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American Morning
The Fight for Iraq; Motorcycle Safety
Aired June 16, 2006 - 07:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Howard Stern and director Steven Spielberg made it into the top 10. None of these are surprises of course. Tiger Woods, would you consider him Hollywood? I guess he, in some respects, right?
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: A celebrity, right?
O'BRIEN: Yes, a celebrity is the better term here. U2, Oprah Winfrey, the Rolling Stones fall in the top 5 category. And as you see you there, number one, are you surprised?
SERWER: I'm surprised by that. I thought he was sort of a little last year's news kind of.
O'BRIEN: Maybe "Forbes" is a little last year on this thing.
SERWER: No comment there.
O'BRIEN: No comment there. You can't go there. And so anyway, that is where we stand on the "Forbes" list. Brad Pitt, by the way, was the only other solo actor to make the top 20. Pitt's ex-wife Jennifer Aniston and his current partner Angelina Jolie tied at number 35.
SERWER: Oh, come one. The fix is in on that.
O'BRIEN: I'm not buying that one. That's...
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Just poor Jennifer Aniston.
O'BRIEN: Careful what you say.
COSTELLO: They're always connected in some way.
O'BRIEN: Yes.
SERWER: Yes.
COSTELLO: Well, there is one celebrity who says she's getting very tired of the spotlight in a very emotional and candid interview with NBC's Matt Lauer, Britney Spears said the tabloids have turned her into a target. In the interview, which appeared on last night's "Dateline," the pop star says it's gotten out of control and has turned her into an emotional wreck.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATT LAUER, HOST, "DATELINE": What do you think it will take to get the paparazzi to leave you alone?
BRITNEY SPEARS, ENTERTAINMENT: I don't know. I don't know.
LAUER: Is that one of your biggest wishes?
SPEARS: Yes. It's OK. I would like for them to leave me alone.
LAUER: If could you talk to them as individuals, not as a group, what would you say to them?
BRITNEY: I would just say that you have babies at home, and you have a wife, and if you don't, you have to realize that we're people, and that we need -- we just need privacy and we need our respect, and those are things that you have to have as a human.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Girl, you have to go to Namibia. You've got to get yourself to Africa. They'll leave her alone then. Spears also spoke about motherhood and said her marriage to Kevin Federline, K-Fed, is awesome. That's a quote.
O'BRIEN: I hope she gets her baby sugarless gum. I don't know what's she chewing. Anyway, all right.
COSTELLO: She was chewing gum throughout the entire interview.
O'BRIEN: Yes, the whole thing. Yes.
Anyway...
COSTELLO: Coming up, a big change in store for millions of American Catholics. We'll tell you why Sunday mass is about to sound different.
And later, a closer look at the debate over helmet laws and motorcycle safety and why NFL star Ben Roethlisberger is one lucky man.
Stick with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(NEWSBREAK)
O'BRIEN: Good morning to you. I'm Miles O'Brien.
COSTELLO: And I'm Carol Costello in for Soledad. Happy Friday to you.
New this morning, a suicide bomb attack on a Shiite mosque in Baghdad. At least 11 people were killed and more than two dozen wounded, happened during Friday prayers. The sectarian violence comes despite a huge security crackdown. This mosque was also the target of a series of suicide bombings about two months ago. Today's vote in Congress comes after a momentous week in Iraq, though, including a surprise visit from President Bush. But will the recent good news out of Baghdad have a long-lasting impact?
We have a reality check from three CNN correspondents.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is with Arwa Damon.
Even with al Qaeda leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi dead, insurgent attacks killed more than 118 Iraqis in the last week, some in bombings, some in drive-by shootings and some in kidnapped killings. Five days after Zarqawi was killed by two U.S. 500-pound bombs, al Qaeda in Iraq announced a successor, Sheikh Abu Hamza al-Muhajir. The U.S. military in Baghdad suspects that's just another name for this man, Abu Ayyub al-Masri, a senior and experienced leader of al Qaeda in Iraq.
BRIG. GEN. DON CAMPBELL, MULTINATIONAL CORPS/IRAQ: Al-Masri's intimate knowledge of al Qaeda in Iraq and his close relationship with the operations will undoubtedly help facilitate and enable them to regain some momentum, if in fact he is the one that assumes the leadership role.
DAMON: But how much command and control al-Masri will have over the insurgency is unclear. A series of intelligence coups led to the detention of more than 750 suspected insurgents in the last few days, but no signs yet the violence is decreasing.
In fact, the U.S. military says it fully expects al Qaeda and the insurgency to reconstitute themselves, to morph and adapt, as they have many times in the past.
ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is Aneesh Raman.
It started with a chorus of cheers, and ended with a showcase of military might, a week in Iraq that was perhaps as good as it gets. From the death of Zarqawi to the formation finally of a permanent government, to President Bush's surprise battlefield visit and the launch of a massive joint military operation in the Capitol. For the first time in a long time, it was enough for politicians and generals to speak with a tinge of optimism.
But from a president who declared mission accomplished too soon before, this past week was about a rare chance for change one that, on that on its own does little.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRES. OF THE U.S.: My message to the Iraqi people is this -- seize the moment; seize this opportunity.
RAMAN: Moments have, of course, come before, after the capture of Saddam Hussein in 2003, after a trio of elections brought millions of Iraqis to the polls last year, and after major military offensives against the insurgency, there was talk of turning points, but all led to dead ends in the battle for security.
And for every moment of newfound hope, there are powerful caveats. Zarqawi's death in itself will not end the violence. He's already been replaced. The government's formation is an important but first step. the bigger disputes among the ethnic factions are still unresolved. And tens of thousands of troops can only take control of the capital for so long before the security and the threat goes back to what it was.
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: This is Barbara Starr at the Pentagon.
So how does one measure progress in Iraq? Are there specific benchmarks for when less violence means U.S. troops can start coming home? Military officials indicate they'll know the time when they see it.
DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECY.: There will be meetings with General Casey and the minister of defense and the prime minister in the weeks ahead, discussing at what pace we're going to be able to draw down our forces, and it'll all be done in a very orderly way.
STARR: The Bush administration hopes to end up with about 100,000 troops in Iraq by year's end, a reduction of about 30,000. That depends on the strength of the Iraqi military.
RUMSFELD: They are vastly larger than we are, and they are increasing every day, every week, in both size and capability, and experience.
STARR: Another potential marker? If the security crackdown in Baghdad improves the situation long-term, it could be a turning point. But many security experts say any progress will be gradual.
RUMSFELD: If we want to make Iraq a success, we're going to have to be there for the long haul. That's just the nature of the insurgencies.
STARR: The administration appears to mean it when it says a drawdown depends on conditions, not a specific reduction in the number of attacks, IEDs or kidnappings.
QUESTION: Do you have a specific target for how much you want that violence to be reduced?
BUSH: Enough for the government to succeed, in other words, it's -- the Iraqi people have got to have confidence in this unity government, and reduction in violence will enable the people to have confidence.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: And there was a reduction in violence, but after those two days of lessening violence, today at least 18 people have been killed and 41 injured in three different attacks.
(WEATHER REPORT)
M. O'BRIEN: Still to come, buying dad a tie. You want to buy dad a tie? Don't do it. Advice columnist Amy Dickinson will stop by, however. She tells us how the old tie cliche can actually save a dad's life.
COSTELLO: Really? What?
M. O'BRIEN: There you go. That's why they call them a tease.
COSTELLO: All righty.
Also ahead, the debate over helmet laws. After what happened to Ben Roethlisberger, why would anyone ride without a helmet? We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: Big Ben out of the hospital this morning, with helmet in hand, so to speak. We're talking about Steelers' star Ben Roethlisberger, who survived that scary motorcycle crash on Monday. Roethlisberger was not wearing a helmet. He released a statement. Kids, I want you to listen to this. Kids, listen. "I recognize that I have a responsibility to safeguard my health in the offseason so I can continue to lead our team effectively. I never meant to harm others or break any laws. I was confident in my ability to ride a motorcycle and simply believed such an accident would not happen to me." And this is where you really want to listen up: "If I ever ride again, it certainly will be with a helmet." Lesson learned, folks.
In Pennsylvania, it is legal to ride a bike without a lid. As a matter of fact, more than two dozen states these days do not require riders to wear helmets. Our in-house easy rider is, believe it or not, John Roberts, and he has insights into why bikers seem hell-bent on taking such a big risk.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN SR. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This video, posted on an Internet Web site, shows just how quickly a routine ride can go terribly wrong. The crash is sickening, but the rider was wearing a helmet. In fact, the camera was attached to it, and she's conscious.
(on camera): As a rider myself, I can tell you there's a certain sense of freedom that comes with taking off the helmet. It feels good. And it looks good. That is, right up until you kiss the car that's just turned in front of you.
(voice-over): Look at this video from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety of a rider that crashed without a helmet.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is your name Bradley?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What is your name?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right. Bradley Stone (ph). So the answer to that question was yes.
ROBERTS: How close Ben Roethlisberger came to that kind of brain damage we'll never know, but Dr. Jeffrey Augenstein says he's incredibly lucky. The chief of the Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial in Miami, Augenstein says motorcycle deaths have increased dramatically since Florida repealed its helmet law back in 2000.
DR. JEFFREY AUGENSTEIN, RYDER TRAUMA CENTER: You increase the number of admissions from about 3,500 to approximately 5,000. Increases in severe injuries by about 80 percent.
ROBERTS: Florida is one of 27 states where adult riders can go helmet-free. Michigan was added to that list just this month. Four others have no helmet laws at all.
This surveillance video shows that in an instant, life can change, and when a helmetless head hits the pavement, says Dr. Augenstein, dramatic forces reshape the brain.
AUGENSTEIN: Your brain just keeps on moving into the skull, and it tears apart the blood vessels in the brain, tears apart the nerves in the brain, smashes the brain against the skull. The brain rebounds and smashes again on the other side of it.
ROBERTS: For Gerry Dana and Terry Hillerich, who we found teaching a motorcycle safety course at Northern Virginia Community College, there is not even an argument. Dana came off his Harley nine years ago, head first.
GERRY DANA, MOTORCYCLE SAFETY INSTRUCTOR: Wouldn't have much of a face left, I know that. When I did hit, I hit here and on the side.
ROBERTS: Hillerich's son owns the same type of muscular street rocket as Roethlisberger. Hillerich rides it all the time, can't figure out why Roethlisberger would ever get on it without a helmet.
TERRY HILLERICH, MOTORCYCLE SAFETY INSTRUCTOR: I realize what he does for a living, he gets jumped on by 400-pound people but that's safer than riding one of those without a helmet.
ROBERTS: The debate over head protection has gone on for decades. For helmet advocates it is about tragedies like this.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is your name Bradley?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
ROBERTS: For opponents of helmet laws, it is about having the right to make a choice and hoping this never happens to them. John Roberts, CNN, Washington.
John Roberts, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
O'BRIEN: John's report first aired on "PAULA ZAHN NOW," which you can catch weeknights 8:00 Eastern, right here on CNN.
COSTELLO: What would a day be without talk of Angelina Jolie, because she is back from Namibia, and she sat down with our Anderson Cooper for her first in-depth interview. In this "360" exclusive, the actress talks about her passions for helping refugees around the world, her role as U.N. special ambassador, and of course her new baby.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANGELINA JOLIE, ACTRESS/ACTIVIST: I just wanted to hear her crying. I was sure everything would go -- at the last minute I became the mother that was sure everything was going to go wrong.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Hey, hey! Listen, guys. They're both laughing.
Anyway, you can see the whole conversation with Angelina on a special edition of "ANDERSON COOPER 360." That's next Tuesday night at 10:00 as part of CNN's World Refugee Day coverage.
We have a bit of what will be breaking news to tell you about out of Sheridan, Colorado. That's near the Denver area. Apparently authorities found this canister, this drum of unstable chemicals. It's in a 55-gallon drum. It is so unstable that they are going to blow it up. So we're watching this. And when they do that, we'll go back. But for now, they have the area cordoned off. And when they blow it up, we'll go back.
O'BRIEN: It appears to be a junkyard. This is not any sort of terrorist thing.
COSTELLO: It's some kind of self-storage area.
O'BRIEN: It's not anything malicious as far as we know, just to make that clear.
All right, these days you got to say that, don't you?
Andy Serwer is here "Minding Your Business."
Hello, Andy.
SERWER: Hello, Miles.
Nothing malicious here either I hope. Forget about books. Amazon.com is getting into the food business. Plus, Hebrew National hotdogs has a new slogan. We'll tell you about that coming up, guys.
O'BRIEN: I'm trying to remember the old one right now. SERWER: "Answering to a higher authority."
O'BRIEN: Higher authority, there you go. Yes, all right.
SERWER: Just like us.
O'BRIEN: Also ahead, advice columnist Amy Dickinson will tell us how you can turn that Father's Day tie thing into something more meaningful, something that actually could save a life.
Stay with us.
COSTELLO: Oh, come on!
O'BRIEN: It's true.
SERWER: It's true.
O'BRIEN: It is true.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: Back with more in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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