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Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees
Life, Death of Pat Tillman; Showdown in Fallujah
Aired April 23, 2004 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Good evening, I'm Anderson Cooper. An American patriot dies in Afghanistan his story next on 360.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER (voice-over): He turned down a multimillion dollar NFL contract to serve his country. Now he's paid the ultimate price, tonight the life and death of Pat Tillman.
Photos of the fallen, what veterans' families think about showing images of their loved ones coming home.
Showdown in Fallujah, the U.S. gives an ultimatum to Iraqi insurgents.
It's a best-selling book but is it just full of fiction, tonight two men who say they've got "The Da Vinci Code" cracked.
And command and conquer an endless ocean curl, a story of survival in pursuit of the ultimate wave.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANNOUNCER: Live from the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is ANDERSON COOPER 360.
COOPER: We begin with a pro football player turned Army Ranger killed in action in eastern Afghanistan. Pat Tillman, just one of the five service members who died in combat in Afghanistan and Iraq this week, his death no more, no less tragic than any of theirs but tonight Pat Tillman has reminded many of us that the fighting in Afghanistan is far from over.
Frank Buckley reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Pat Tillman was a successful safety in the NFL making millions, a bright future ahead but the events of 9/11 had a profound impact on the 25- year-old football player. Here's what he said on 9/12.
PAT TILLMAN, KILLED IN AFGHANISTAN: You know my great grandfather was at Pearl Harbor and a lot of my family has given up, you know, has gone and fought in wars and I really haven't done a damn thing as far as laying myself on the line like that and so I have a great deal of respect for those that have.
BUCKLEY: Soon after that interview, Tillman walked away from the game and its glories and with his younger brother joined the U.S. Army.
MICHAEL BIDWILL, V.P., ARIZONA CARDINALS: In sports we have a tendency to overuse terms like courage and bravery and heroes and then someone special like Pat Tillman comes along and reminds us what those terms really mean.
BUCKLEY: Flags were at half staff at the stadium where Tillman once played, first as an Arizona State linebacker and later as an Arizona Cardinal free safety. Now there are makeshift memorials here and at the Arizona Cardinals training facility.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's really sad that somebody that was willing to give that up gets taken.
BUCKLEY: People who never met Pat Tillman came to pay their respects to a football player who seemed to have it all.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He walked away from it to do something he believed even more deeply in, which is the fight for freedom and I just think he's going to go down in history as one of the true great heroes of our time.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BUCKLEY: And back here live at the Arizona training facility, the outpouring of emotion continuing, people leaving their expressions of condolences signing a piece of paper, the jersey of Pat Tillman on display for everyone to see. There's been a steady stream of people here.
There have been statements from around the country from so many people but one from Arizona, Senator John McCain we'll quote from. He's no stranger to military service himself. He calls Pat Tillman an inspiration with his unexpected choice of duty to his country over the riches and other comforts of celebrity -- Anderson.
COOPER: Frank Buckley thanks very much for that report. It is so sad.
Here's a 360 "Fast Fact" on U.S. casualties in Afghanistan. One hundred and seventeen U.S. troops have been killed during Operation Enduring Freedom since October, 2001. Of those, 50 died by hostile fire.
We'll have more on Pat Tillman later in the program.
In Iraq, of course, the casualties much higher and tonight there is growing potential for even more violence. In a fiery sermon today, militant Shiite Muslim cleric Muqtada al-Sadr whom coalition forces have vowed to capture or kill warned of suicide attacks if U.S. forces struck the holy cities of Karbala and Najaf. And all was not calm in Karbala today. A Bulgarian soldier died after his convoy was attacked by suspected insurgents. Meanwhile, militants are on notice in Fallujah to either put down their weapons or U.S. Marines could strike within days.
With that here's CNN's Senior Pentagon Correspondent Jamie McIntyre.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The Pentagon sees the showdown in Fallujah as a potentially pivotal battle in the war against Iraqi insurgents. After enduring nearly two weeks of a one-sided cease-fire and fruitless negotiations with town elders, the U.S. is signaling Marines will storm the city within days.
BRIG. GEN. MARK KIMMITT, DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF COALITION OPERATIONS: These discussions must bear fruit. Our patience is not eternal.
BUCKLEY: The 2,000 or so Marines surrounding Fallujah have come under regular fire from within the city and U.S. demands to surrender all heavy weapons have been met with a paltry assortment of military junk, rusty guns and dud bombs.
KIMMITT: It would not appear that we should go on much longer with this fiction.
BUCKLEY: Fallujah is seen as different from the rest of Iraq and Pentagon officials predict it may be the last stand for remnants of the old regime.
PAUL BREMER, U.S. CIVIL ADMINISTRATOR: Some of these men belong to the banished instruments of Saddam's repression, the foreign intelligence services and former Republican Guards.
MCINTYRE: Among the fighters in Fallujah are believed to be some of Saddam Hussein's most highly trained and effective troops from the old M-14 antiterrorism directorate.
PAUL WOLFOWITZ, DEPUTY DEFENSE SECRETARY: Antiterrorism is an Orwellian phrase. It, in fact, was a terrorist unit that specialized in hijackings, assassinations and explosives.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MCINTYRE: The Pentagon believes that many of the remaining diehards are trapped in Fallujah and that wiping them out now offers the best chance of breaking the back of the resistance -- Anderson.
COOPER: All right, Jamie McIntyre at the Pentagon thanks Jamie.
If it comes down to fighting in Fallujah, the battle is expected to be very tough. CNN National Security Analyst Ken Robinson joins us from Atlanta, Ken good to see you. Urban combat, one of the toughest kinds there is. What are the Marines likely to face? KEN ROBINSON, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Anderson, as you know from your experience covering Somalia, it's a real messy business. They've got to have a really targeted, focused strategy to be able to move into the city because it requires house to house fighting and there's a political cost to that both against the enemy and against the coalition. They'll take high casualties and they'll create civilian casualties and they've got to be really surgical in their application of power.
COOPER: And figuring out who is a combatant and who is not is very, very difficult.
ROBINSON: The rules of engagement are going to be incredibly tough for the Marines because the only way you figure out who a combatant is, is who's carrying a weapon or who's firing a weapon at you because everyone dresses and looks the same.
COOPER: There's also the issue of these holy shrines. In the past, Iraqi insurgents have used them as a base of operations.
ROBINSON: That's going to be one of the hardest rules of engagement for them and right now I know that one of the rules of engagement is they do return fire on these sites. Attacking these shrines it has to be done in a very surgical and measured way also but, at the same time, they're not going to allow them to be sanctuaries.
COOPER: And can technology be used effectively in this kind of urban combat environment?
ROBINSON: It has to be. There has to be human intelligence merged with technology, the Predator drones, the imagery to be able to do precise precision raids on targets that they know of. They think that maybe the insurgent groups there aren't as large as they thought they were simply by the fact that they recognized their own limits to power and agreed to a compromise of the initial negotiation.
So it's really going to have to be surgically applied power to avoid isolating the population and causing civilian casualties while they surgically try to take out these fighters but they've got to come out and fight and they tend to blend into the countryside.
COOPER: Well, let's hope it doesn't come down to that but it looks like it's going to. Ken Robinson thanks very much.
A surprising homecoming for the Japanese hostages released from their captors in Iraq this week. They received anything but a heroes welcome greeted only by a hostile government and a hostile public, their sin defying Okami (ph) the higher good.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER (voice-over): The Japanese hostages arrived home not to yellow ribbons but to hostile crowds and tabloid scrutiny. As they stepped off the plane they bowed in apology while protesters held signs calling them Japan's shame. The three civilians were captured two weeks ago. Their captors were seen holding knives tot heir throats. Their frightened families pleaded for their release but when their families asked the Japanese government to meet the captives' demands, to withdraw its 550 troops from Iraq, the public turned against them accusing them of putting their individual needs before the public good and foolishly going where the government had warned them not to.
And it only got worse when some of the hostages said they wanted to return to the war zone. Now the government says it will charge the hostages $6,000 for their airfare home.
JUNICHIRO KOIZUMI, JAPANESE PRIME MINISTER (through translator): I want those who flew into Iraq ignoring the government's warning to (unintelligible) how much (unintelligible) my staff made working around the clock to solve the problems they caused.
COOPER: The hostages have reportedly gone into hiding afraid to face the public and the press, hostages it would seem in their own homeland.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Fascinating.
Disaster areas in Illinois that story tops our look at news "Cross Country" tonight, President Bush declares four counties hit by tornadoes eligible for federal assistance. Eight people were killed in the town of Utica, hardest hit earlier this week.
In Baltimore, Maryland, consequences of a stunt, college student Nathaniel Hawthorne pleads guilty to hiding box cutters aboard several airplanes to point out lapses in airline security. The 20-year-old was originally charged with a felony. That has since been reduced but he could still get jail time as well as a hefty fine.
In Florida tonight, check your phone bill. AT&T is blaming a computer glitch for wrongly billing over a million people. Get this. Most of them aren't AT&T customers. A charge of $4.77 has been mysteriously appearing on phone bills each month since January. Check your bills.
Denver, Colorado, spring snow, a late season storm wreaks havoc in parts of Colorado, hard to believe. Over a foot of snow shuts down some highways and schools. Several hundred residents are still without power. That's a quick look at stories "Cross Country" for you tonight.
Well, John Kerry and the Vatican, a stern warning against politicians who support abortion rights. Will it be a factor in the campaign? That's coming up.
Also, the politics of pictures, should images of war coffins be banned? We're going to hear from military families on both sides of the issue.
Plus, cracking The Da Vinci Code" is there a hidden agenda in the best-selling novel? Some claim there is. We'll talk to them.
First, let's take a look at your picks, the most popular stories at cnn.com right now.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: The issues of church and state have never hit so close to home for John Kerry. A practicing Catholic, his stance on abortion simply doesn't square with church teaching. Today he talked about it during a rally in D.C. A prominent clergyman weighed in on the issue as well.
CNN's Kelly Wallace reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KELLY WALLACE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: In Washington, John Kerry, the Catholic, touts his support of abortion rights.
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We are going to have a change of leadership in this country to protect the right of choice.
WALLACE: While at the Vatican, a top cardinal speaks out. When Cardinal Francis Arinze was asked if a Catholic politician who supports abortion rights should be denied communion he told reporters: "The person is not fit. If he shouldn't receive it then it shouldn't be given."
But when pressed about Kerry, the cardinal would only say: "The Catholic Church exists in the U.S. There are bishops there. Let them interpret it." The cardinal appeared to be expressing his own views as there is no official Vatican policy on the issue.
Two weeks ago, Senator Kerry defended his beliefs.
KERRY: I fully intend to continue to practice my religion separately from what I do with respect to my public life.
WALLACE: Days later, Kerry received communion during Easter mass angering some American Catholics who believe he should pay a price for his views on abortion rights. The issue now in the hands of a task force of bishops headed by Cardinal McCarrick the Archbishop of Washington, D.C. who Kerry asked to meet with last week.
Catholics opposed to abortion rights say the Vatican cardinal's comments should encourage American bishops to sanction the Senator, while abortion rights supporters in the church accuse Catholic bishops in the Vatican of playing politics.
FRANCES KISSLING, PRESIDENT, CATHOLICS FOR FREE CHOICE: They just don't know what to do about the fact that a visible Catholic presidential nominee doesn't agree with them on the abortion issue.
(END VIDEOTAPE) WALLACE: And the debate will likely continue among Catholics who make up about one-quarter of the U.S. population but, Anderson, when it comes to the bishops they're not expected to issue any decisions until after the presidential election.
COOPER: The debate is definitely not going away. Kelly Wallace thanks.
WALLACE: Sure.
COOPER: Well, the Israeli prime minister says Yasser Arafat is now fair game. That story tops our look at global stories in the "Up Link."
In Jerusalem, Ariel Sharon says he's no longer bound by his three-year-old pledge not to harm Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. The Bush administration strongly opposes the change and is pressing Sharon to keep his pledge.
Ryongchon, North Korea, rare plea for aid, the secretive government there is inviting aid workers and diplomats to the site of yesterday's railway explosion. Hundreds are still feared dead, thousands injured in what Pyongyang is calling an industrial accident.
Libya now, U.S. trade sanctions ease. President Bush is allowing American firms to resume trade with Tripoli and buy Libyan oil as a reward for Libya giving up its weapons of mass destruction.
Bangkok, Thailand now, massive slum fire black clouds of smoke hung over downtown embassies and five-star hotels when up to 500 homes burned in the densely populated area. Several apartment buildings were also evacuated. No word on casualties right now.
Rodonia, Brazil, prison uprising ends. The weeklong revolt took 14 lives ending after authorities accepted prisoners' demands and the rioters released 170 hostages most relatives of inmates. Authorities say some of the bodies were mutilated. Most of the prison was destroyed.
Well, is "The Da Vinci Code" anti-Christian? Two authors now say the best-selling book has a secret agenda. We'll see what the controversy is all about. That's ahead.
Also tonight, the Pentagon banning these images of war, is it all to protect the families? We'll ask two of them.
And, a remarkable story about surfing in the Amazon catching a big wave on the big river.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Well by publishing standards it's a first-rate thriller. Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code" has already sold more than seven million copies. The novel weaves a provocative hypothetical scenario about the life and death of Jesus Christ, which has some Christian groups outraged. So, it should come as no surprise then that new books are now being published to crack Da Vinci's code. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER (voice-over): It begins with a murder in the Louvre. The first clue comes in the form of Leonardo's best known drawing "The Vitruvian Man." But as the mystery unravels, the reader is led to other mysteries in other masterpieces, wheels within wheels, the secrets revealed in "The Last Supper" and the "Mona Lisa" opened the doors to the Catholic Church's secret societies, some real, some maybe not so real.
It's no secret that the book is incredibly popular. It spent 56 weeks on the best-seller list much of that time at No. 1, and it's no surprise that some of the questions raised by "The Da Vinci Code" are causing controversy among Christians.
What was Jesus' real relationship with Mary Magdalene? Was there such a thing as the Holy Grail? The author says the book is a work of fiction, so why then are some biblical scholars working so hard to crack the code?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Well, joining us now are two of those scholars, James Garlow and Peter Jones, two Christian researchers who say "The Da Vinci Code" undermines the integrity of the Christian faith. They have just come out with their own book in response called "Cracking Da Vinci's Code," appreciate you being on the program.
JAMES GARLOW, CO-AUTHOR, "CRACKING DA VINCI'S CODE": I like to be with you.
COOPER: They say this is a novel. This is a work of fiction yet you say the Da Vinci code book has a hidden agenda. What in your opinion is the hidden agenda?
GARLOW: For one thing people are taking it seriously. It is a novel admittedly and if people were only treating it as a novel we wouldn't be writing books about it either but the fact is people are taking it seriously and it is redefining the understanding of who God is.
COOPER: But you think the author, Dan Brown, has this hidden anti-Christian agenda basically.
PETER JONES, CO-AUTHOR, "CRACKING DA VINCI'S CODE": He does say apparently in public that he was convinced by a new spirituality and that he felt called to make it known throughout the culture.
COOPER: Dan Brown though says that he is a Christian and that he, you know, it may not be your view of Christianity but he considers himself a Christian and that this book is really prompting theological discussions and therefore is a good thing.
JONES: You know we are in the presence of sort of a watershed in the culture as to what life means and essentially the question is who is God? And you have two definitions of God going and I think people are wondering which one is the right one and I think Dan Brown...
COOPER: When you say there are two definitions, explains.
JONES: Two definitions of God, one is that God is the transcendent creator and redeemer, has his own existence.
COOPER: Is separate from the rest?
JONES: But separate from creation. The other is a more pantheistic view of God where you find God within. And, though this is fiction, the novel has this agenda within it and communicates that view of God and there are Christians buying that view of God and so we felt like we needed to, you know, right the ship.
COOPER: But I mean some will say you're being intolerant. I mean can no novel be written which deviates from your interpretation of Christianity?
GARLOW: He can write anything he wants. He has the right to do that. The issue is one of historical accuracy or historical fallacies. He makes such claims that Jesus was not considered divine until the year 325 in (unintelligible).
The evidence is quite to the contrary. The original followers all saw him as divine and all the early writers of the first and second century saw him as divine.
COOPER: And it's things like, I mean one of I guess the characters in "Da Vinci Code," which I have not read, talks about Jesus marrying Mary Magdalene having children. That sort of thing is one of the things that...
JONES: That's not so bothersome actually. Marriage is a good thing. It's just that it's doubtful and all scholars will say that, that Jesus was ever married.
COOPER: So what do you hope to do with your book? I mean what is the objective?
GARLOW: Well, one of the things I hope to do is get people to reexamine the issues that Dan Brown raises, which is a good thing, and that is, is their New Testament reliable, yes or no?
COOPER: So, in that sense you agree almost with Dan Brown that bringing up these theological issues is a good thing?
GARLOW: Well, I'm glad they brought up, unfortunately I think he has written a document that's historically unreliable because he raises the question is the New Testament reliable and was Jesus considered divine, for example prior to the year 325 or did Constantine manipulate this into existence as he contends?
Now the fact is he's in error historically on both those issues but the good thing is a lot of people are going to look at that issue and try to get answers for it and that's encouraging. COOPER: Well, I know the book is doing really well. I look forward to reading it this weekend. Jim Garlow thanks very much and Peter Jones as well. Thank you very much.
JONES: You're very welcome.
GARLOW: It's an honor to be with you.
COOPER: All right.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER (voice-over): He turned down a multimillion dollar NFL contract to serve his country. Now he's paid the ultimate price, tonight the life and death of Pat Tillman.
Photos of the fallen, what veterans' families think about showing images of their loved ones coming home.
And command and conquer, an endless ocean curl, a story of survival in pursuit of the ultimate wave, 360 continues.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Let's take a look at our top stories in tonight's "Reset."
Washington, "Plan of Attack" author Bob Woodward standing by his claim that Saudi Arabia's Prince Bandar learned of the U.S. decision to go to war with Iraq before Colin Powell. Woodward tells CNN Bandar's assertions to the contrary are false.
Kansas City, Missouri now, Doonesbury censored. One of the comic strip's characters, B.D., recently lost a leg fighting in Iraq and today's episode showed him cursing his injury. Several newspapers removed the expletive. Others simply left the strip out of today's paper.
Washington, two Democratic Senators want an investigation into the Pentagon's treatment of Army Captain James Yee. Yee, a Muslim chaplain at Guantanamo Bay's detention center, was detained for months on espionage charges that eventually were dropped. Senators Edward Kennedy and Carl Levin say the case raises serious questions about military justice.
Pomona, California now, police officer killed. Police say a 16- year-old gunned down a highway patrol officer simply to gain entry into a gang. The Los Angeles district attorney calls it the ultimate hate crime, and that's a look at stories in today's "Reset."
Well, after September 11, many Americans were motivated to do something but few went to the degree of Pat Tillman. The star NFL player decided to join the Army and he did just that after returning from his honeymoon. When it was made public, Tillman did not grant interviews. He did not try to make himself a celebrity. He just wanted to help in the war against terror. He died Thursday.
Earlier I spoke with one of Tillman's former teammates and friend Jamir Miller.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Jamir, what was your reaction when you heard Pat had been killed?
JAMIR MILLER, FMR. TEAMMATE OF PAT TILLMAN: I didn't believe it. I didn't believe it. It was kind of like disbelief. I was told when I was dropping my kids off at school this morning. A teacher came over and said, did you hear the news? And I was like, no, you know. She said, he told me Pat Tillman died over in Afghanistan today.
I didn't believe him. And so I went home. Checked out the Internet. Checked out the TV. I saw that it was valid. And I was just kind of like -- just remembering him, you know. I just started to think back and remember the life that he lived. And remembered him alive.
COOPER: I understand that when you first met him, you kind of thought he was a hippie. You didn't really know he was a patriot.
MILLER: Most definitely. You know, I still feel that way about him, you know.
COOPER: How so?
MILLER: He's a hippie patriot. When I first met him, you have to remember, he had long hair. His hair was probably below his shoulders. Longer than a lot of women. And he was wearing Birkenstocks and beat up jeans a shirt with a lot of holes in it.
COOPER: I guess you don't see a lot of Birkenstocks in the NFL?
MILLER: Not really, you know what I mean? He looked homeless. If you looked at him and said, that guy plays in the NFL, you would probably say, you're crazy. But he came out there and he had the heart of a champion. He came out there and he played and he played as hard as he possibly could. And he gave it 100 percent. His work ethic was unbelievable.
COOPER: He walked away from a multi-million-dollar contract in order to do this. He was earning below $20,000 a year with the Army. When you heard he was going to do this, what did you think?
MILLER: You know, I thought he was making a mistake. I thought he was kind of being overzealous and caught up in the moment. When I got the opportunity to talk to him, you know, we ran into each other, and I asked him why was he doing it, he said, because he feels it's the right thing for him to do. And this is what he wants to do with his self. This is what he wants to do with his life.
That's what I understood. You know what, every man has a path that they go down. And the decisions that they make kind of mold the person that they are, you know.
Pat Tillman, in my eyes, and probably in the eyes of all you viewers out there, is the model of an overachiever. If you saw him standing in a grocery line, you wouldn't think that that guy played strong safety in the NFL at all. I'm just telling you.
So he did that part. He overcame those obstacles. Maybe he thought that -- I know in his heart, he felt that he could go and make a huge difference over there. Which he did. In which, now in death, I hope he's doing it even better. I hope his message still goes on.
COOPER: You're proud of him?
MILLER: I am, yes. Because he did it his way, you know. And how many of us can really say that. And I mean it.
COOPER: How do you think he should be remembered?
MILLER: I think he should be remembered as a guy who kept his word. You know, he said what he was going to do, he meant what he said and said what he meant. And when he said this is what he was going to do, he did it. His character speaks volumes, volumes.
I think, you know, that's the type of guy he should be remembered as. If we have a patriot in this day and age, I don't know -- all Americans are patriots now, but I think this one guy here, I think he might have us all beat.
COOPER: I agree with you on that. Jamir, I appreciate you being on the program. Thank you.
MILLER: No problem. Thanks for having me.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Pat Tillman is the first NFL player to die in combat since Vietnam, where in 1968, rookie of the year, Bob Kalsu was killed. The former Buffalo Bill was one of two NFL players who died in that war. During World War II, 21 NFL players were killed.
Well, sometimes the loss of a soldier's life has made more profound when an image tells the story. The Pentagon says it was a mistake to release more than 300 photos of flag draped coffins returning from Iraq.
The White House also saying today it stands by its policy to deny the media access to such pictures. But whether you agree with the ban or not, some images go beyond the raw politics of war.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER (voice-over): This is what led to the ban. In 1989, CNN juxtaposed live images of coffins arriving at Dover Air Force base with its coverage of a live presidential news briefing. It said to have angered President Bush. A year later the Pentagon banned the release of U.S. soldiers' coffins citing concern for the privacy grieving families. And decision a federal court upheld in 1996.
Images of fallen soldiers have always been a powerful reminder of the true cost of war. Starting with Matthew Brady's pictures of the civil war.
During the Vietnam War, images of coffins and body bags had a profound impact on the tolerance level of the nation. Yet some administrations have used such images to rally support.
WILLIAM JEFFERSON CLINTON, FRM. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We will find you, and justice will prevail.
COOPER: In 2000, after the attacks on the USS Cole, President Clinton attended the ceremonies and allowed them to be broadcast live. Perhaps taking a page from Ronald Reagan.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who now is pinning individual Purple Hearts.
COOPER: Who in 1985, pinned Purple Hearts on caskets of marines killed in El Salvador.
The first Bush Administration first allowed pictures from coffins from Afghanistan to be released. But in March 2003, right before U.S. led forces invaded Iraq, the Pentagon decided the ban would be enforced. And that's why the woman who took this picture, an employee of a military subcontracter in Kuwait got fired.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Well, we want to talk to two families now of soldiers who lost their lives in Iraq. Just before we went on air, I spoke to Sue Niederer. She was on her way to a memorial for her son, Seth Dvorin an army lieutenant who died last February.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Sue, I'm so sorry for your loss. When your son was returned, would it have been all right with you if his flag-draped coffin was shown on television and newspapers?
SUE NIEDERER, LOST SON IN IRAQ (via telephone): Yes. Absolutely. I would have been very proud for that to have happened.
COOPER: Why do you think the -- there's this policy not allowing the coffins to be shown?
NIEDERER: Well, I believe that President Bush does not want people, the American people to see the reality of what is really occurring. When you see -- when you just hear figures, and you read about people being killed, it doesn't really stick in your mind. But when you see an actual coffin, it's a reality check. It is physically there. You now know that there is a family mourning a loss. COOPER: So is it -- I mean, is it a political act on your part to want this, that you oppose the war, and therefore, you want these coffins to be seen? Or is it more -- is it something else?
NIEDERER: It has nothing to do with politics, whatsoever. I was never politically motivated prior to this. This is what life and death is all about. We are in a war. Why not show what this war is all about. And what it's creating in the havoc for the families who have lost ones. This is seeing what is. And not just reading about it.
COOPER: Some say it's too personal to be shown, that some families want the privacy. Do you understand that?
NIEDERER: Yes. If a family chooses not to have their loved one's coffin shown, then I believe it should be their prerogative to have that. But I also believe very firmly that, for myself, and many, many others, that allows us to grieve our children, and my case my child, OK, on American ground.
That's my last farewell to my son. And I believe that I should have, and everyone should have that prerogative to do that. And if I choose to have the media there, then it's my prerogative to have the media there.
COOPER: Sue, I know it's a difficult topic for you to talk about. A difficult day for you. Sue Niederer, appreciate you joining us. Thank you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Well, our next guest, former Army Specialist Ivan Medina lost his twin brother Irving in Iraq. But unlike Sue, Ivan thinks photos of the returning dead should not be published. He joins us now over the phone from Hinesville, Georgia.
Ivan, thank you for being with us. I'm so sorry for your loss. Why are you opposed to the release of images of coffins being returned?
IVAN MEDINA, LOST TWIN BROTHER IN IRAQ (via telephone): I oppose it, because I think it's a very private moment between not only the family itself, but also for the soldiers. The minute they die, they have soldiers with them until the minute they arrive home. And there's an impact between the soldiers and the fallen soldier that goes with that. And it becomes too personal. And you're exploiting something that you shouldn't.
COOPER; You feel it's exploitation. There are some who says showing the coffin shows the reality of war. Does that sound like a political argument and not understanding of personal needs?
MEDINA: Well, it is a political argument, I would say. And I don't think that we should basically do this for politics. I think we should give the honor to those soldiers. I don't have no problem with showing coffins. But, you know, we never do it when somebody gets killed, or gets murdered by another person. We don't see them bringing the coffins and everything.
We are at war. We are a country at war. But we also have to remember that we have to honor the soldiers. And the soldiers doing that are very much honoring them. And it becomes very personal to them.
COOPER: Ivan Medina, I appreciate you sharing your perspective. Thank you very much.
MEDINA: Thank you.
COOPER: Today's "Buzz" is this, "do you want to see images of caskets arriving from Iraq? Do you think you should?" Log onto CNN.com/360 to vote. We'll have the results at the end of the show.
Just ahead tonight, politics unplugged: the names on everyone's lips this week. Plus, a cheating wife caught. That's not Bob Woodward. A cheating wife caught: a court orders her lover to pay up -- an unbelievable story you're definitely going to want to hear.
And surfing through the Amazon: the wild ride through piranha infested waters. That just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: In justice served tonight, if you're thinking of cheating on your spouse, you might want to think twice considering this next story. A man in North Carolina sued the doctor he said coerced his wife into having an affair. Sued the doctor and he won more than $500,000. Court TV anchor Lisa Bloom is here to try to explain how this is possible.
LISA BLOOM, ANCHOR, COURT TV: It's tough.
COOPER: How is this possible?
BLOOM: There are seven states where you can actually bring these kinds of lawsuits. They're called alienation of affections, criminal conversation. Let's say I'm in a rocky marriage. It happens. You try to woo me away. A girl can dream. My husband could sue you for alienation of affections, even if nothing happened between us. Just for you making a suggestion.
COOPER: So there's two legal requirements for this, alienation of affection, and there's also the other one...
BLOOM: Criminal conversation. That's where there's actual sexual relations that take place. That's a different tort.
COOPER: So someone -- you either are having an affair with someone, in which case the spouse can sue the person you're having the affair with, or a family member, your mother, can say to you, you should get out of that relationship. BLOOM: Leave the bum. Those are actionable words.
COOPER: And the husband can sue the mother.
BLOOM: Exactly, for alienation of affections. And there are some sizable awards that come down. There's the one today that you made mention of...
COOPER: $500,000.
BLOOM: Half a million dollars. There have been awards up to $1.2 million.
COOPER: I understand some of these awards have been appealed and upheld.
BLOOM: Right. Because that is the law in those states. The idea behind the law is the sanctity of marriage. We don't want people coming in messing around with other people's marriages. We want those marriages respected.
COOPER: Let's look at the list if we have it of the states where this takes place. I know it's North Carolina. Do we have the list on there? There's the map. If you live in one of these states, you better be careful.
BLOOM: You've got to wonder, Anderson, does this deter anyone from having an affair. If they're going to have an affair, is this really going to stop them? Of course, only wealthy people tend to get sued. If someone doesn't have any money, no lawyer is going to take the case to sue them. How it really plays out is in divorce proceedings. The non-cheating spouse is going to get a little bit more money in a divorce settlement than the other one.
COOPER: You're saying that the spouse who doesn't want the divorce, or one of the spouses in the divorce is actually using this law?
BLOOM: Right. In states like New York or California, the majority of states that no-fault divorce, if someone's having an affair, the non-cheating spouse doesn't get any more money. You simply divide the assets in half as a general rule. In these seven states that you just pointed where these lawsuits can occur, the non- cheating spouse can get more money in the divorce settlement because the other one has committed a tort, a civil wrong and you can get more money as a result.
COOPER: It's fascinating. I had no idea this was possible.
BLOOM: I'm here to tell you it happens.
COOPER: Lisa Bloom, thank you very much.
It is not unusual for Washington to be dominated for one story for days at a time. We all know this. As you'll see in tonight's politics unplugged, this week there was just one name on everyone's lips.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bob Woodward's work is a very very serious document.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not going to comment on the Woodward book.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Woodward alleges in his book...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The recent allegations in Bob Woodward's new book...
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Bob Woodward revealed...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If Mr. Woodward is correct...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Read the book by Bob Woodward.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The book lays out very complex details.
BOB WOODWARD, AUTHOR, "PLAN OF ATTACK": The Saudis hope to control oil prices in the ten months running up to the election.
KERRY: If, as Bob Woodward reports, it is true, that gas supplies and prices in America are tied to the American election...
WOODWARD: This was a meeting to tell Colin Powell that a decision had been made.
SEN. HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON (D), NEW YORK: It's stunning to just run through in your mind the implications of just that paragraph in this book.
COLIN POWELL, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: The suggestion that somehow a plan was presented to Prince Bandar that I was not familiar with, is just flat wrong.
DONALD RUMSFELD, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I've just been passed a note, via my friend General Pace, that goes back to the question I answered on the Woodward transcripts.
POWELL: As Mr. Woodward notes at one point in the book, this may sound a little improper. But when the vice president and I are alone, it's Colin and Dick.
RUMSFELD: And you can take that to the bank.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: And that was the week that was. Politics unplugged. Come along on a wild surfing safari. Still ahead. Riding the waves of the Amazon river. Surf's up. So are the man-eating fish.
Also tonight from "Alias" to time traveler, a look at Jennifer Garner's new movie and other flicks heading your way in the weekender.
And a little later in the current -- she's back. Paris Hilton. You've seen the video, now watch the movie. We'll tell you about it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Excuse me.
Surfers seeking the ultimate ride may want to check out the Amazon River, where the brave are hanging five on a real killer wave. Just watch out for those piranhas. CNN's Harris Whitbeck has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS WHITBECK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sunrise on the banks of the Atahyatu (ph) river in Brazil's Amazon jungle. Twenty- four-year-old Serginio Laos (ph) performs his daily stretching routine as he prepares for a huge challenge.
After waxing his board and climbing into a motor launch, he prays for a few seconds. Serginio (ph) is about to take on the longest wave in the world, the bororoka (ph). The tidal wave formed near the river's mouth on the Atlantic Ocean.
It occurs twice a year. It's fast and strong. And it can last for over an hour at a height of nearly 10 feet.
The wave can travel at up to 20 kilometers per hour, but also the water can be infested with piranhas, poisonous snakes and crocodiles.
To get to the wave, surfers motor out to the river shortly before the tides change. Sitting in launches, surf boards ready, they listen for the distant roar that heralds its arrival. Lunging into the water with just enough time for the launches to motor to safety. Searching for and surfing the bororoka (ph) is to many, a pilgrimage.
(on camera): Surfers have been enthralled with the bororoka (ph) since the first pictures of it were seen back in 1973. They approach it with as much admiration as they do fear. They say surfing the wave is as much about cooperating with it as conquering it.
(voice-over): But conquer it they do, by surfing the wave for a very long time. The Brazilian Surfing Authority say the record is 36 minutes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a fusion. Yeah, you need your fusion. The wave and the person.
WHITBECK: Call him crazy, this was Serginio's (ph) fourth time.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We search for the perfect wave in the river. And the forest of the Amazon in Brazil. It's very crazy.
WHITBECK: Harris Whitbeck on the Atahyatu (ph) river in Amazonia, Brazil. (END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Man, piranhas.
Well, time to check on some pop news in tonight's "Current." Let's take a look at some lighter stuff. A porn company is set to release the Paris Hilton sex video -- you know this was going to happen -- as a DVD adult movie. Unlike the Internet version, the film will be shown in its entirety, maybe even including an audio commentary. Though frankly, we think their actions speak far louder than their words.
Marion "Sug" Knight was released from prison today after serving 10 months for a parole violation. The rap mogul has been behind bars several times in the last eight years, all on assault-related charges. I was going to make some sort of a joke, but frankly, we're just too scared of Sug to do it.
Anna Kournikova is being sued by her parents. They're seeking joint ownership of the tennis star's Miami home. We heard Kournikova has a good chance at trial giving her something that's eluded her for years, a major court win.
And another woman is coming forward to say she had an affair with David Beckham. Sarah Marbeck (ph), who worked as a high-class prostitute, says what she and the soccer star shared was very special, very powerful, and considering her rates, very reasonable.
Well, what are you going to do this weekend? Let's take a look at "The Weekender," where we give you a look at what's new in movies, home entertainment, and oh so much more. Let's take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm 15.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you're going to start lying about your age, I'd go with 27.
COOPER (voice-over): What Tom Hanks did for boys in "Big," Jennifer Garner is doing for girls in "13 Going on 30."
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I hate being 13. I just want to be grown up.
COOPER: She's an awkward teen who wants to be older. There's a shock. After getting her wish, Garner tries to adjust to her new body. And even might find the time to dance a bit.
DENZEL WASHINGTON, ACTOR: I got all the time in the world. You don't, but I do.
COOPER: If you're not in the romantic comedy mood, there's "Man on Fire." Denzel Washington in full tough guy mode, as a bodyguard going after the brutes who kidnapped the girl he was hired to protect. Careful with that rocket launcher, Denzel. New on DVD, more explosions, this time at sea, in "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World." Russell Crowe's the captain of his crew in a tense cat-and-mouse game against a much larger French ship during the Napoleonic wars.
Also on DVD, "Stuck on You," starring Matt Damon and Greg Kinnear. Who else but the Farrelly brothers would make a comedy about conjoined twins?
MATT DAMON, ACTOR: We're not Siamese, we're American.
COOPER: If you want to get out of the house, head to Wacarusa (ph), Indiana. It's the annual Wacarusa (ph) maple syrup festival, where 500 gallons of the gooey stuff will be poured atop thousands of pancakes.
And in concert, headbangers, get ready. Metallica stops off tomorrow night in Roanoke, Virginia. Rock on.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: All right. Coming up, all those ads for prescription medicine that plead to ask your doctor. Do you have any idea what that's about? We're going to take that to "The Nth Degree" ahead.
But first, today's "Buzz," do you think you should see the images of caskets arriving from Iraq? Log on to cnn.com/360. Cast your vote. Results when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Time now for "The Buzz." Earlier we asked, do you think the images of caskets arriving from Iraq should be shown? More than 20,000 of you have voted. Sixty-one percent of you said yes, 39 percent of you said no. It is not a scientific poll, but it is your buzz.
Tonight, taking mystery to "The Nth Degree." OK, we'll bite.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Crestor can help.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: What is this Crestor stuff we've been seeing ads for all over the place? Does it improve your backhand? What if you don't play tennis at all? Should you switch to something else?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This dog is suffering from allergies.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: With Celebrex, I will not settle.
(END VIDEO CLIP) COOPER: More to the point, does this kind of advertising actually work? Have you noticed there are an awful lot of "ask your doctor" commercials these days.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ask your doctor...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: They have pretty pictures, pretty much and pretty people, and leave you pretty much in the dark about what the drug actually does, except to suggest that you really ought to ask your health provider for a free starter pack.
Do people really do that? Do they sit down and say, hey, doc, I saw this pill on TV, I like the color and shape of it, do I have whatever it's good for? If I don't, can I develop it?
Does this kind of pitch make sense? I know, I know, what you're going to say, ask my doctor.
All next week on 360, we're going to be looking at the reality of our pill-popping nation. I'm Anderson Cooper. Thanks for watching. Coming up next, "PAULA ZAHN NOW."
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired April 23, 2004 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Good evening, I'm Anderson Cooper. An American patriot dies in Afghanistan his story next on 360.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER (voice-over): He turned down a multimillion dollar NFL contract to serve his country. Now he's paid the ultimate price, tonight the life and death of Pat Tillman.
Photos of the fallen, what veterans' families think about showing images of their loved ones coming home.
Showdown in Fallujah, the U.S. gives an ultimatum to Iraqi insurgents.
It's a best-selling book but is it just full of fiction, tonight two men who say they've got "The Da Vinci Code" cracked.
And command and conquer an endless ocean curl, a story of survival in pursuit of the ultimate wave.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANNOUNCER: Live from the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is ANDERSON COOPER 360.
COOPER: We begin with a pro football player turned Army Ranger killed in action in eastern Afghanistan. Pat Tillman, just one of the five service members who died in combat in Afghanistan and Iraq this week, his death no more, no less tragic than any of theirs but tonight Pat Tillman has reminded many of us that the fighting in Afghanistan is far from over.
Frank Buckley reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Pat Tillman was a successful safety in the NFL making millions, a bright future ahead but the events of 9/11 had a profound impact on the 25- year-old football player. Here's what he said on 9/12.
PAT TILLMAN, KILLED IN AFGHANISTAN: You know my great grandfather was at Pearl Harbor and a lot of my family has given up, you know, has gone and fought in wars and I really haven't done a damn thing as far as laying myself on the line like that and so I have a great deal of respect for those that have.
BUCKLEY: Soon after that interview, Tillman walked away from the game and its glories and with his younger brother joined the U.S. Army.
MICHAEL BIDWILL, V.P., ARIZONA CARDINALS: In sports we have a tendency to overuse terms like courage and bravery and heroes and then someone special like Pat Tillman comes along and reminds us what those terms really mean.
BUCKLEY: Flags were at half staff at the stadium where Tillman once played, first as an Arizona State linebacker and later as an Arizona Cardinal free safety. Now there are makeshift memorials here and at the Arizona Cardinals training facility.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's really sad that somebody that was willing to give that up gets taken.
BUCKLEY: People who never met Pat Tillman came to pay their respects to a football player who seemed to have it all.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He walked away from it to do something he believed even more deeply in, which is the fight for freedom and I just think he's going to go down in history as one of the true great heroes of our time.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BUCKLEY: And back here live at the Arizona training facility, the outpouring of emotion continuing, people leaving their expressions of condolences signing a piece of paper, the jersey of Pat Tillman on display for everyone to see. There's been a steady stream of people here.
There have been statements from around the country from so many people but one from Arizona, Senator John McCain we'll quote from. He's no stranger to military service himself. He calls Pat Tillman an inspiration with his unexpected choice of duty to his country over the riches and other comforts of celebrity -- Anderson.
COOPER: Frank Buckley thanks very much for that report. It is so sad.
Here's a 360 "Fast Fact" on U.S. casualties in Afghanistan. One hundred and seventeen U.S. troops have been killed during Operation Enduring Freedom since October, 2001. Of those, 50 died by hostile fire.
We'll have more on Pat Tillman later in the program.
In Iraq, of course, the casualties much higher and tonight there is growing potential for even more violence. In a fiery sermon today, militant Shiite Muslim cleric Muqtada al-Sadr whom coalition forces have vowed to capture or kill warned of suicide attacks if U.S. forces struck the holy cities of Karbala and Najaf. And all was not calm in Karbala today. A Bulgarian soldier died after his convoy was attacked by suspected insurgents. Meanwhile, militants are on notice in Fallujah to either put down their weapons or U.S. Marines could strike within days.
With that here's CNN's Senior Pentagon Correspondent Jamie McIntyre.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The Pentagon sees the showdown in Fallujah as a potentially pivotal battle in the war against Iraqi insurgents. After enduring nearly two weeks of a one-sided cease-fire and fruitless negotiations with town elders, the U.S. is signaling Marines will storm the city within days.
BRIG. GEN. MARK KIMMITT, DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF COALITION OPERATIONS: These discussions must bear fruit. Our patience is not eternal.
BUCKLEY: The 2,000 or so Marines surrounding Fallujah have come under regular fire from within the city and U.S. demands to surrender all heavy weapons have been met with a paltry assortment of military junk, rusty guns and dud bombs.
KIMMITT: It would not appear that we should go on much longer with this fiction.
BUCKLEY: Fallujah is seen as different from the rest of Iraq and Pentagon officials predict it may be the last stand for remnants of the old regime.
PAUL BREMER, U.S. CIVIL ADMINISTRATOR: Some of these men belong to the banished instruments of Saddam's repression, the foreign intelligence services and former Republican Guards.
MCINTYRE: Among the fighters in Fallujah are believed to be some of Saddam Hussein's most highly trained and effective troops from the old M-14 antiterrorism directorate.
PAUL WOLFOWITZ, DEPUTY DEFENSE SECRETARY: Antiterrorism is an Orwellian phrase. It, in fact, was a terrorist unit that specialized in hijackings, assassinations and explosives.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MCINTYRE: The Pentagon believes that many of the remaining diehards are trapped in Fallujah and that wiping them out now offers the best chance of breaking the back of the resistance -- Anderson.
COOPER: All right, Jamie McIntyre at the Pentagon thanks Jamie.
If it comes down to fighting in Fallujah, the battle is expected to be very tough. CNN National Security Analyst Ken Robinson joins us from Atlanta, Ken good to see you. Urban combat, one of the toughest kinds there is. What are the Marines likely to face? KEN ROBINSON, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Anderson, as you know from your experience covering Somalia, it's a real messy business. They've got to have a really targeted, focused strategy to be able to move into the city because it requires house to house fighting and there's a political cost to that both against the enemy and against the coalition. They'll take high casualties and they'll create civilian casualties and they've got to be really surgical in their application of power.
COOPER: And figuring out who is a combatant and who is not is very, very difficult.
ROBINSON: The rules of engagement are going to be incredibly tough for the Marines because the only way you figure out who a combatant is, is who's carrying a weapon or who's firing a weapon at you because everyone dresses and looks the same.
COOPER: There's also the issue of these holy shrines. In the past, Iraqi insurgents have used them as a base of operations.
ROBINSON: That's going to be one of the hardest rules of engagement for them and right now I know that one of the rules of engagement is they do return fire on these sites. Attacking these shrines it has to be done in a very surgical and measured way also but, at the same time, they're not going to allow them to be sanctuaries.
COOPER: And can technology be used effectively in this kind of urban combat environment?
ROBINSON: It has to be. There has to be human intelligence merged with technology, the Predator drones, the imagery to be able to do precise precision raids on targets that they know of. They think that maybe the insurgent groups there aren't as large as they thought they were simply by the fact that they recognized their own limits to power and agreed to a compromise of the initial negotiation.
So it's really going to have to be surgically applied power to avoid isolating the population and causing civilian casualties while they surgically try to take out these fighters but they've got to come out and fight and they tend to blend into the countryside.
COOPER: Well, let's hope it doesn't come down to that but it looks like it's going to. Ken Robinson thanks very much.
A surprising homecoming for the Japanese hostages released from their captors in Iraq this week. They received anything but a heroes welcome greeted only by a hostile government and a hostile public, their sin defying Okami (ph) the higher good.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER (voice-over): The Japanese hostages arrived home not to yellow ribbons but to hostile crowds and tabloid scrutiny. As they stepped off the plane they bowed in apology while protesters held signs calling them Japan's shame. The three civilians were captured two weeks ago. Their captors were seen holding knives tot heir throats. Their frightened families pleaded for their release but when their families asked the Japanese government to meet the captives' demands, to withdraw its 550 troops from Iraq, the public turned against them accusing them of putting their individual needs before the public good and foolishly going where the government had warned them not to.
And it only got worse when some of the hostages said they wanted to return to the war zone. Now the government says it will charge the hostages $6,000 for their airfare home.
JUNICHIRO KOIZUMI, JAPANESE PRIME MINISTER (through translator): I want those who flew into Iraq ignoring the government's warning to (unintelligible) how much (unintelligible) my staff made working around the clock to solve the problems they caused.
COOPER: The hostages have reportedly gone into hiding afraid to face the public and the press, hostages it would seem in their own homeland.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Fascinating.
Disaster areas in Illinois that story tops our look at news "Cross Country" tonight, President Bush declares four counties hit by tornadoes eligible for federal assistance. Eight people were killed in the town of Utica, hardest hit earlier this week.
In Baltimore, Maryland, consequences of a stunt, college student Nathaniel Hawthorne pleads guilty to hiding box cutters aboard several airplanes to point out lapses in airline security. The 20-year-old was originally charged with a felony. That has since been reduced but he could still get jail time as well as a hefty fine.
In Florida tonight, check your phone bill. AT&T is blaming a computer glitch for wrongly billing over a million people. Get this. Most of them aren't AT&T customers. A charge of $4.77 has been mysteriously appearing on phone bills each month since January. Check your bills.
Denver, Colorado, spring snow, a late season storm wreaks havoc in parts of Colorado, hard to believe. Over a foot of snow shuts down some highways and schools. Several hundred residents are still without power. That's a quick look at stories "Cross Country" for you tonight.
Well, John Kerry and the Vatican, a stern warning against politicians who support abortion rights. Will it be a factor in the campaign? That's coming up.
Also, the politics of pictures, should images of war coffins be banned? We're going to hear from military families on both sides of the issue.
Plus, cracking The Da Vinci Code" is there a hidden agenda in the best-selling novel? Some claim there is. We'll talk to them.
First, let's take a look at your picks, the most popular stories at cnn.com right now.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: The issues of church and state have never hit so close to home for John Kerry. A practicing Catholic, his stance on abortion simply doesn't square with church teaching. Today he talked about it during a rally in D.C. A prominent clergyman weighed in on the issue as well.
CNN's Kelly Wallace reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KELLY WALLACE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: In Washington, John Kerry, the Catholic, touts his support of abortion rights.
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We are going to have a change of leadership in this country to protect the right of choice.
WALLACE: While at the Vatican, a top cardinal speaks out. When Cardinal Francis Arinze was asked if a Catholic politician who supports abortion rights should be denied communion he told reporters: "The person is not fit. If he shouldn't receive it then it shouldn't be given."
But when pressed about Kerry, the cardinal would only say: "The Catholic Church exists in the U.S. There are bishops there. Let them interpret it." The cardinal appeared to be expressing his own views as there is no official Vatican policy on the issue.
Two weeks ago, Senator Kerry defended his beliefs.
KERRY: I fully intend to continue to practice my religion separately from what I do with respect to my public life.
WALLACE: Days later, Kerry received communion during Easter mass angering some American Catholics who believe he should pay a price for his views on abortion rights. The issue now in the hands of a task force of bishops headed by Cardinal McCarrick the Archbishop of Washington, D.C. who Kerry asked to meet with last week.
Catholics opposed to abortion rights say the Vatican cardinal's comments should encourage American bishops to sanction the Senator, while abortion rights supporters in the church accuse Catholic bishops in the Vatican of playing politics.
FRANCES KISSLING, PRESIDENT, CATHOLICS FOR FREE CHOICE: They just don't know what to do about the fact that a visible Catholic presidential nominee doesn't agree with them on the abortion issue.
(END VIDEOTAPE) WALLACE: And the debate will likely continue among Catholics who make up about one-quarter of the U.S. population but, Anderson, when it comes to the bishops they're not expected to issue any decisions until after the presidential election.
COOPER: The debate is definitely not going away. Kelly Wallace thanks.
WALLACE: Sure.
COOPER: Well, the Israeli prime minister says Yasser Arafat is now fair game. That story tops our look at global stories in the "Up Link."
In Jerusalem, Ariel Sharon says he's no longer bound by his three-year-old pledge not to harm Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. The Bush administration strongly opposes the change and is pressing Sharon to keep his pledge.
Ryongchon, North Korea, rare plea for aid, the secretive government there is inviting aid workers and diplomats to the site of yesterday's railway explosion. Hundreds are still feared dead, thousands injured in what Pyongyang is calling an industrial accident.
Libya now, U.S. trade sanctions ease. President Bush is allowing American firms to resume trade with Tripoli and buy Libyan oil as a reward for Libya giving up its weapons of mass destruction.
Bangkok, Thailand now, massive slum fire black clouds of smoke hung over downtown embassies and five-star hotels when up to 500 homes burned in the densely populated area. Several apartment buildings were also evacuated. No word on casualties right now.
Rodonia, Brazil, prison uprising ends. The weeklong revolt took 14 lives ending after authorities accepted prisoners' demands and the rioters released 170 hostages most relatives of inmates. Authorities say some of the bodies were mutilated. Most of the prison was destroyed.
Well, is "The Da Vinci Code" anti-Christian? Two authors now say the best-selling book has a secret agenda. We'll see what the controversy is all about. That's ahead.
Also tonight, the Pentagon banning these images of war, is it all to protect the families? We'll ask two of them.
And, a remarkable story about surfing in the Amazon catching a big wave on the big river.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Well by publishing standards it's a first-rate thriller. Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code" has already sold more than seven million copies. The novel weaves a provocative hypothetical scenario about the life and death of Jesus Christ, which has some Christian groups outraged. So, it should come as no surprise then that new books are now being published to crack Da Vinci's code. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER (voice-over): It begins with a murder in the Louvre. The first clue comes in the form of Leonardo's best known drawing "The Vitruvian Man." But as the mystery unravels, the reader is led to other mysteries in other masterpieces, wheels within wheels, the secrets revealed in "The Last Supper" and the "Mona Lisa" opened the doors to the Catholic Church's secret societies, some real, some maybe not so real.
It's no secret that the book is incredibly popular. It spent 56 weeks on the best-seller list much of that time at No. 1, and it's no surprise that some of the questions raised by "The Da Vinci Code" are causing controversy among Christians.
What was Jesus' real relationship with Mary Magdalene? Was there such a thing as the Holy Grail? The author says the book is a work of fiction, so why then are some biblical scholars working so hard to crack the code?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Well, joining us now are two of those scholars, James Garlow and Peter Jones, two Christian researchers who say "The Da Vinci Code" undermines the integrity of the Christian faith. They have just come out with their own book in response called "Cracking Da Vinci's Code," appreciate you being on the program.
JAMES GARLOW, CO-AUTHOR, "CRACKING DA VINCI'S CODE": I like to be with you.
COOPER: They say this is a novel. This is a work of fiction yet you say the Da Vinci code book has a hidden agenda. What in your opinion is the hidden agenda?
GARLOW: For one thing people are taking it seriously. It is a novel admittedly and if people were only treating it as a novel we wouldn't be writing books about it either but the fact is people are taking it seriously and it is redefining the understanding of who God is.
COOPER: But you think the author, Dan Brown, has this hidden anti-Christian agenda basically.
PETER JONES, CO-AUTHOR, "CRACKING DA VINCI'S CODE": He does say apparently in public that he was convinced by a new spirituality and that he felt called to make it known throughout the culture.
COOPER: Dan Brown though says that he is a Christian and that he, you know, it may not be your view of Christianity but he considers himself a Christian and that this book is really prompting theological discussions and therefore is a good thing.
JONES: You know we are in the presence of sort of a watershed in the culture as to what life means and essentially the question is who is God? And you have two definitions of God going and I think people are wondering which one is the right one and I think Dan Brown...
COOPER: When you say there are two definitions, explains.
JONES: Two definitions of God, one is that God is the transcendent creator and redeemer, has his own existence.
COOPER: Is separate from the rest?
JONES: But separate from creation. The other is a more pantheistic view of God where you find God within. And, though this is fiction, the novel has this agenda within it and communicates that view of God and there are Christians buying that view of God and so we felt like we needed to, you know, right the ship.
COOPER: But I mean some will say you're being intolerant. I mean can no novel be written which deviates from your interpretation of Christianity?
GARLOW: He can write anything he wants. He has the right to do that. The issue is one of historical accuracy or historical fallacies. He makes such claims that Jesus was not considered divine until the year 325 in (unintelligible).
The evidence is quite to the contrary. The original followers all saw him as divine and all the early writers of the first and second century saw him as divine.
COOPER: And it's things like, I mean one of I guess the characters in "Da Vinci Code," which I have not read, talks about Jesus marrying Mary Magdalene having children. That sort of thing is one of the things that...
JONES: That's not so bothersome actually. Marriage is a good thing. It's just that it's doubtful and all scholars will say that, that Jesus was ever married.
COOPER: So what do you hope to do with your book? I mean what is the objective?
GARLOW: Well, one of the things I hope to do is get people to reexamine the issues that Dan Brown raises, which is a good thing, and that is, is their New Testament reliable, yes or no?
COOPER: So, in that sense you agree almost with Dan Brown that bringing up these theological issues is a good thing?
GARLOW: Well, I'm glad they brought up, unfortunately I think he has written a document that's historically unreliable because he raises the question is the New Testament reliable and was Jesus considered divine, for example prior to the year 325 or did Constantine manipulate this into existence as he contends?
Now the fact is he's in error historically on both those issues but the good thing is a lot of people are going to look at that issue and try to get answers for it and that's encouraging. COOPER: Well, I know the book is doing really well. I look forward to reading it this weekend. Jim Garlow thanks very much and Peter Jones as well. Thank you very much.
JONES: You're very welcome.
GARLOW: It's an honor to be with you.
COOPER: All right.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER (voice-over): He turned down a multimillion dollar NFL contract to serve his country. Now he's paid the ultimate price, tonight the life and death of Pat Tillman.
Photos of the fallen, what veterans' families think about showing images of their loved ones coming home.
And command and conquer, an endless ocean curl, a story of survival in pursuit of the ultimate wave, 360 continues.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Let's take a look at our top stories in tonight's "Reset."
Washington, "Plan of Attack" author Bob Woodward standing by his claim that Saudi Arabia's Prince Bandar learned of the U.S. decision to go to war with Iraq before Colin Powell. Woodward tells CNN Bandar's assertions to the contrary are false.
Kansas City, Missouri now, Doonesbury censored. One of the comic strip's characters, B.D., recently lost a leg fighting in Iraq and today's episode showed him cursing his injury. Several newspapers removed the expletive. Others simply left the strip out of today's paper.
Washington, two Democratic Senators want an investigation into the Pentagon's treatment of Army Captain James Yee. Yee, a Muslim chaplain at Guantanamo Bay's detention center, was detained for months on espionage charges that eventually were dropped. Senators Edward Kennedy and Carl Levin say the case raises serious questions about military justice.
Pomona, California now, police officer killed. Police say a 16- year-old gunned down a highway patrol officer simply to gain entry into a gang. The Los Angeles district attorney calls it the ultimate hate crime, and that's a look at stories in today's "Reset."
Well, after September 11, many Americans were motivated to do something but few went to the degree of Pat Tillman. The star NFL player decided to join the Army and he did just that after returning from his honeymoon. When it was made public, Tillman did not grant interviews. He did not try to make himself a celebrity. He just wanted to help in the war against terror. He died Thursday.
Earlier I spoke with one of Tillman's former teammates and friend Jamir Miller.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Jamir, what was your reaction when you heard Pat had been killed?
JAMIR MILLER, FMR. TEAMMATE OF PAT TILLMAN: I didn't believe it. I didn't believe it. It was kind of like disbelief. I was told when I was dropping my kids off at school this morning. A teacher came over and said, did you hear the news? And I was like, no, you know. She said, he told me Pat Tillman died over in Afghanistan today.
I didn't believe him. And so I went home. Checked out the Internet. Checked out the TV. I saw that it was valid. And I was just kind of like -- just remembering him, you know. I just started to think back and remember the life that he lived. And remembered him alive.
COOPER: I understand that when you first met him, you kind of thought he was a hippie. You didn't really know he was a patriot.
MILLER: Most definitely. You know, I still feel that way about him, you know.
COOPER: How so?
MILLER: He's a hippie patriot. When I first met him, you have to remember, he had long hair. His hair was probably below his shoulders. Longer than a lot of women. And he was wearing Birkenstocks and beat up jeans a shirt with a lot of holes in it.
COOPER: I guess you don't see a lot of Birkenstocks in the NFL?
MILLER: Not really, you know what I mean? He looked homeless. If you looked at him and said, that guy plays in the NFL, you would probably say, you're crazy. But he came out there and he had the heart of a champion. He came out there and he played and he played as hard as he possibly could. And he gave it 100 percent. His work ethic was unbelievable.
COOPER: He walked away from a multi-million-dollar contract in order to do this. He was earning below $20,000 a year with the Army. When you heard he was going to do this, what did you think?
MILLER: You know, I thought he was making a mistake. I thought he was kind of being overzealous and caught up in the moment. When I got the opportunity to talk to him, you know, we ran into each other, and I asked him why was he doing it, he said, because he feels it's the right thing for him to do. And this is what he wants to do with his self. This is what he wants to do with his life.
That's what I understood. You know what, every man has a path that they go down. And the decisions that they make kind of mold the person that they are, you know.
Pat Tillman, in my eyes, and probably in the eyes of all you viewers out there, is the model of an overachiever. If you saw him standing in a grocery line, you wouldn't think that that guy played strong safety in the NFL at all. I'm just telling you.
So he did that part. He overcame those obstacles. Maybe he thought that -- I know in his heart, he felt that he could go and make a huge difference over there. Which he did. In which, now in death, I hope he's doing it even better. I hope his message still goes on.
COOPER: You're proud of him?
MILLER: I am, yes. Because he did it his way, you know. And how many of us can really say that. And I mean it.
COOPER: How do you think he should be remembered?
MILLER: I think he should be remembered as a guy who kept his word. You know, he said what he was going to do, he meant what he said and said what he meant. And when he said this is what he was going to do, he did it. His character speaks volumes, volumes.
I think, you know, that's the type of guy he should be remembered as. If we have a patriot in this day and age, I don't know -- all Americans are patriots now, but I think this one guy here, I think he might have us all beat.
COOPER: I agree with you on that. Jamir, I appreciate you being on the program. Thank you.
MILLER: No problem. Thanks for having me.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Pat Tillman is the first NFL player to die in combat since Vietnam, where in 1968, rookie of the year, Bob Kalsu was killed. The former Buffalo Bill was one of two NFL players who died in that war. During World War II, 21 NFL players were killed.
Well, sometimes the loss of a soldier's life has made more profound when an image tells the story. The Pentagon says it was a mistake to release more than 300 photos of flag draped coffins returning from Iraq.
The White House also saying today it stands by its policy to deny the media access to such pictures. But whether you agree with the ban or not, some images go beyond the raw politics of war.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER (voice-over): This is what led to the ban. In 1989, CNN juxtaposed live images of coffins arriving at Dover Air Force base with its coverage of a live presidential news briefing. It said to have angered President Bush. A year later the Pentagon banned the release of U.S. soldiers' coffins citing concern for the privacy grieving families. And decision a federal court upheld in 1996.
Images of fallen soldiers have always been a powerful reminder of the true cost of war. Starting with Matthew Brady's pictures of the civil war.
During the Vietnam War, images of coffins and body bags had a profound impact on the tolerance level of the nation. Yet some administrations have used such images to rally support.
WILLIAM JEFFERSON CLINTON, FRM. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We will find you, and justice will prevail.
COOPER: In 2000, after the attacks on the USS Cole, President Clinton attended the ceremonies and allowed them to be broadcast live. Perhaps taking a page from Ronald Reagan.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who now is pinning individual Purple Hearts.
COOPER: Who in 1985, pinned Purple Hearts on caskets of marines killed in El Salvador.
The first Bush Administration first allowed pictures from coffins from Afghanistan to be released. But in March 2003, right before U.S. led forces invaded Iraq, the Pentagon decided the ban would be enforced. And that's why the woman who took this picture, an employee of a military subcontracter in Kuwait got fired.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Well, we want to talk to two families now of soldiers who lost their lives in Iraq. Just before we went on air, I spoke to Sue Niederer. She was on her way to a memorial for her son, Seth Dvorin an army lieutenant who died last February.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Sue, I'm so sorry for your loss. When your son was returned, would it have been all right with you if his flag-draped coffin was shown on television and newspapers?
SUE NIEDERER, LOST SON IN IRAQ (via telephone): Yes. Absolutely. I would have been very proud for that to have happened.
COOPER: Why do you think the -- there's this policy not allowing the coffins to be shown?
NIEDERER: Well, I believe that President Bush does not want people, the American people to see the reality of what is really occurring. When you see -- when you just hear figures, and you read about people being killed, it doesn't really stick in your mind. But when you see an actual coffin, it's a reality check. It is physically there. You now know that there is a family mourning a loss. COOPER: So is it -- I mean, is it a political act on your part to want this, that you oppose the war, and therefore, you want these coffins to be seen? Or is it more -- is it something else?
NIEDERER: It has nothing to do with politics, whatsoever. I was never politically motivated prior to this. This is what life and death is all about. We are in a war. Why not show what this war is all about. And what it's creating in the havoc for the families who have lost ones. This is seeing what is. And not just reading about it.
COOPER: Some say it's too personal to be shown, that some families want the privacy. Do you understand that?
NIEDERER: Yes. If a family chooses not to have their loved one's coffin shown, then I believe it should be their prerogative to have that. But I also believe very firmly that, for myself, and many, many others, that allows us to grieve our children, and my case my child, OK, on American ground.
That's my last farewell to my son. And I believe that I should have, and everyone should have that prerogative to do that. And if I choose to have the media there, then it's my prerogative to have the media there.
COOPER: Sue, I know it's a difficult topic for you to talk about. A difficult day for you. Sue Niederer, appreciate you joining us. Thank you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Well, our next guest, former Army Specialist Ivan Medina lost his twin brother Irving in Iraq. But unlike Sue, Ivan thinks photos of the returning dead should not be published. He joins us now over the phone from Hinesville, Georgia.
Ivan, thank you for being with us. I'm so sorry for your loss. Why are you opposed to the release of images of coffins being returned?
IVAN MEDINA, LOST TWIN BROTHER IN IRAQ (via telephone): I oppose it, because I think it's a very private moment between not only the family itself, but also for the soldiers. The minute they die, they have soldiers with them until the minute they arrive home. And there's an impact between the soldiers and the fallen soldier that goes with that. And it becomes too personal. And you're exploiting something that you shouldn't.
COOPER; You feel it's exploitation. There are some who says showing the coffin shows the reality of war. Does that sound like a political argument and not understanding of personal needs?
MEDINA: Well, it is a political argument, I would say. And I don't think that we should basically do this for politics. I think we should give the honor to those soldiers. I don't have no problem with showing coffins. But, you know, we never do it when somebody gets killed, or gets murdered by another person. We don't see them bringing the coffins and everything.
We are at war. We are a country at war. But we also have to remember that we have to honor the soldiers. And the soldiers doing that are very much honoring them. And it becomes very personal to them.
COOPER: Ivan Medina, I appreciate you sharing your perspective. Thank you very much.
MEDINA: Thank you.
COOPER: Today's "Buzz" is this, "do you want to see images of caskets arriving from Iraq? Do you think you should?" Log onto CNN.com/360 to vote. We'll have the results at the end of the show.
Just ahead tonight, politics unplugged: the names on everyone's lips this week. Plus, a cheating wife caught. That's not Bob Woodward. A cheating wife caught: a court orders her lover to pay up -- an unbelievable story you're definitely going to want to hear.
And surfing through the Amazon: the wild ride through piranha infested waters. That just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: In justice served tonight, if you're thinking of cheating on your spouse, you might want to think twice considering this next story. A man in North Carolina sued the doctor he said coerced his wife into having an affair. Sued the doctor and he won more than $500,000. Court TV anchor Lisa Bloom is here to try to explain how this is possible.
LISA BLOOM, ANCHOR, COURT TV: It's tough.
COOPER: How is this possible?
BLOOM: There are seven states where you can actually bring these kinds of lawsuits. They're called alienation of affections, criminal conversation. Let's say I'm in a rocky marriage. It happens. You try to woo me away. A girl can dream. My husband could sue you for alienation of affections, even if nothing happened between us. Just for you making a suggestion.
COOPER: So there's two legal requirements for this, alienation of affection, and there's also the other one...
BLOOM: Criminal conversation. That's where there's actual sexual relations that take place. That's a different tort.
COOPER: So someone -- you either are having an affair with someone, in which case the spouse can sue the person you're having the affair with, or a family member, your mother, can say to you, you should get out of that relationship. BLOOM: Leave the bum. Those are actionable words.
COOPER: And the husband can sue the mother.
BLOOM: Exactly, for alienation of affections. And there are some sizable awards that come down. There's the one today that you made mention of...
COOPER: $500,000.
BLOOM: Half a million dollars. There have been awards up to $1.2 million.
COOPER: I understand some of these awards have been appealed and upheld.
BLOOM: Right. Because that is the law in those states. The idea behind the law is the sanctity of marriage. We don't want people coming in messing around with other people's marriages. We want those marriages respected.
COOPER: Let's look at the list if we have it of the states where this takes place. I know it's North Carolina. Do we have the list on there? There's the map. If you live in one of these states, you better be careful.
BLOOM: You've got to wonder, Anderson, does this deter anyone from having an affair. If they're going to have an affair, is this really going to stop them? Of course, only wealthy people tend to get sued. If someone doesn't have any money, no lawyer is going to take the case to sue them. How it really plays out is in divorce proceedings. The non-cheating spouse is going to get a little bit more money in a divorce settlement than the other one.
COOPER: You're saying that the spouse who doesn't want the divorce, or one of the spouses in the divorce is actually using this law?
BLOOM: Right. In states like New York or California, the majority of states that no-fault divorce, if someone's having an affair, the non-cheating spouse doesn't get any more money. You simply divide the assets in half as a general rule. In these seven states that you just pointed where these lawsuits can occur, the non- cheating spouse can get more money in the divorce settlement because the other one has committed a tort, a civil wrong and you can get more money as a result.
COOPER: It's fascinating. I had no idea this was possible.
BLOOM: I'm here to tell you it happens.
COOPER: Lisa Bloom, thank you very much.
It is not unusual for Washington to be dominated for one story for days at a time. We all know this. As you'll see in tonight's politics unplugged, this week there was just one name on everyone's lips.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bob Woodward's work is a very very serious document.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not going to comment on the Woodward book.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Woodward alleges in his book...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The recent allegations in Bob Woodward's new book...
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Bob Woodward revealed...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If Mr. Woodward is correct...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Read the book by Bob Woodward.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The book lays out very complex details.
BOB WOODWARD, AUTHOR, "PLAN OF ATTACK": The Saudis hope to control oil prices in the ten months running up to the election.
KERRY: If, as Bob Woodward reports, it is true, that gas supplies and prices in America are tied to the American election...
WOODWARD: This was a meeting to tell Colin Powell that a decision had been made.
SEN. HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON (D), NEW YORK: It's stunning to just run through in your mind the implications of just that paragraph in this book.
COLIN POWELL, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: The suggestion that somehow a plan was presented to Prince Bandar that I was not familiar with, is just flat wrong.
DONALD RUMSFELD, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I've just been passed a note, via my friend General Pace, that goes back to the question I answered on the Woodward transcripts.
POWELL: As Mr. Woodward notes at one point in the book, this may sound a little improper. But when the vice president and I are alone, it's Colin and Dick.
RUMSFELD: And you can take that to the bank.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: And that was the week that was. Politics unplugged. Come along on a wild surfing safari. Still ahead. Riding the waves of the Amazon river. Surf's up. So are the man-eating fish.
Also tonight from "Alias" to time traveler, a look at Jennifer Garner's new movie and other flicks heading your way in the weekender.
And a little later in the current -- she's back. Paris Hilton. You've seen the video, now watch the movie. We'll tell you about it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Excuse me.
Surfers seeking the ultimate ride may want to check out the Amazon River, where the brave are hanging five on a real killer wave. Just watch out for those piranhas. CNN's Harris Whitbeck has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS WHITBECK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sunrise on the banks of the Atahyatu (ph) river in Brazil's Amazon jungle. Twenty- four-year-old Serginio Laos (ph) performs his daily stretching routine as he prepares for a huge challenge.
After waxing his board and climbing into a motor launch, he prays for a few seconds. Serginio (ph) is about to take on the longest wave in the world, the bororoka (ph). The tidal wave formed near the river's mouth on the Atlantic Ocean.
It occurs twice a year. It's fast and strong. And it can last for over an hour at a height of nearly 10 feet.
The wave can travel at up to 20 kilometers per hour, but also the water can be infested with piranhas, poisonous snakes and crocodiles.
To get to the wave, surfers motor out to the river shortly before the tides change. Sitting in launches, surf boards ready, they listen for the distant roar that heralds its arrival. Lunging into the water with just enough time for the launches to motor to safety. Searching for and surfing the bororoka (ph) is to many, a pilgrimage.
(on camera): Surfers have been enthralled with the bororoka (ph) since the first pictures of it were seen back in 1973. They approach it with as much admiration as they do fear. They say surfing the wave is as much about cooperating with it as conquering it.
(voice-over): But conquer it they do, by surfing the wave for a very long time. The Brazilian Surfing Authority say the record is 36 minutes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a fusion. Yeah, you need your fusion. The wave and the person.
WHITBECK: Call him crazy, this was Serginio's (ph) fourth time.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We search for the perfect wave in the river. And the forest of the Amazon in Brazil. It's very crazy.
WHITBECK: Harris Whitbeck on the Atahyatu (ph) river in Amazonia, Brazil. (END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Man, piranhas.
Well, time to check on some pop news in tonight's "Current." Let's take a look at some lighter stuff. A porn company is set to release the Paris Hilton sex video -- you know this was going to happen -- as a DVD adult movie. Unlike the Internet version, the film will be shown in its entirety, maybe even including an audio commentary. Though frankly, we think their actions speak far louder than their words.
Marion "Sug" Knight was released from prison today after serving 10 months for a parole violation. The rap mogul has been behind bars several times in the last eight years, all on assault-related charges. I was going to make some sort of a joke, but frankly, we're just too scared of Sug to do it.
Anna Kournikova is being sued by her parents. They're seeking joint ownership of the tennis star's Miami home. We heard Kournikova has a good chance at trial giving her something that's eluded her for years, a major court win.
And another woman is coming forward to say she had an affair with David Beckham. Sarah Marbeck (ph), who worked as a high-class prostitute, says what she and the soccer star shared was very special, very powerful, and considering her rates, very reasonable.
Well, what are you going to do this weekend? Let's take a look at "The Weekender," where we give you a look at what's new in movies, home entertainment, and oh so much more. Let's take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm 15.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you're going to start lying about your age, I'd go with 27.
COOPER (voice-over): What Tom Hanks did for boys in "Big," Jennifer Garner is doing for girls in "13 Going on 30."
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I hate being 13. I just want to be grown up.
COOPER: She's an awkward teen who wants to be older. There's a shock. After getting her wish, Garner tries to adjust to her new body. And even might find the time to dance a bit.
DENZEL WASHINGTON, ACTOR: I got all the time in the world. You don't, but I do.
COOPER: If you're not in the romantic comedy mood, there's "Man on Fire." Denzel Washington in full tough guy mode, as a bodyguard going after the brutes who kidnapped the girl he was hired to protect. Careful with that rocket launcher, Denzel. New on DVD, more explosions, this time at sea, in "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World." Russell Crowe's the captain of his crew in a tense cat-and-mouse game against a much larger French ship during the Napoleonic wars.
Also on DVD, "Stuck on You," starring Matt Damon and Greg Kinnear. Who else but the Farrelly brothers would make a comedy about conjoined twins?
MATT DAMON, ACTOR: We're not Siamese, we're American.
COOPER: If you want to get out of the house, head to Wacarusa (ph), Indiana. It's the annual Wacarusa (ph) maple syrup festival, where 500 gallons of the gooey stuff will be poured atop thousands of pancakes.
And in concert, headbangers, get ready. Metallica stops off tomorrow night in Roanoke, Virginia. Rock on.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: All right. Coming up, all those ads for prescription medicine that plead to ask your doctor. Do you have any idea what that's about? We're going to take that to "The Nth Degree" ahead.
But first, today's "Buzz," do you think you should see the images of caskets arriving from Iraq? Log on to cnn.com/360. Cast your vote. Results when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Time now for "The Buzz." Earlier we asked, do you think the images of caskets arriving from Iraq should be shown? More than 20,000 of you have voted. Sixty-one percent of you said yes, 39 percent of you said no. It is not a scientific poll, but it is your buzz.
Tonight, taking mystery to "The Nth Degree." OK, we'll bite.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Crestor can help.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: What is this Crestor stuff we've been seeing ads for all over the place? Does it improve your backhand? What if you don't play tennis at all? Should you switch to something else?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This dog is suffering from allergies.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: With Celebrex, I will not settle.
(END VIDEO CLIP) COOPER: More to the point, does this kind of advertising actually work? Have you noticed there are an awful lot of "ask your doctor" commercials these days.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ask your doctor...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: They have pretty pictures, pretty much and pretty people, and leave you pretty much in the dark about what the drug actually does, except to suggest that you really ought to ask your health provider for a free starter pack.
Do people really do that? Do they sit down and say, hey, doc, I saw this pill on TV, I like the color and shape of it, do I have whatever it's good for? If I don't, can I develop it?
Does this kind of pitch make sense? I know, I know, what you're going to say, ask my doctor.
All next week on 360, we're going to be looking at the reality of our pill-popping nation. I'm Anderson Cooper. Thanks for watching. Coming up next, "PAULA ZAHN NOW."
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