.

TOURE: ... and he's so much fun.

BERNARD: Well, I think you've got to hand it to the VH1 guys...

O'BRIEN: Yes.

BERNARD: ... because they knew, like, a couple weeks into it...

O'BRIEN: Kaching (ph).

BERNARD: ... that they were going to have their own show.

O'BRIEN: At the end of the day, those are the real winners there, the people at VH1 who are just, like, we love this stuff.

TOURE: Kaching (ph).

O'BRIEN: It's weird but we love it.

Let's talk about the tsunami aftermath, not just the damage, of course, in Asia, but what's going on here and in Hollywood.

BOROWITZ: Right.

O'BRIEN: The battle between George Clooney and the other guy, Bill O'Reilly.

BOROWITZ: Right. Right. This is strange hate I guess. It's like George Clooney is running this Hollywood tsunami telethon. And, I guess, O'Reilly was charging that not enough of the money was going to go actually to tsunami relief. So George Clooney said, well, instead of being part of the problem, why don't you come and be on the telethon, which he's going to do.

O'BRIEN: And do what?

BOROWITZ: Well, I think...

O'BRIEN: Is he going to act? Sing?

BOROWITZ: I guess he's going to present. I think it's a terrible idea to have Bill O'Reilly anywhere near telethons. I just think it's an awful, awful idea.

BERNARD: But he's got to be happy no matter how much fun George Clooney is making of him that he's finally on to attacking something else.

BOROWITZ: Right.

BERNARD: None of his potential phone sex.

BOROWITZ: Right.

TOURE: I want to be a part of...

O'BRIEN: I like what you just said, the phone sex.

BERNARD: Yes. Can I say phone sex?

O'BRIEN: Why not? Sure.

TOURE: There's going to be a tsunami benefit hosted by Tenacious D, Jeff Black (ph), Eddie Vedder is going to be there. Like, that's the one I want to be a part of.

O'BRIEN: Oh, rival tsunami events.

BERNARD: Oh!

TOURE: That's going to be great. January 17 in L.A. That's going to be awesome.

O'BRIEN: OK. Well, you know what? It's money for a good cause. I hope they raise lots of money. Let's end it there. You guys, as always, thank you very much.

TOURE: Thank you.

O'BRIEN: Let's go back to Bill.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HEMMER: All right, Soledad. The people who introduced your kids to Oreos now helping you take them away. Andy's back in a moment here, "Minding Your Business," after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: Welcome back, everybody. Cutting down on snack ads for children, part of Andy Serwer right now. Let's check "Minding Your Business." First, the markets, though, right. How are we doing? Rally?

ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: We're doing OK.

HEMMER: We did have a rally going, and now we don't, 20-minute rally. Now we're down 15. And the selling continues on Wall Street. No reason to buy. Jack Cafferty was thinking maybe it had to do with nervousness over the election in Iraq. That could be.

Intel was up a bit with its good news. UPS, though, a downer this morning. They said their business is not doing so well.

Also crossing the tape earlier this morning, record trade deficit, $60 billion last month, so that is not helping either. Kraft has come out and said it's going to stop selling, or marketing, I should say, junk food to 6 through 11-year-olds. Oreo Cookies, Chips Ahoys, Kool-Aid, Oscar Meyer, they're no longer going to be advertising on kiddie shows.

HEMMER: All that good stuff.

SERWER: All the good stuff. What are the kids going to do? What are they going to eat? How are they going to survive? They're still going to be marketing to kids over 12 years old, not to worry.

HEMMER: What are your kids going to do?

SERWER: Well, they're going to maybe have some competitor's brands.

HEMMER: Something healthy.

SERWER: Coca-Cola, more food stories, all food stories -- quickly Coca-Cola said they're going to -- or reports saying, suggesting, they're going to be coming out with a cola-flavored -- excuse me, a coffee-flavored cola. Cola flavored? They already do that. They've been doing that for a long time. It's been a long day. Coffee flavored cola called blak B-L-A-K. I think is just what Bill Hemmer needs. And also, you might want to add a little Red Bull and vodka.

HEMMER: It's happy hour somewhere.

SERWER: Right. And lastly here, very quickly, a restaurant in the Seattle area closing. Armadillo Barbecue, Jack Cafferty, listen to this. There's a reason why this restaurant is going Chapter 11. They sell -- on the menu, roadkill and weasel. They used to serve weasel at that restaurant.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: They should open in New York. There's a lot of weasels here. They'd do great here.

SERWER: They sure would.

CAFFERTY: Wouldn't be as much road kill.

SERWER: Weasel.

CAFFERTY: That's very funny, I like that.

SERWER: A little sick.

O'BRIEN: Gross.

Thanks, Andy.

SERWER: You're welcome.

CAFFERTY: The Question of the Day is about these elections in Iraq. Will the results be considered legitimate, if they happen at all? There's a debate now whether they should be pushed back or not. There are places in the country where it's unsafe to vote. The Sunnis say they're going to boycott these things because they're not getting a fair shake, they don't feel. So that's the question.

Lauren in Columbus, Ohio, writes, "Let us remember that even in America, the right to vote was won over time, through ups and down. And nobody should expect a perfect vote the first time. Even in a country that has no bombs bursting as people try to vote, the United States still has a low voter turnout. Maybe it just takes baby steps."

Carolyn (ph) in Toronto, "The path toward democracy is never easy, but 20 years from now Iraq will be better off than if Saddam Hussein had stayed in power. That's reality.

And Edward in Ottawa weighs in with this, "The only problem will be that the Iraqis will be understandably hesitant to vote. Perhaps a coffee mug giveaway at the polling stations would improve the turnout."

SERWER: That's a sore spot for you.

CAFFERTY: Well, it's just an ongoing gag.

HEMMER: One story line to watch in all this, see what the Sunnis do in terms of turnout. Best-case scenario, is they flood to the polls, because they start to consider their future right now, based on what happened on the 30th. Worst case scenario everybody stays away in those four provinces.

SERWER: There might be a lot of staying away.

CAFFERTY: Yes, and the areas where the Sunnis are going to have to vote are the most dangerous part of the country.

O'BRIEN: They are.

HEMMER: Nineteen days.

O'BRIEN: A short break. We are back in just an moment. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired January 12, 2005 - 09:30   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: 9:30 here in New York City, raining right now, but it's going to warm up in the next 36 hours, in a big way, too. On the West Coast, though, different story. Back to the snowy Sierras in a few moment. Rob Marciano is there, telling us how they're going to get rid of all that snow, and the dangers now from avalanches. There's an idea that in Tahoe you can dump all the snow into the lake. That's if the lake isn't frozen. We'll get to Rob in a moment there in California.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: As you said, avalanches are a huge, huge problem there as well for all the skiers.

Also this morning, reports about a really alarming study linking children who use cell phone to some serious medical problems. Sanjay's going to join us to talk about what might explain these findings, and just how seriously people are taking this news.

HEMMER: Back to the headlines now, and Kelly Wallace.

O'BRIEN: Good morning again.

KELLY WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning again to you. Good morning again, everyone.

Now in the news, news about California. The state's governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, scheduled to get a firsthand look this morning at the devastation from that deadly mudslide in La Conchita. Crews earlier pulled out three small bodies from the debris. The death toll now stands at 10. And a new look at the mudslide shows the full extent of the damage. You see it there. About a dozen people are said to be still missing at this hour.

In western Colorado now, they are still searching for a cross- country skier who's been missing for more than three days. Crews found the man's wife and daughter yesterday morning. The man apparently separated from them Sunday night to look for help after the family got lost during a ski outing. High winds and sub-zero temperatures in that area have made those rescue efforts very difficult.

News now about Michael Jackson. His lawyers heading to court today. This is a hearing to decide if evidence of prior alleged sexual offenses will be admissible in the pop star's upcoming trial. Also on the agenda, whether the public should hear the proceedings. Prosecutors want the courtroom open. Jackson's attorneys want the press and the public out.

And this final story incredible -- a pregnant woman in Missouri was due to deliver today, but she got an early surprise. You might say, OK, that's not incredible. Listen here, Ann McDonald said she knew she couldn't make it to the hospital, so she pulled the car over and delivered at the golden arches of the fast food restaurant McDonald's. The baby boy, named Chase, and his mom are said to be doing well. But Ronald had been suggested as a possible choice for that little boy.

O'BRIEN: Thank God, the mother said thank you, but no thank you, we're going to name him Chase.

WALLACE: Ronald's not bad.

O'BRIEN: Ronald McDonald.

WALLACE: All those Ronalds out there are saying, what, I'm OK.

O'BRIEN: It's a great name, but followed by McDonald's, probably not a good...

HEMMER: My father's middle name is Ronald.

WALLACE: I know. You know, you're right, you're a step ahead of me. I'm like, Ronald is fine, but you're right, Ronald McDonald.

O'BRIEN: That's Her last name is McDonald.

HEMMER: That's right, that's a drive-thru.

And who wants to have their baby in the drive-thru. Don't get me started. Good story, though, thanks, Kelly.

O'BRIEN: In our CNN Security Watch this morning, a $12 million grant to create a center for the study of terrorism. Homeland security chief Tom Ridge announcing the grant to the University of Maryland this week. That, as Michael Chertoff, president Bush's nominee to replace Ridge, prepares for Senate confirmation hearings.

Gary Lafree is the now Terrorism Center's Director and he joins us to talk about what this grant is going to accomplish. Twelve- million dollar grant, Gary. Nice to have you. How is this going to make us all safer, though?

GARY LAFREE, UNIV. OF MARYLAND: Well, we're certainly going to work hard to get a much better understanding of how terrorism operates, how terrorists are recruited. And also, we're going to be spending a lot of time studying the most effective ways for governments to communicate information about the risk of terrorism to citizens.

O'BRIEN: Do you go into all of this with a hypothesis, an idea about what exactly causes young men primarily to be recruited as terrorists? LAFREE: Well, we come up with a lot of ideas. What we're trying to do in this work -- and the reason we're so excited about it -- is it's trying to draw on a the low research from a variety of disciplines to get a better understanding about how terrorists are recruited, what allows terrorist groups to continue, and also what the best sorts of responses to the terrorist attacks are. We're drawing on psychology, on sociology, political science, history, virtual all of the social and behavioral sciences to do this work.

O'BRIEN: When you come up with an answer, let's say the answer is, well, young men who feel alienated and feel like they don't have a future, they're prime targets for terrorists, they're likely to become terrorists. What do you do with that information? Who gets it? Who do you give it to?

LAFREE: Well, what homeland security has tried to do in this effort is to make sure that the grantee, in this case, our consortium, do a lot to actually work directly with agencies. We'll plan to be working with agencies in justice, with first responders, with homeland security, with the other centers of course that homeland security has funded. A lot of the members of our team have had a lot of experience working, not just on academic-type issues, but also doing policy recommendations. So we really intend to be doing typical university research, but also to be offering some more policy-related kind of information as well.

O'BRIEN: Is the goal then to catch terrorists or to prevent terrorists?

LAFREE: It's a little bit of both. What we think -- if you think about it, in order to defeat an enemy, you have to know the enemy. And we're interested not just in the relatively small number of people who actually become terrorists, but a lot of the much bigger number of people who maybe vaguely support some of the causes of terrorism or who are potential recruits. And we think to combat terrorism we have to know a lot more about how someone goes from being just mildly supportive to actually joining an organization and carrying out specific kinds of acts.

O'BRIEN: How long do you think this is going to take you to come up with some kind of answer? The question at the end of the day, which is, how do you become a terrorist?

LAFREE: Well, we'll be working, of course, on other questions as well, but we're hoping to get out of the ground on this in the next few months. And we've got a whole bunch of different projects. Some of them, though, will be winding up already within the first year.

I think part of the reason that homeland security liked our consortium is we have a lot of data already collected that we're just starting to analyze and we will, of course, be collecting a lot more data on into the future.

O'BRIEN: I bet it's going to be fascinating stuff. We'd love to hear about it as it goes along.

LAFREE: We'd like to tell you about it.

O'BRIEN: Gary Lafree joining us from the University of Maryland this morning. Thank you, sir, appreciate it.

LAFREE: Thank you.

O'BRIEN: I want to remind you to stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HEMMER: That wicked weather has been causing havoc in California, doing the same further east in the state of Utah. A listen here and look. This is near St. George, near St. George, Utah, southern part of the state there, massive flooding, taking some homes with it, stranding residents, damaging roads. The floods in the St. George area, the worst there in 15 years, the region bracing for even more rain today. They do not need that.

Remember this picture from yesterday, too, a massive 25-foot tall boulder, almost as tall as a telephone pole, along this road, rumbled down on to the street in Malibu, California. The only way crews could get it out was to blow it out, and they did. That boulder fell into the Topanga Canyon Boulevard, about a mile from the PCH, the Pacific Coast Highway. Also in California, folks in the mountains still digging out. They will for a while now, after this pounding of snow.

(WEATHER REPORT)

O'BRIEN: "House Call" now. A new warning from Great Britain, keep young children away from your cell phones. Dr. Sanjay Gupta is looking at the research now. He's at the CNN Center this morning. Hey, Sanjay, good morning.

SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.

We've talked a lot about this issue. Cell phones and brain tumors. Is there a link there? Let me just start off by saying any of the studies out there -- and there are several now, still all inconclusive. Still, the British government for five years now specifically concerned about cell phone usage in children. Here's an example, first of all, about how many children in one London school class are actually using cell phones.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED GROUP OF CHILDREN: I've got a mobile phone!

GUPTA: And about half the cell phone users using those for all sorts of different purposes, not just for making calls, for example.

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: I use it for texting my friends or phoning them or I phone my parents if I'm -- since I walk home on my own.

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: I normally use it for games and texting. UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: Well, I use it for texting my friends. It's quite -- if you've got nothing to do you can just play games on it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GUPTA: So not just, obviously, for making phone calls. The number of cell phone users, specifically among children, has increased fivefold over the last several years. So a lot of researchers trying to figure out, are children particularly more vulnerable to cell phone usage, again in terms of tumors? They've released a specific statement, now, specifically about children and the use of cell phones.

This is coming from the National Radiation Protection Agency in London. Warning against children using mobile phones because of the unknown effects of microwave radiation on developing brains. Specifically, Soledad, we read the story, the report. They're talking about children under the age of eight. They're saying they just shouldn't use them any more, Soledad.

O'BRIEN: So there's no actual proven link yet through the studies that are inconclusive thus far. Is that right, Sanjay?

GUPTA: No proven link. Here's the thing. This sort of radio frequency radiation that's used in cell phones, the theory is that maybe that could potentially cause problems long term. They haven't seen that. It's sort of an extrapolation of data, specifically, Soledad.

O'BRIEN: If you're going to extrapolate the data, then, why wouldn't you say, OK, if it's a problem in children, why wouldn't it be consistent to say it could be a maybe even a bigger problem in adults who, I would imagine, are maybe on their cell phones even more than children?

GUPTA: Yes, I mean, first of all, there's been studies on adults, as well. And that has been a consideration and it could be causing similar problems in adults. Children, though, they say could be more vulnerable for a couple different reasons. First of all, they may be using these cell phones their entire lives. Two is that the skull is actually not as fully thickened, especially in young children, so it may not be as protected. And finally, the brain may not be as developed, and therefore more vulnerable potentially to brain tumors as well, Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Well, it will be interesting to see when some of these more conclusive studies come out as to what they actually have to say.

GUPTA: That's right.

O'BRIEN: Sanjay Gupta at the CNN Center for us this morning. Sanjay, thank you.

HEMMER: A break here in a moment. Somebody thinks your kids are eating too much junk, but you will not believe who is saying that. Andy's "Minding Your Business." Back with that story. O'BRIEN: Plus, a match made in reality TV heaven. Are you ready for the newest odd couple? "90 Second Pop"'s ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

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(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: I love this song. My kids love this song. We all dance around the living room. That's another story for another day. Welcome back, everybody. It's time once again for "90-Second Pop." The gang's all here this morning. Andy Borowitz from BorowitzReport.com. Sarah Bernard, contributing editor for "New York" magazine. And Toure, CNN pop culture correspondent.

Good morning.

TOURE, CNN POP CULTURE CORRESPONDENT: How you doing?

SARAH BERNARD, CONTRIBUTING EDITOR, "NEW YORK" MAGAZINE: good morning.

O'BRIEN: I'm doing great. But I've got to tell you, you know, sometimes VH1 calls something by a name, like Strangelove. And you say, oh, that's so overrated. That's so hyperbolic. That is just -- no, not this time.

BERNARD: No. It's perfect.

TOURE: It's so right, dead on. It's so strange. It's the relationship between Flavor Flav from Public Enemy and Brigitte Nielsen, blonde goddess, ex-wife of Sylvester Stallone. It's very strange. Flavor is going to Italy to try to win her back from her fiance, who is Italian. He's a young Italian boy. It is strange, and a lot of people are wondering if it's love. It's real love.

O'BRIEN: So back up. It's a spin-off.

TOURE: It's a spin-off from "The Surreal Life".

O'BRIEN: Which is where they kind of met and fell in love, dare I say.

TOURE: Let me tell you what love is. This is love. Flavor Flav says on the show, we have such a connection, we feel what the other feels. When she's uncomfortable, I'm uncomfortable.

O'BRIEN: That's a little weird.

TOURE: That is love!

ANDY BOROWITZ, BOROWITZREPORT.COM: And, you know, throughout the entire show the audience is uncomfortable...

(CROSSTALK)

BERNARD: I just think it's really funny that everyone is obsessed with whether it's real or not. I mean...

O'BRIEN: I'm obsessed with it. Why not? It's so bizarre.

BOROWITZ: Well, you know...

BERNARD: I think this is just as real as "The Bachelorette." I mean, basically...

BOROWITZ: Sarah, keep your eye on the clock around Flavor Flav, because when that starts ringing the relationship is over.

O'BRIEN: They do.

BERNARD: But it's an egg timer?

BOROWITZ: It's like an egg timer, yes.

O'BRIEN: But there is -- I mean, there is something a little just -- outside of just the weird element of it, it's done very well.

TOURE: Yes.

O'BRIEN: I mean, people obviously like to watch sort of the car wreck aspect of it. I mean, it's just a mess.

TOURE: But it's fun. I mean, Flavor Flav is emotionally honest and open. And he was such a weirdo before, and Brigitte was so tough. And she's emotionally open and honest. And they're in the same characters that they were before. It's so much fun to watch. I mean, she's like, you know, trying to tell him, you know, I have to go back to my boyfriend...

BERNARD: Yes.

TOURE: ... and he's so much fun.

BERNARD: Well, I think you've got to hand it to the VH1 guys...

O'BRIEN: Yes.

BERNARD: ... because they knew, like, a couple weeks into it...

O'BRIEN: Kaching (ph).

BERNARD: ... that they were going to have their own show.

O'BRIEN: At the end of the day, those are the real winners there, the people at VH1 who are just, like, we love this stuff.

TOURE: Kaching (ph).

O'BRIEN: It's weird but we love it.

Let's talk about the tsunami aftermath, not just the damage, of course, in Asia, but what's going on here and in Hollywood.

BOROWITZ: Right.

O'BRIEN: The battle between George Clooney and the other guy, Bill O'Reilly.

BOROWITZ: Right. Right. This is strange hate I guess. It's like George Clooney is running this Hollywood tsunami telethon. And, I guess, O'Reilly was charging that not enough of the money was going to go actually to tsunami relief. So George Clooney said, well, instead of being part of the problem, why don't you come and be on the telethon, which he's going to do.

O'BRIEN: And do what?

BOROWITZ: Well, I think...

O'BRIEN: Is he going to act? Sing?

BOROWITZ: I guess he's going to present. I think it's a terrible idea to have Bill O'Reilly anywhere near telethons. I just think it's an awful, awful idea.

BERNARD: But he's got to be happy no matter how much fun George Clooney is making of him that he's finally on to attacking something else.

BOROWITZ: Right.

BERNARD: None of his potential phone sex.

BOROWITZ: Right.

TOURE: I want to be a part of...

O'BRIEN: I like what you just said, the phone sex.

BERNARD: Yes. Can I say phone sex?

O'BRIEN: Why not? Sure.

TOURE: There's going to be a tsunami benefit hosted by Tenacious D, Jeff Black (ph), Eddie Vedder is going to be there. Like, that's the one I want to be a part of.

O'BRIEN: Oh, rival tsunami events.

BERNARD: Oh!

TOURE: That's going to be great. January 17 in L.A. That's going to be awesome.

O'BRIEN: OK. Well, you know what? It's money for a good cause. I hope they raise lots of money. Let's end it there. You guys, as always, thank you very much.

TOURE: Thank you.

O'BRIEN: Let's go back to Bill.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HEMMER: All right, Soledad. The people who introduced your kids to Oreos now helping you take them away. Andy's back in a moment here, "Minding Your Business," after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: Welcome back, everybody. Cutting down on snack ads for children, part of Andy Serwer right now. Let's check "Minding Your Business." First, the markets, though, right. How are we doing? Rally?

ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: We're doing OK.

HEMMER: We did have a rally going, and now we don't, 20-minute rally. Now we're down 15. And the selling continues on Wall Street. No reason to buy. Jack Cafferty was thinking maybe it had to do with nervousness over the election in Iraq. That could be.

Intel was up a bit with its good news. UPS, though, a downer this morning. They said their business is not doing so well.

Also crossing the tape earlier this morning, record trade deficit, $60 billion last month, so that is not helping either. Kraft has come out and said it's going to stop selling, or marketing, I should say, junk food to 6 through 11-year-olds. Oreo Cookies, Chips Ahoys, Kool-Aid, Oscar Meyer, they're no longer going to be advertising on kiddie shows.

HEMMER: All that good stuff.

SERWER: All the good stuff. What are the kids going to do? What are they going to eat? How are they going to survive? They're still going to be marketing to kids over 12 years old, not to worry.

HEMMER: What are your kids going to do?

SERWER: Well, they're going to maybe have some competitor's brands.

HEMMER: Something healthy.

SERWER: Coca-Cola, more food stories, all food stories -- quickly Coca-Cola said they're going to -- or reports saying, suggesting, they're going to be coming out with a cola-flavored -- excuse me, a coffee-flavored cola. Cola flavored? They already do that. They've been doing that for a long time. It's been a long day. Coffee flavored cola called blak B-L-A-K. I think is just what Bill Hemmer needs. And also, you might want to add a little Red Bull and vodka.

HEMMER: It's happy hour somewhere.

SERWER: Right. And lastly here, very quickly, a restaurant in the Seattle area closing. Armadillo Barbecue, Jack Cafferty, listen to this. There's a reason why this restaurant is going Chapter 11. They sell -- on the menu, roadkill and weasel. They used to serve weasel at that restaurant.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: They should open in New York. There's a lot of weasels here. They'd do great here.

SERWER: They sure would.

CAFFERTY: Wouldn't be as much road kill.

SERWER: Weasel.

CAFFERTY: That's very funny, I like that.

SERWER: A little sick.

O'BRIEN: Gross.

Thanks, Andy.

SERWER: You're welcome.

CAFFERTY: The Question of the Day is about these elections in Iraq. Will the results be considered legitimate, if they happen at all? There's a debate now whether they should be pushed back or not. There are places in the country where it's unsafe to vote. The Sunnis say they're going to boycott these things because they're not getting a fair shake, they don't feel. So that's the question.

Lauren in Columbus, Ohio, writes, "Let us remember that even in America, the right to vote was won over time, through ups and down. And nobody should expect a perfect vote the first time. Even in a country that has no bombs bursting as people try to vote, the United States still has a low voter turnout. Maybe it just takes baby steps."

Carolyn (ph) in Toronto, "The path toward democracy is never easy, but 20 years from now Iraq will be better off than if Saddam Hussein had stayed in power. That's reality.

And Edward in Ottawa weighs in with this, "The only problem will be that the Iraqis will be understandably hesitant to vote. Perhaps a coffee mug giveaway at the polling stations would improve the turnout."

SERWER: That's a sore spot for you.

CAFFERTY: Well, it's just an ongoing gag.

HEMMER: One story line to watch in all this, see what the Sunnis do in terms of turnout. Best-case scenario, is they flood to the polls, because they start to consider their future right now, based on what happened on the 30th. Worst case scenario everybody stays away in those four provinces.

SERWER: There might be a lot of staying away.

CAFFERTY: Yes, and the areas where the Sunnis are going to have to vote are the most dangerous part of the country.

O'BRIEN: They are.

HEMMER: Nineteen days.

O'BRIEN: A short break. We are back in just an moment. Stay with us.

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