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Medal of Honor Ceremony; Fast Foreclosures Hurt Homeowners; XYZ: Privacy Vs. Security

Aired November 16, 2010 - 14:00   ET

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

ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: Two stories we're following right now, two very different stories.

On the left, you have people streaming into the White House for the Medal of Honor ceremony for Staff Sergeant Sal Giunta. He is the first living recipient of the Medal of Honor since 1976, and he got it for an October night in 2007 in a battle against the Taliban where he rescued the lead fighter in his group who had been shot eight times.

Everybody in the group had actually been shot, but he rescued this colleague of his, tried to get him first-aid, and allowed that fight to go on. He is being honored for that.

He said he's very, very mixed about how he feels about it. He said it's a remarkable honor, but at too great a price. He lost two of his fellow fighters in that fight.

So that's what we're waiting for right now. That's going to start any moment now in the White House.

On the right, you have got Prince William and Kate Middleton, who have announced that they are engaged. He proposed to her while in Kenya, on a holiday to Kenya. They have been dating for about seven years.

On her wrist -- on -- there you can sort of see it every now and then -- she'll pick up her hand -- that is the engagement ring that was given to Lady Diana Spencer at the time, who then became Princess Diana. And it's Prince William's mother.

They are expecting to get married some time in 2011. Obviously, that will be a major, major episode that we'll be watching.

You can see the cameras. Let's go back to the White House for a second. You can see Defense Secretary Robert Gates there, you can see people shuffling around, as the family, it appears, of Staff Sergeant Giunta appear and are seated in the White House.

Barbara Starr is in that crowd right now. She may be able to speak to us, although if the ceremony begins, she's probably going to stop speaking to us very abruptly. But let's go to her.

Barbara, what are we looking at happening right now?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Ali, as you say, family, friends streaming into the East Room of the White House here. For the U.S. Army today, this is family business.

They are honoring one of their own with the nation's highest award for valor on the battlefield. What is so moving in this room right now are many of Staff Sergeant Sal Giunta's buddies, the men he fought with that night in the Korengal Valley, in the "Valley of Death." They are here in the room. They have come all the way from Afghanistan to honor him.

Secretary Gates is here. The president will speak. And this is expected to be a very emotional ceremony. This is a very modest young man.

Here is the president.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ladies and Gentlemen, the president of the United States, and Mrs. Michelle Obama, accompanied by Medal of Honor recipient Staff Sergeant Salvatore Giunta.

(MUSIC)

CHAPLAIN DOUGLAS CARVER, CHIEF OF CHAPLAINS, U.S. ARMY: Let us pray.

All mighty and merciful God, in whom we place our trust, we invite your holy presence as we gather as a nation to honor the extraordinary actions above and beyond the call of duty rendered by Staff Sergeant Salvatore Giunta, an American soldier, patriot, and hero.

Our hearts forever resonate with the noble theme of heroes proved in liberating strife, who more than self their country loved in mercy more than life. May our remembrance of Sal's combat action three years ago in Afghanistan's Korengal Valley inspire all Americans with great pride and humility that we have selfless warriors like Sal living among us today.

As we hear the account of his heroic actions on 25, October, 2007, may we also remember all of our armed forces and those who stand in harm's way across the world today. Through the narrative of Sal's courageous actions against the enemy, and his selfless devotion to rescue a fallen comrade, may we all recommit ourselves to sacrificial and selfless service for our families and our fellow citizens. It calls our reflection on the holy union forged among soldiers during combat to inspire renewed unity in our own land, especially during times of crisis and conflict.

As we celebrate this special day with Sal's wife Jen, his parents, Steven and Rosemary, his brother Mario, his sister Katie, may we remember in prayer all military families who await the safe return home of their loved ones.

And finally, as we pause to remember the many freedoms we enjoy as a nation, let us never to give thanks more than we do right now to those especially who paid the glorious liberty with which we enjoy through their very blood, sweat and tears. This we pray in your holy name. Amen.

AUDIENCE: Amen.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Good afternoon, everybody. Please be seated.

On behalf of Michelle and myself, welcome to the White House.

And thank you, Chaplain Carver, for that beautiful invocation.

Of all the privileges that come with serving as president of the United States, I have none greater than serving as commander in chief of the finest military that the world has ever known. And of all the military decorations that a president and a nation can bestow, there is none higher than the Medal of Honor.

Now, today is particularly special. Since the end of the Vietnam War, the Medal of Honor has been awarded nine times for conspicuous gallantry in an ongoing or recent conflict. And sadly, our nation has been unable to present this declaration to the recipients themselves because each gave his life, his last full measure of devotion, for our country. Indeed, as president, I have presented the Medal of Honor three times, and each time to the families of a fallen hero.

Today, therefore, marks the first time in nearly 40 years that the recipient of the Medal of Honor for an ongoing conflict has been able to come to the White House and accept this recognition in person. It is my privilege to present our nation's highest military decoration, the Medal of Honor, to a soldier as humble as he is heroic, Staff Sergeant Salvatore A. Giunta.

Now, I'm going to go off script here for a second and just say I really like this guy.

(APPLAUSE)

I think anybody -- you know, we all just get a sense of people and who they are. And when you meet Sal, and you meet his family, you are just absolutely convinced that this is what America's all about. And it just makes you proud. And so, this is a joyous occasion for me, something that I have been looking forward to.

And the Medal of Honor reflects the gratitude of an entire nation. So we are also joined here today by several members of Congress, including both senators and several representatives from Staff Sergeant Giunta's home state of Iowa. We are also joined by leaders from across my administration and the Department of Defense, including the Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates; Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen -- where's Mike?

There he is, right there.

Army Secretary John McHugh, and Chief of Staff of the Army, General George Casey. We are especially honored to be joined by Staff Sergeant Giunta's fellow soldiers, his teammates and brothers from Battle Company 2nd of the 503rd of the 173rd Airborne Brigade, and several members of that rarest of fraternities that now welcomes him into its ranks, the Medal of Honor Society.

Please give them a big round of applause.

(APPLAUSE)

We also welcome the friends and family who made Staff Sergeant Giunta into the man that he is, including his lovely wife Jenny, and his parents, Steven and Rosemary, as well as his siblings who are here. It was his mother, after all, who apparently taught him as a young boy in small-town Iowa how to remove the screen from his bedroom window in case of fire. What she didn't know that by teaching Sal how to jump from his bedroom and sneaking off in the dead of night, she was unleashing a future paratrooper who would one day fight in the rugged mountains of Afghanistan, 7,000 miles away.

Now, during the first of his two tours of duty in Afghanistan, Staff Sergeant Giunta was forced early on to come to terms with the loss of comrades and friends. His team leader at the time gave him a piece of advice: "You've just got to try to do everything you can when it's your time to do it."

Salvatore Giunta's time came on October 25, 2007. He was a specialist then, just 22 years old. Sal and his platoon were several days into a mission in the Korengal Valley, the most dangerous valley in northeast Afghanistan.

The moon was full. The light it cast was enough to travel by without using their night vision goggles. With heavy gear on their backs and air support overhead, they made their way single file down a rocky ridge crest along terrain so steep, that sliding was sometimes easier than walking.

They hadn't traveled a quarter mile before the silence was shattered. It was an ambush so close, that the cracks of the guns and the whiz of the bullets were simultaneous. Tracer fire hammered the ridge at hundreds of rounds per minute, more, Sal said later, than the stars in the sky.

The Apache gunships above saw it all, but couldn't engage with the enemy so close to our soldiers. The next platoon heard the shooting, but were too far away to join the fight in time.

And the two lead men were hit by enemy fire and knocked down instantly. When the third was struck in the helmet and fell to the ground, Sal charged headlong into the wall of bullets to pull him to safety to behind what little cover there was. As he did, Sal was hit twice, one round slamming into his body armor, the other shattering a weapon slung across his back.

They were pinned down, and two wounded Americans still lay up ahead. So Sal and his comrades regrouped and counterattacked. They threw grenades, using the explosions as cover to run forward, shooting at the muzzle flashes still erupting from the trees. Then they did it again and again, throwing grenades, charging ahead.

Finally, they reached one of their men. He had been shot twice in the leg, but he had kept returning fire until his gun jammed.

As another soldier tended to his wounds, Sal sprinted ahead at every step, meeting relentless enemy fire with his own. He crested the hill alone with no cover but the dust kicked up by the storm of bullets still biting into the ground. There, he saw a chilling sight, the silhouettes of two insurgents carrying the other wounded American away who happened to be one of Sal's best friends.

Sal never broke stride. He leapt forward, he took aim, he killed one of the insurgents, and wounded the other who ran off.

Sal found his friend alive but badly wounded. Sal had saved him from the enemy, now he had to try to save his life.

Even as bullets impacted all around him, Sal grabbed his friend by the vest and dragged him to cover. For nearly half an hour, Sal worked to stop the bleeding and helped his friend breathe until the MedEvac arrived to lift the wounded from the ridge.

American gunships worked to clear the enemy from the hills. And with the battle over, the first platoon picked up their gear and resumed their march through the valley. They continued their mission.

It had been as intense and violent a firefight as any soldier will experience. By the time it was finished, every member of first platoon had shrapnel or a bullet hole in their gear. Five were wounded and two gave their lives, Sal's friend, Sergeant Joshua C. Brennan (ph), and the platoon medic, Specialist Hugo D. Mendoza (ph).

Now, the parents of Joshua and Hugo are here today, and I know that there are no words that even three years later can ease the ache in your hearts or repay the debt that America owes to you. But on behalf of a grateful nation, let me express profound thanks to your sons' service and their sacrifice.

And could the parents of Joshua and Hugo please stand briefly?

(APPLAUSE)

Now, I already mentioned I like this guy, Sal. And as I found out myself when I first spoke with him on the phone, and when we met him in the Oval Office today, he is a low-key guy, a humble guy, and he doesn't seek the limelight.

And he'll tell you that he didn't do anything special, that he was just doing his job, that any of his brothers in the unit would do the same thing. In fact, he just lived up to what his team leader instructed him to do years before -- you do everything you can.

Staff Sergeant Giunta repeatedly, and without hesitation, you charged forward through extreme enemy fire, embodying the war era ethos that says, "I will never leave a fallen comrade." Your actions disrupted a devastating ambush before it could claim more lives. Your courage prevented the capture of an American soldier and brought that soldier back to his family.

You may believe that you don't deserve this honor, but it was your fellow soldiers who recommended you for it. In fact, your commander said specifically in his recommendation that you lived up to the standards of the most decorated American soldier of World War II, Audie Murphy, who famously repelled an overwhelming enemy attack by himself for one simple reason -- "They were killing my friends."

That's why Salvatore Giunta risked his life for his fellow soldiers, because they would risk their lives for him. That's what fueled his bravery. Not just the urgent impulse to have their backs, but the absolute confidence that they had his.

One of them, Sal has said, of these young men that he was with, he said, "They are just as much of me as I am. They are just as much of me as I am."

So I would ask Sal's team, all of the battle company who were with him that day to please stand and be recognized as well.

(APPLAUSE)

Gentlemen, thank you for your service. We're all in your debt. And I'm proud to be your commander in chief.

These are the soldiers of our armed forces, highly trained, battle-hardened, each with specialized roles and responsibilities, but all with one thing in common. They volunteered.

In an era when it's never been more tempting to chase personal ambition or narrow self-interest, they chose the opposite. They felt a tug. They answered a call. They said, "I'll go."

And for the better part of a decade, they have endured tour after tour in distant and difficult places, they have protected us from danger, they have given others the opportunity to earn a better and more secure life. They are the courageous men and women serving in Afghanistan even as we speak.

They keep clear focus on their mission: to deny safe haven for terrorists who would attack our country, to break the back of the Taliban insurgency, to build the Afghans' capacity to defend themselves. They possess the steely resolve to see their mission through. They are made of the same strong stuff as the troops in this room, and I am absolutely confident that they will continue to succeed in the missions that we give them in Afghanistan and beyond.

After all, our brave servicemen and women and their families have done everything they have been asked to do. They have been everything that we have asked them to be.

"If I am a hero," Sal has said, "then every man who stands around me, every woman in the military, every person who defends this country is." And he's right.

This medal today is a testament to his uncommon valor, but also to the parents and the community that raised him, the military that trained him, and all the men and women who served by his side. All of them deserve our enduring thanks and gratitude.

They represent a small fraction of the American population, but they and the families who await their safe return carry far more than their fair share of our burden. They fight halfway around the globe, but they do it in hopes that our children and our grandchildren won't have to.

They are the very best part of us. They are our friends, our family, our neighbors, our classmates, our co-workers. They are why our banner still waves, our founding principles still shine, and our country, the United states of America, still stands as a force for good all over the world.

So please join me in welcoming Staff Sergeant Salvatore A. Giunta for the reading of the citation.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "The president of the United States of America, authorized by act of Congress, March 3, 1863, has awarded, in the name of Congress, the Medal of Honor to then-Specialist Salvatore A. Giunta, United States Army."

"Specialist Salvatore A. Giunta distinguished himself conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty, in action with an armed enemy in the Korengal Valley, Afghanistan, on October 25, 2007."

"While conducting a patrol as team leader with Company B, 2nd Battalion Airborne, 503rd Infantry Regiment, Specialist Giunta and his team were navigating through harsh terrain when they were ambushed by a well-armed and well-coordinated insurgent force. While under heavy enemy fire, Specialist Giunta immediately sprinted towards cover and engaged the enemy."

"Seeing that his squad leader had fallen, and believing that he had been injured, Specialist Giunta exposed himself to withering enemy fire and raced towards his squad leader, helped him to cover, and administered medical aid. While administering first-aid, enemy fire struck Specialist Giunta's body arm and his secondary weapon. Without regard to the ongoing fire, Specialist Giunta engaged the enemy before prepping and throwing grenades, using he explosions for cover in order to conceal his position."

"Attempting to reach additional wounded fellow soldiers who were separated from the squad, Specialist Giunta and his team encountered a barrage of enemy fire that forced them to the ground. The team continued forward, and upon reaching the wounded soldiers, Specialist Giunta realized that another soldier was still separated from the element."

"Specialist Giunta then advanced forward on his own initiative. As he crested the top of a hill, he observed two insurgents carrying away an American soldier."

"He immediately engaged the enemy, killing one and wounding the other. Upon reaching the wounded soldier, he began to provide medical aid as his squad caught up and provided security."

"Specialist Giunta's unwavering courage, selflessness and decisive leadership while under extreme enemy fire were integral to his platoon's ability to defeat an enemy ambush and recover a fellow American soldier from the enemy. Specialist Salvatore A. Giunta's extraordinary heroism and selflessness, above and beyond the call of duty, are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit on himself, Company B, 2nd Battalion Airborne, 503rd Infantry Regiment and the United States Army."

(APPLAUSE)

CARVER: Let us pray.

Great and loving God, as we conclude this ceremony, keep us mindful of your call to each us of to devote ourselves, even our very lives, on behalf of others.

May Staff Sergeant Sal Giunta's courageous and compassionate actions challenge and inspire us all to do the same for our fellow citizens for generations to come.

Please give Sal and Jen great wisdom and strength in their new responsibilities and roles that lie before them. May they continue to meet them all with dignity, honor, courage and humility.

Let your divine faith and eternal wisdom rest on our president, and upon all of the national leaders, as they strive together to lead and serve our great country.

God bless the members of our armed services, and God bless America.

We pray in your holy name. Amen.

OBAMA: Thank you so much, everybody.

Let's give Sal one last big round of applause.

(APPLAUSE)

VELSHI: You are witnessing something you will not see very often in our lifetimes. It was last in 1976 that a living recipient of the Medal of Honor stood there and received it.

This is an award that was given to Staff Sergeant Sal Giunta for activity that took place on an October night in a valley in northern Afghanistan. His valor was described quite -- in great detail by the president.

Let me just tell you a little bit about the Medal of Honor, which is the highest military honor presented. I want to take a look at it up close over here, Mark, if you can.

This design dates back to 1904. The face in the middle is Minerva, the Roman goddess of war. The oak clusters around it -- you can see the five oak leaves -- that symbolizes strength, you know, similar to an oak tree. The laurel wreath around it as well you can see in the green, it represents victory.

What is interesting, you saw the president putting the Medal of Honor around Sergeant Giunta's neck. The Medal of Honor is the only U.S. military award that is worn around the neck.

It took more than three years to approve this honor. There is an incredibly long and detailed vetting process involved in bestowing the Medal of Honor. The standard to receive the Medal of Honor is indisputable heroism, documented and vetted at every single level, all the way from the unit commander, all the way up to the president.

So, Sal Giunta, the recipient of the Medal of Honor.

OK. I told you there are two major stories we're covering. The other one is the royal engagement. Some people may think it has nothing to do with them, but a lot of people are very interested.

I'll bring you the details right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: Royal wedding bells will be heard throughout Great Britain. Throughout the world, really. Prince William and his longtime girlfriend, Kate Middleton, announced today that they were engaged. They are planning to marry in the spring or summer of next year. He popped the question while they were on a holiday in Kenya.

They've lived together for several years. She's fairly familiar with the media scene. They spoke to the media for the first time a short time a while ago. Listen in.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRINCE WILLIAM OF WALES: It was (INAUDIBLE) in Kenya. We had a little private time away together with some friends, and I just decided that it was the right time, really. We have been talking about marriage for a while. So, it wasn't a massively big surprise, but I took her out somewhere nice in Kenya and I proposed.

KATE MIDDLETON, PRINCE WILLIAM'S FIANCEE: Very romantic. He's a true romantic. Of course, yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (off camera): And you knew you were going to do this from day one of the holiday? Or did you decide at the end?

PRINCE WILLIAM: I have been planning it for a while. But as every guy out there will know, it takes a certain amount of motivation to get yourself going. So, I was planning, and it just felt really right out in Africa, It was a very beautiful time, and I did a little bit of planning to share my romantic side.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Kate, you'd been on holiday awhile. So, did you see this coming? Was he getting nervous and jumpy.

MIDDLETON: No, not at all. You know, we were out there with friends and things, so I really didn't think so at all. I thought he might have maybe thought about it. But I was in total shock when I came, and I was very excited.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And did he produce a ring?

MIDDLETON: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There and then?

PRINCE WILLIAM: I did, yes. I have been carrying it around with me in my rucksack for about three weeks before that. And I literally wouldn't let it go. Everywhere I went, I was keeping a hold of it, because I knew this thing, if it disappeared, I'd be in a lot of trouble.

And yes -- because I planned it, it sort of went fine. You hear a lot of horror stories about proposing, and things go horribly wrong. But it went really, really well and I was very pleased.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a family ring?

PRINCE WILLIAM: It is a family ring, yes. It's my mother's engagement ring. So, I thought it was quite nice because obviously she's not going to be around to share in the fun and excitement of all this. This is my way of keeping her sort of close to it all.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And I guess we better have a look at it. What kind of a ring is it? Are you an expert on what -

PRINCE WILLIAM: I'm not an expert on it at all. I have been reliably informed it's a sapphire with some diamonds. I'm sure everybody recognizes it from previous times, so.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELSHI: And of course, when he says "recognizes it from previous times," he's referring to the fact that that was his mother's ring.

OK, imagine this. A bandage that lets you know when you have an infection. We're going to go off the radar with that in a minute. But first, a quiz. What year was the Band-Aid invented? 1890. 1920, or 1940? I'll tell you when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: All right. Before the break, I asked you when you thought the Band-Aid was invented. The answer is 1920. The inventor was a Johnson & Johnson worker who made makeshift bandages for his accident-prone wife. Which takes us to "Off the Radar."

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: And your accident-prone weatherman.

(LAUGHTER)

MYERS: Have you noticed for four months, I have been wearing a Band-Aid on this thumb.

VELSHI: Yes, well, something's not working out right.

MYERS: Smashing it in the car door. I actually had to get the key out and unlock the door and open the door. It was in there that long, so I thank that. Johnson & Johnson employee for making Band-Aids so long ago.

VELSHI: So, the issue is wounds heal. the danger is infection.

MYERS: Correct. And wounds heal at a pretty good number. A slightly acidic number, somewhere around the quality of what would be milk. A Ph of 6.5. Pure water is 7.0. So, slightly acidic. What they have found out, literally almost by accident, is that when a wound starts to get infected, it begins to get more basic. Which is not acidic. It's the opposite of a battery. It's bleach, it's ammonia, it's soap.

VELSHI: When it's healing, it's getting more acidic?

MYERS: If it heals and gets infected, it becomes more basic.

VELSHI: I see. So, if it goes in that way, we're in the right direction. If it goes this way - so, now we're talking about a Band- Aid of some sort, a bandage that will indicate to you what's going on.

MYERS: You know how some of your "Big Ideas" are really, really high-tech? This is as low tech as you can get! You put a ph little sticker, just like you're going to test the ph in a pool. If it gets too basic -

VELSHI: You know you need to clean it, you know you got to get it checked out. You got to put ointment on it?

MYERS: There it is.

VELSHI: Now, is this out there yet?

MYERS: Not yet.

VELSHI: What a great idea. I like when they're a little -- big eyes that are small. Those simple matters could save a lot of people from extra long time healing or even more serious things that happen.

MYERS: You don't have to take it off because the color will change.

(CROSSTALK)

VELSHI: Like a pregnancy test for your wound.

MYERS: OK, that -

(LAUGHTER)

VELSHI: It's a good things this is a taped show and that stuff's not actually be heard by our viewers.

MYERS: Right, right.

VELSHI: All right. Cut the tape. We're going to rehearse that later.

Oh, this is a live show? All right.

Time now for "Globe Trekking." Our destination, of course, is London. I say of course because there is royal excitement all over Great Britain, all over the world even here in the U.S. And don't -- before any of you start e-mailing me and Facebooking me about this doesn't matter and who cares, you know what? People care, it's nice. Prince William is engaged to be married to his longtime girlfriend, Kate Middleton. They're nice people. They're 28 years old. They've both been dating for the past seven years.

A short while ago, they spoke to the media for the first time. One question concerned William's late mother. You all know her. Princess Diana.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIDDLETON: I would have loved to have met her. And she's obviously an inspirational woman to look up. And I feel that to this day and going forward and things, you know, it's just -- you know, it's a wonderful family. And they're very inspirational, too.

And yes, I do.

PRINCE WILLIAM: Like -- it's about carving your own future and no one's going to come -- no one's trying to fill my mother's shoes. And what she did is fantastic. It's about making your own future and your own destiny. And Kate will do a very good job with that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a life in the public domain. Will you agree that you can't escape, you both know that. You're obviously -- you know it better than Kate does. No doubt you're very protective of her?

PRINCE WILLIAM: Naturally so. Of course, her and her family, I want to make sure they have the best sort of guidance and chance to see what life's been like or what life is like in the family, and that's kind of almost why I have been waiting this long is I wanted to give her a chance to see and to back out if she needed to before it all got too much. Because -- I'm trying to learn from lessons in the past and I just wanted to give her the best chance to settle in and see what happens on the other side.

(END VIDEO CLIP) VELSHI: That could be the biggest understatement of the century. Max Foster joins me in London. "I wanted to learn from the lessons of the past." The lessons of the past for royal weddings, at least in the recent past, royal engagements and royal relationships has not been fantastic. He's not walking into a road that is well paved.

MAX FOSTER, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: No, I mean, that interview was fascinating insight for people in Britain and across the commonwealth because we had never seen them sit down together. We had never seen that chemistry, but there's clearly chemistry there. And it's a stark comparison with the parallel interview which Prince Charles and Diana had just after their engagement. They didn't have the same chemistry.

Kate's older. She's going into this older. You know, she's going to get married older. She's got a lot more experience. But then she's going to be under a lot of pressure, I guess, Ali. You know, the media is a lot more powerful these days.

VELSHI: She's wearing Princess Diana's ring. He says they don't want to draw the same parallels and that it's about her forging her own paths. Everyone's done nothing but draw those parallels.

FOSTER: Yes, it's inevitable, really. When Princess Diana was around, she brought pizzazz to the royal family, and it hasn't been there since she left. And this is what everybody is hoping will return under Kate's primeirship, as it's coming up. She's will be queen one day. She's going to be the next queen of England if things go as planned.

People very excited about this in this country about that. The wedding will be next year, spring or summer, expecting a big wedding at St. Paul's it's going to be a huge occasion, not just for the U.K. A billion people watched Prince Charles and Diana get married. There's going to be many more watching this one, I bet.

VELSHI: Sure. You're absolutely right. The interest in this goes well beyond the United Kingdom and the commonwealth. Max, good to see you. We'll talk a lot more.

Max Foster in London.

All right, this is great. A music program for kids in Venezuela is kicking up the economy. We're going to show you how this can make a difference in impoverished neighborhoods when we come back. "Mission Possible" after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: All right. I'm sitting here wondering who gave me this violin and why I have it in my hands. I actually did - I played the viola when I was very young, which didn't really help my social integration very much. But it gave me some sense of music.

It is surprising what affect music can actually have on people. Today's "Mission Possible" is about helping needy kids succeed using music. In Venezuela, there's a music program called El Systema, which my rudimentary Spanish tells me is "The System." It gives kids free music equipment, instruments, classes five days a week for three to four hours a day. It's all free and it's been hugely successful, probably because it seems like they don't give these kids time to do anything else!

But there are now 60 children's orchestras, 200 youth orchestras, 30 professional adult orchestras in Venezuela. And check this out. According to one estimate, for every dollar spent on the program by the Venezuelan government, the economy gets back an estimated $1.68. It's profitable for the economy. Of course it is! If you take people out of poverty, and you make them net contributors, that is better for the economy.

Now, El Systemma is in the United States. Right here in Atlanta, actually. It's called the Atlanta Music Group. The executive director, Dante Remo, joins me live right now.

Dante, good to see you.

DANTES RAMEAU, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ATLANTA MUSIC GROUP: Thank you for having me.

VELSHI: This is your group's violin that I'm holding?

RAMEAU: That's right, it's one of the instruments our kids play every day.

VELSHI: All right. Tell me about this program. Just draw the line for me. I kind of get that if you get kids somewhere doing something meaningful that they like and you're keeping them off the streets, it's going to be productive. But there's got to be more to it than that to have this kind of success.

RAMEAU: Sure. Well our program is called The Atlanta Music Project. And what we do is we immerse kids in a music program five days a week after school. And we believe, strongly, that when kids play music and they try, they pursue excellence, that they can develop confidence, creativity and ambition. Life skills that will enable them to do whatever they want, and we use music as a vehicle to impart this in our students.

VELSHI: Confidence, creativity and ambition. That's what you're trying to get them to do?

RAMEAU: That's right. We want our kids to graduate high school. We want our kids to go to college, you want them to feel self-worth.

VELSHI: Are you aiming for them to be musicians necessarily, or just that they develop something that makes them feel like they're active contributors?

RAMEAU: It's two-fold. When you bring a child into a program five days a week for four hours a day, they're going to get pretty good at music. But our end goal is for music for social change. We want to change families. We want to change communities. And we start with the children. They change their attitudes, that passes on to their families, that looks out for them in the development in our program, and it spreads to the neighbors. And before you know it, an entire country, like Venezuela has been transformed by classical music.

VELSHI: Who are you targeting? Where are you finding this kids? Where do you get these instruments? Who pays for them. Tell me how this works?

RAMEAU: The Atlanta Music Project, we do all of our fundraising so that we can provide for our students' classes, teachers, instruments, and concert opportunities.

VELSHI: It sounds expensive.

RAMEAU: It's very expensive. Well, considering the fact that the kids are there every day, five days a week, for 12 months a year, it's only $2,500 per kid. And right now, we're targeting underserved areas in Atlanta -- southwest Atlanta, at risk, low income. That kind of area.

VELSHI: How easy is this to spread? This sounds like a great idea across the U.S.

RAMEAU: Of course. There is now a movement because the founder of El Systema was awarded (INAUDIBLE) prize, and his wish with that money and prize was to start a fellowship program for musicians to lead El Systema's programs here in the United States. So, right now there's upwards of 20 programs similar to the Atlanta Music Project going on.

VELSHI: What a great idea. Thanks for coming in, Dantes. Good to talk to you about this, and continued good luck. What a great idea. You can get yourself - what did you say -- confidence, ambition and creativity, and learn how to play an instrument. I love it. I'm going to have to give this violin back, however. Good to see you.

All right. Judges going through foreclosures at lightning speed. Find out why these rocket dockets can hurt you, the homeowner, coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: Today, a Senate committee here holds a hearing on questionable foreclosures, a big problem in many parts of the country. In today's "Taking the Lead," we focus on Florida's huge foreclosure caseload. There are so many pending that $10 million was allocated to hire retired judges to go through them quickly.

These so-called rocket dockets, however, can hurt homeowners. CNNMoney.com's Poppy Harlow joins me from New York with the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Today, I have approximately 40 cases on the calendar. POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Judge Charles Mitchell (ph) was recently hired out of retirement to deal with Jacksonville's backlog of more than 21,000 foreclosure cases. Critics call it a "rocket docket."

CHIP PARKER, FORECLOSURE DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Foreclosure courts throughout the state of Florida have adopted a system of ramming foreclosure cases through to final judgment and sale with very little regard for the rule of law.

HARLOW: Lawyer after lawyer wait for their cases to be heard. Parker's client, Jacqueline Fitzhugh, has a hearing on tomorrow's docket. After a divorce and losing her business, she's been unable to make a mortgage payment in two years.

JACQUELINE FITZHUGH, HOMEOWNER: And I'm stuck with a loan that I cannot afford to pay.

Now my American dream is like everybody else's, sitting in front of a judge tomorrow waiting for my house to get foreclosed on.

HARLOW (on camera): So this is the courthouse in downtown Jacksonville, Florida. It's one of the places where the so-called rocket docket is happening, judging signing off on about 120 foreclosures an hour, that's one about every two minutes.

It's also, this morning, that Jacqueline, right inside here, will learn whether or not she can keep our house.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Case of Deutsch Bank versus Fitzhugh.

HARLOW (voice-over): The attorney representing Jacqueline's bank refuses to let us film her hearing. It lasts 25 minutes.

But other cases are over in less than a minute, and most of the time the homeowner doesn't show up.

PARKER: What I am seeing now is an attack upon the citizens of the state of Florida by retired judges. Their job is to reduce the foreclosure backlog by 62 percent.

HARLOW (on camera): Is this a foreclosure mill? Is this a factory?

JUDGE A.C. SOUD, FOURTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT COURT: That's silly.

(voice-over): Judge A.C. Soud oversees this temporary foreclosure court.

SOUD: We will try to schedule as many foreclosures, on the average, of 25 an hour.

HARLOW (on camera): But are two or three minutes, is that enough time to look at a foreclosure case and make that final judgment?

SOUD: Most of the case where you see a property owner not there, that means that property owner has defaulted. So when that is the case, then three minutes, if the lawyers who we know say that everything is in order, then we feel like that's adequate time.

HARLOW: Those lawyers represent the banks. Doesn't the judge need to look for his or herself?

SOUD: No. We do not. I am not there to check every exhibit.

HARLOW (voice-over): At the end of our day in court, Judge Mitchell ruled on 35 cases. In Jacqueline's case, he denied the foreclosure, ruling the plaintiff didn't submit paper work on time.

FITZHUGH: For now, I'll keep my home, but obviously there are some legal paper works that are at issue.

HARLOW: For now, it buys Jacqueline more time in her home until the bank requests another hearing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARLOW: And Jacqueline, Ali, will get to stay in her home. But again, as we said, that's just until the bank comes back and takes her back to court.

Now the judge that we interviewed at the end of that piece insisted time and time again that there's no fraud in these special courts. He said they're doing it the right way. But, Ali, just yesterday, the ACLU, the American Civil Liberties Union, sent a letter to Florida's Supreme Court saying they're worried about a lack of transparency, they're worried about potential conflicts, what this could mean. And Florida's Supreme Court chief justice wrote back and I want to show you his response to that, they're obviously looking into this.

Justice Charles Kennedy wrote, "I have received the letter and am deeply concerned about the allegations it makes. Today I am directing the Office of the State Court Administrator to make recommendations concerning appropriate corrective actions."

So, Ali, this is really just the beginning of this fight. We'll keep on top of it.

Florida, though, the only state that does this right now, we'll see if it spreads across the country.

VELSHI: All right, Poppy, thanks very much for that.

Check out Poppy's stuff on CNNMoney.com. She covers pretty much everything going on in the business world.

All right, you fed up with the TSA? Well, maybe you should be more worried about a terrorist getting on your plane. My "XYZ" up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) VELSHI: Time now for "The XYZ of It." We have been talking about the controversy brewing in the nation's airports, heading into the busiest travel day of the year.

A growing movement on the Internet is calling for a "National Opt Out Day," the day before Thanksgiving to protest the use of full-body scanners at airport security checks. Travelers are being told to avoid flying that day or to protest by opting out of the full-body scanners and undergo time-consuming patdowns instead, in full view of other passengers.

That TSA personnel can use advanced imaging technology to see right through our clothes has a lot of people hopping mad about invasion of privacy. Groups online are telling people to, quote, "stand up for their rights, stand up for liberty and protest the federal government's desire to virtually strip us naked" unquote.

Even though I may get into some trouble here, I need to ask these groups who are perpetrating this a basic question. Do you remember the real threat of terrorism to this county? Threats in which suspects used airports to transport bombs and explosives targeting American passengers?

Let me refresh your memory. Last Christmas, a Nigerian national allegedly tried to set off a bomb during his flight to Detroit, a bomb he hid in his crotch. Let's not forget 9/11 in which the suspects smuggled in implements that helped them hijack four planes they then turned into vehicles of mass destruction.

Acknowledging the real concerns many Americans have about intrusive security procedures, I think calling on passengers to potentially disrupt the TSA's work on one of the busiest travel days of the year is plain irresponsible.

Some 40 million Americans are expected to travel this Thanksgiving, a smaller proportion by air, and TSA screeners have reason to be on alert for potential security threats. Calling on travelers to basically create bottlenecks at airport checkpoints to make a point about privacy seems misplaced to me.

That's my "XYZ." Brooke Baldwin takes it from here.