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Blackwater Guards Surrender to Authorities; Protesters React to Shooting of Teenager in Greece; Violence in Pakistan Continues to Spread; Secret to Living Past 100

Aired December 08, 2008 - 10:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Hired to protect in Iraq. Now facing charges in civilian deaths. Five former Blackwater guards turn themselves in this morning.
Plus, closing in on a deal. Details on a congressional plan to keep the Big Three automakers running.

It is Monday, December 8th. I'm Heidi Collins. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

It was a shooting that strained U.S. relations with Iraq. 17 civilians were killed in September of 2007. In just a few minutes ago five former Blackwater security guards went to court to surrender in the case. CNN's Kara Finnstrom is in Salt Lake City now covering this morning's hearing.

Kara, the very latest?

Kara, can you hear me? Tell what those charges are going to be? I think that's what I hear you reading.

All right. Unfortunately, we're having a little trouble with Kara Finnstrom's report there. But we will check back with her just as soon as possible. A lot of developments happening. You're looking at some new video coming into us here when the five security guards were just arriving for these hearings outside the courtroom there. Again, Salt Lake City. We'll get back to Kara Finnstrom here very, very shortly.

Meanwhile, a bailout, not bankruptcy. That's what Detroit wants and Congress is working on a plan to give the Big Three automakers a hand with conditions. Word is a deal is close. Senators take up the debate a little bit later on this afternoon. We'll have it for you right here on CNN.

And we do have you covered. Elaine Quijano is in Chicago now keeping up with the President-elect. Gerri Willis is studying the plan and gauging reaction from New York. And Susan Roesgen with out of work workers determined to get what's coming to them.

First to you Elaine, and a thumbs up, if you will, from the president-elect for his fellow lawmakers. What's he been saying about all of this?

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning to you, Heidi. That's right. President-elect Barack Obama says U.S. automakers cannot be allowed to fail. But he says help for Detroit must be tied to conditions, including restructuring.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

QUIJANO (voice-over): As lawmakers gear up to try to save the U.S. auto industry. The incoming president says he approves of their approach.

BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENT-ELECT: I think that Congress is doing the exact right thing by asking for a conditions-based assistance package that holds the auto industry's feet to the fire, gives them some short-term assistance, but also insists that that assistance leads to some very difficult choices.

QUIJANO: That approach comes on the heels of more bad economic news last week, that the U.S. economy shed 533,000 jobs last month alone amid rising unemployment and increased pressure for another economic stimulus plan. The president-elect again avoided putting a dollar figure on a possible package.

OBAMA: The thing that we have to do right now is to have a bold economic recovery plan.

QUIJANO: President-elect Obama says his plan to create 2.5 million new jobs will include launching the biggest public works program since the federal highway system was built in the 1950s. He says modernizing schools and government buildings will be part of the plan as well. And on the troubled housing front, Obama reiterated he believes more needs to be done.

OBAMA: We have not seen the kind of aggressive steps in the housing market to stem foreclosures that I would like to see. And my team is preparing plans to address that foreclosure situation.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

QUIJANO: Now as for his economic recovery plan, President-elect Obama says that he plans to roll out additional details in the coming weeks. But still, Heidi, very much an open question is how big will that plan be.

COLLINS: Yes, and some are calling for the auto executives to step down now.

Is that unusual? I mean are the CEOs going to fight this? if it actually gets any legs?

QUIJANO: Yes, well it's certainly interesting, you're right. Over the weekend we heard, in fact, the head of the Senate Banking Committee, Chairman Chris Dodd, come out and say, yes, he thinks that specifically the head of General Motors Rick Wagoner needs to go. Now President-elect Obama was asked about Rick Wagoner. He did not answer specifically and say, he didn't say one way or the other whether or not he agreed with Senator Dodd's assessment of that situation. What he did say is that look these automakers understand or they should understand this is an urgent situation that they are dealing with. That some tough business decisions need to be made, they need to be made very quickly. And any top manager that doesn't understand that is not willing to make those difficult decisions does need to go -- Heidi.

COLLINS: All right. We're following it very closely. Elaine Quijano, we sure do appreciate that. Live from Chicago this morning.

And we are hearing a deal for Detroit could cost around $15 billion, give or take a few billion. How does that affect you or me? Our personal finance editor Gerri Willis crunching the numbers in New York.

And we've been talking about billions you know for bailouts and the $700 billion. You know you start rolling those numbers off your tongues and boy, I mean, duh, it's a lot of money.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: It's a lot of our money. It's a lot of taxpayer dollars at stake. We're talking about here, Heidi, you're right.

We could get some kind of deal rolling by 3:00 p.m. this afternoon. That's when the Senate meets as the expectation, both the president-elect and Congress closer to making some sort of bailout perhaps as much as $15 billion and that's scaled back from the original 34 billion, the auto industry was talking about. But it's likely that they will put strings on this money.

First off, there are some conversation about a car czar. Somebody who would work in the Department of Commerce and oversee what's going on, making sure that these auto companies do exactly what Congress wants. Changes in corporate leadership. You mentioned that before, we might have new CEOs for these company and some more UAW concessions. Of course Elaine also mentioned restructuring of these companies as well. So what would it mean to the economy? What would it mean to you and I?

Of course, this would be our tax dollars at work. If the auto industry was to go belly up, was to go out of business, we would lose some three million jobs. And keep in mind, this isn't just jobs in Detroit. These jobs are all over the country from California to the east coast to the south. They exist everywhere really.

And let me put that number in some kind of context for you. So far this year, we've lost 1.9 million jobs. So another three million on top of that would be devastating indeed. And of course, it was the employment numbers on Friday that really got this conversation going full string. I want to tell you Heidi, we've lost more jobs this morning. Dow Chemicals announcing 5,000 layoffs. 3M announcing 1800 layoffs. And as I said before, this is a very controversial conversation.

Bailing out the auto industry, giving them loans, helping them out, giving them a helping hand. Paul Krugman, you probably know he is the Nobel Economic Laureate said today, quoted by AP, "in the end these companies will probably disappear. He is saying that these companies don't have legs and it's a mistake to bail them out. Interesting words from somebody who knows a thing or two about economics.

COLLINS: Yes. Just a thing or two.

All right. Gerri, I sure do appreciate that. Thank you.

WILLIS: My pleasure.

COLLINS: Good news to talk about at the gas pump. A national survey says the average price of gas fell 22 cents a gallon during the past two weeks. The average price today, $1.71 a gallon. Gas prices are now at the lowest level in nearly five years. News not so good though for the corporate news company, Tribune. The company might be going bankrupt. Tribune is consulting with financial advisers now to consider its options.

Here's a look at the market right now. Everything has been open about 40 minutes or so. We are going to check in with Susan Lisovicz a little bit later on. Right now, you can see the Dow Jones industrial average is up almost 250 points.

It was a shooting that strained U.S. relations with Iraq. 17 civilians were killed in September of 2007. And just a few minutes ago, five former Blackwater security guards went to court to surrender in the case. CNN's Kara Finnstrom is standing by live in Salt Lake City now this morning covering the hearing.

Kara, good morning to you. We saw you there in the front of the line. Did you get a word with any of the defendants this morning?

KARA FINNSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Not the defendants. They're not talking. But we did talk with some of the defense attorneys. That team came down the street just behind us, just about 15 minutes ago. And they went up these steps into the federal courthouse where those guard members, those former guards are expected to turn themselves into authorities later on this morning. The court hearing is scheduled for about five hours from now. The defense attorneys for a number of those former guards did tell us that their clients will plead not guilty. Here's a little bit more of what one of the defense attorneys said to us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How do you feel?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: doing great. We're ready to answer these charges.

FINNSTROM (voice-over): How do you feel about the charges against you? Can any of the men tell us how they feel about these charges.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They can't at this juncture, maybe later. Thank you.

FINNSTROM: Can you tell us what will be said in the courtroom a little bit later on today?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know. That will be up to the judge.

FINNSTROM: As far as your response to the indictments?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to plead innocent, insist on a jury trial, and get ready to take on these charges.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FINNSTROM: Now source close to the investigation tells CNN that the charges against those men will include manslaughter and a weapons charge of using a machine gun while committing a crime of violence. All of these stemming from that 2007 shooting in a square in Baghdad in which 17 people were killed, many of them children and women. And which 30 other people were injured. Now a U.S. official reports preliminary report filed by the military in which sources told CNN.

Part of that said that military officials had said that when they arrived at the scene there was no evidence that the contractors had been fired upon. But Blackwater has continued to maintain that these men were reacting to what happened there. That they have been fired upon by insurgents. So all these beginning to unfold here today -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Yes. Certainly. And you know, I know that the Justice Department has kept those charges under seal so we were wondering exactly what the charges were going to be.

Also, there's been so much talk, Kara, about the venue and why Salt Lake City and so forth. Could that change at some point? Could we be seeing case move all over the country?

FINNSTROM: It could. I mean the thought is that Utah is a conservative state, a pro-gun state. So arguably, you know the defense team could think this would be a place where their defendants could get a good jury. But you know today the Justice Department could argue that it be moved to Washington, D.C., which is where all of this has been unfolding. It will be up to the judge here to decide.

COLLINS: All right. We know you're watching it very closely. We'll come back to you. Kara Finnstrom there for us in Salt Lake City, Utah.

To Greece now. And the rioting going on there where police battle protesters after a teenager is killed by an officer. We have a live update.

And she climbs trees every day to pick fruit. She's 90 years old. But that's nothing unusual in her hometown.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COLLINS: General David McKiernan says the U.S. will need to nearly double the number of troops and mainly to keep them there at least four years to stabilize the country. The top commander in Afghanistan made these comments during an interview with "USA Today." His conclusion comes just after the release of a new report that claims Taliban forces have reestablished a permanent presence across 72 percent of the country.

Violence continues to spread in Pakistan. Militants set fire to nearly 200 NATO and U.S. trucks and supplies vehicle the last two days. But the U.S. military says the loses will not have a major impact on operations against Taliban militants.

Over to Pakistan now where CNN correspondent Reza Sayah is on the ground in Islamabad with word of a raid carried out by security forces on a group India blames for the Mumbai attacks.

Give us the very latest now.

REZA SAYAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Heidi, Pakistani military officials confirmed to CNN that a raid has been launched against the site, against the facility with suspected links to the Mumbai attacks. Sources tell CNN at least 15 people have been arrested. And there are local media reports that among the arrested is an alleged master mind of the attacks. Let's tell you about the raid. It took place on Sunday, just outside the city of Muzzafarabad, it's the capital of the Pakistani portion. This is a disputed territory of Kashmir. This is a territory that Pakistan and India have fought over for more than six decades.

The raid, according to sources, targeted a facility run by a group called Jamatu Dawa (ph). Now this is where things get a little murky. Here's why. If you ask Jamatu Dawa, what is your organization about? They'll tell you we're simply a relief organization. Islamist charity group. We run some schools, we help earthquake victims. We have a Web site you can look at. You can tour our facilities and you will find nothing.

But U.S. intelligence officials, Indian intelligence officials and analyst say Jamatu Dawa is actually a front group for the banned militant group, Lashkar-e-Toiba. That's, of course, a militant group that was formed a couple of decades ago in Pakistan to fight Indian rule in Kashmir. It is widely believed that in the past Pakistani intelligence services nurtured and funded this group. In the past couple of decades, they were accused of carrying out attacks on Indian soil.

And of course, they're suspect number one according to the Indian government in these latest series of attacks in Mumbai. Jamatu Dawa denies any links to Lashkar-e, even denied that the facilities were raided. But that's where we stand today. Government officials and military officials in Pakistan say that an operation was carried out. A number of people have been arrested.

COLLINS: So many unanswered questions still. We know you'll stay on top of the story for us. Reza Sayah, thanks so much. Live from Islamabad this morning.

For many Americans the economic grinch is stealing the holidays. We're going to be talking about dealing with the stress of the season.

Now live pictures in Washington. Here's how they're dealing with some of the stress. President Bush and First Lady Laura Bush are at a children's holiday performance and reception. Let's listen for just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I'm Rob Marciano at the CNN weather center.

Got a pretty good storm cranking here in the Midwest. Some snow, some severe weather heading to even some colder air. More details in just a few minutes.

The CNN NEWSROOM with Heidi Collins will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: A new CNN opinion research corporation poll tells us the financial crisis is having an impact on our stress levels this holiday season. CNN's medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is joining us now with some more details on that.

So we should probably thought about exactly what the poll said because I also thought maybe people would be even more stressed out given the economic conditions that we're under.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Oh, absolutely. So did I. I mean, the poll results are sort of bad, but they could have actually been even worse. Let's take a look what they said. What they said, the question was, will economic conditions make Christmas more stressful this year? Yes, for 40 percent. And no for 56 percent. So in other words, 56 percent said no, it's not going to be more stressful.

As a result of this stress, let's take a look at what Americans are spending less money on. This is in reverse order here. The fifth most common thing was food or medicine. Obviously, that's very disturbing. Heat or electricity was number four. Driving, number three even though gas prices are down. Leisure time activities, we're number two so just movies or going out to eat.

The most common thing that people are spending less money on is this holiday season is buying holiday gifts. 67 percent of the people surveyed said they would spend less money on gifts.

COLLINS: And you would think that would stress people out. But I think everybody seems to be you know in the same boat to -

(CROSSTALK) COLLINS: Well, we should probably talk a little bit further about what stress does to the body. Because we all know come the holidays that we begin to get a little bit more ratcheted up -

COHEN: Exactly. People think that ratcheting up is just happening in my brain. But, in fact, that stress is affecting your entire body. Really. Let's take a look at some of the top points. The jaw, you've heard of TMJ. You can kind of feel it right there in your jaw. I have it right now.

COLLINS: You have it at this moment, huh?

COHEN: Stress affects the heart, it affects the digestive system, and really the reason we put body on the other side there is it affects the whole body, including a lot of people don't know this, the immune system you are actually more vulnerable to getting an infection when you're stressed out. Your system just can't handle that.

COLLINS: Yes. It seems like everybody gets a little sick during the holidays.

COHEN: Right. Very true.

COLLINS: It's sad. We should be enjoying it. What are things you can do to relieve the stress?

COHEN: You know for everyone it's going to be different. But there is one really important which is think about what is stressing you out and try to attack it head on. If it's something specific, what can you do about that problem to alleviate the stress? And then in addition to that, you can do yoga, you can take a walk, you can see a counselor. There's lots of different approaches. You don't have to do any one thing. There are lots of different things that can be done.

COLLINS: What about a silver lining? You know, we always look for that here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

COHEN: Yes, we certainly do. The American Psychological Association has come to our aid by supplying a silver lining. The American Psychological Association says that you can use these challenges to think of opportunities for personal growth. So, for example, a family I know instead of buying lots of presents, they're interviewing family members and writing a biography. The biography is now going to be the Christmas present for everyone. You can bet that that present is going to last a whole lot longer than whatever you buy in the store.

COLLINS: Yes, much more creative, special.

COHEN: Exactly.

COLLINS: All right. Thanks so much. CNN's Elizabeth Cohen for us there on the stress of the holidays. A little stressed out. Winter storm warnings there in effect for all across that region. Meteorologist Rob Marciano is live in the severe weather center now.

The good news here is the silver lining, if you will, they know what snow is like in that area.

MARCIANO: Yes, the Midwest, especially the western Great Lakes. You're no stranger to snow there. Actually folks across the northeast get a fair amount of snow beginning around this time of year, lasting on right on through March. And it's certainly cold enough for snow across the I-95 corridor, west over the Allegheny and through parts of Pennsylvania and western New York.

Temperatures still in some spots in the teens and 20s. On i- reports sent over the weekend, there was some snow across parts of the northeast. And in some cases, a couple of inches. Rob Newman sent this in from Montauk, Rhode Island. The snow stuck especially in the backyard there. And got them in the spirit of the season going away. For the most part, we'll see temperatures warm up in this area before the next system comes in.

Here's the leading edge of it. We've got some freezing rain that's falling across parts of the Ohio River Valley this morning. So this little shake off in the next couple of hours. But a dicey go in spots for sure. Here's where the center of the next storm is. And it's just about to come out of the Rockies as it does so, it kind of stretch its legs, wind up just a little bit. And as that happens we look for the potential of seeing anywhere from five to 10 inches of snow across parts of Wisconsin and through south eastern Minnesota and that could actually very well be higher there.

But most of the snow will be north of Chicago. Before it gets out of the Rockies, especially in places like northern New Mexico and southern Colorado, we'll see several inches of snow, maybe over a foot of fresh powder on the hill there. I know you see the track of this thing as it heads towards the Great Lakes. Most of the snow should remain north of Chicago and also north of New York City. Even though New York will be well into -- pretty chilly today as we go through tomorrow and then again on Wednesday. A big warm-up. A lot of heat getting into New York with temperatures there in the mid 50s. That is not cold enough really to support any sort of substantial snow.

COLLINS: No, not really. All right. Rob, we'll check back later on. Thank you.

Congress closing in on a deal to save the Big Three. Investors watching closely and we are watching them. Heading back to Wall Street in a moment.

And live pictures now to show you once again from Washington. President Bush and First Lady Laura Bush at a children's holiday performance and reception. It looks like they're having a great time. Let's listen.

(MUSIC PLAYING) COLLINS: All right. You know what we're waiting for? We're waiting for the president to dance. Got a little into it there. Again, we are watching President Bush and First Lady Laura Bush. All those kids at the White House in the children's reception. Great music to be heard as well. Everybody having a good time.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BUSINESS HEADLINES)

COLLINS: And here's a scene now, too, from one of Detroit's largest churches, yesterday. That's right. Those are SUV's on the altar. And autoworkers filling the pews. They offered up prayers for Congress to bail out the struggling auto industry.

Pleading their case in person. Auto workers caravan from Detroit to Washington, D.C., determined to be heard by Congress. They say an emergency loan is vital, not only for their well being, but the nation's, as well.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL ALFORD, LOCAL UAW CHAPTER PRESIDENT: I think it's important that this auto industry get this loan. And it's a fraction of what they're giving out to the main banks on Wall Street. I don't understand why they wouldn't give it to the manufactures and the blue- collared workers.

Because you're really giving it to the workers. Not just the manufacturing companies. Not just General Motors, Ford and Chrysler. You're giving it to the UAW workers, the people that come to work every day and go home, and sometimes don't go home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: We do expect to hear from some of those autoworkers in the next hour or two, as they march to Congress with their message.

Their story symbolizes the plight of many Americans who has lost their jobs.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED GROUP: Yes, we can! Yes, we can! Yes, we can!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: These workers in Chicago, holding a sit-in at the factory of their former employers. CNN's Susan Roesgen is also there.

So, Susan, tell us a little bit more about what these workers want.

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Heidi, they either want their jobs back or they want 60 days pay. That's what they're supposed to get under the federal law -- 60 days pay as notice of a layoff.

Now, we're actually inside the lobby area of this window and door making factory. You can see that this is a very well organized protest by the Union, here. They have different things talking about solidarity, we're going to have victory. Welcome to day four of their sit-in. What they call a peaceful occupation.

We talked to several workers here, Heidi, who said they really like their jobs. That this was a good job. They'd worked here a long time until something strange started to happen last week. They started to see some of the equipment going out the door.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MELVIN MACLIN, UNION WORKER: We had started to notice things like machines disappearing from the plant during the weekends, under the cover of darkness. So, we began asking questions. And management assured us everything was fine.

MARK MEINSTER, NAT'L UNION REP: These people will be out on the streets three weeks before Christmas, with nothing. But what's happening here is, workers decided to stand up and say, no, enough is enough. You got that big bailout. You can make sure that we get the money that we're owed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROESGEN: Now, again, you're looking just past the lobby area, part of the plant we can't go into. But you can see there's a lot of inventory there.

Workers say they got notice last Tuesday, that Friday would be their last day here. And so they decided they would stay. They'd figure this is the best way they could either try to hold onto their jobs or try to get that severance pay -- the 60 days pay that they're expecting.

Now we've got a lot of media here, Heidi, because we expect the governor to be coming soon. As you may know, yesterday, Barack Obama, the President-elect talked about the situation here. It's really become a flash point for people talking about layoffs and what can you do about it? And these workers, about 200 in total and about 20 per shift. About 20 different people are staying per shift here. Think by staying here, simply not moving, they might be able to get what they want.

COLLINS: Well, maybe that will work. We know you're going to stay on top of it for us. Let us know what happens throughout the day, OK?

Susan Roesgen, we sure do appreciate the story, coming to us from Chicago, this morning.

Well, as you probably know by now, 533,000 jobs were lost in the month of November. And we've been hearing a lot from you. So, check out the latest iReport, sent to us by Peter Kasselbock (ph), in Pennsylvania.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER KASSELBOCK, IREPORTER: This is my first layoff in over 30 years in research and development engineering. I've worked for just two companies in my career. But, I'm finding that there's not many jobs and there's a lot of competition for the few there are.

I had hoped to retire in five or six years. But now it's looking like I'll be working for quite a long time, once I find a job. I'm hopeful that the economy won't sink too much further and that my record of 30 years of inventing solutions to complex technical problems will catch the right HR manager's eye.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: So how is the economy affecting you? Send us your iReport by logging onto ireport.com. You can get all the latest from Wall Street and what's happening with your money on CNN.com, as well. Make sure you check that out.

The police killing of a teenager leading to riots in major cities across Greece. We'll get an update, coming from Athens.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: This just in to us here now at CNN. The Supreme Court has turned down an emergency appeal from a New Jersey man who actually said that President-elect Barack Obama was ineligible to be president because he was a British subject when he was born.

Just to give you some background on this. Leo Donofrio, he lives in East Brunswick, New Jersey. He said that since Barack Obama had dual nationality at birth, his mother was American and father, Kenyan. But, at the time, his father was a British subject, that he could not be a quote, "natural born citizen." Which is, as you know, one of the requirements of the Constitution listing for eligibility to be president.

And also just to let you know, the same man, Donofrio, contends the two other candidates, Republican John McCain and Socialist Workers candidate, Roger Calero are also not natural born citizens and thus ineligible to be president. All sort of after the fact, as you can see. But wanting to let you know the Supreme Court ruling now has turned it down, this emergency appeal. They did not make a comment on their ruling, though.

COLLINS: Protest, riots and destruction of property. It's happening across Greece, today. People there are furious about the fatal shooting over a teenager over the weekend. As the violence continues, spilling into Athens streets, U.S. and British embassies are urging tourists and employees hold-up in hotels there, to keep off the streets. The officer who fired the fatal shot has been charged by police.

CNN correspondent Phil Black is live now in Athens, with more on the story.

Phil, good morning to you.

PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, hello, Heidi. It does look like indeed, we are looking at a third night of violence here in Athens.

It was just a short time ago when the sun dipped below the horizon here. You can hear tear gas canisters going off just behind me here. As soon as the sun dipped below, crowds of rioters charged against police here, pushing them back, just here to the forecourt of the nation's Parliament.

The police pushed back, made some arrests, under heavy fire from debris, rocks, pieces of metal, anything they could get their hands on. And they have been firing tear gas. The air here is now thick with that acrid, stinging smell and sensation.

So, it appears that this is kicking off here in Athens again, for a third night. This all triggered by the anger over the death of that 15-year-old boy over the weekend, allegedly at the hands of Greek police. And we are told that similar scenes are taking place across the country as students have not been going to school or university today, but instead taking to the streets, venting their anger and frustration towards police -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Phil, you know, because you are hearing shots being fired behind you, we know that you a safe distance of course, away from where this is happening. We see it right over there, to the left of you, at least on our screen. And I'm not sure how much you can smell that tear gas. So, if you need to go, certainly let me know.

But, I just wonder. I know that a police statement came out after the teenage boy was killed. Clearly, people not satisfied with the police explanation.

BLACK: Very true. Basically, the police or the police officers involved, it's safe to say they were surrounded by or attacked by a group of young children while in a patrol car. They said that they needed to fight -- apparently officers involved said they fired what they described as warning shots. Having said that, the end result was the death of a 15-year-old child.

Now, it took place in a region where violence, political violence in particular, is not uncommon. Left-wing groups, self (INAUDIBLE) anarchists, if you would like, are said to clash with police in this area on a regular basis. They don't have a good relationship.

But, normally nobody gets hurt. This has gone further. There was already anger towards the police by many young people in this country. This has captured the feeling and ignited it in a very real way. As you can still see, it's going on behind me, here.

We are raised some distance from the activities that are going on just there. But, the police are still responding. Those tear gas canisters are still going off. The rioters and protesters have lit small fires in the area, as I say, just outside the front of the nation's parliament. It looks like it's going to go through the night again -- Heidi.

COLLINS: And once again, Phil, give us to the best of your knowledge, again, from where you are seated there. This is still a group of young people. I mean, these are mostly young people all across the country that are fighting back if you will, against police.

Or have adults now gotten involved, as well?

BLACK: It does appear to be the case. At least at the very sharp end of that anger towards police. It appears to be young people. Various ages. As I say, no one went to school today. No one went to university. So it meant that these young people really didn't have anywhere else to go. And they're pretty fired up over this.

Having said that, across the country there is widespread public outrage over the death of this boy. But, there is also anger over the violence, the disruption, the rioting that we're still seeing going on here tonight.

COLLINS: All right. CNN's Phil Black there for us, right above where it's all taking place. Where as you said, a third night in a row. Live from Athens, Greece.

And Phil, we'll stay in contact with you to get the very latest on the developments there. Thanks so much.

The great white way goes green. What Broadway theaters are doing now to help save the planet.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: The great white way says it's going green. New York City's theater district is looking to ease a load on Manhattan's electric grid. CNNMoney.com's Poppy Harlow has our Energy Fix from New York, that would be.

Hey there, Poppy. It's all about light bulbs, huh?

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: It's all about 10,000 light bulbs, actually. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has been really vocal about one of his goals for this city. One, is a 30 percent in reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by the year 2030. Broadway is joining in on that effort.

We've seen 10 theaters replacing 10,000 light bulbs with energy- efficient ones. That saves a lot of energy. The rest of the Broadway's theaters say they'll make the switch in the next year. They're pledging to use eco-friendly materials to build props and sets on top of changing those light bulbs. Greenberg (sic) also says New York's focus on landmarks is what makes it unique.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG (I), NEW YORK: In our case, only 20 percent of the carbon footprint comes from transportation, and 80 percent comes from buildings. If we can go and make all our buildings pollute less and use less energy, we really do have a chance to leave our children and grandchildren a better world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARLOW: Exactly right. But not everything is going according to Bloomberg's plan.

A federal judge recently blocked a move to require most New York City taxis to be hybrid by the year 2012, saying only the federal government can set fuel-efficiency standards.

Now the city is trying a different tactic. They're offering financial incentives to taxi fleet owners for going green. The idea is to have the owners charge the drivers $3 more every shift to use a hybrid. That will generate about $2,000 a year in added revenue per vehicle. The drivers, meantime, of those hybrids will save about $5,000 a year on gas costs. The big problem, though, Heidi, tumbling oil and gas prices, a major block to this.

We saw gas prices fall for an 82nd straight day. Today that makes going green a lot less attractive -- Heidi.

COLLINS: All right. CNNMoney.com's Poppy Harlow.

And probably now is a good time to mention why the bug, as we call it, the CNN thingy down there, at the bottom of the screen, is green.

HARLOW: The green bug.

COLLINS: Yes. "Planet in Peril" coming your way again this year. A fabulous show. It's going to be airing on Thursday nights at 9:00 Eastern. So make sure you don't miss that. That's why the bug is green. Going to be green all week.

Some winter storm warnings now in effect now. Meteorologist Rob Marciano is live in the severe weather center with more now.

And if you don't like snow, then you're probably feeling a little green right about now, too.

MARCIANO: That's true.

And well, you know, if you're feeling green, there's nothing like the green thingy dingy --

COLLINS: Thingy, dingy, yes right down there.

MARCIANO: -- to get you happy.

Check it out, some red on the map, Heidi. Some severe weather possible across the (INAUDIBLE) in here. Wrap-around moisture into the cold air, and that will bring some snow. Daytime temperatures today will be cold enough for snow across the Northeast. They saw some yesterday and over the weekend -- 31 in New York City and 26 in Toronto. In between the two cities is Rochester. Let's take a look at this city in upstate New York where we had an i-Report.

Nick Swann. I think we got it, bring him up.

Thanks Nick, for sending this in. Yes, you got some snow. Rochester, they got a little bit. And they'll probably see a little more --

COLLINS: Beautiful.

MARCIANO: -- before the day is done.

Thanks, Nick, for sending that in from Rochester, New York.

Cincinnati back through Indianapolis, some freezing rain in spots here. It will be slick. Winter storm watches and warnings posted for parts of Wisconsin. Five to 10 inches starting tonight and lasting until tomorrow night for folks who live West of Lake Michigan -- Heidi.

COLLINS: That's nothing. Five to 10 inches?

MARCIANO: Can of corn (ph).

COLLINS: All right. Rob Marciano, thanks so much. We'll check back later on.

She's 90 years old, still working in the fields and never been sick a day in her life. Her secret is an island secret. We'll let you in on it in just a minute.

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COLLINS: It's a part of the world where more people live to be 100 than anywhere else. And they're living active lives, too.

So what's the secret on the Japanese island of Okinawa? CNN's Kyung Lah went to find out.

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KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Amid the tall citrus trees of Okinawan, Japan, Tusne Ganaha is busy picking fruit as she does eight hours every day. It's not what she does, but who she is that's remarkable.

"I just turned 90," she says.

Age, 90. Climbing tree after tree, hauling down bags of fruit and doesn't remember a day she's ever been sick in her nearly 70 years on this farm. Ganaha's 54 and 61-year-old daughters say good luck trying to get her to retire. "We can't stop her," they say.

And why would they? She's the best climber in the family. Ganaha is just one of many very active seniors in their 90s and 100s in the town of Ogame (ph), defying the physical odds of age. Here they run, they dance, in a culture where Alzheimer's, cancer and heart disease is unheard of among these elders.

We met 96-year-old Toyohiti Tyra (ph), who loves to flirt with the ladies, who tells young people, "don't get married, you'll be sick of your spouse when you're 90."

CRAIG WILLCOX, OKINAWA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY: You're looking for a place that has that great mix of factors, then you've come to the right place.

LAH: Gerontologist, Craig Willcox has been studying longevity in Okinawa for 15 years, an island that has the highest percentage of centenarians anywhere in the world.

He points to a number of factors. The Okinawan diet, very low in fat, salt and sugar. This is traditional lunch plate is filled with papaya (ph), tofu and dark leafy vegetables. At this weekend event, they snack on citrus fruits and sip unsweetened green tea. They exercise and work well into old age. There's a good, affordable health care system that focuses on prevention and a strong sense of community that values optimism where older people remain active and respected.

Willcox says any community can replicate this.

WILLCOX: We still refer to these types of diseases as age- associated disease back in North America. Well, people don't do that anymore here. There's a tremendous amount of control that people have over these diseases, if they live the right lifestyle.

LAH (on camera): Just like this?

So you eat this as you're working?

(voice over): Tusne Ganaha's family swears by a daily dose of Okinawan citrus.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

LAH (on camera): It's sour.

(voice over): But more importantly, working and being close to family. A recipe she says will keep her hiking these hills for more years to come.

Kyung Lah, CNN, Okinawa, Japan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Not such bad tips, huh?

I'm Heidi Collins. Join us again tomorrow morning beginning at 9:00 a.m. Eastern.

For now, CNN NEWSROOM continues with Tony Harris.