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Heat Wave; Goldman Sachs Targeted?; Latin Mass Revived; Lucky Number 7
Aired July 06, 2007 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: We go to air. And I'm Tony Harris. Good morning, everyone. Stay informed all day in the CNN NEWSROOM. Here's what's on the rundown.
The heat is on. When will it turn off? Triple-digit temps scorch the West again today.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: And are terrorists threatening to attack a global investment firm? A letter reportedly warns Goldman Sachs "hundreds will die. We are inside."
It is Friday, July 6th, and you're in the NEWSROOM.
Extreme weather in Texas. Heavy rains drenching a state already soaked by deadly flooding and record-breaking temperatures out West. Miserable, dangerous weather. And it's not going away any time soon. CNN's Kara Finnstrom is covering the scorching heat out west. But first, meteorologist Rob Marciano is in the CNN Weather Center with the latest on the floods.
HARRIS: But how about this. Before we even get to Rob Marciano -- Rob, I know you're there and getting ready to joins us here in just a second, but let's go back to those pictures. Tyler, Texas. OK, obviously some overnight pictures of the heavy rain in Tyler, Texas.
And, Fred, I'm not kidding you, over the last six weeks or so, look at the downpours here. This has been the problem for Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Tyler is in eastern Texas. But in Texas alone, Gainesville, Marble Falls, there were all kinds of threats to Austin as well. Heavy, heavy rain.
And, Rob Marciano, I guess we're getting some pictures now, mixing in some first light pictures as well, and this is a real problem for that state.
(WEATHER REPORT)
WHITFIELD: Well, just a reminder, to give you an idea of just how bad it is in some parts, 104, again, in Boise, 116 in Las Vegas, 127 in Death Valley. Pretty suffocating heat. And sweltering in it right now, CNN's Kara Finnstrom. She's in Palm Springs, California. The dreaded number there, 114.
So, Kara, does it feel like 114 or even worse?
KARA FINNSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, not quite there yet. About 90 degrees right now in the sun. But look at this. That's the sweltering desert sun rising in the sky. We will be at that 114 before too long.
And the concern here today is this is another day tacked on of excessive heat. These people out here have been dealing with this heat for a couple days now, so their bodies haven't had a chance to rehydrate, to recover. So people across the state throughout Palm Springs will be on alert. Emergency crews and doctors watching for any signs of heat illness.
To help people deal with this, they have set up some cooling centers throughout Palm Springs today where people can get out of the heat in some air conditioning and also can get something cool to drink. And take a look behind me here. You can see how workers are coping with this. They're trying to get most of their work done before the hot part of the day. These crews got out here at about 6:00 a.m. local time.
And actually we took some video as we drove into town overnight. About 10:00 last night, the roadside temperature was about 106 degrees still and we found crews out in the darkness of night, still sweating profusely. They had their heavy machinery out there, their shovels, picking up asphalt. And they tell us, when it gets this hot, these crews really have to look out for each other.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN DESPARICO, CONSTRUCTION WORKER: We try and make sure everyone stays hydrated and keep a lot of water on hand. And if someone stops sweating, we tell them to take a break. That's what I usually look for is when a guy is not sweating anymore, it's a good indication he's going into heat stroke and just tell him to go catch some shade and just cool off for a while. Keep an eye on him. If he starts feeling dizzy, we take him to like urgent care or something like that, get a lot of gatorade and a lot of electrolytes and other stuff like that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FINNSTROM: Some of the other warnings signs to look out for are headache, nausea, vomiting and, of course, thirst. The other big concern out here today is the power grid. California's power grid operators are asking people to conserve because they're hoping we won't see any rolling brownouts today.
Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Oh, let's hope not. Folks need to stay cool any way they can.
Kara, thanks so much.
HARRIS: And disturbing new allegations. U.S. Marines accused of killing civilians in Iraq. It allegedly took place during the U.S. siege on Fallujah in November of 2004. According to several Pentagon officials, a former Marine says his comrades gunned down their eight civilian prisoners. The allegations surfaced when the former Marine applied for a job with the U.S. Secret Service and received a routine polygraph test given to job applicants.
WHITFIELD: Shots ring out at a popular Las Vegas casino and police say a man opened fire on gamblers at the New York New York casino early this morning. He was tackled by some off-duty military personnel. Security guards held him until police then took him away. Four people were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries. The motive for the shooting not yet known.
HARRIS: A federal investigation is launched into threats against a well-known investment firm. The FBI tells CNN that at least nine newspapers have received vague threats against Goldman Sachs. CNN's senior correspondent, Allan Chernoff, is outside of the company's building in New York.
And, Allan, bring us up to speed on this story.
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Tony, the threats were actually sent in to "The Star Ledger." As you mentioned, also other newspapers as well. "The Star Ledger" of New Jersey. These threats actually mailed, the postmark, mailed on June 27th. They were written on looseleaf paper in red ink. And the exact quote, "Goldman Sachs, hundreds will die. We are inside. You cannot stop us." Signed AQUSA. Not known whether that stands for al Qaeda of the USA.
Now, of course, these letters were handed right over to the FBI. The FBI analyzed them and has determined that they are not credible, that there is no specific or credible information that they have about any threat against Goldman Sachs. Nonetheless, of course, it is all being taken very, very seriously indeed.
Goldman Sachs putting out a statement saying that, "we take any threat to the safety of our people very seriously. We are working closely with the law enforcement authorities, who tell us they don't believe the threat to be very credible."
Now, given all of that, Goldman Sachs, nonetheless, does have heavy security right outside of its world headquarters here on Broad Street, just two blocks down from Wall Street. They always have heavy security here. Have since even before 9/11. After 9/11, even tighter. This morning, bomb-sniffing dogs in front of the building, also plenty of security guards, and one New York City Police officer.
This is the world headquarters, but Goldman Sachs has offices around the globe. In at least 46 countries around the globe. And, of course, in plenty of cities around the United States, as well. But again, Goldman Sachs taking it seriously, but saying it does not believe that this is a credible threat. And the FBI saying the same.
HARRIS: Gotcha. OK. CNN's Allan Chernoff for us this morning.
Allan, thanks.
WHITFIELD: The investigation into the British terror plot expands yet again. Australian police questioning five more doctors about last week's failed car bombings in London and Glasgow, Scotland. All were released. Police say the doctors had apparently communicated with another doctor. That person is being held in the investigation. That doctor, Muhammad Haneef, was arrested at the airport in Brisbane, Australia, earlier this week. Reportedly he held a one-way ticket to India. His wife says he was simply coming home to see his newborn baby.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FIRDOUF ASHRIYA, TERROR SUSPECT'S WIFE: We all were going together -- going back together. That's why he had made a one-way ticket so that because -- if he had already had a ticket, then we would get a separate ticket, me and my baby would get a separate ticket. We would have to travel separately. So he didn't want that to happen. That's why he took the one-way ticket and come and then we planned to go together -- go back together.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: All eight people now held in the case have links to the medical profession.
HARRIS: Well, they are lined up ready to roll the dice on marriage tomorrow. Oh, boy. The seventh day of the seventh month of the seventh year. That has to be the luckiest day of the century.
WHITFIELD: And the pope's revival of an ancient rite meets with mixed reviews. Latin mass and the modern church.
HARRIS: Fresh from South Africa to the NEWSROOM. I don't know, are you jet-lagging? Are you OK?
WHITFIELD: I'm OK right now.
HARRIS: You all right. Fredricka Whitfield, here she is, in the NEWSROOM. She's back to tell us about her assignment.
WHITFIELD: And the big apple turning down the volume? Is that possible?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Pope Benedict XVI revives an ancient catholic rite, Latin mass making a comeback. More from faith and values correspondent Delia Gallagher.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): This is what the catholic mass used to look and sound like until the 1960s. It was called the Tridentine mass. The priest had his back to the people and the words were all in Latin.
Then in 1965, Vatican II decided to update the ancient ritual. The changes were meant to make the mass more accessible to the people. The priest would face the congregation and say mass in the local language. But 40 years later, some, including the pope, believe the modern mass may have strayed too far from its traditional roots.
FATHER RICHARD ADAMS, ST. AGNES CHURCH: There were some certainly very wrong things done. You know, rather than using, let's say, wine and water -- and I'm talking about the 60s -- rather than using wine and water we could use coke and pretzels.
GALLAGHER: Ever since, there's been a tug of war between the new and the old.
SUSAN MICHELLE, MODERN MASS CONGREGANT: I think the church needs to go forward into its third millennium and not backward into its second. And that's what the Tridentine mass says to me.
MAY CONLON, LATIN MASS CONGREGANT: The Latin mass is the mass of all the saints down through the years and Vatican II destroyed the mass.
PETER CLEMENTE, LATIN MASS CONGREGANT: I'm 26. I've only been coming to this mass for maybe a year or two and I just feel like you get so much more out of it. It's a lot more fulfilling.
GALLAGHER: Pope Benedict is encouraging a return to the Latin mass as a way to restore tradition to the church's central celebration. But finding priests who can actually say mass in Latin may prove difficult.
ADAMS: I have to go hunting for priests to say the Tridentine mass, you know, because they don't know Latin.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And here with me now, faith and values correspondent Delia Gallagher.
So, a lot of Catholics are wondering, wait a minute, does this mean that when I go to mass soon it's all going to be in Latin? I'm not going to know what's going on.
GALLAGHER: Yes. No. This is not about, you know, this Sunday you're going to walk into mass and it's all going to be different. You're not going to recognize what's happening.
This is an option. And this is an option that the pope has sort of put back on the table. Because before you had to ask special permission from your bishop. It was a little bit more complicated.
So this document is saying, we should encourage this. And it is a good thing. And it shouldn't be looked on as a bad thing.
So you kind of have to understand that in the context of the debate that's been happening since Vatican II in the catholic church, which was that great church council in the '60s that changed everything, or changed many things, and one of the things they changed was this mass. And so since then there have been a number of people that were sort of disenfranchised, upset about these changes and didn't like the new mass. So this is a heated debate within the catholic community and that's why it's been such a big story.
WHITFIELD: So it is so complex. It is somewhat controversial. Why even go there?
GALLAGHER: Well, first of all, I think that this pope really loves the mass and he loves the old mass and he thinks that it's something which shouldn't be lost. And so he sees it as a kind of continuation of the ancient tradition of the catholic church. And while, you know, the new mass, he was part of Vatican II and part of installing that, he also says it's a good thing he didn't want to lose this, and he didn't want to lose some 600,000 plus Catholics who kind of broke off from the catholic church because of this.
So it really was such a big sticking point for some of these people that he said, you know, this is crazy. I mean this is a legitimate celebration. We should continue to allow it together with the new mass.
WHITFIELD: So how does he, or how does the catholic church, try to impose this when there still is a lot of debate going on within?
GALLAGHER: Well, this is going to be the trick because now it needs to be up to the bishops to sort of say, OK, if there are parishioners that want this, you can go to your bishop, you can ask for it, and the bishop should technically allow it. But as some priests have said to me, we're going to have to find priests that know how to do this mass.
WHITFIELD: Right.
GALLAGHER: So it's not just saying the mass in Latin, it's knowing all of the rituals. You know, it's very complex. There's lots of kneeling, lots of kissing of the hand and all these kind of -- incense everywhere. So it's a complex ritual that not a lot of the seminarians that have grown up in the last 40 years knows.
WHITFIELD: So, in other words, nobody hold your breath.
GALLAGHER: Yes.
WHITFIELD: It's going to be some time, I think.
GALLAGHER: Yes.
WHITFIELD: All right, Delia, thanks so much.
GALLAGHER: Thank you.
HARRIS: And still to come this morning, recruiting doctors as terrorists? Claims on the web.
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Chris Lawrence live on the Las Vegas Strip where thousands of couples are rushing to the altar trying to tie the knot on the seventh day of the seventh month of 2007.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Well, the market open about 20 minutes now. Some fairly encouraging signs with the Dow up about nine points.
HARRIS: Right, that's nine points. Seven now. That's flat. Are you kidding me?
WHITFIELD: I know, it's encouraging. It's all about plus. I like plus.
HARRIS: Oh, OK.
WHITFIELD: Plus, plus, plus. Whereas the Nasdaq is down 0.32. But, you know, that's so minuscule.
HARRIS: Yes, that is flat.
WHITFIELD: No worries, people.
HARRIS: Yes, there you go.
WHITFIELD: It's early yet and it's Friday. Things will get better.
HARRIS: Boy, what's going on in Vegas right now? Thousands of couples feeling lucky in love today. They're lining up to tie the knot, rolling the dice on 7/7/07. CNN's Chris Lawrence is in Vegas with the heat and the couples.
Good morning to you, Chris.
LAWRENCE: Good morning, Tony.
You know, I saw people waiting hours outside in that sweltering 116-degree heat just to get their marriage license in time to get hitched tomorrow. You know, from The Strip, to the chapels nearby, this could go down as one of the busiest wedding days ever.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LAWRENCE, (voice over): The line to get a marriage license came down the block, up the steps, wrapped around the corner, and went inside.
Show of hands. Who's here for the 7/7/07?
Some experts predict 70,000 couples could get hitched on the seventh day of the seventh month in '07.
NIA HAMILTON, BRIDE: We've been planning it for a year now. So we're the trend-setters. No.
LAWRENCE: Nia Hamilton says she's paid a premium to marry Miles Ware (ph).
HAMILTON: For your chapel, they add a little bit more money because you're on a special day. If you're at dinner, they add a little bit more money because you're on your special day. So it's tax upon tax because you're on 7/7/07 with everyone else.
LAWRENCE: Chapels are all booked up, and the competition over superstition is fierce.
JUDY BOWE, OWNER, CUPID'S CHAPEL: We actually had one couple that booked quite a ways out, tried to sell their package on eBay. So it's been crazy.
LAWRENCE: The significance of seven can be traced back to Egyptian culture. The number shows up throughout the Bible. It's a positive card in tarot card readings. And, yes, it means you've hit the jackpot.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The sevens are all chocolate with their blue cocoa butter on it.
LAWRENCE: Mandalay Bay's world renowned pastry chef is making plans for a mass wedding outside. The Venetian will conduct 77 ceremonies on Saturday. And the Bellagio's flower factory is in full balloon. Across the Atlantic, Eva Longoria and Tony Parker tied the knot in France. And celebrity chief Wolfgang Puck takes the plunge.
As for Miles and Nia . . .
MILES WARE, GROOM: Official.
HAMILTON: Yes.
WARE: Nothing left to do now but walking down the aisle.
LAWRENCE: Marriage can be a bit of a gamble. So any couple counting on those lucky sevens should take note, next week is Friday the 13th.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAWRENCE: And a few of the couples told me their marriage is going to need all the luck it can get. But some of the grooms do say it's going to make remembering their anniversary just a little bit easier.
HARRIS: That is good stuff. All right, CNN's Chris Lawrence for us in Las Vegas.
Chris, thank you.
WHITFIELD: Well, an elite investment bank and a chilling threat. Goldman Sachs reportedly warned in a letter, hundreds will die."
HARRIS: Fresh from South Africa, back in the NEWSROOM, there she is, Fredricka Whitfield there and here.
WHITFIELD: How did you do that?
HARRIS: She's going to fill us in on her travels, next in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: And coming up on the bottom of the hour. Welcome back, everyone, to the CNN NEWSROOM. Good morning. I'm Tony Harris.
WHITFIELD: And I'm Fredricka Whitfield, in for Heidi Collins.
In Texas, dismal deja vu. More heavy rain drenching the eastern part of the state. This is new video just in to us within the hour from Tyler, Texas, just east of Dallas, widespread flooding. Roads, some structures, all of that under water. The area already saturated from weeks of downpours.
And storms have been pounding Texas since late May, in fact. Thirteen people have died in the flooding. Four others are still missing, including a six-year-old boy swept into the Gulf of Mexico. A thousand homes have been damaged or destroyed and rivers and creeks filled to the brim. All of that threatening to spill over again.
HARRIS: Boy, another check of weather now. Rob Marciano in the Severe Weather Center.
And what a mess in those overnight hours and, boy, the cleanup today in Texas.
(WEATHER REPORT)
WHITFIELD: Well, a federal investigation is being launched into threats against a well-known investment firm. The FBI tells CNN at least nine newspapers have received vague threats against Goldman Sachs. Each handwritten note says, "Goldman Sachs, hundreds will die. We are inside. You cannot stop us." We're told the notes are signed A.Q.U.S.A.
More than 3,000 Goldman Sachs work in Jersey City in the state's tallest building. Goldman Sachs had this to say. "We take any threat to the safety of our people very seriously. We are working closely with the law enforcement authorities who, tell us they don't believe the threat to be very credible."
HARRIS: How about this? Just back from duty in South Africa, our own Fredricka Whitfield. Yay. With us here today. We barely got on the air today because we spent so much time this morning talking about your trip. But give me a sense of what you saw, any surprises?
And the one thing that we talked about is -- that might be a bit of a surprise for folks is just the Gulf, or maybe not. The Gulf between the haves and the have notes in what, from afar, looks to be such a beautiful country, resource-rich country.
WHITFIELD: Right, and it is all of that. It's a beautiful place, beautiful people, great resources. Incredible potential, but I guess perhaps what was most surprising to me is that disparity between the haves and have notes, and perhaps I thought maybe that gap was a little less huge, simply by the virtue of the fall of apartheid. Given that day --
HARRIS: How many years ago?
WHITFIELD: 13 years ago. You would think that opened up the opportunity to level the playing field for all, but unfortunately, what has happened is a number of people who, a great number of people who were so oppressed during the system of apartheid lost out on opportunities of education and training and skills.
And so here comes the fall of apartheid and many folks are still stuck in that situation. And so what it also has meant, as it's opened up other huge socioeconomic and health problems in that country, crime, poverty, AIDS, all the greatest threats to the economy, as well as the welfare of the South African People.
HARRIS: More of a problem than you thought before you left for the trip?
WHITFIELD: Absolutely.
HARRIS: Absolutely. Shantytowns, I don't know why --. Yes.
WHITFIELD: Why did I think they were all gone? As the fall of apartheid went with it, we thought or at least I thought, would be Shantytowns, townships, no. Townships are still very much -- Shantytowns very much common living for a number of people. So, many people who are living in them before -- during apartheid are living in them now.
You're looking as some photographs that I took of just -- what fascinated me was the children in the Shantytowns of Soweto and Guguleto which is in Cape Town. Soweta outside of Johannesburg. And you look at these smiling beautiful faces, and they look like any kid on any street anywhere around the world looking happy, et cetera.
But, a number of these children are also masking a huge responsibility that has fallen on their shoulders because AIDS has claimed the lives of so many people in this country. 71 percent of the people who are dying of AIDS are between the ages of 15 and 50 in that country. So what's happened, a number of these young people's parents have died.
And so a lot of these kids who are 10, 12, they're bearing the responsibility of taking care of their siblings, who are two, three, et cetera, and that's why it's so important for so many, whether it be government organizations or non-government organizations to help out these kids who are having to be adults.
HARRIS: Black Africans are in control, they run the government, the President Thabo Mbeki, why hasn't the government done more? Maybe it's an unfair question, but I would ask it anyway.
WHITFIELD: Well, it's a tough question and there are tough -- I guess what makes it event that much more tough, is there aren't the kind of answers that we all want to hear. I heard a number of complaints or at least observations from South Africans who said they don't just blame Thabo Mbeki, the current president.
But, they also want to place blame on the ANC as a whole, because there was great hope from a number of South Africans that perhaps with a black-led government -- ANC led government, it would mean that more programs, training, bases would be put in place to help a lot of the disenfranchised catch up, and not enough people have seen that happen.
Certainly, there are a lot more blacks who are going to college, getting an education, whether it be right there or getting an opportunity to go abroad. But what's also happening is a number of people are saying, you know what? The pay base is still so low, you know, so it's keeping a number of people down, that some of those who are getting trained and educated are leaving South Africa to find better paying jobs elsewhere. So where does that leave the country?
HARRIS: Talent drain. Fred, great to see you. Great to see the pictures, great to talk to you this morning and perhaps we'll get another opportunity to talk about your travels.
WHITFIELD: There are incredible stories to be told there and incredible people, and the country indeed has a lot of potential, but it is a beautiful place right now.
HARRIS: But, it's great to have you back in the NEWSROOM.
WHITFIELD: Thanks. All right, we'll talk about some other things that have been taking place around the world. Namely today, gunfire at the airport in Islamabad, Pakistan. Was President Pervez Musharraf playing the target?
Here's CNN's International Correspondent, Nic Robertson.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Pakistani intelligence sources are now saying that the weapons recovered from the roof of a building pretty close to the airport of Islamabad where President Musharraf's plane took off in the middle of the night, they are now saying that those weapons -- just heavy machine guns, not anti-aircraft guns.
They are saying that although from the rooftop you can see the airport, see the aircraft, those weapons would not be able to shoot down or would not have been able to shoot down Pervez Musharraf, Pakistani president's aircraft as it took off. Now, police were called to the scene by local residents who say they heard gunshots being fired.
When the police got there they say, they didn't find anybody on the scene, they say that these weapons had been set up on the roof of the building between the satellite dishes. Now, Islamabad airport is right in the heart of a residential area. The houses crowd all around that airport. Sources are telling us however, that the building where the weapons were found was several kilometers way from the airport.
The police say that they are still investigating at this time but the army denies, the army spokesman has denied that there was any attempt on the president's life as he took off to go and visit victims of the flood elsewhere in Pakistan. Nic Robertson, CNN, London.
HARRIS: Kidnapped in Nigeria, now a plea for the release of 3- year-old British girl. The child's mother reportedly says the abductors are threatening to kill her daughter, and then come after her and her husband, if their demands are not met. She did not say, however, what those demands are. The kidnapping happened in the Nigerian oil city of Port Hardcourt.
Gunmen reportedly snatched the little girl after smashing in the windows of a car as she rode to school. It is the first on abduction of a foreign child in Nigeria's increasingly lawless oil region.
WHITFIELD: The fight in Iraq, and the wait back home. How long will it last? New insight.
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Stephanie Elam at the New York Stock Exchange a vague threat on a New York investment firm throws officials into gear. I'll fill you in on the latest details coming up in the NEWSROOM. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
I'm Stephanie Elam at the New York stock exchange. A big threat on a major investment firm throws officials into gear. The latest details in the NEWSROOM. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: A Federal investigation is underway into threats against a major investment firm.
Stephanie Elam is at the New York Stock Exchange to bring us up to speed. This is pretty frightening stuff, Stephanie.
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it can be Fred. Good to see you.
I have to say that law enforcement officials tell CNN that at least nine newspapers have received these threats against Goldman Sachs.
Each note is handwritten in red ink on blue looseleaf paper and reads "Goldman Sachs, hundreds will die. We are inside. You cannot stop us."
That's according to the FBI, they are signed A.Q.U.S.A. Now it's not phone if the AQ actually stands for al Qaeda. Goldman's world headquarters is actually right down the street from where I am at the New York Stock Exchange and I actually drove by the building coming in here and there's really nothing going on more than the usual.
There's already a lot of security here already because of the fact that Broad Street runs between all these investment houses and also the New York Stock Exchange, and also, across the river, there are more than 3,000 Goldman Sachs employees working in Jersey City, New Jersey, that's the tallest building in New Jersey. Actually it's right on the waterfront, directly across the river from where the World Trade Center used to stand.
I also rode passed that, while I was making my way down here after doing AMERICAN MORNING and the window washers are out. So it seems that things are pretty much normal as far as employees go.
But Goldman Sachs says it's working closely with authorities and a broad range of security measures are in place, Fred.
WHITFIELD: So this threat is considered fairly credible?
ELAM: Well, an FBI spokesman tells CNN "we have no specific and credible information about a credible threat to Goldman Sachs, other than these letters."
Goldman also says authorities have been told they don't believe the threat to be very credible. Nonetheless the FBI says it's taking the situation very seriously and so are thousands of employees at the company. No surprise there.
(BUSINESS HEADLINES)
HARRIS: Well, doctors in demand by al Qaeda, but police in Britain and here in the United States now dismissing claims from a 2- year-old Web site posting.
Here's CNN's Brian Todd.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In a country already on edge over terror plots allegedly involving doctors, a haunting line on an extremist computer brings more jitters.
British officials say the posting from 2005 references doctors talking about car bombs, a report in the London Daily Telegraph says one of the messages read "the first target is the Naval base which gives shelter to the ship Kennedy."
This is thought to be a reference to the now decommissioned U.S. aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy based in Florida.
British and U.S. officials say there's no evidence this was a credible threat, no evidence of a link to the recent terror plots in Britain and they cannot confirm the people saying it were doctors.
But the man who owned the computer has just been handed a long prison sentence in Britain for inciting terrorist attacks using the Internet. Experts say Younis Tsouli was a notorious web operator linked to al Qaeda.
LAURA MANSFIELD, TERRORISM ANALYST: He actually was one of the first to really get out there and really make extensive use of the Internet. He used it for recruiting. He had a great personality in terms of being able to communicate with the other jihadists.
TODD: Some experts believe al Qaeda has recently stepped up efforts to recruit doctors because of their expertise with chemicals, language skills, ability to travel easily, but so far, it's not clear whether Tsouli networked to bring doctors together for any plots and one analyst lends this perspective.
SAJJAN GOHEL, ASIA-PACIFIC FOUNDATION: There's a bit of mass hysteria in this as well. I think after what happened in London and Glasgow with the attacks being so botched, al Qaeda may want to think twice before they want to recruit doctors again.
DODD (on-camera): But recruiting Webmasters in another story. Analyst Laura Mansfield says Tsouli is now being hailed as a hero on Jihadist Web sites and she believes someone else with his skills will emerge.
Brian Todd, CNN, Washington
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Deadly heat in Idaho. Police say a boy about 15 months old was found dead inside a locked car during a blazing heat wave.
A woman who was arrested at the scene is now being charged with involuntary manslaughter and felony injury to a child. Our affiliate KXLY reports the woman is the boy's step-grandmother.
The mercury in Boise, Idaho soared to 104 degrees on Thursday, breaking the city's previous record. It's expected to be even hotter today, and the next few days, well, not expected to be too much better.
Triple-digit temperatures are expected to stick around for up to a week, so get used to it.
HARRIS: Disturbing new allegations out of Iraq this morning that U.S. Marines gunned down civilians in cold blood. The latest out of the Pentagon.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Getting close here to the podcast, Fred.
WHITFIELD: OK.
HARRIS: It's still being worked on, putting it together right now. Just some different things than what you see with us here 9:00 until noon weekdays. We're able to work in some different stories. In order to get that, though, you need to go to CNN.com, which since you've been away, CNN.com, oh my goodness, re-launched, amazing graphics, a new player. Take a look, do you see that?
WHITFIELD: Yes, I look at CNN.com all the time.
HARRIS: OK, so it has been totally revamped, totally launched. The idea being just to make it more user-friendly.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
HARRIS: And ...
WHITFIELD: I mean, you have some great options.
HARRIS: You see the new player there.
WHITFIELD: The video.
HARRIS: More vivid, bigger, it is just fabulous now. The reviews are in and everyone loves the new CNN.com. How am I doing, I am doing OK here?
WHITFIELD: I love it, man. You're selling it.
HARRIS: All right, so what you'll need to do is go to CNN.com, and download our podcast, the CNN Daily Podcast. It is available to you 24/7 right on your iPod.
WHITFIELD: You are informed completely. Thank you, Tony.
Well, New Yorkers told to keep it quiet. Is that even possible? The city's new noise ordinance is now in effect.
Here's CNN's Richard Roth with that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICHARD ROTH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Independence Day fireworks over New York, interesting timing, since this week, the city ignited a major crackdown on noise.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: New York's very noisy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You live in the city, it's to be expected.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it's a good idea to have noise regulation.
ROTH: Those annoying construction sites are among the targets. Sound muffling gear on jackhammers and sound barriers are now required.
(on camera): Does this noise affect your hearing, though, do you think for later in life?
ALLEY MURPHY, CONSTRUCTION WORKER: Well, it ain't affect mine yet. It just bought -- made me buy a house and take care of my kids.
ROTH (voice-over): Bars and clubs will have to keep it down or face fines. Music can't be audible 15 feet from the fun. But it's the ban on this famous ice cream truck jingle that probably shocks long-time New Yorkers the most.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Terrible.
ROTH: The city came down hard on Mister Softee. No music while parked.
(on camera): How does that jingle go?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (singing): Da, da, da, da, da, da, da, da.
ROTH: New York City did not want to do a lot of talking about its new anti-noise regulations. The city declined to provide an official for an on-camera interview for what I needed, sound bytes.
(voice-over): It's a complaint-based system to this call center, although there will be some noise code responders on the street. Who else has to be worried?
If Lucy the beagle barks for 10 minutes straight, her owner could be fined up to $175.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a bit too extreme, you know.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How are they going to prove the bull (ph) dog barked for 10 minutes? Somebody going to take out a stopwatch? Then the cops are going to have to be there with stopwatches -- that there, he barks again!
ROTH: No noise should be good news for soundproofing professionals.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I actually did hear about it, and I was hoping it doesn't make it too quiet. That's our business!
ROTH: Richard Roth, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: And still to come this morning, eastern Texas can't seem to turn off the spigot. Flash flood warnings posted this morning for several counties.
Meteorologist Rob Marciano keeps us up-to-date.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Spreading a message through music. First Live Aid, then Live 8, now Live Earth. Global concert to raise awareness about global warming.
CNN's Jason Carroll reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Live Earth, a 24- hour concert, 100 acts, eight cities worldwide.
AL GORE, FMR. VICE PRESIDENT: That's global warming.
CARROLL: Former vice president Al Gore developed the idea to help protect the planet. BAND (singing): This old house of ours ...
CARROLL: Over the past few decades, there have been several global concerts with different causes, all with the same basic goal: raise money. Not this time.
GORE: It's actually not designed to raise money. It's designed to raise awareness and to spread word about the solutions.
CARROLL: Organizers won't put a dollar amount on expected money raised. Profit will go to Gore's Alliance for Climate Protection, a non-profit he founded to help reduce global warming.
Gore hopes the music will inspire people to go to the Live Earth Web site and follow the seven-point pledge, which includes fighting pollution and planting new trees. Critics say Live Earth's goals are too vague.
EVAN SERPICK, ROLLING STONE: I think it is pretty ambiguous. I think they could have done a much better job much earlier on, being very clear about hard goals.
CARROLL: Bob Geldof, the man behind two global concerts for poverty, is quoted as calling Live Earth a hollow spectacle. But even with profit, getting the money to those in need can be challenging.
In 2005, Live 8 hoped to influence world leaders to commit more money to poverty. Those leaders committed 50 billion dollars by 2010. But at least one watchdog group says they're not on track.
On the other hand, the concert for Bangladesh in 1971 to-date has raised $15 billion. According to UNICEF, 87 cents of each dollar went to children in Bangladesh.
CARYL STERN, PRES., U.S. FUND FOR UNICEF: Concerts really do make a difference.
CARROLL (on camera): Performers such as Alicia Keyes, Kelly Clarkson, The Police, and Bon Jovi will all be here at Giant Stadium to perform. We're told that all the performers are lending their talent free of charge.
Jason Carroll, CNN, East Rutherford, New Jersey.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: And good morning again everyone. You're with CNN, you're informed.
I'm Tony Harris.
WHITFIELD: And I'm Fredricka Whitfield in for Heidi Collins today.
Developments keep coming in to the CNN NEWSROOM. Here is what's on the rundown for this July 6th. New video from soggy Texas. Every major river ...
HARRIS: Yes.
WHITFIELD: ...in the state at flood stage.
And temperatures fall back just a smidgen in the west today. Sort of encouraging, right?
HARRIS: Yes.
WHITFIELD: But we're looking at those three-digit temperatures ...
HARRIS: Oh boy.
WHITFIELD: ...110 and beyond in places -- pretty uncomfortable.
HARRIS: It is.
A terror threat against Goldman Sachs? Letters reportedly warn hundreds will die.
Plea from a top Iraq war commander, don't pull the plug on the so-called surge.
This hour, in the NEWSROOM.
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