Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Obama Vice Presidential Vetter Resigns; Battling Depression; British Government Documents Left on Train; No Good News in Midwest Forecast; Dairy Farmers in Trouble
Aired June 11, 2008 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: This is what Wisconsin's Lake Delton used to look like. This is what it looks like now. A dam bursts. A lake empties. Houses get washed away. Now desperate people are taking desperate measures to keep this from happening again.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Trying to save the place I grew up. I love this town, and I would do anything for it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Sandbagging saves a town, but how long will it hold? We're watching the waters, watching the dams, and watching the forecast. Misery in the Midwest.
Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Brianna Keilar. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Just into the CNN NEWSROOM: Barack Obama's three-person vice presidential search team now down to two. The campaign just announced a short time ago that Jim Johnson is stepping down.
CNN's Suzanne Malveaux joining us now from Washington to tell us what's going on here -- Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Brianna, a lot of changes happening rather quickly. The man tapped with helping Senator Barack Obama choose his vice presidential nominee, Jim Johnson, is stepping down.
Obama issued the following statements just a few minutes ago. He said: "Jim did not want to distract in any way from the very important task of gathering information about my vice presidential nominee. So, he has made a decision to step aside that I accept. We have a very good selection process under way. And I'm confident that it will produce a number of highly qualified candidates for me to choose from in the weeks ahead. I remain grateful to Jim for his service and his efforts in this process."
Now, Barack Obama had come under some criticism from the McCain camp for hypocrisy, because he tapped Johnson, who is a wealthy Washington insider who once reportedly got $7 million in home loans from Countrywide.
Now, Johnson was once CEO of Fannie Mae, which does a lot of business with Countrywide. And according to "The Wall Street Journal," Johnson got some of the loans at interest rates that were well below what ordinary borrowers pay, partly because of his longtime association with Countrywide's CEO.
Now, Countrywide is under federal investigation for fraud in this mortgage crisis. Now, there's no evidence of anything illegal in these transactions, but observers do say that the loans posed a political headache for Obama.
Johnson's attorney did not deny that Johnson got the loans, but he did deny any illegality or any sweetheart deals, saying there were no calls between Johnson and Countrywide's CEO.
He also told CNN that these were -- quote -- "garden-variety transactions" that anyone with a high net worth and good credit could get. But Obama had said he would not vet his V.P. steering committee over mortgages. And Obama said just yesterday, he said -- quote -- "He would have to hire the vetter to vet the vetters."
Johnson played the same role in the Kerry campaign in 2004, in Walter Mondale's campaign in 1984 -- again, Jim Johnson stepping down as head of Barack Obama's vice presidential steering committee.
Should let you know, this is all really about politics here. It's about perception. They say it is not about illegality -- Brianna.
KEILAR: Yes, even the appearance of a conflict of interests definitely a liability for a candidate.
And in wonder. This may be too soon to even ask this question, Suzanne. Is it too soon to talk about who might come into this three- person team to replace Johnson?
MALVEAUX: We're working on that, Brianna. We don't know how soon that is actually going to be announced, or who is a potential person who would replace him.
Obviously, Jim Johnson a very powerful player, a powerful Washington insider, someone who has been tapped for the position before. But what this really underscores here is the sensitivity, the level of sensitivity on both sides here. The McCain folks have been hammering away the last 24 hours, really pushing this story, the controversy over Jim Johnson.
It really underscores that both of these sides here realize that there is a perception problem because they are both trying to portray themselves as the reform candidate, Barack Obama, as well as John McCain. The McCain folks felt that they had a real advantage here, an insight, if they could push this controversy. The Obama folks looked back at the situation and realized they may have a political problem on their hands. And that's why what they did, they did today.
KEILAR: All right, thank you for that, Suzanne Malveaux in Washington.
LEMON: Well, the rivers are rising, the levees are straining, and lots of people in Iowa, they're simply just getting out of the way. And the exhausted people of the Midwest, they simply don't need one more drop of rain.
Here's what it looks like from Minnesota, as far south of Missouri, the amazing, unstoppable power of too much water. The most urgent news this hour, evacuations in Iowa and Indiana, with residents urged to get to higher ground, as rivers swell to the tipping point, wiping away bridges and covering exit routes.
Now, the most dire forecasts predict the worst flooding there is in 15 years. Now, one of the most bizarre scenes that we want to show you is an emergency. It's in a popular tourist site in Wisconsin.
OK, so, when you think of flooding, you think of too much water. So, why is all the water gone?
Our Susan Roesgen is standing in Lake Delton. And she tells us. She's standing at the bottom of what used to be a lake.
Why is all the water gone, Susan?
SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: To the Wisconsin River and then probably now in the Mississippi River, don. They say no woman is an island, but I think maybe you are if you're standing in the middle of an empty lake, too much water in so many places, as you have pointed out and not enough here.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROESGEN (voice-over): For 55 years, water skiers have been wowing Wisconsin tourists at the Tommy Bartlett Show. But what happens when the water is gone?
(on camera): It took just a couple of hours for a 300-acre lake to drain out like water in a bathtub.
(voice over): The heavy rain this week washed out part of the lake's embankment, creating a huge hole that let the water run out and into a nearby river. Now businesses that surround the lake are watching their income dry up, too.
TOM DIEHL, OWNER, THE TOMMY BARTLETT SHOW : If we don't play to people this summer, it's going to be catastrophic.
ROESGEN: Tom Diehl runs the water skiing show, and he says the show will go on without the skiers. He's got a magician and some other entertainment lined up that he hopes will fill the seats.
DIEHL: If we fail, it wasn't for lack of trying.
ROESGEN: This whole area is aimed at families. Tourism here is a billion-dollar-a-year industry. The manmade attractions are fine, but businesses that depend on the lake are in serious trouble. (on camera): What are your customers saying?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know. What are they saying?
ROESGEN: You didn't know about this?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, we didn't know at all. Not at all.
ROESGEN (voice over): Many tourists book their trips here months in advance, and many are just now finding out that the amphibious duck boats won't be taking them into an empty lake.
Places like the Aloha Beach Resort are kind of empty, too. Eliza Shatua's (ph) family owns this resort. She says she cried when she saw there was no water under the dock.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yesterday we had 10 cancellations. Today I would say probably another dozen.
ROESGEN: Can this area survive a summer without the lake? Right now there are no plans to refill the lake until after the season, hoping tourists will come back next year.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROESGEN: And if there's any way to save this season, Don, the business owners, including the folks here at the big water ski show, are hoping that somehow loyal customers who have been coming for years bringing their kids and grandkids will still come, will show up, show their support.
But I think it's a very sad scene for those who might be coming, and a lot of people are canceling. They're seeing this now, and they don't want to come.
LEMON: Susan Roesgen reporting to us from what once was Lake Delton, we appreciate your reporting. Thank you very much, Susan.
KEILAR: This is one of the main causes for concern in Iowa today, the Des Moines and the Raccoon Rivers, full to the edges of their banks. Most of the bridges in the city of Des Moines are closed for obvious reasons, the water there nearly covering them.
CNN's Sean Callebs is in downtown Des Moines to give us a closer look.
You can see just the water under that bridge. It's so high, Sean, and this isn't the end of it.
SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, without question.
I think, talking to the locals, they say it's probably somewhere between 10 and 12 feet above the normal level. The concern about these bridges, where the water is lapping up to the top, is the debris that is coming down the river, if that gets stuck there, it creates basically a little dam there and causes more problems, puts more strain on.
And that's one thing that authorities here are trying to really combat. We want to show you something here. We're broadcasting via broadband, so the pictures may break up just a little bit, but this is important. This is one of four main bridges that connect east and west Des Moines.
If you look at sandbags on top of these barricades, this was put up by instruction of the Corps of Engineers. They're concerned about the water actually getting up high enough to lap up across this roadway. That's certainly something they don't want to see, but they're taking all kinds of preventative measures.
And if you look downriver just Alabama more, you can see scores of people out on this warm, sunny afternoon, but the weather right now an aberration. It simply poured here this morning. And it is expected to rain again very violently again this evening.
The big concern, all the rain that's been coming to the north of here. It has to come downstream. And, as you can see, Brianna, this Des Moines River is swollen beyond belief. They have done a lot of work on levees. They have upgraded them since the massive flood back in 1993. But there's still sandbagging going on in some parts of this city and there is still some flooding in low-lying areas. They have had to evacuate about 57 homes in the Johnston area.
There's also a dam about 12 miles from here. They have had to release water from that dam periodically because it's just backed up so much. They're concerned about that becoming a problem as well. They don't expect this river to crest until perhaps Saturday. And who knows how high it could get. The Corps of Engineers still running some kind of figures, trying to determine, but it is high and it's going to get worse.
The question, just how bad and how bad, how significant will the flooding be here in downtown Des Moines? -- Brianna.
KEILAR: We know you will be watching. Sean Callebs for us in Des Moines, thanks.
(WEATHER UPDATE)
LEMON: And, Don, it's really a different story in California. Red flag warnings are out in Northern California. Firefighters are desperately trying to contain a number of wildfires before the winds pick up again. Most of them are burning north and south of Sacramento. And they have already blackened more than 5,000 acres in Sonoma and Monterey counties. And at least 21 homes in Palermo and 30 more in Stockton have burned -- Don.
LEMON: So, from outside, he seemed to have it all. But on the inside, this high school senior was fighting for his life, and he almost lost. Now he's helping save lives after nearly ending his own. You will meet him.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right. So, battling depression is hard enough. But when you're a teenager, it seems unbearable. And, for African- American teens, the weight of depression carries additional burdens.
Now, as we look ahead at CNN's upcoming "Black in America" coverage, CNN's Allan Chernoff updates the story of a young man who's trying to turn his pain into something positive.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why don't we go down to where the purple is?
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When we first met 18-year-old Jordan Burnham in February, he was learning to walk, a miracle in itself, since Jordan, five months earlier, had nearly killed himself by jumping out of his bedroom window.
JORDAN BURNHAM, SUICIDE SURVIVOR: I felt so low that I didn't feel like living anymore, because I wanted any other emotion, any other feeling than being depressed. And I couldn't wait another minute to for it to go away.
CHERNOFF: Jordan's injuries will never fully go away, but he is gaining strength after multiple surgeries to repair broken bones. Jordan has been studying with a tutor and today is back at Upper Merion High School, making his senior presentation on his career goal, a requirement for graduation.
BURNHAM: I feel that everyone should know what it takes and how much work goes in to becoming a profession sports broadcaster.
We go back.
CHERNOFF: Jordan appears to be on a road to recovery from depression that he says afflicts many teens at his school.
(on camera): Upper Merion High says its mission is to inspire excellence in every student every day. Jordan says that puts a lot of pressure on the kids here, especially the few who are African- American.
BURNHAM: Being a minority, I always had to be the best. I always had to do something that put me in the front tier, in that upper tier. And I always pushed myself because I felt like, if I slacked, then I was just letting the African-American community -- community, excuse me -- down by excelling.
CHERNOFF: How tough is that? That's a -- that's a heavy burden.
BURNHAM: It's difficult, because you -- at times, you just want to fit in with everybody else. But, at the end of the day, that's not the case. And you are always going to stick out like a sore thumb.
CHERNOFF (voice-over): Such feelings are common among adolescent African-Americans, especially those in middle- and upper-class homes, says psychiatrist Michael Pratts.
DR. MICHAEL PRATTS, PSYCHIATRIST: Because you are judged not only as an individual, but also a representative of your culture. And when you combine that with the perceived negative stereotypes of young African-American boys in particular, you're fighting an uphill battle.
CHERNOFF: Nearly 8 percent of black teens say they attempted suicide in the past 12 months, 2 percent higher than the comparable number for whites, according to a survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control.
After his near-death experience, Jordan feels he can make a difference by changing the way people think of teen depression.
BURNHAM: There is plenty of pressure being a teenager, but society tells you to just deal with it and to keep quiet if you're not feeling that great. And I think we need to change that stigma of actually being able to speak out and talk about mental illnesses.
CHERNOFF: Jordan recently lobbied on Capitol Hill, urging more attention to the problem of teen depression. By speaking out, Jordan hopes he can prevent others from doing what he did, a mission he finds therapeutic for dealing with his own depression.
Allan Chernoff, CNN, King of Prussia, Pennsylvania.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Well, depression is present, but often invisible in the African-American community.
It is there, but few people want to talk about it.
One person who is, who is talking about it is author and public relations executive Terrie Williams. And she's written a book called "Black Pain: It Just Looks Like We're Not Hurting."
Terrie Williams joins us now from New York.
And, Terrie, I was preparing for you earlier in the week. And I said, I have read her story. I remember your story. I'm not sure if I read it in "The New York Times" or if I saw it in "Ebony" magazine. I'm not exactly sure, but I remember your story.
Listen to Jordan -- first of all, thank you for joining us today.
TERRIE WILLIAMS, AUTHOR, "BLACK PAIN": My pleasure.
LEMON: Listening to Jordan, and the one thing that jumped out at me is that he feels that he's carrying the weight of the burden of the entire African-American community on his shoulders. And so many black people feel that way.
WILLIAMS: It's a very, very unique experience, Don, for African- Americans in this country, because of not being fairly judged. I would say that the experience in this country, it's suppression of one's pain and oppression in this country that we experience because of inadequate health care, education, poverty. All of that is perfect for leading to depression. And, so, it is -- it's an experience that's very, very unique and is the cause of so many people spiraling downwards.
LEMON: And people would say, well, how do you know about this? And you have dealt with it firsthand, personally.
WILLIAMS: Yes. I had a breakdown four years ago. It was one of the most darkest episodes in my life.
But, you know, very much, I am inspired by Jordan. And what I know is that, when you go through the fire, and you come out on the other side, you then realize what it is that you are called to do.
And, so, what I have -- what we have decided to do is to start a movement called Healing Starts With Us. And, actually, we're hoping for a million people to commit to dealing with the emotional and mental distress that we all suffer from, but do so silently.
LEMON: Yes. And why don't African-Americans deal with this? Why do we have to get to a level or get to, you know, a place...
WILLIAMS: Of such despair?
LEMON: Yes, where Jordan was, where you were, where so many people are?
WILLIAMS: There are a few reasons for that.
One is that everyone walks around with their game face, passing for normal. And so you think that you are the only one who is experiencing it, because no one dares speak about what is perceived as a weakness.
LEMON: Right.
WILLIAMS: We're also a very faith-based people, so that to do anything other than to pray to God is a betrayal.
So, we tend not to acknowledge that we suffer from mental illness. And to see a therapist or psychiatrist or to be on medication is something that's unspoken. And, meanwhile, everyone you know is dealing with situations that can cause them to suffer from depression.
LEMON: And I have heard many preachers, many people who are in faith-based organizations say that we need to evolve beyond that, especially African-Americans.
And I remember personally myself having to deal with something, and I told my mother, I need to go talk to a counselor. And she said to me, point blank, don't tell anybody your business. All you need is God. WILLIAMS: That is the other reason. I was going to say, Don, that we don't believe in airing our public -- airing our laundry, our dirty laundry, publicly. But that you just this moment acknowledged that there was a challenge that made you want to seek that is where we're trying to go, that the healing starts with us. When you share the tiniest aspect of your story, it has the ability to profoundly transform somebody's else's life.
LEMON: Yes.
And, Terrie, I could talk to you all day about this. As a matter of fact, I may call you up and we may have a conversation.
WILLIAMS: I would love to continue that.
LEMON: We're running out of time.
Thank you very much.
WILLIAMS: Thank you.
LEMON: Pleasure talking to you.
WILLIAMS: Same here.
Now, do you have questions about the issues facing black America? Here's your chance to get answers from some of the most influential names. Go to ireport.com/the dream and ask away. Your questions will be part of the CNN/"Essence" magazine special event "Reclaiming the Dream." It's July 19 right here on CNN.
Then join us for "CNN PRESENTS: Black in America," a six-hour television event airing July 23 and 24, only on CNN. You can see a preview at CNN.com/blackinamerica.
KEILAR: A docudrama in Britain, secret intelligence papers left behind on a commuter train. Whoops. We're going to find out what happened.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BUSINESS REPORT)
LEMON: Utility crews are working around the clock to get the power back on for thousands of storm victims across Michigan. At last count, 153,000 homes and businesses still had no electricity. And it could be the weekend before -- the weekend before they do.
A weekend storm that spawned three tornadoes also killed eight people.
KEILAR: Heading home: The shuttle Discovery leaves the International Space Station a bit bigger after a busy nine-day visit. The shuttle delivered a huge laboratory, which took both crews to install.
And then two astronauts, they switched places, you may recall. Gregory Chamitoff plans to spend the next six months in space.
Meantime, Garrett Reisman returns to Earth after three months away. Landing is set for 11:15 Eastern time Saturday morning. And, of course, you can catch it right here on CNN.
LEMON: All right. Well, we have some breaking news into the CNN NEWSROOM.
British authorities are investigating quite an embarrassing situation -- secret government documents about Al Qaeda and Iraq left on a commuter train for anyone to find.
CNN's Paula Newton joins us now from London with the very latest on this.
How in the world did that happen -- Paula?
PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: It's an incredible story unfolding here.
Scotland Yard has launched an investigation. But apparently, this is a top intelligence official who left documents marked "secret" on a commuter train into London. They were found by a passenger, but not handed into authorities, handed into a British broadcaster here. And they have then announced the security breach.
The government confirms that, indeed, there was a frantic search starting yesterday for those documents.
What was in them?
Top secret information about Iraq, about Pakistan, about, specifically, the security forces in Iraq. It was marked "top secret -- for U.S./U.K./Canadian/Australian eyes only." These were sensitive documents. Apparently the person who did pick them up did read them.
And it's an incredible situation, you know, at a delicate time. President Bush is traveling around Europe already. On so many issues, like Afghanistan, like Iraq -- I mean tempers are frayed already between the allies. These kinds of things just don't look good and it's said that right now officials at Downing Street are shocked that this top official would actually carelessly leave these documents on the train.
LEMON: Shocked, as well as they should be.
Paula Newton in London.
Thank you, Paula.
KEILAR: How much do you pay for a gallon of milk?
Well, the prices are going up. So why are dairy farmers still going out of business?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KEILAR: Thirty-four minutes after the hour and here are three of the stories that we're working on in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Rivers are rising in many parts of the Midwest. Evacuations are underway in Iowa and Indiana. And then new storms are moving across the region, as well, today.
A small town is on edge after two girls just 13 and 11 years old were shot to death while taking a walk. Police in Weleetka, Oklahoma now believe that two people are responsible because two different caliber weapons were used.
A disgraced former NBA referee is accusing the league of trying to manipulate the outcomes of games. Tim Donaghy has pleaded guilty to federal gambling charges. He says the league pushed referees to make calls that would extend the 2002 playoff series to boost ticket sales and TV ratings. The NBA is denying that claim.
Let's talk a little bit more about flooding -- Chad, you've got some new pictures for us. I know that we've been keeping an eye on the river going through Des Moines. And it's really creeping up, isn't it?
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, a barge is supposed to be under that bridge and that's not occurring today. Obviously, barge traffic completely at a standstill here.
Now, this water is eventually going to go down, but not until, it looks like, Tuesday. Something else, Brianna, it's going to rain again today. And that rain could bring up what we expect to be another three foot rise before it stops rising. That could change, especially if we get more water into this drainage basin today. These levels could go back up again and that river -- that bridge right there could be overtopped.
Now, that said, by the time it gets up there, that's just not a straight three foot rise because then you're over the levees. And then you have to get wider and wider and wider into the City of Des Moines itself. And so it's an exponential amount of water to go up one inch, compared to being inside the bank. That would probably take about a foot.
Well, if you're going to make this river wider and wider and wider, that's what's going to happen if the water keeps going into Des Moines. It's going to take more to get that over the top of those bridges. But, boy, that's -- that's a visual that I saw back in the '90s and I remember some time in the middle of the '70s, too, where water just came off these field. But spring type rainfall -- just it's a little late in the season, it seems, for this much rainfall. You expect it in the spring time -- spring rains. But there you go.
And we also have to realize that this is a huge area of corn, from Iowa through Indiana and Illinois, even in parts of Wisconsin, all of these areas that we've been talking about with so much water flooding fields, well, those are flooding fields of corn. And we already know how high those prices are.
Can you imagine what could happen if we lose some of that crop because of this flooding -- Brianna.
KEILAR: Yes. Some big concerns there, even global ramifications there, as well, Chad.
We know you'll continue to keep an eye on this.
MYERS: I will.
KEILAR: Because it is expected to get worse.
Thank you.
MYERS: You're welcome.
LEMON: Prices on the rise for a staple at the breakfast table. The staple -- milk. But dairy farmers are still having a hard time making ends meet.
Kathleen Koch explains why.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John, Kyra, with the cost of a gallon of milk rivaling the cost of a gallon of gas in some cities, you might think dairy farming is a lucrative business. Well, in reality, many small family dairy farms are barely making ends meet.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KOCH (voice-over): Ty Long has been working his family's 170- acre Pennsylvania dairy farm since he was a boy. He runs it now and says everything this year is costing a lot more, like diesel fuel and animal feed.
TY LONG, DAIRY FARMER: I've already paid out $9,500 more. And that's only in the first three months.
KOCH: And he can't up his price. Since the Depression, the wholesale price of milk has been regulated by the federal government. The idea was to keep the price of such a vital commodity affordable for consumers.
(on camera): And you can't just charge more for the milk?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.
KOCH: You just can't recoup it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You can't pass it on.
KOCH (voice-over): Farmers say that's partly why the number of dairy farms nationwide has dropped from more than 131,000 in 1992, to just over 59,000 today.
SEN. BOB CASEY (D), PENNSYLVANIA: In Pennsylvania, we have at least 250, and by some estimates, as much as 350 dairy farms going out of existence every year.
KOCH: Senator Casey pushed for a subsidy in the farm bill to help dairy farmers cover the higher cost of feed. A group that lobbies for dairy farmers says processors -- those buying milk at wholesale -- are reaping most of the profits and should pay farmers more.
KATHY OZER, NATIONAL FAMILY FARM COALITION: So the processors themselves -- the purchasers of milk, in this case -- should be paying a fair price that reflects a farmer's cost of production.
KOCH: But wholesale milk buyers argue they don't set the price paid to farmers.
CONNIE TIPTON, INTERNATIONAL DAIRY FOODS ASSOCIATION: It's not a perfect system. Everybody's got these higher costs. Our plants are all squeezed on their costs this year, just as the farmers are.
KOCH: And consumers are ultimately being squeezed at the store. The average price of milk has gone from $3.07 in January of last year to $3.80 today. That's over 20 percent, or 73 cents more per gallon. And very little of that money is winding up in the pockets of farmers like Ty Long. Long hopes he'll be able to stay in business.
LONG: Yes, I like being out. I like the animals. But, you know, the struggles that come along sometimes, you know, it makes you think.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: Many come to the cliff to commit suicide. Then they meet the man who talks them down. Coming face-to-face with a suicide prevention line.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: It's a day that thousands of Chinese have been waiting for. They're returning to their hometown after officials said the threat of massive flooding from a lake created by last month's earthquake is over.
Well, despite the fact they're still homeless, they say living in tents closer to home is much better than camps in the hills, where many have been living for nearly two weeks.
LEMON: A chance encounter causes a man to change his life and wind up saving many other lives.
CNN's Kyung Lah has a story of suicide cliff.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The sheer rocks Tojinbo Cliff are a natural wonder in Eastern Japan, drawing tourists across the country. It's why 34-year-old Hiro came here -- one last view of beauty before trying to kill himself.
"I wanted to die at the place where I could see the sun set," says Hiro. "My life had been depressing. I wanted it to end on a sunny day.
That was a year-and-a-half ago. Hiro's mother died, he had no friends and a mountain of debt. So he came to Tojinbo, known as Japan's suicide cliff. But as he waited for the sun to set, Yukio Shige came walking by and asked Hiro if he needed to talk.
"He knew why I was here," says Hiro. "I told him I was planning to jump."
Shige listened to Hiro's problems and set him up with financial counselors and gave him a simple gift -- hope. For 62-year-old Yukio Shige, it was just another day. Shige spent 40 years as a police officer -- until he met an elderly couple while on patrol standing at the cliffs. He convinced them not to jump and sent them to a government office. Days later, the couple wrote this letter.
"The government office told us, go ahead and kill yourself," they wrote.
The letter arrived at Shige's police station two days after they killed themselves.
"It's like I lied when I promised I had helped," Shige says. "I want to cry. What they were told should not be forgiven."
The government office no longer exists, but the letter changed his life.
(on camera): Every day twice a day?
(voice-over): Shige retired from the police force and started patrolling on his own, watching and talking to visitors -- mostly friendly conversation. Emergency phone booths and warning signs on the cliff are not enough, says Ashige, says and Japanese society isn't doing enough.
Four years later, Shige's log lists 129 names of people he convinced not to jump -- people he still stays in touch with today.
(on camera): Local police say 25 people jump off the cliffs of Tojinbo every single year. But that only tells you part of Japan's suicide problem. According to national statistics, one person commits suicide every 15 minutes. That's about the same rate as the U.S. But Japan is a much smaller country.
Activists at the suicide prevention group Life Link say Japanese society connects career with life value, which is why suicides spike in Japan during recessions. Life Link also blames a strong sense of shame when it comes to mental health.
YASUYUKI SHIMIZU, LIFE LINK: People tend to have a stigma to confide that they have pain or if they need help or especially mental support. It's very hard for them to ask for.
LAH: So if they won't ask, Shige approaches, saying one man can make a difference. But he can't reach everyone. These flowers were left for someone who killed himself just days ago. Hiro wishes that person had met Shige.
"Knowing someone would be sad if I die was a difference," says Hiro. "Maybe I'll have a wedding some day and celebrate with Shige."
That hope for some day is why, at the end of our interview, Hiro can say farewell and walk away from these cliffs toward the path tomorrow.
Kyung Lah, CNN, Tojinbo Cliffs, Japan.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: President Bush is in Italy this hour -- the latest stop on what's being described as his farewell trip through Europe. This morning, he went with German Prime Minister Angela Merkel. The two discussed a range of issues, including efforts to keep Iran from developing a nuclear weapons program. Iraq was also a major topic and Mr. Bush was asked at a news conference if he had any regrets about his decision to invade Iraq.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I don't regret it at all. Removing Saddam Hussein made the world a safer place. And, yes, I told the guy -- the guy said what could you do over?
First of all, you don't get to do things over in my line of work. But I could have used better rhetoric to indicate that, one, we tried to exhaust the diplomacy in Iraq; two, that I don't like war. But, no, the decision to remove is Saddam Hussein was the right decision.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: As for Iran's nuclear program, Mr. Bush said he'd prefer to resolve the issue Iran diplomatically, but that "all options are on the table."
LEMON: You could call this roll-on sunscreen or you could call it one of the most bizarre videos we've seen in a while. Actually, it's both. We'll show you why floating plastic balls might be good for drinking water in L.A.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: Time now for everyone's favorite video montage. We call it Caught on Camera.
LEMON: How do you know it's everyone's favorite?
KEILAR: All right, I know.
LEMON: They told you?
(LAUGHTER)
KEILAR: It's my favorite. It's mine. OK, knock-knock.
LEMON: Who's there?
KEILAR: If no one answers who's there, well, these guys will storm the door and they're just going to make themselves at home, then they make off with your stuff, can you believe that?
Police in Oklahoma City hope this surveillance tape of a home being burglarized will put the knock-knock bandits, as they're being called, behind a jailhouse door -- one that they will not be able to kick in.
LEMON: Boy, these guys went right for it. They didn't take stuff, it was money. There's ATM withdrawals -- there are ATM withdrawals and then there's this. Thieves in Cleveland used a bobcat : Z) last month to withdraw an entire ATM machine from a bank parking lot. Look at that. Police have recovered the ATM and have released this video in hopes of corralling the four suspects. When I heard about this story, I said I hope they could afford the gas money. It's really high.
KEILAR: Yes, it sure is. That's a -- it's terrible, but it's -- that's sort of some strange video there.
LEMON: Um-hmm.
KEILAR: You know, churches are supposed to be holy by nature. But a trio of suspected car thieves and their contribution to a Jacksonville, Florida house of worship were not welcome. Police caught the juvenile driver who fled on foot after crashing this car into the church. Two passengers, though, are still on the run.
LEMON: Yes. Now that one is not funny.
KEILAR: No.
LEMON: All right. Well, you'll be talking about these next stories around the water cooler. First up, we'll live in a yellow sub.
Will we live in a yellow sub?
(SINGING): We all live in a...
Oh, my gosh.
KEILAR: That's a yellow subcompact.
LEMON: That is a really weird -- it's like a combination between a compact car and the wiener mobile. It's a subcompact. This three- wheeled electric buggy is made in Northeast Ohio by Myers Motors. It's called the NMG, for no gas. And it gets 30 miles on a single charge at speeds of up to 75 miles per hour. The state legislature passed a bill making it legal to drive the three-wheeler on Ohio highways. You can get one for about $35,000. And I don't know if that's cool or weird. Both. KEILAR: Or it makes you wonder about the safety, too.
Well, do you have trouble sleeping?
Try snuggling into a bed on a billboard vertically.
LEMON: Ah.
KEILAR: This strange sight in downtown Tokyo was a hotel publicity stunt. The woman is a professional window cleaner, so she is used to heights. And she said it was such a nice day that she actually -- she did doze off. She took a snooze for a little while.
LEMON: OK. Well, this is not performance art. Water officials in Los Angeles released 400,000 black plastic balls into the drinking supply held in Ivanhoe Reservoir. Eventually, the surface will be covered with three million balls. They'll help shade the water from the sun to prevent U.V. : Z) rays from creating a potentially toxic chemical in the water. Even though the color black absorbs heat, it apparently blocks U.V. : Z) rays more effectively than white. Now, that's pretty cool stuff. I like that video.
KEILAR: Yes.
It's pretty brilliant, isn't it?
LEMON: Yes. It looks like...
KEILAR: And it's kind of beautiful, as well.
LEMON: Altogether, from this angle, it looks like sludge. But I guess they expand, right, and then sort of grow together. Really cool stuff.
KEILAR: Yes, it's amazing. It almost looks like an oil slick. Of course it's not. It's very -- I think it's beautiful.
LEMON: And that's the Water Cooler. That's stories you'll be talking about.
KEILAR: Yes, it is.
LEMON: Everybody loves that segment, like you said.
KEILAR: The Water Cooler. Yes.
LEMON: All right.
Are you sure?
KEILAR: Everyone loves caught on tape.
All right, let's talk about the closing bell and a wrap of the action on Wall Street. That will be straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) LEMON: All right. We have this into the CNN NEWSROOM.
Now, what we're showing you is downtown Des Moines and the Des Moines River running through.
That's what it looks like now, Brianna, right?
KEILAR: That's what it looks like now -- and Chad Myers, I understand you have some pictures to show us what it's supposed to look like.
MYERS: Yes. You know, everybody's heard of Google Earth and Google Maps, but Microsoft is in the mix now with its Virtual Earth. And they actually have flyover pictures, not just satellite pictures, but literally from a plane. And you get a lot better resolution.
Here's how far that that bridge should be. You can almost see. That's about a 20-foot span from where it should be, down the bottom there, with barges being able to get under that. That's the Walnut Street Bridge there.
And then now there's not a way you can probably even get a rowboat under that thing right now. And that water is still expected to come up.
I'm going to mess up the map here just a little bit. But this is the hodograph, we call it, of what we still expect. The Hydrological Prediction Center still making this map here -- I can't get that up any higher, so that breaking news is going to block that.
But we are at 31.81 feet right now, expected still to go to 33.5 and not really go below major flood stage for days and days and days.
With that map you see there, that's four days worth of (INAUDIBLE) right there.
LEMON: Oh, unbelievable stuff.
MYERS: Yes.
LEMON: All right. Thank you, Chad.
MYERS: Sure.
LEMON: And, of course, the governor toured that area today by helicopter. Very interesting to hear what his assessment is going to be. And I'm sure we'll get more on that.
Meantime, let's turn it over now to Susan Lisovicz.
She's standing by with a final look at the trading day -- Susan.
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
KEILAR: See you tomorrow, Susan. Thank you.
And let's head now to "THE SITUATION ROOM" and Wolf Blitzer.
