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Remembering Oklahoma City; Gulf of Mexico: A Year Later; Schools Divided by Race

Aired April 19, 2011 - 14:00   ET

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

RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: Too hot, too dry, too windy. Too many wildfires in Texas, 10 new ones since yesterday.

A spring storm could do wonders, but from Oklahoma to Indiana, they are not bracing for wonders. They are bracing for damage.

We'll get to the latest severe weather threat in a moment, but I want to begin with the really, "really stressful scenario" in Texas. I'm quoting a pregnant woman whose husband is helping fight the fires and whose home is in constant danger.

Just look at the map. Two hundred fifty-two of Texas' 254 counties are said to be burning, in danger of burning, or otherwise affected by wildfire. You can see all the red there.

The only counties not on the governor's major disaster list, San Patricio -- that's southwest of Galveston -- and Wood, just east of Dallas.

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAYE: Our "Sound Effect" is a painful memory from the deadliest act of homegrown terror this country has ever seen. On this date, in 1995, Timothy McVeigh blew up a truck outside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. One hundred sixty-eight people, some of them children in a daycare center, were killed.

Just a warning -- this may be hard for you to watch.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is thick smoke still coming from the ground and on the ground. Holy cow. About a third -- about a third -- about a third of the building has been blown away.

BERNARD SHAW, CNN ANCHOR: You are not watching some scene of international catastrophe. You are looking at your own back yard. Downtown Oklahoma City is in flames and smoke right now. The injuries are numerous.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have emergency workers walking around scratching their heads, saying they couldn't even estimate the number of victims inside. They wouldn't even venture to guess at a death toll. You can just look at the building and just imagine the worst at this point. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You just can't imagine it. There are just bodies laying everywhere. There's people just laying there, screaming, trying to get out. I have helped rescue several bodies, a bunch of babies that we have had to drag out. It's just a gruesome sight.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Got one here! They're down here!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Out of the way.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just got down here, and I'm trying to find -- but they're running.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have a live picture right now. We're told there may be another explosion in the area.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What happened to you, sir?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We were on the fifth floor, the three of us, when whatever happened happened.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You were on the first floor?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fifth floor.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Fifth floor. You were under a table, right?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Huh?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, when I went under table when the ceiling started to fall.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just the roar of the whole building crumbling, and where I was sitting, it was the only place the floor didn't cave in. I mean, right here over here, the floor was gone.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's because of this guy, I might have lost my 3-year-old daughter and my husband and my 4-year-old. Whoever did this, I hope you are happy.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: Hundreds gathered this morning at the National Memorial and Museum in Oklahoma City for 168 seconds of silence beginning at 9:02 a.m., when the blast occurred.

Breaking news now. Three children were rushed to the hospital after a shooting inside this Texas school.

The Houston school district spokesman says a 6-year-old boy brought a loaded handgun to the Betsy Ross Elementary School, and during lunch, it fell out of his pocket. The gun went off and wounded him, as well as two other students. Their injuries were to their feet and their legs. All children are alert and did not suffer life-threatening wounds, we are told. Investigators are looking into how the boy got the gun and who it belongs to.

So, when you hear "Just say no" to drugs, typically you think crack, marijuana, meth, maybe. But more people in the U.S. overdose on prescription drugs than on crack cocaine or heroin, making it the fastest-growing drug problem in the country.

It is so severe, in fact, the president's drug policy director has released a crisis plan to fight prescription drug abuse. The plan aims to crack down on abuse of powerful pain relievers. We're talking about drugs like Oxycontin, Vicodin and Demerol, just to name a few. The first-ever comprehensive federal plan focuses on four main areas: an education campaign, a pill-tracking database, better methods to get rid of unused pills, and a crackdown on illegal pill clinics.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GIL KERLIKOWSKE, NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL POLICY DIRECTOR: People don't recognize that, as a prescription, that it can be dangerous, that it can be addictive. It isn't something sold in a piece of tin foil from behind a gas station. And that's one of our big educational efforts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: The goal is to reduce the abuse of these drugs by 15 percent within five years.

Well, if you're looking for a job, listen up. McDonald's is opening its doors to 50,000 new workers today. McDonald's began a hiring blitz that spans all 50 states. The fast-food giant is hiring what amounts to four new workers per restaurant. Crews and management positions, part time and full time, are all up for the taking.

One of the world's worst environmental disasters happened one year ago tomorrow. An oil rig exploded and led to these images of oily beaches and birds. We'll never forget those.

CNN goes in depth on how the Gulf oil spill still impacts people today. We're live in New Orleans on the other side of this break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: One year ago tomorrow, it was the event that ultimately bled more than 200 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. The oil rig Deepwater Horizon exploded, and the company in charge, BP, set aside $20 billion to handle people's claims. But today, just $3.8 billion has actually been paid out, and tempers in the Gulf region toward BP continue to flare.

CNN's Rob Marciano joins us live from New Orleans.

Rob, you spent a lot of time there seeing all the wildlife affected. I remember you covering those oil-soaked pelicans. What is the situation like there today?

ROB MARCIANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, thank you. And it's a lot different, Randi. That's for sure.

We all remember the pictures of those pelicans and other birds soaked in oil. They were beamed around the world, and a wildlife rescue organization then converged on this part of the Gulf of Mexico to rescue, rehabilitate, and eventually release a lot of those animals into the wild.

Those MASH-like triage units have been dismantled and gone, but there are still areas where they're rehabilitating turtles and some dolphins just up the road in Gulfport. We'll be there tomorrow to show you some of that. So that part is different.

There's still -- the beaches are much cleaner, but there's still some areas where there's oil underneath the deeper layers of the sand on the beaches. And Mother Nature is going to have to break those down more naturally.

But the true cost to wildlife, Randi, really, we won't know for many, many years to come. We'll have to see how the fish populations come back this year, how the reproductive cycles are working in the coming years. But scientists, everyone we've talked to, say they don't have any immediate answers. And I suppose that's the lingering thought and theme that we'll have for the years to come -- Randi.

KAYE: Yes. I remember there was so much concern about the seafood, so much concern about the oyster beds there.

I'm curious, at this point, what is the attitude now toward oil drilling?

MARCIANO: Well, you know how it is down here. I mean, it's weaved into the livelihood of so many people.

You'll have a fisherman, an oyster fisherman or a shrimper, living in the same neighborhood as somebody who works directly on the oil rigs. So it's kind of a one hand washes the other kind of deal, and nobody wants to see oil drilling go completely away. And across America, you know, the attitude has changed over the past year. Short memories, I suppose.

A CNN poll shows that more Americans favor it now than they did a year ago, almost 20 percent. I suppose some of that has to do with the price of gasoline at the pumps right now, and part of it may be a short memory.

But there hasn't been a whole lot of steps taken by policymakers on Capitol Hill, and that's what the folks here are a little bit frustrated about. They want drilling, but they want tighter regulations so that something like this never happens again.

KAYE: Yes, I remember when the whole debate over oil drilling was happening while all of this was going on. We were reminded that it's not just the people who are working on these rigs, but it's also the people who prepare lunch for them and all the restaurants on shore. And those people are affected, too, when the oil drilling stops. So, certainly a bit of an argument there to be made by them.

We did mention though, Rob, just quickly, that only a fraction of these people have gotten money from this fund that was supposed to help them get back on track. Do you still sense a lot of anger about that?

MARCIANO: Absolutely. A very small percentage have gotten it.

You know, there are several ways to get money from BP. You have got the Clean Water Act, you've got the Endangered Species Act -- that's a criminal type of deal -- and the Oil Pollution Act, which is punitive damages that you receive when you break some of their regulations. So that fund is set up. Getting some of that money poured out is another story.

You know, we talked to and spent the day -- several days -- with charter fishermen both at the beginning of the oil spill and now. They lost their fishing opportunities, obviously, with the spill last year. They were then put to work by BP. They damaged their boats severely because they were in the thick of the oil.

Now BP doesn't want to pay their claims to get their fishing boat back in working order. And to add insult to injury, nobody is booking charter fishing trips through them because they are afraid of the fishing in the Gulf. So, there is an image problem going on here, and that will be reverberating throughout at least this season and many more tourist seasons to come -- Randi.

KAYE: Yes. Certainly, they have a lot of work ahead of them.

Rob Marciano, thank you, there in the Gulf.

And when you look at your child's school, what do you see? A startling report finds more than likely it's either mostly white or black.

We take a look at the resegregation of schools. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Desegregation of schools was a critical focus of the civil rights movement. Remember Brown versus Board of Education. If you think that fight is over, well, think again.

A report from Northeastern University found that schools across the nation are more segregated than ever. In several major cities such as Chicago, Detroit, and Cleveland, 80 percent of students would have to move to another school system for the metro area to be completely desegregated. But why is that?

Soledad O'Brien takes a look at what's happening in one school system.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Joshua is 2. His sister Malia (ph), 1. But their great-grandmother Geraldine Alshamy is already worried about their education. Six years ago, she moved her extended family to Wake County, North Carolina, because she didn't like the school system where she lived.

GERALDINE ALSHAMY, GRANDPARENT: We moved to what they called neighborhood schools, and it was basically just segregation.

O'BRIEN: Segregation, because neighborhood schools means students attend school closest to where they live. A black neighborhood means a black school. A white neighborhood, a white school.

Since 2000, Wake County's been mixing students from families of all income levels to create fully-integrated schools. Then, 13 months ago, a mostly new school board voted to replace that system in favor of neighborhood schools.

REV. WILLIAM BARBER, NAACP: They argue that diversity is the enemy of student achievement, when we know that almost 100 percent of the research of the last 50 years says that diversity and resources are keys to student achievement and excellence.

O'BRIEN: The NAACP complained to the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights, which says resegregation is a growing trend nationally.

RUSSLYNN ALI, ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR CIVIL RIGHTS: In schools that are racially isolated, they tend to have fewer of the things we know make the difference in public education. They are far more likely to have more than their fair share of our least effective teachers. We don't see the access to the rigorous curricula that we know they'll need to succeed.

O'BRIEN: Critics of the proposed changes in Wake County worry that schools in poor neighborhoods will be neglected and fail. The new school superintendent says he's aware of concerns.

ANTHONY TATA, WAKE COUNTY SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT: We're trying to make sure that we avoid the problem of high poverty schools.

O'BRIEN: By 2012, they'll decide how to assign students.

Geraldine Alshamy is unhappy.

ALSHAMY: When we go back to neighborhood schools, we are facing segregation all over again. And everything that has been done will be undone.

O'BRIEN: Soledad O'Brien, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: And Soledad takes a deeper look at the crisis in our public education system and why America's financial future is at risk if our students can't excel in math and science. You can watch the full documentary, "Don't Fail Me: Education in America," on Sunday, May 15th. That's at 8:00 p.m. Eastern, only on CNN.

The time right now, 22 minutes past the hour. And it is time to update our top stories.

Three children were rushed to the hospital after a shooting inside this Texas school. The Houston school district spokesman says a 6-year-old boy brought a loaded handgun to the Betsy Ross Elementary School, and during lunch it fell out of his pocket. The gun went off and wounded him, as well as two other students. All the kids are alert and did not suffer life-threatening wounds.

The fires in Texas have burned more than one million acres. All but two counties are affected. Air National Guard helicopters were brought in to drop fire retardant on the fires, but still, dry, hot, windy days just like today are adding fuel to the fire.

Arizona Governor Jan Brewer shot down the so-called birther bill last night. She vetoed the controversial bill that would require presidential candidates to prove they were U.S. citizens before their name could appear on the state ballot. Brewer says the measure would make the secretary of state the lone gatekeeper of the ballot, which could lead to arbitrarily and politically-motivated decisions.

Now for today's look at "Green Solutions in Focus."

Before you pour that honey, well, let's talk about the bees that produce it. Farming could really not happen without them. They fertilize millions of acres of crops, in addition to producing countless of gallons of honey. But the thing is, many hives are dying off suddenly and mysteriously.

And that is where one special group comes in. Photojournalist John Torigoe has that from Los Angeles.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROBERTA KATO, BACKWARDS BEEKEEPERS: I'm Roberta Kato. I work with the Backwards Beekeepers.

RUSSELL BATES, BACKWARDS BEEKEEPERS: Which is a group of chemical-free, treatment-free organic beekeepers, and we have grown from about five members three years ago to about 550 today.

KIRK ANDERSON, BACKWARDS BEEKEEPERS: And we basically have a rescue hotline we must get 3,000 to 4,000 calls a year on. We go and catch and rescue swarms, remove them from people's houses, and give them to new beekeepers to start beekeeping. So, it's a sustainable resource because nature provides the bees.

KATO: Well, it looks like we have a swarm of bees that came in a few days ago.

LISA NGHE, CALLED RESCUE HOTLINE: When I first saw them, I have to be honest, it kind of freaked me out, because it was just a cloud of buzzing bees up in the air.

KATO: OK. If they start coming, walk away. OK?

NGHE: We came upon the Backwards Beekeepers, because I called the city, the city referred me to an exterminator. My dad got really angry because he did not want to exterminate the bees.

Well, I think what we're going to do is to have a three-day run with them just to see how they work.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If the honey bee hadn't been doing what it's been doing the last 70 million years, we'd all be eating rice and wheat. Let's say a cucumber, I think, has to be visited by a pollinator six times to set fruit. So they are probably the most important insects in the world.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This here is a frame that is full of beautiful cured feral honey, clean, chemical-free, treatment-free, and this is going to go on the cheese plate at a local bar in Los Feliz called Bar Covell.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: On every cheese plate, we put some of this local honey, and people love that. We say it comes from right here in the neighborhood.

AMY SEIDENWURM, BACKWARDS BEEKEEPERS: Oh, look at that.

We are all about fully natural, organic, chemical-free beekeeping, which is quite different from how commercial beekeepers run their operations.

KATO: OK.

SEIDENWURM: We find that taking that approach helps the bees thrive in urban settings.

NGHE: My dad's a little bit iffy right now of keeping so many bees.

KATO: So they're going to be able to watch therapies (ph) from their window.

NGHE: After the three days, if my dad is happy with it, we probably will keep them.

KATO: I think that's the most exciting part, that I try to aim to have a new beekeeper every week.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're Backward Beekeepers. If you figure, backwards is the new forwards.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: Possible tornadoes are in the forecast for seven U.S. states. Chad Myers joins us with much more on a dangerous storm system that's moving through the country.

We'll explain right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: More tornadoes are brewing. This time, in the Midwest.

CNN meteorologist Chad Myers is back to give us the forecast.

Where are they headed?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You know, there may only be 10.

KAYE: Only 10?

MYERS: But you only need one in your neighborhood to make it a bad day.

KAYE: Sure.

MYERS: Right? OK, so we had over 100 the past three days, over the weekend. So, so far, because of this -- this is the cold air, where the cold air -- and warm and the cold never mix well. When warm and cold are next to each other, there's always something bad going to happen, and that's the front that's snow moving through the Midwest.

There's the new tornado watch box. Remember we went through this. Didn't we go through this a couple of days ago about watches and warning?

KAYE: Yes.

MYERS: Watch is the first one. Watch is a big thing.

KAYE: I remember what you taught me.

MYERS: It's as big as the state. And what did you learn?

KAYE: You told me to remember that war for warning means much dangerous.

MYERS: War is bad.

KAYE: And warning is worse than a watch.

MYERS: Correct. You can go out to watch the sky, but when we warn you, you need to go inside.

KAYE: Take cover.

MYERS: So, far, we are not warning anybody. In fact, there's not even a storm on the map above about 10,000 feet. That could change later on today. Certainly we have the potential for weather all across the Midwest, anywhere from about Ohio back to northeast corner of Texas. And of course, still that fire threat as well. KAYE: And snow.

MYERS: And snow where are you from.

KAYE: All right. Chad, thank you.

Well, he was not sleeping, but another air traffic controller is now suspended. What one controller was watching, and we can tell you, it did not involve airplanes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Welcome back. Now a look at the news that you may have missed.

Breaking news in Houston. Three children were rushed to the hospital after a shooting inside of their school. A school spokesman says that a six-year-old boy brought a loaded handgun to school, and it went off when it fell out of his pocket at lunch. The boy and two other students were injured, but their injuries are not life threatening.

It is being called worse than the cocaine epidemic the 1980s. Abuse of prescription meds is now the biggest drug problem in the country. In response, the Obama administration is launching a new effort to slow down the epidemic. The plan includes a crackdown on overuse, better education and finding better ways to dispose of unused pills.

A day of remembrance in Oklahoma City. Survivors and victims' families pause today to remember the 168 people who died in the attack on the Murray Federal Building. The bomb exploded 16 years ago.

Another air traffic controller was suspended this week. This time in Cleveland for viewing a movie instead of watching your airplane. The movie's soundtrack could be heard for three minutes over the frequency designated for air space. The FAA forbids the use of video players and other devices on the radar room floor. This is just one of a string of incidents where air traffic controllers were not paying attention and not alert on the job.

If you are in need of a job, head over to McDonald's. The company plans on hiring 50,000 workers today. That is roughly four people per restaurant. The average starting wage is $8 per hour. Part-time and full-time positions are available.

Fidel Castro says, that's it. He is really done with politics this time. But not before overseeing what Cuba says are some pretty big reforms to come. "Globe Trekking" and Michael Holmes is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Welcome back, everyone. Let's do some "Globe Trekking."

I want to start in Cuba. Fidel Castro making an appearance at the Communist Party's Congress, which is wrapping up in Havana. He says he has resigned from the party's leadership. He already resigned as the country's president three years ago. Still, there are clearly more changes afoot in Cuba.

And here to explain much about that is CNN's International's Michael Holmes. Good to see you.

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Thank you, Randi.

KAYE: So, what is this all about? He says he is done?

HOLMES: Oh, yes, he's done. He has handed over the leadership to the brother, and not surprising. He is not well after all. He actually needed assistance when he was going up there. But putting in the appearance was also seen as being an act of support for Raul as well.

Now, what is announced is interesting. A battery of proposed changes, ranging from limiting leadership terms to two five-year periods, ten in total, which is interesting in a country which has been ruled by the same family for, what 52 years?

Also things like bringing out the private sector further, and that sort of thing. He's not using the word capitalism, don't get excited. He is talking more about modernizing the socialist model if you like, but he has seen the economic realities. He knows some things have got to change.

KAYE: Well, we have heard a lot of what he's saying though before, right?

HOLMES: That's right. That's right. Yes, he has made promises before of reforms that have died a slow death. And so a lot of the people on the ground there are adopting very much a wait and see. A lot of what he's saying will take time to come to fruition if it does. So, nothing's going to happen short term.

KAYE: Let's move on to Libya.

HOLMES: Yes.

KAYE: More fierce fighting in Misrata.

HOLMES: Yes, a lot happening in Misrata. The other new thing to come out today, the British coming out today saying they will be putting just ten, but ten military officers on the ground in the west of the country. And what they are going to do is to adopt an advisory role. They are going to be there, advising on the tactics and intelligence and the humanitarian aid and things like that.

KAYE: So this sounds like ground troops. Boots on the ground to me, something we thought we weren't going to be seeing. And told we weren't going to see.

HOLMES: Well, they are military officers and they probably have boots, so you could say they are boots on the ground. But they are not going to be involved in any fighting. They are going to be armed apparently. They'll be wearing civilian clothes, but they'll carry sidearms jut for security. But they are really there, and the British are insisting, in an advisory role. But we knew that the Brits had some special forces there already, USAID and the like.

KAYE: So, this is humanitarian aid, I guess?

HOLMES: Yes, and also tactics. Also coordination, tactics, intelligence gathering, how to logistically run their side of the battle although Brits aren't going to be front line or anything.

KAYE: Helping the rebels?

HOLMES: Exactly.

KAYE: I wonder how did this come to be, because --

HOLMES: Well, they are not doing very well on their own, right?

KAYE: Well, they certainly need help, but the U.S. has said, we are not doing it. I mean, I'm wondering if they said, well, can you guys go do it?

HOLMES: Well, yes, the French and the British are more forward if you like in terms of the action and wanting more action on the ground, and from the air.

Nobody wants to put boots on the ground. Nobody wants to do that. Nobody wants to send in an army or anything like that. We do know, though, that there are special forces operating there and undercover, and now we have these senior officers going in an advisory capacity.

The U.S. still very much in the mindset that we have done two wars amongst the Muslim people in the last nine years. We are not getting into another one too heavily.

KAYE: And Gadhafi is still there.

HOLMES: Yes. Still there. Still waiting it out.

KAYE: No movement.

This is my favorite story, only because I have been waiting to say this name on the air. In the Nigerian election, Goodluck Jonathan wins again! I love that!

HOLMES: I know! Hey, Goodluck! You know, when he goes to the pub --

KAYE: I mean, his name, Goodluck Jonathan. He was re-elected.

HOLMES: Yes, he was re-elected. Now, Nigeria is a place - it's a bit of a sad place in many ways in terms of the election violence. There is grinding poverty, vast disparities in the distribution of wealth, and there has been endemic violence that has plagued every Nigerian election since the democratic rule in '99. Goodluck Jonathan won this one, and it's largely seen as a pretty free and fair election.

The problem is that his major challenge -- Nigeria is very oil rich in the southern areas. In the northern areas, it is Muslim and very poor. And so you have the vote really happening along religious, ethnic, sectarian lines. And so those in the north are saying we don't buy the results, and you are seeing a lot of violence and you're seeing places being getting torched. People walking around with machetes. Several people have died and 17,000 people have fled some of these northern cities.

So, yet again, like we have seen in the Ivory Coast, we have a loser saying I don't buy the results of the election --

KAYE: But this mass uprising isn't actually against Goodluck Jonathan. It's more at each other?

HOLMES: Well, no, it's more - the former military ruler in Nigeria. And supporters of him, who are now saying we don't buy the results of the election because they feel they are disenfranchised. Goodluck Jonathan is Christian, from the south, and so this vote has gone along those sorts of lines and they are not buying the results.

KAYE: Well, I certainly hope it is not heading in the same direction as the Ivory Coast.

HOLMES: It's almost not unusual in Nigeria to have post-election violence. It's pretty much (INAUDIBLE) But the great tragedy in that country is that oil rich and there's grinding poverty. Electricity is not on half of the time, which is really criminal when you think about it.

KAYE: All right. Michael Holmes, thank you.

HOLMES: Good to see you.

KAYE: Goodluck Michael Holmes. I will call you that from now.

HOLMES: Yes! Goodluck!

KAYE: Well, we don't know a lot about Alzheimer's disease, and most everything we do know is, quite frankly, bad. Now comes an insight that may one day lead to a breakthrough, though. That's our "Big Breakdown," and that's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Our "Big Breakdown" is a fresh look at a very cruel disease. Alzheimer's ravages the brain through a tangle of proteins, robbing its victims of their faculties, their independence and eventually their lives. It is the sixth leading cause of death in America and the only cause of death in the top ten that can't be cured or prevented or reversed or even diagnosed with absolute certainty until the patient dies and the brain is autopsied.

5.4 million Americans are living today with Alzheimer's diagnoses. By 2050, that number is expected to more than triple to 16 million. Between 2000 and 2008, deaths in America from breast cancer, prostate cancer, HIV, stroke, all declined from three to 29 percent. In that same period, deaths from Alzheimer's soared 66 percent.

Researchers haven't been idle though. We have tests and drugs now that we didn't have then, and today comes a new definition of the disease itself. The Alzheimer's Association and National Institutes of Health say Alzheimer's ought to be seen like a spectrum, rather like autism, instead of an all-or-nothing condition.

The stages are labeled preclinical. This is when the brain changes start to take place, but before any symptoms actually appear. There is mild cognitive impairment. That's the onset of the symptoms. And dementia, debilitating impairment leaving the patients completely dependent on other people.

Alzheimer's is not the same as forgetfulness, and we want to make that clear. It affects more than the memory. In the middle stage, it also affects reasoning and behavior, but so do conditions other than Alzheimer's. Strokes for instance or other types of vascular disease, abnormal protein deposits, side effects of medications. Even possibly deficiencies in certain vitamins.

If Alzheimer's does not affect you or your family today, well, you should be very thankful, because it strikes someone in America every 69 seconds.

Time now for a CNN Political Update. Donald Trump says he will show his tax return, but he wants something from President Obama first. CNN political producer Shannon Travis joins me now from Washington with much more on that. So, what does he want?

SHANNON TRAVIS, CNN POLITICAL PRODUCER: Well, Donald Trump says if the he runs for president, Randi, he wants as a condition to release his tax returns that he wants President Obama to release his birth certificate. You and a lot of our viewers know that Donald Trump has been making noise kind of hyping some of these birther claims that questioning President Obama's birthplace. Some of these debunked rumors that are out there, and Donald Trump told ABC News this morning on "Good Morning America" that in order for him to release his tax returns, that he would need to see President Obama's birth certificate. So, that is the latest on Donald Trump.

Moving also into the 2012 presidential election, the battle lines are really beginning to harden. One issue is over the fight of Medicare and the senior citizen vote. Now, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is launching an ad campaign with radio and TV ads and whatnot. They're targeting 25 Republicans that they are saying voted to end Medicare. This involves Congressman Ryan's plan in the House that would drastically overhaul Medicare, and these -- the ad campaign will target the 25 Republicans, but the Republican campaign -- Congressional Campaign group says quote, "The Democrats' shameless scare tactics are merely a way to mislead voters and cover up the real Democrat plan, to watch Medicare die a painful death." Randi?

KAYE: All right, Shannon! Thank you. Good to see you! Your next update from The Best Political Team on Television is just one hour away.

No child's play. The games we all enjoyed at summer camp? Well, now they on a risk list. Freeze tag, kickball, Red Rover, yes, they all made the list. But are they really unsafe? Our Stream Team weighs in next.

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KAYE: A story about summer camp really caught our attention today. It seems that the state of New York has now put out a list of so-called risky activities. Among them, freeze tag and Whiffle ball. Now, don't get me wrong, archery was on the list, too, but freeze tag?

To be fair, the list was put out more as a way for the state to ensure that some smaller indoor day camps would be regulated and would also be forced to have a specific plan to deal with medical emergencies. But the risky tag stuck out on some of these. Kickball, Red Rover, and capture the flag also made the risky list.

So we want to take it up with our Stream Team today. Are these activities really unsafe for our kids? Sirius XM radio host Pete Dominick, Michael Bergeron, director of the National Institute for Athletic Health and Performance. And fitness expert Kathy Taylor all are here to discuss this.

Kathy, let's start with you. Is this risky designation a good idea, or do you think that the state is going too far?

KATHY TAYLOR, FITNESS EXPERT: I absolutely think that the state is going so far I ran here to CNN to talk about this. I think it is ridiculous. I grew up playing these games. My children played these games. To me, it's about parents. Parents need to be getting out there and teaching them how to play the games so we don't have to be so worried and have to put these regulations on something as simple and fun as tag.

KAYE: Oh, I see Pete is shaking his head. Pete, go for it!

PETE DOMINICK, SIRIUS XM RADIO HOST: Well, I would agree with Kathy, if you only read one news article from the daily news, I would tend to agree.

However, this is about indoor versus outdoor. This isn't Democrat versus Republican on regulation. This is about, guess what, indoor camps haven't been regulated. Guess what happens indoors? Skateboarding. Kathy, is that something that is unsafe?

Guess what else? All types of different indoor camps that can be very, very dangerous and they need to be regulated. It's a little bit deeper than this one article. And this is about not being caught inside when there's a fire. This is really important. It is not a big deal at all, and we have made too big of a deal of it already.

KAYE: Michael, let me ask you. Is our kids' safety at risk because of freeze tag or red rover?

MICHAEL BERGERON, NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR ATHLETIC HEALTH AND PERFORMANCE: Well, certainly any physical activity has risks, but at the same time, even though it is extreme to say, physical inactivity has tremendous risks, too.

Now, if you are talking about freeze tag and red rover and games like that, certainly, just because they are moving there is a risk. But if we are talking about skating in a dangerous situation, sure. Any adult that oversees kids has a responsibility to minimize what might be called endangerment. So, there is obvious risks. Of course you want to minimize that.

But we have to be careful that this does not extend to really games that are just fun and commonsense and good judgment would minimize risks sufficiently.

KAYE: I got to say that --

DOMINICK: It's not. It is not about rock climbing and skateboarding. Those are things that are -- it is about regulating indoor the way that outdoor is regulated. It is not about kickball. It's not about red rover, whatever that game is. I don't know. I think my grandma played it. But this is a red herring.

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KAYE: Well, Pete --

TAYLOR: Well, I'm going to jump in here and just say basically, I mean, I'm in agreement. We have so many things for our kids to be doing this summer at camp. And yes, there are sports and activities that have a higher risk, and it is imperative that we have standards that our kids are going to be protected in a way that they can reduce those risks.

But look, we are all going to have accidents here and there. But to put a blanket statement over all of these games, it only sends messages home to parents that, oh, my gosh, these are dangerous and I won't send my kid to camp.

KAYE: Well, and it might turn parents off. I mean, already, a lot of parents are angry about it worried about, you know, they look at the child obesity rates -- nearly 20 percent of children between ages 6 and 19 are obese. So what is the answer? put them from front of the computer? Pete? Michael?

DOMINICK: No, this is -- go ahead, Michael.

BERGERON: If we are limiting activity altogether, then that is a problem. And if we are putting everything in the same category, that is indeed a problem. But going back to the beginning, if we're talking about rock climbing without helmets, without ropes, without safety measures in place, then of course, obviously, that should have limitations and regulations.

But if we're going to lump everything together, that is probably going to have a tremendous negative effect.

KAYE: And Pete, you went to camp. Did you rememeber anyone get seriously injured playing games like this?

DOMINICK: Yes! Me, Randi! I got injured playing dodge ball, because kids always aimed for this face.

But listen, we all agree on this. It's just that the article, the news made it out to be something that it is not. It is not about kickball and dodgeball, it's about indoor rock climbing and skateboarding. It's about regulating indoor the way outdoor is regulated. And we all agree on this, if, of course, we care about our kids, and I know I do.

TAYLOR: And I know I do. I absolutely agree. I think if we can just somehow have the regulation on sports that and the athletics that need it, and let's leave freeze tag and hopscotch to letting kids have fun!

KAYE: Pete, I want to take you on with a game of red rover.

BERGERON: And at the same time we're encouraging physical activity.

KAYE: There you go. Red Rover -

DOMINICK: I will take anybody on Red Rover and I will bring the ice packs.

KAYE: All right. You are on. All right. Thank you, all. Pete, Michael and Kathy, appreciate it. Good discussion. Thank you.

How did bracelets intended to raise breast cancer awareness almost get kids suspended from school? I will tell you all about it in my XYZ, next.

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KAYE: Time now for my XYZ. And I call your attention today to some bracelets that may be trendy, but boy are they causing a stir. They have earned the name booby bracelets. Yes, you heard me correctly. The bracelets were created by the Keep a Breast Foundation and are supposed to raise awareness about breast cancer. They are aimed at girls and young women aged 13 to 35.

But some say this goes way too far. The bracelets say all kinds of things. One proclaims, "I heart boobies." There is also "Save the tatas," "Save second base," "Project boobies," "Feel your boobies," and "Jingle jugs." So, you can see why they are raising some eyebrows.

But does that mean that they are not effective? One Pennsylvania school tried to suspend two student for wearing the breast cancer bracelets until a federal judge actually stepped in to stop it. Other schools from across the country are waiting to see if their bracelet bands are to be upheld. The bracelets are meant to bring this fresh approach and make young girls more aware of self exams. What's wrong with that? Supports say it sparks a healthy conversation. Others say it contributes to sophomoric behaviors at school. Do young girls understand what it really means to quote, "save the tatas"?

There are those who suggest the girls would be better off volunteering at a cancer center or talking to women going through treatment. Maybe hold a fundraiser at school. Something to think about.

Thanks for watching. CNN NEWSROOM continues now with Brooke Baldwin. Hey there, Brooke!