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Rampage in Afghanistan Leaves 16 Dead; Annan: Syria Peace Deal Will Be Tough; Improving Economy & GOP Politics; Severe Weather Hammers Houston; Tornado Watch in Louisiana; Japanese Observe Moment of Silence for Victim's of Earthquake, Tsunami, Nuclear Disaster; Egyptian Women Accuse Doctor of Giving Virginity Tests; Remarkable Helicopter Rescue in Italy; Insider Tips for Picking Winning Brackets

Aired March 11, 2012 - 18:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Instead of keeping the peace, the U.S. Army soldier accused of going on a deadly house-to-house shooting rampage in Afghanistan. Afghans are outraged, so is President Obama. And many now worry about retaliation.

Here at home, a better jobs picture and improving economy. Now what for GOP rhetoric on the campaign trail?

And the people juggernaut film "Kony 2012" join me to talk success, strategy and criticism, even for the people they say they're trying to help.

That and more ahead in the next two hours here on CNN.

(MUSIC)

LEMON: Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon. Thank you for joining us.

We're going to begin with the alleged murder of 16 Afghan civilians by a U.S. soldier accused of acting as a one-man death squad. Afghan officials say the shooting spree took place in two villages in Kandahar province in the district known as the birth place of the Taliban.

Sara Sidner joins us with the latest on this story.

Sara, what do we know right now?

SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: President Hamid Karzai has released a statement saying 16 people have killed, that includes nine children, three women, and four Afghan men. He's called this a deplorable act, saying that it's an act of terrorism that is absolutely unforgivable, and he is -- has been talking about what has to be done going forward.

Now, there is a full investigation going on, as you might imagine, from NATO officials as well as Afghan officials, both looking into this incident.

What we're hearing from the international security assistance forces officials, they're saying that there's one soldier, an Army staff sergeant who acted alone, who went off base around 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning, went out to the villages and opened fire on civilians and then came back and turned himself in. They are saying this is absolutely only one person involved in this, and though we've been hearing from also Afghan officials on the ground there saying -- questioning that, wondering if there are more soldiers on the ground. Some of the witnesses saying they saw more soldiers on the ground.

What we do know is that there are five people who are wounded that are being taken care of at coalition medical facilities in that area, but this is certainly a situation that has caused fear that there will be some sort of violent reprisals. This comes on the heels just last month of U.S. troops burning the Koran mistakenly. But that created a lot of pressure on U.S. forces here because it exploded in protests that turned violent and ended up killing U.S. service members as well, Don.

LEMON: Yes. And, Sara, you said there were other soldiers on the ground it is believed, but was there any indication that any other operations were going on in this area?

SIDNER: Well, ISAF was saying there was absolutely no official operation going on in the area, that this was not a part of any kind of operation that had been set forth. This again, an individual had done this on his own accord and then turned himself in and now the Army staff sergeant is in detention and is being questioned in all of this. And so, they've disputed the claim by the Taliban who on its official Web site has said that this was a part of a raid by U.S. forces. ISAF saying, no, this was just an individual acting on his own.

There's got to be an investigation into how this individual was able to leave what normally are extremely secure bases where you just can't go in and out without somebody seeing you. But at this point, they're looking into all those aspects.

There's a lot of concern, Don, as you might imagine, that this is going to really make things difficult for foreign forces that are here in Afghanistan. This has very, very bad timing. If you ask anybody on the ground here, they say the timing couldn't be worse. And there will certainly be more pressure to move U.S. coalition forces out of this country sooner than later -- Don.

LEMON: Sara Sidner, as you said, it comes not long after that accidental burning of the Koran. Sara Sidner joining us from Afghanistan -- thank you very much for that, Sara.

President Barack Obama called the incident tragic and shocking. He offered condolences to the victims' loved ones and said it doesn't represent the character of the U.S. military. And, of course, it probably isn't enough for most Afghans.

Our Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr joins me now by phone from Washington.

So, Barbara, how is the Pentagon handling this tragedy coming so shortly after that Koran incident? BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): Well, you know, Don, I have to tell you, you know, I don't think it would surprise anybody. The official word is that this will not deter the mission, sad and criminal as it is.

But behind the scenes, you can hear the slumped shoulders in the voices of the military officials I've spoken to throughout the day. They are -- this is just a punch to the gut for them. They are both angry and furious that anybody in a U.S. military uniform could have done this, and they are absolutely heartsick. It does come right after the Koran burning incident. They felt they were barely getting past that and now this.

It just really couldn't be more disconcerting at this point. They're trying to take a very moderate attitude in public, not say anything that could incite any violence, but they are deeply, deeply upset about this, Don.

LEMON: I have to ask you this before I ask you about this particular individual who, you know, they said turned himself in for this. What about the push for peace with the Taliban? How will it impact, if at all, that?

STARR: Well, you know, what people have always said about those discussions with the Taliban is -- I think it was Defense Secretary Robert Gates who said all wars end by negotiating with your enemy, don't they? There's generally always some sort of political settlement.

But, look, if the Taliban perceives vulnerability on the part of the U.S., on the part of NATO, and they get the sense they just have to wait it out a little bit longer before the U.S. packs up and goes, before NATO packs up and goes, it could add a lot of problems to those talks with the Taliban. It sort of takes away their incentive to talk. And especially the top two, the Karzai government, it just adds to the mix of how difficult this all is right now.

LEMON: Absolutely. Let's talk about the soldier accused of this rampage. Do we know anything more about him?

STARR: We are told, Don, that he is a U.S. arm staff sergeant. That his unit has been serving in this area called Panjwai, which is a district in Kandahar province in southern Afghanistan. It is a place where here's certainly has been a good deal of combat over the years. We don't know how long he's been there. Of course, U.S. troops generally serve a one-year tour nowadays.

He is not, we are adamantly told, he is not Special Forces, not Special Operations Forces but rather belongs to what you would think of as the conventional Army unit.

LEMON: And they're not giving a name?

STARR: We do not have a name yet. It's certainly known to the Army and the Pentagon. They're not releasing it. LEMON: Barbara Starr reporting -- Barbara, thank you very much. We're going to continue to follow this developing story here, the alleged murder of innocent Afghans is far worse than other missteps by U.S. forces.

But it's not the only mistake as we have been talking about. The U.S./Afghan relationship was already under stress, severe stress from the recent controversy over the burning of Koran. Afghans were enraged by the desecration of Islam's holy book. Riots left dozens dead, including six U.S. troops when there was this first incident -- first incident.

And we must warn you that the video is graphic. Pictures posted on YouTube showing what appears to be a group of marines urinating on several bodies. Remember that happened? These pictures infuriated many Afghans. The video only added to many Afghan civilians' loathing of the U.S. military.

These incidents make the mission to win hearts and minds even more difficult. Now, the alleged massacre in Kandahar province, in a district no less considered the birthplace of the Taliban.

More news now overseas. We go to Syria where a U.N. special enjoy Kofi Annan and Syria's president, Bashar al Assad, met for a second time today in attempts to bring peace to the troubled nation. Opposition groups reported that violent attacks had killed another 32 people in cities across the country. But Annan remains hopeful that a peace deal can be reached.

CNN's Arwa Damon has more now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: At the end of Kofi Annan's two-day trip to Damascus, after meeting twice with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, there is no deal, just a series of proposals meant to bring about a ceasefire, the release of detainees and unhindered humanitarian access, food and much-needed medical supplies in the hardest hit parts of the country.

Mr. Annan saying that if these proposal proposals were in fact agreed to, they would lead to some significant change on the ground.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KOFI ANNAN, U.N. ARAB LEAGUE ENVOY: It's going to be tough, it's going to be difficult, but we have to have hope. I am optimistic. I'm optimistic for several lessons. First of all, I have been here for a very short period.

Almost every Syrian I have met wants peace. They want the violence to stop. They want to move on with their lives.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DAMON: Of course, the big question is how to put together a real plan to establish that peace. The Syrian government continues to say that it is targeting these terrorist-armed gangs. It says that it will not give that up and that it blames them for the violence in the country. And the opposition for its part says it will not even entertain the notion of sitting down at the negotiating table until the violence ends.

The violence seeming now to be centering on a province of Idlib where activists are saying there was an intense shelling of he province's capital, the city of Idlib.

And in the town of Binish, not far from the border with Turkey, residents were saying that they received a phone call from a Syrian general telling them to hand over members of the Free Syrian Army, hand over their weapons, or else face intense bombardment.

Arwa Damon, CNN, Beirut.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: All right, Arwa.

And a programming note for you -- join us tonight as Arwa Damon and her team, they're going to will give us an eye-opening tour of the besieged city of Homs, one of the most dangerous places in Syria right now. It is a CNN special. It's called "72 Hours Under Fire." That's tonight at 8:00 p.m. Eastern, only here on CNN.

And next, we're going to discuss three provocative topics, money, politics, and Sarah Palin. L.Z. and Will are going to join me live.

Plus, U.S. vets and mental health. More and more veterans are coming home from war zones needing special attention. Straight ahead, we'll profile a former soldier's efforts to get the help he needs.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Let's talk now about three of our favorite topics: money, politics, and Sarah Palin.

And who better to handle the job than CNN contributor Will Cain, and L.Z. Granderson, a contributor to CNN.com and a senior writer at ESPN?

All right. There's going to be no fighting this week, right? Everybody is going to agree.

L.Z. GRANDERSON, CNN.COM CONTRIBUTOR: Come on.

LEMON: All right. Let's start with money.

WILL CAIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: We'll see.

LEMON: What did you say, Will?

CAIN: We'll see.

LEMON: OK. Let's start with money, specifically the economy. More than 200,000 jobs have been added to payrolls for three straight months. Now, we got the report on Friday, and unemployment is down from a year ago.

Here is how the political debate over the economy is playing out. Look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: This is an anemic recovery after a pretty long recession, 37 months in a row, over 8 percent unemployment for the people in the United States, the longest streak since the Great Depression.

ROBERT GIBBS, OBAMA CAMPAIGN STRATEGIST: We took another important step in a long road to recovery, and we got a long ways to go. But we've created 3.9 million private sector jobs in 24 consecutive months of adding jobs to this economy, and that is tremendously important.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Surprise, surprise. Democrats and Republicans disagree.

So, Will, is the recovery really under way and what's it going to mean for the presidential race?

CAIN: First, we have to recognize reality. By almost any indicator, job growth or construction, industrial loans, or car sales, that big plunge we took in 2008-2009 looks to have started to turn up.

Now, there are many questions about whether that upward turn will continue, what kind of jobs that these were adding. You know, there's still a lot of debt out there in the economy. There are threats externally like Iran.

So, will this curve continue? That's really hard to predict and no one should get in the game of celebrating or predicting that. But if it does, I'll tell you, clearly, that will be bad news for GOP presidential election hopes.

LEMON: Will, you know -- I mean, L.Z., I should say, timing is everything. And the Republicans will say, well, Obama is just a lucky guy because all of this is happening as you heard Lindsey Graham there say this is anemic. And if you talk to anybody in the Obama administration, they'll say, hey, it's our policy. So, is it a reflection of policies or is it just he's the luckiest guy in the world?

GRANDERSON: Well, if that's the case, then he started off as the most unluckiest guy in the world because he walked in a situation that was abysmal. You know, the thing that I really find so disconcerting is that you have these GOP candidates and as well as leaders constantly bashing good news for America.

I mean, I can't think of anything more unpatriotic right now than the ongoing onslaught of 200,000 jobs being created in this country. That's cause for celebration but what you're see something the core of this party and that they're more obsessed with trying to win the White House than being focused in on trying to turn this country around, because you celebrate news like 200,000 jobs being created and how can we keep this going as opposed to --

LEMON: Not in an election year, L.Z.

(LAUGHTER)

GRANDERSON: You're right, right? I mean, they're playing the game, right? They're trying to -- both sides are trying to make this look good for their party, and I think what really needs to happen is they need to look good for the country. And the leader that does that is the leader people are going to get behind.

LEMON: Yes. I think that's tough to do in an election year. And I think the economy, when everyone is so concerned about the economy, that's the best thing you have. You're not going to let that go and say, OK, the economy is improving. Then what are you going to hit the other side on?

So, I think that, right, Will, the Republicans are not going to let that go.

CAIN: Probably not. But you know what? I've been telling you -- the future is still uncertain. So, we'll see.

LEMON: OK. Let's move on. I want to talk about this since we're talking about in an election year, the Republican race keeps going on and on. Alabama, Mississippi next on Tuesday.

So, what about these comparisons that everyone is talking about to 2008, Obama versus Hillary Clinton. Nicolle Wallace said today on ABC, I was watching, that Democrats weren't really energized back then. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICOLLE WALLACE, SR. ADVISER, MCCAIN/PALIN CAMPAIGN: Enough to make me squirm, but, you know, look, this isn't a movie about campaign staff. This isn't even really a movie about McCain and Palin. It's a movie about --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Yes. Wrong sound bite. Other sound bite.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: The major animating force in 2008 was their anger at the Bush legacy and the Bush years. It was not passion, love, and affection for Hillary and Obama. So this -- the romanticizing actually has to stop.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: OK. It was interesting to watch, and I like Nicolle -- and she's been on the show with me and we've spoken -- but I remember there was passion for women behind Hillary Clinton, lots of passion. There was definitely passion on the left behind Barack Obama, especially from African-Americans. I'm sure, we always romanticize history a bit, but there was passion then.

So, Will, is this right? People weren't energized by Hillary and Obama? Remember, everyone said the media is in love with Obama. There was no passion there?

CAIN: No, I have to disagree with Nicolle as well on this. I mean, I think there was passion in 2008. We tried to for those two Democratic nominees. And there does seem to be a lack of passion for these four guys that the GOP is putting forward right now.

But I draw one other comparison. You know, in 1980, we had a muddled election where George H.W. Bush won Iowa and the race muddled along for months. In fact, people talked about bringing former President Gerald Ford back into the race, much as people talk today about bringing Jeb Bush or Mitch Daniels into it.

The point is not -- hey, Mitt Romney or whoever the eventually nominee could end up being like Reagan. The point is at that point in 1980, Reagan wasn't Reagan. So, we don't yet know who these guys are, we don't yet know what kind of passion they will elicit come November. It's just when you draw parallels, you need to take very, very, very long views.

LEMON: Yes. And it was June, L.Z., before -- I mean, it was even decided. We're still into June back in 2008. So, this -- I mean, this is only march.

GRANDERSON: Absolutely. You know, I will disagree with will a little bit here in that I think part of the reason why we're not excited or you don't see people excited for the four guys is because we actually do know who they are and we don't like 'em. That's what you're seeing at the polls. You see a flip-flopper in Mitt Romney. You see a religious zealot in Rick Santorum. You see a philandering liar in Newt Gingrich. And then Ron Paul, you know, he has some good ideas backed by some that aren't so good.

So, what you're really seeing is just, you know, four people that it's hard to get inspired by because they're just uninspiring people. They have so much baggage. They should be called Samsonite party, instead of the GOP party.

LEMON: Oh.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: Will, go ahead. Go ahead, quickly.

CAIN: I want to say, our view of the future is always painted over by our view of the present. When we talk about the economy, and these candidates, what we think about the economy and these guys will be very different than what we think come October. LEMON: All right. The other sound bite you saw was Nicolle Wallace talking about "Game Change" and how she was portrayed, and Sarah Palin. She didn't deny it was inaccurate, she just said those were her comments. We didn't get a chance to talk about it because you guys went on and on and on.

By the way, happy birthday, L.Z. What are --

GRANDERSON: Thank you very much.

CAIN: Really?

LEMON: Fifty, 60, how old are you?

GRANDERSON: No, Don, you're in trouble. I turned the big 4-0 last night, believe it or not.

CAIN: No, no, we did it last week. Answer the question, L.Z. What was it? I didn't hear.

LEMON: He said 4-0.

GRANDERSON: I turned 40. Unlike you, I'm not afraid of the question.

CAIN: Oh, man.

LEMON: All right. Enough. Stop it.

CAIN: Forty. Forty.

LEMON: Happy birthday and see you guys next week.

Even after they return home from wars, some veterans find themselves facing a new battle. Coming up: the struggle to help vets who need mental health treatment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: It's our top story today -- an American soldier went on a house-to-house shooting spree in two Afghanistan villages today. That's according to officials in Afghanistan, killing 16 people.

The circumstances of that incident are still not known. But here at home, we've seen an increase in the number of soldiers returning from war zones with mental health problems.

CNN's Athena Jones has more now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JESSICA RAINES, WIFE OF VETERAN: Another Army achievement medal.

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Jessica Raines is proud of her husband's service. Paul Raines spent his tour in Iraq investigating IED and suicide bomb attacks. PAUL RAINES, IRAQ WAR VETERAN: You see a lot. One of the bombings in the market, they killed women and children. I mean, it changes your whole perspective on life.

JONES: When he returned to civilian life in Maryland, he had a hard time coping. He learned later that he had post traumatic stress disorder.

P. RAINES: I drank like a fish when we got back. Really, I was just trying to suppress and kill the pain of what I saw over there. So it took a little while for me to actually get around to the idea that, OK, I need help.

JONES: The Raines contacted the Veteran Affairs Medical Center last May.

J. RAINES: I didn't have a choice. It was time to make a change. His moods were all over the place. His eating habits were up and down. We weren't even sleeping in the same bed because he would have flashbacks or nightmares.

JONES: Paul got an appointment with the primary care physician, but he says the doctor didn't perform a full evaluation and instead gave him medication to combat anxiety and depression.

The Veteran's Health Administration mental health handbook says all new patients must receive a comprehensive evaluation and treatment planning evaluation within 14 days. The V.A. says 95 percent of cases meet those requirements. But the department's own survey found 37 percent of those have to wait longer than 14 days for an appointment. And once referred to a specialist, 52 percent have to wait more than two weeks to be seen.

That was the case for Paul. The pills he was prescribed in May only made matters worse and he didn't receive therapy. By July, he was suicidal.

P. RAINES: They admitted me into the psychiatric ward over at the V.A. clinic for a period of almost a week. I didn't meet the PTSD specialist until the end of August.

J. RAINES: After being --

(CROSSTALK)

P. RAINES: Even though they all knew I had PTSD, it was the end of August before I actually could meet with an actual PTSD psychologist.

JONES: Lawmakers are putting pressure on the V.A. to improve.

SEN. PATTY MURRAY (D), WASHINGTON: When a veteran has the courage to stand up and ask for help, V.A. must be there with not only timely access to care, but also the right type of care.

JONES: The V.A. says it's reviewing mental health services at all its facilities. For the Raineses, some things are improving. They say Paul's psychologist is great, but they meet just once, sometimes twice a month.

P. RAINES: I know I'm heading in the right direction. The question is: will the VA actually be there to stand by me and help me through the process.

JONES: Athena Jones, CNN, Frederick, Maryland.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Up next, more on our top story, the deadly shootings of 16 people in Afghanistan, allegedly by an American soldier.

Plus, some of the big stories we'll be focusing on in the week ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Now, the big stories of the week ahead from the White House to Wall Street. Our correspondents tell you what you need to know.

We begin tonight with the president's plans for the week.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: I'm Brianna Keilar with the White House where President Obama and the first lady welcomed British Prime Minister David Cameron and his wife Samantha this week. Tuesday, the president and prime minister head to Ohio for an NCAA tournament game and Wednesday is the state dinner back here at the White House. Then, Friday President Obama heads to Chicago and Atlanta to fund raise.

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM CORRESPONDENT: I'm Poppy Harlow in New York. Following Friday's strong jobs report, Wall Street will focus on a number of key economic numbers coming up this week. We'll get the latest retail sales data and two important inflation readings. We'll also get earnings from a number of retailers. And then in Washington, central bankers will meet for a one-day meeting on monetary policy. Rates are not expected to change, but Wall Street will be all ears for what the Fed has to say about economic conditions across the country. We'll track that and all the business news of the week for you on "CNN Money."

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Up next, an update on our top story. A U.S. soldier is accused in the fatal shootings of 16 Afghan civilians. We're back right after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: NATO's International Security Assistance Force says a U.S. soldier accused of killing 16 Afghan civilians acted alone. The victims include nine children, three women, and four men. That's according to President Hamid Karzai. Military officials say the gunman left his base at 3:00 a.m. and carried out the massacre in two villages.

In Syria, peace talks ended in a no deal. U.N. special envoy, Kofi Annan, and Syria's president, Bashar al Assad, met for a second time today in attempts to bring peace to the troubled nation. Annan is proposing a cease-fire and a release of detainees. He's also asking that relief agencies be allowed to deliver much-needed aid.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KOFI ANNAN, U.N. SPECIAL ENVOY: It's going to be tough. It's going to be difficult. But we have to have both.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: As they met, opposition groups reported that violent attacks had killed another 32 people in cities across the country.

Israeli air strikes into Gaza have killed at least two civilians today. That's according to Palestinian medical sources. They say 18 people have died over the past three days, and dozens more are hurt. Israel says it's striking back after more than 100 rocket attacks into its territory from Gaza. A Hamas leader says the Palestinians were meeting tonight to talk about a possible truce.

The last of the inmates involved in Governor Haley Barbour's controversial pardons are all free. They had to wait while the Mississippi attorney general challenged the pardons in state supreme court. He claimed Barbour violated the constitution when deciding to pardon more than 200 prisoners before leaving office. Four of them were convicted murders. Late last week, the court upheld the governor's pardons.

Severe weather hammering the Houston area and now a tornado watch is in effect for parts of Louisiana.

Jacqui Jeras tracking it all -- Jacqui?

JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Hey, Don. Yes, we're watching western Louisiana right now from just east of Shreveport down towards Lake Charles. We've got this line that's producing strong to severe thunderstorms and we could see some damaging winds or an isolated tornado out of it. Take a look at the video we have from the storms as they move through the Houston area earlier today. They dumped down record rainfall, 2.81 inches to be exact. And you can see a lot of roadways were flooded by this. This is finally a surplus now for the Houston area. It's been ridden with drought for well over a year. So some real great drought relief for much of eastern Texas while western parts of the state still dealing with very dry conditions.

Now, the plus side of this system is our temperatures have been crazy warm. We have had very mild temperatures. Minneapolis, 64 -- that's a record high for you. 49 in Kansas City, a little rain-cooled there. And 66 in Chicago. These warm temperatures are going to be a little bit more widespread by tomorrow. Look at this. Some of you will be seeing temperatures around 20 degrees above the average.

Now, our storm system is going to start to move to the north and to the east. We'll be focusing in on parts of the Great Lakes for that threat of severe weather from Chicago to Detroit. You can even see this early in the morning for tomorrow. So be aware of that.

If you're trying to travel today, just want to mention we've got quite a few delays out there. A lot of these due to the winds from Boston and Newark, looking at 30 minute delays. San Francisco, about 30. You're over an hour at West Palm Beach and that's due to the volume -- Don?

LEMON: All right, Jacqui, thank you very much.

The people of Japan stopped to observe a moment of silence today for the victims of last year's earthquake and tsunami. Among those paying their respects, the Japanese emperor.

(VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Exactly one year ago a powerful 9-magnitude earthquake unleashed a wall of water that swept away lives and homes. It also triggered the world's worst nuclear crisis in a quarter century.

CNN Kyung Lah was one of only a handful of journalists allowed back on the nuclear site.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A year after these reactors at the Fukushima nuclear plant exploded in a triple meltdown, reporters were reminded this is still one of the most hazardous places on the planet. We wore head-to-toe protective gear, full facial respirators and hazmat suits. Then we drove up to the world's worst nuclear accident in 25 years.

(on camera): This is our first look on the ground at the reactors. This is the heart of the nuclear problem in Japan. What you're seeing over my shoulder are the reactors. There are four of them. The two you see over my right shoulder, those are two of the reactors that exploded in the early days of this disaster. When you take a look at the reactors, you can see they have a long way to go. This is a year after this disaster, and you can see that the force of the explosion crippled those buildings. You can understand how so much radiation spewed from this point when you're standing here.

(voice-over): An army of 3,000 workers are now here daily in shifts to control the melted nuclear fuel and contain the further spread of the radiation.

Inside the on-site crisis management building of the plant, a control center monitors the progress and safety 24 hours a day.

"The highest risk we still see is, if something goes wrong with the reactor," says the plant manager, Teknichi Takahoshi (ph).

The plant is in cold shutdown, but the nuclear fuel needs constant cooling and the situation is far from over.

Tepco says the plant won't be decommissioned for at least 30 to 40 years. The challenges, evident as we drive around the Fukushima plant. Debris still mangled from the tsunami sits untouched because of radiation concerns. These blue tanks and these larger gray ones hold water contaminated with radiation. Tepco is continuously challenged with finding more space for the water.

Work conditions and safety, while they have improved since the early days of the disaster, remain a constant concern.

Saori Kanesaki used to give tours to the public at the Fukushima Nuclear Plant.

"Before the accident I explained to many that the nuclear power plant is safe," she says. "Now that this has happened, I feel very sorry I ever said that."

Kanesaki also lived here in Tomeoka (ph). She's now an evacuee, uncertain of when or if she can ever return home.

A year later, she and 78,000 others are the legacy of this accident, paying the price when nuclear energy goes wrong.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Kyung Lah joins up live now by our reporter.

Kyung, where are you now?

LAH: We're in Natori (ph). This is, if you will, another part of Japan's disaster. Remember, there were -- it was a triple disaster, the earthquake, the nuclear disaster you just saw, and then this, the tsunami region. There's about 350-square miles here in Japan that was completely decimated by that tsunami.

And, Don, this area that you see behind me, it looks like it might be desert or undeveloped farmland, but this was a suburban community. There were 7,000 people who lived here, hundreds of homes. One out of 10 people died in this particular community.

And this looks like it may have been the entry way to somebody's house or maybe part of a store, and it's now been turned into a shrine. There's a family grave site here and some flowers that were left here to mark what happened yesterday, which was the one-year anniversary of this disaster.

Again, this was just one part of it. This was a triple disaster that this country now has to recovery from -- Don?

LEMON: Kyung, it looks like no one can be seen for miles.

Thank you, Kyung Lah. We appreciate it your reporting.

Coming up on CNN, remarkable video of a rescue caught on tape. 19 crew members pulled to safety, but what happened to their ship? Details next.

But first, during the civil rights movement, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr traveled throughout the Deep South battling injustice, but have you ever wondered how Dr. King learned about issues that impacted the lives of African-Americans? Many people simply wrote to him. 100- year-old Amelia Boynton is one of them and today she's making her mark.

Considered one of the pioneers of the civil rights movement, Boynton helped organize the Selma-to-Montgomery march in 1965 known as Bloody Sunday. She was one of the 17 hospitalized after being beaten and tear-gassed by police and left for dead on the Edmund Pettis Bridge. That incident brought national attention to the voter rights movement and led to the signing of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.

All this week, activists mark the 47th anniversary of Bloody Sunday by recreating the march and other activities. They say the push for voter rights is just as relevant today.

So for her fight against injustice and contribution to history, we choose Amelia Boynton as our person who is, at 100 years old, "Making Their Mark."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: It has been a year since the chaotic protest in Egypt's Tahrir Square, but the events that unfolded is still on the minds of a group of women. They've accused an Egyptian army doctor of forcibly administering so-called virginity tests. Now an Egyptian court has acquitted the man.

CNN's international desk editor, Azadeh Ansari, is the here with more.

Why was this doctor acquitted?

AZADEH ANSARI, CNN INTERNATIONAL DESK EDITOR: Don, his name is Ahmed Adell (ph), and he was tried in a military court, not a civilian court. Many say that because of that, he was garnered favor. And the judge presiding over the case said that there wasn't -- the statements they received from witnesses are contradictory. Based on those grounds, they acquitted him. But the accuser's attorney is saying, we're not going to stop here. We're not going to accept this verdict. And they're going to take it possibly to authorities outside of Egypt, even if they have to go as far as the international criminal court.

LEMON: Let me ask, you said this was a military court, not a civilian court or a criminal court.

ANSARI: Right.

LEMON: So any other options?

ANSARI: Well, not in this situation, given the fact that it's a heavily military-run state at this point. But, again, these women -- they're not going to stop this fight. They were really humiliated. And again, they're going to try to take this as far as they can to get justice.

LEMON: All right, the international desk will be following up on that. Also a remarkable helicopter rescue in Italy. What happened?

ANSARI: This is right off the heels of the "Costa Concordia," as we say.

LEMON: Yes.

ANSARI: And this one, it was a cargo ship that ran into a reef in the south -- it was the southeast coast of Italy. And four helicopters came in and rescued the 19 crew members in this ship. As you can see, they're going down -- it's really dramatic video -- and they're pulling one of the crew members up here. And all of them were saved. No one was hurt. And actually everything is fine now.

LEMON: Oh, very interesting.

ANSARI: A great story. A very happy ending.

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: Yes. That's good. That's good.

We've seen lots of stories like this before. Someone does something silly or something illegal, then they post the video of themselves doing it on the Internet, and then they get caught. So what is the latest iteration, latest version of this?

ANSARI: OK. So there's a 50-year-old doctor in Okawa, Japan, who posted a video of himself cruising down the road at three times the speed limit. So you can hear the sound there of him going as fast as he can here. But he was going about 77 miles per hour in a 25 miles- per-hour zone. What happened is prosecutors suspected -- he was actually turned into prosecutors after they saw this video because they said they suspected he was driving over the speed limit. So he has his camera in the backseat as you can see. How they determined the speed is they looked at the distance he covered in the time that had lapsed in the video. That's how they figured it out. If he is sentenced, he could face six months in jail and about $1,250.

LEMON: What was he doing? Was he showing off the car to see how fast or just how good a driver or, what?

ANSARI: That's -- why would you do that, right? The reason he said he did it was because he wanted to show off the beauty of the Ferrari and he wanted to make his own promotional video for the Ferrari. But not to get busted, so.

LEMON: Well, there you go.

(LAUGHTER)

Don't be bragging.

(LAUGHTER)

All right, thank you, Azadeh. ANSARI: You're welcome.

LEMON: I appreciate it.

Up next, insider tips on how to pick a winning bracket for March Madness. I need all the help I can get.

Plus, there he is, Peyton Manning. The sweepstakes. Where is the legendary NFL quarterback? Where is he headed to? Lots of speculation. Everybody believes they know. But I think Jon Wertheim, from "Sports Illustrated," can offer us some insight. He joins me next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: OK. Peyton Manning, lots of talk about his emotional farewell, and expert tips on filling out your March Madness brackets. So grab pencil or pen, if you believe in yourself that much, and some paper because we're going to give you some information.

(LAUGHTER)

We're talking sports with Jon Wertheim, senior investigative reporter for "Sports Illustrated."

There he is. And there is the new "S.I." cover. The NFL bounty right there.

OK, so let's start with the NFL now, specifically, Peyton Manning, Jon. Very classy good-bye to the Colts who decided to release him instead of paying him a $28 million bonus. Here's how it ended.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PEYTON MANNING, NFL QUARTERBACK: I go with just a few words left to say, a few words I want to address to Colts fans everywhere. Thank you very much from the bottom of my heart. I truly have enjoyed being your quarterback.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So, Jon, Peyton Manning won't land with just any NFL team. Who is on the short list right now?

JON WERTHEIM, SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED: Every NFL team that wasn't thrilled with their quarterback immediately started investigating.

The short list, several say Miami, but it looks like a two-team race between Arizona and Denver. It's interesting. Arizona has a great receiver in Larry Fitzgerald. Peyton Manning as the coach. It's nice climate-wise. So other players -- Kirk Warner (ph) or (INAUDIBLE). Denver is really intriguing because if he goes to Denver, in all likelihood, that will mean the expulsion of Tim Tebow. I suspect that will be a media story. So it's interesting. We'll see where Peyton ends up. There's may be another team may come in at the last minute. But right now, I'd say between Arizona and Denver.

LEMON: Can you imagine though, you said the expulsion of Tim Tebow? That would be great for the media. But in all likelihood, do you think that will happen?

WERTHEIM: I mean, even if you listen to John Elway, to the Denver remarks after the season, they didn't seem to love Tim Tebow as much as the rest of the country. You have a chance for Peyton Manning, three-time MVP, Super Bowel winner, and I think you say, look, all bets are off. God bless Tim Tebow, but this is Peyton Manning we have a chance to get.

LEMON: All right. And he's -- we know he's in Arizona today, right? Visiting? Correct?

WERTHEIM: That's right. Yes. Exactly.

LEMON: So listen, he missed much of the last season, all of last season after having two vertebra fused together. Now 36 years old. Is this a 100 percent deal that he's ever going to play again or be healthy enough to play?

WERTHEIM: Yes, exactly. You talk to people in Indianapolis, the Colts organization. They say you guys can speculate all you want, but there's no guarantee he's going to play another down. We're talking about four different procedures. This is spinal fusion. This is not a run-of-the-mill injury. No, I think -- he's going to have to get some medical clearance before we can see him in a uniform. That's sort of the great unknown. They haven't been particularly transparent, not that they have had an obligation to. But no one knows a whole lot about what he's been through these past 12 months. It will be interesting to see what team clears him to play. I don't think that's a given by any stretch.

LEMON: You heard it from Jon Wertheim.

OK, Jon, here we go. Let's talk some March Madness. The NCAA tournament kicks off this week.

And we want everyone to go to CNN.com/brackets. CNN.com/brackets. CNN.com/brackets. They can match their skills against me and the other anchors here.

So, Jon, you wrote the book called "Scorecasting." It's full of interesting sports stats. You say -- there it is right there, "Scorecasting." You say that some of the stats can -- some of those stats you have in the book can help me put together a winning bracket. The first one is ignore momentum. Why?

WERTHEIM: Yes. Treat your bracket like a portfolio. Don't make the same mistake investors make. Investors chase returns. We sometimes, hey, a team is hot, they have won four in a row, where a team, Kentucky, finally got cold. They lost today. Step back, take as many data points as you can, big sample size. When a team wins 30 games, that's going to predict how they do a lot more than what they've done over their last three or four. We get too hung up sometimes on these small sample sizes of recent play.

LEMON: OK, so treat it like a portfolio, which means I'm going to hand it off to an expert and let them do it.

(LAUGHTER)

Next thing you say is think big. What do you mean, think big?

WERTHEIM: The fun of the brackets is finding butler and picking the upsets, but you have to go with the blue chips. Big schools from big conferences tend to win. If it's been 20 years since not from one of the big conferences has won -- again, it takes some of the fun of it maybe, but it's Yukon, it's -- you look at recent winners too. North Carolina, they're all the big-time schools, the blue chip stocks that win this event.

LEMON: Game sites matter. Why?

WERTHEIM: Yes. In college basketball, even controlling for quality, the home team wins sometimes as often as 70 percent. Usually about two-thirds of the time, the home team wins. If there's ever a toss-up game and the site is clearly closer to one school than the other, they are going to have more fans. We think because the fans rattle the refs not because the players play better. But the fact of the matter is home team means a ton of difference in college basketball. So if there's a game where one team is closer, pick that team.

WERTHEIM: OK. I'm going to read you're final one. You don't have time to respond, but you said, finally, we all love a big upset but, you say, reason trumps emotion. Reason trumps emotion. And those are your tips from Jon Wertheim.

Jon, I expect an e-mail with some help very shortly.

WERTHEIM: You've got it.

LEMON: Thank you.

WERTHEIM: 10 percent.

LEMON: Remember, you can test your bracket skills in the official NCAA March Madness bracket challenge game. Head to CNN.com/brackets. Join the CNN group to see if you can pick the NCAA brackets better than I can, or we can.

We're back in a moment.