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Outrage Over Houla, Syrian Massacre made Diplomat Angry; President Obama will Lead the Memorial Day Celebration; An 80-year-old Skydiver Survived

Aired May 27, 2012 - 17:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Hello again, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield here on the CNN NEWSROOM.

International outrage over the civilian massacre in Syria is intensifying. Today the U.S. joined a growing number of nations condemning the deaths of 85 civilians in the town of Houla. The White House called the killings a vial testament to an illegitimate regime that responds to peaceful protests with unspeakable brutality.

The video of some of the 34 children killed has surfaced online. The images are simply too graphic to broadcast, showing children under the age of 10, some with missing limbs, and severe head wounds. The Syrian government denies responsibility and blames al Qaeda terrorists for the attack.

Well, this was a scene in several Syrian cities today. People so angry over the massacre, they risked retribution from security forces to turn out in force.

Channel 4's Alex Thompson travel to Houla today and caught up in the fight between security forces and rebels.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALEX THOMPSON, CHANNEL 4 (voice-over): Houla today, so far the world has only seen sporadic glimpses from cameras.

We are in the southern suburbs, not exactly controlled by the Syrian army, but they're here. We can only film covertly. And they are scared, very scared. Who knows how many dead bodies lie around here. When I pulled the blanket back, it revealed an old man way past fighting age with a gunshot wound.

For well over an hour, we were pinned down here by sniper rounds. Terrorists, said the Syrian army. They were the rebels. And about ten meters away from this position, one of the soldiers was hit and taken away quickly. But he left his mark on this town.

Because the fighting continues in this town, it's impossible to verify exactly what happened here. There are no eyewitnesses, there are no civilians forced out by the fighting, clearly going on all around this town today. But this is rebel-held Houla, a ghost town. Ask yourself this then, why do people flee the area held by the army but remain in the rebel-held zone. After Friday's massacre here, just who are the people afraid of. In these empty streets, the answer seems glaringly obvious.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And the U.N. security council just wrapped up a meeting on the crisis in Syria, and U.N. envoy Kofi Annan is expected to arrive in Syria tomorrow.

All right. Now to severe weather here in this country. Tropical storm beryl, well, it is dumping a whole lot of rain on the east coast, starting in northern Florida, all the way up to the Carolinas.

Jacqui Jeras is watching the storm. And of course, lots of warnings going out to people along the coast to always want to go and see the high tide and surf. But don't get in there.

JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It's tempting, you know. You see the big waves, surfers think it is going to be a good time. But it's dangerous. There literally have been more than a hundred rescues from the trench in the last two days. It is a holiday weekend. It is hot as heck in the south beach. And you need to relief, but that is going to have to come in the form of rain from this storm and you'll have to have some indoor plans or hitting the pool more than anything else.

State of emergency has been declared by the Jacksonville mayor. They have canceled almost all the memorial day holiday festivities throughout the weekend. So this is a serious storm. You know, winds have been up, 65 miles per hour now, maximum sustained winds. And so, this is a much stronger storm than what we were dealing with yesterday. There you see the live picture and you've got a lot of gawkers out there trying to get a look at some of those big waves.

Now, the winds have been an issue as well. Take a look at some of the wind gusts. They have been picking up especially in the last 60 or 90 minutes or so. We are seeing gusts 30 to even pushing up to 40 miles per hour. And that's enough to cause a little damage. You can start to see some tree limbs starting to come down.

So now is the time you want to get focused as to where you're going to be for tonight. Get through the night, when landfall can be expected. And there, you can see it on a westerly track. We are going to see landfall late tonight, but it will slow down and weaken, and when we get concerned when we see this type of a pattern, as it likely kicks on back out to sea by the middle of the week, it means the rainfall will be very heavy.

We have been talking about ranges of three to six inches. I think we are going to start to see some locally heavier amounts than that. So, flooding will be a concern with this storm. Good weekend to stay indoors, unfortunately.

WHITFIELD: Unfortunately on a holiday weekend.

All right. Thanks so much, Jacqui.

All right. In North Carolina, the pastor who told his congregation that gays should be put in concentration camps is back in the news.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYING)

WHITFIELD: Today, protesters showed up in Maiden, North Carolina to denounce the anti-gay sermon, Pastor Charles Worley delivered on mother's day. During that sermon, Worley said he would like to put all gays behind a giant electrified fence and hold them there until they die off.

Critical talk aimed at bringing peace to a region racked by violence and new information on the next major cosmic event. We're looking at all the news straight ahead this week.

Josh Levs has more on that - Josh.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we are going to get the cosmic event in just a minute.

But first we are going to start with this. We take a look at the news ahead this week, folks.

Sudan and South Sudan, plan to resume talks, restart, really, talks, this week on Tuesday. A World leaders including President Obama have been pushing very hard for this. The goal is to avoid more bloodshed and to quell tensions between these two neighboring nations. Keep in mind South Sudan was created as its own separate country just last year, crashes have not stopped. Part of the dispute now is about territory.

Also ahead this week, the medal of freedom will be awarded, the highest civilian honor there is it. Take a look at some of the recipients are this year. Fascinating list.

Former secretary of state Madelyn Albright, singer Bob Dylan, former Israeli prime minister Shimon Peres, also justice John Paul Stevens who retired back in 2010, and astronaut John Glenn, and ultimately, Julia Gordon Lowe, Fred. Founder of the Girl's Scout will be receiving one of those medals.

WHITFIELD: Very good. OK. So now, you know, what about the future of the Gala state?

LEVS: I can't believe this. I had to read this multiple times to believe it. It is wild. On Thursday, NASA plans to talk about some things spotted by the Hubble telescope. This is what NASA is saying direct quote. They are saying observations that allow astronomers to predict with certainty the next major cosmic event to affect our entire universe. Of course, that event is billions of years in the future. But they say this is certain -- this is going to be fascinating, folks.

Always to stay ahead of the news, check out ahead of the curve on CNN.com. I also have some links for you.

And Fred, I have got a reality check myself. Last hour, I misspoke. Mitt Romney's campaign, I was talking where he is coming up, will be in Las Vegas and California this week. For some reason I said Las Vegas and Florida. His stops include California this week. We also got details there at cnn.com.

WHITFIELD: Very good. All tight. Thanks for straightening that out. Josh, appreciate it.

LEVS: Yes.

WHITFIELD: All right. Here in the U.S., the green party is picking their candidate for president. And this woman, Dr. Jill Stein, is in the lead and she will be joining me. There she is right there talking about her efforts to shake up the status quo. And we will get her response to what her rival Roseanne Barr told me about this time last week. Remember that?

All right. We are going to talk with Dr. Stein in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right.

This time on last week, we talked to green party candidate for president, comedienne Roseanne Barr. Well now, we want to introduce you to the other woman in the race. She is Harvard-trained medical doctor, Jill Stein. Here is Stein speaking at an occupy event in Washington earlier this year.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DOCTOR JILL STEIN, GREEN PARTY PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is a perfect storm, that that government of by and for the one percent is crashing under its own weight right now. The people have had it up to here. Twenty five million who need jobs, 50 million who need health care, six million who have lost their homes, another three million in the pipeline.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Dr. Stein is a front-runner for the green party nomination for president. She's joining me live from Grand Rapids, Michigan. Good to see you, Dr. Stein.

STEIN: Great to see you. Thanks for having me on, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Well, fantastic. So. you weighed out a lot of the country's problems in your speech that we just heard. And you say that you can solve the unemployment rate with something that you call a green new deal. What's the key part of your plan to get Americans back to work?

STEIN: Exactly. A green new deal is an emergency program to put 25 million people to work, to end unemployment, jump-start the green economy for the 21st century, and put an end to climate change, as well as making wars for oil obsolete, all in one fell swoop.

Like the great depression, we had the new deal that substantially got us out of that great depression. We can do it now for less than the cost of the first stimulus package. We could actually put an end to unemployment at the same time that we jump-start the economy that we really need for the future. And the green new deal would basically put local communities in charge of deciding what jobs they need to make themselves sustainable, economically, socially, as well as ecologically.

So, it is a whole spectrum of green jobs, clean renewable energy, clean manufacturing, local organic agriculture, public transportation, as well as the social jobs, excuse me, the jobs like hiring back the hundreds of thousands of teachers who have been laid off, nurses, child care, after-school, violence prevention, drug abuse, rehabilitation and prevention, affordable housing construction.

It would basically jump-start a whole spectrum of jobs, both public works, public services as well as the small businesses, and worker cooperatives. It is really small businesses that are the backbone of our country.

WHITFIELD: Dr. Stein, do you feel like in large part these are green party platforms, or these particularly, you know, particular distinctions that you bring to the forefront as a green party candidate?

STEIN: You know, I think this is something that greens have been talking about for a long time, and actually green parties in other countries have been implementing them. What I bring to this, I think, is credibility, as a doctor, as an activist, someone who's actually been on the ground organizing, changing legislation, passing referendums, changing regulations to actually move us forward.

So I think what I bring to this is the green party platform and values as well as the credibility of having done the work, and built the party on the ground to actually move this forward.

WHITFIELD: All right, so Dr. Stein, you know, I spoke with Roseanne Barr last week, and she proposed, you know, forgiving student loan debt among the many things she is campaigning on. So, let's listen in part to what she had to say and I want to get your thoughts on the other side about her comments.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROSEANNE BARR, GREEN PARTY PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: That's in the United States, to forgive student loans as a stimulus to the housing market. I'm just applying common sense to it because while a lot of these kids have moved in with their parents because they have this huge debt, they can't pay of their student loans. And believe me, the parents are not thrilled about it either. And they would like to see their kids move out. And the fact is, the kids could use that same money to put that money down payment on a house which would bring housing starts which is, you know what, stimulate our economy and brings back our middle class --.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So do you agree with that plan, of forgiving student loans or do you think there is a better way or alternative way?

STEIN: I think it is the right thing to do. And it's the productive thing to do. We found a way to forgive the loans of the banks. We bailed out the banks to the tune of many trillions of dollars. And they're the ones who caused the problem. The least we can do for our students is bail them out because they're the victims of that waste, fraud and abuse on wall street. And while we're at it, we would actually provide public higher education, tuition-free.

In the 20th century, we provided tuition-free high school education, because it was essential for economic security. So what we want to do in the 21st century is actually provide that college degree, also for free. Because in the 21st century, a college degree is also essential now for economic security. And it pays for itself.

We know this actually from the GI bill, where we put millions of returning soldiers after world war II through college for free. And for every dollar that the taxpayers invested, $7 was actually returned to the public treasury. So it pays for itself many times over. It's the right thing to do. It's good for our economy. And it's essential for our students.

WHITFIELD: As a medical doctor, you've authored studies on the effects of the environment, on children, and as part of your platform, you know, you support a Medicare for all programs. But right now in Washington, Republicans are trying to shift from Medicare to a private insurance program. So how would government, this country support Medicare for al in your view?

STEIN: Yes, well, I know a bit about this, as a practicing medical doctor, with about 25 years behind me. Now I say I'm practicing political medicine because it's the mother of all illnesses and we've got to fix that one first.

But the truth of the matter is, under a Medicare for all systems, what happens is that enormous ways in red tape, bureaucracy, the private health insurance administration which now gobbles up 30 percent of every health care dollar. That basically goes away. Because that 30 percent overhead shrinks to two percent under Medicare for all. That's how it actually pays for itself by eliminating that incredibly massive wasteful private health insurance bureaucracy. It goes beyond that, in fact, because it stabilizes medical inflation. And that saves us trillions of dollars over the course of the next decade. So it's not actually a cost driver, it's actually a cost saver.

WHITFIELD: All right. Dr. Jill Stein, Green Party candidate for president of the United States. Thanks so much for your time. Appreciate it.

And of course, we'll be keeping a close watch on this race for the nomination to represent the Green Party.

All right. Two huge events in London this summer have security forces on edge, and on alert. And their preparations are unprecedented. We will show you what they are planning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: London is ramping up for its biggest security challenge ever. The queen's Diamond jubilee next month, and the Olympics after that.

Dan rivers reports the planning is unprecedented.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This summer Britain's security establishment will have perhaps one of the toughest policing jobs in the world. The Olympics and the queen's diamond jubilee bringing in an estimated six million extra visitors a day in a mega city of 12 million which in the past has repeatedly been targeted by Islamist terrorists and the I.R.A.

Already, an amphibious ocean ship HMS ocean, has anchored on the Thames providing military backup for the police. The first priority will be securing the queen's diamond jubilee in early June, particularly the river Thames. And hue for a floating royal pageant of 1,000 boats.

Specialist police and sailing teams have been training to search all 14 bridges under which the flotilla will pass. I joined colonel Richard Kemp on the Thames to discuss the challenges.

COLONEL RICHARD KEMP, BRITISH SECURITY: The bridges have to be secured. Each bridge has been passed under has to have a security presence. And there has to be a pretty strong police presence among the crowd.

RIVERS: The police in Britain have plenty of practice in securing large-scale formal events. But this summer presents a unique security challenge. Five thousand five hundred police will line the river Thames during the jubilee pageant. A further 7,000 stewards will be on hand. And 12,000 police will be on duty at the Olympic venues on peak days, with many more patrolling the rest of the city.

Commander Bob Milton used to direct security for the police during big events, and knows what it will involve.

BOB MILTON, FORMER METROPOLITAN POLICE COMMANDER, Then you have sort of like con centric rings of further protection coming out.

RIVERS: He says covered offices like these will also be deployed in large numbers. Some will have special sniffer dogs to ensure the queen can safely go on a walk about.

MILTON: It's extremely difficult to put in a security apparatus that allows the queen, the royal family to have good access to the public. So you have to plan it by using, as you say, covert security measures. You have to have a polished approach. So there, the military, play a massive role.

RIVERS: Like these royal Navy helicopters with snipers aboard, prepared to take out any intruders on the river. REAR ADMIRAL IAN CORDER, ROYAL NAVY: The helicopters alongside police boats, and some of our own boats will close on that vessel.

RIVERS: Combined with the Olympics, the security operation will be unprecedented.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This will be the largest military operation on mainland U.K. Probably since the second world war, involving huge numbers of military forces, more than we've got deployed in Afghanistan today, and very, very large numbers of police.

RIVERS: Hoping they won't be called on, but prepared for any eventuality if called upon.

Dan Rivers, CNN. London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And CNN's live - excuse me, CNN's live coverage, sorry, of queen Elizabeth's diamond jubilee begins next Sunday, June 3rd, 11:00 a.m. Join us for this royal celebration.

And an 80-year-old woman's daredevil attempt to sky dive went terribly wrong. She actually slipped out of her harness thousands of feet in the air. And she talks about her scary experience.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: It was a birthday celebration that didn't go quite as planned. An 80-year-old California woman decided to go skydiving for her big day, but she never quite envisioned this. So after finally taking the plunge there, a heart stopping moment. She actually began slipping out of that harness. Even with the chute opening. Fortunately Laverne Everett and her instructor, who was holding on ever so tightly, they did land safely.

Our affiliate KOBR spoke to the lady on her harrowing experience.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LAVERNE EVERETT, 80-YEAR-OLD, SKYDIVER: I just wanted to do it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE REPORTER: The daredevil herself, 80-year-old Laverne Everett. Laverne who lives in this modest studio apartment in Oakdale, says she craves a little excitement once in a while. So last year for her 80th birthday she decided to jump out of a plane.

When you're telling your family you want to sky dive, what is their reaction to you?

EVERETT: They thought I was very brave. But it's just something I've wanted to do for a long time.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE REPORTER: And so last May, Laverne did just that, a parachute center in campo.

EVERETT: Once you get on that edge, that's another story. The upper harness came off, you know, it slipped down.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE REPORTER: Laverne said her shirt flew up against her face so, she couldn't see a thing and didn't realize exactly what happened until she saw the video for herself.

EVERETT: I didn't know anything. Only to hold on. That's all.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE REPORTER: And now she says it's time to cross another item on her bucket list.

EVERETT: Well, I never have ridden in a race car.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: She is daring. I like her spirit. Laverne Everett said she signed a waiver, so she has a really good spirit, a good sport about it. She has no plans to actually sue the skydiving company.

Jacqui Jeras is with me now. You saw the images earlier.

JERAS: My God.

WHITFIELD: It was a heart stopping.

JERAS: It really is.

WHITFIELD: DO you ever skydive.

JERAS: God, no. NO, never will. I don't like that free falling thing.

WHITFIELD: OK. We will see what happens at 80 year. Maybe you'll take the plunge?

JERAS: No, way. You?

WHITFIELD: No. I thought about it back in my college days. Now I've since come to my senses. And I'm a thrill-seeker. I love, you know, crazy, daring things, but not this one.

JERAS: Yes. And look how scary that is. Her harness came loose, it looked like. It came all the way up to the top. And so, she's hanging on for dear life. I would have had a heart attack personally.

WHITFIELD: The FAA is now looking into that whole thing, too. Apparently it does happen. It's an occurrence where a harness could loosen, not, you know, attached properly. They want to look into it. But it is rare, according to the FAA.

OK. We've got something else that's really fascinating. Remember that tsunami a year ago? Debris starting to wash up. right.

Take this Harley-Davidson bike, this really was a prize beauty of one owner in Japan. And now it has washed 4,000 miles ashore to a Canadian island. And there it is. It was actually in a container as it was traveling. JERAS: It was in storage, and that's how it was able to stay intact. But, a guy in British Columbia, he finds this and contacts Harley- Davidson and said, hey, can you help me find the owner of this bike. The license plate was still on there so they were able to figure out who the owner was. They said -- Harley said, we will send you the bike back for free. He said, I'm kind of in chaos, he lost his home and everything.

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: He still live in housing.

JERAS: Right. So, he said I would like to keep this motorcycle as a memorial to all the people who died in the tsunami. So it's going to be in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in a museum.

WHITFIELD: That's extraordinary. What a story.

JERAS: More debris continuing to wash up.

WHITFIELD: That's right. We're just seeing the beginning of it.

JERAS: Yes, we are. We will see it for years and years.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks do much, Jacqui. Appreciate that.

JERAS: Sure.

WHITFIELD: All right. Madonna, who is not a big Madonna fan. Are you?

JERAS: Sure. Yes.

WHITFIELD: Of course. She's kicking off her big world tour now in the holy land. We will get you set for the week ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A former prime minister testified and a group of hackers gets together to try to solve some world problems.

Our Josh Levs is here with a look at the news ahead this week.

LEVS: Yes. It is all coming up in the next few days. We are going to start off with this right now, Fred. This is about Tony Blair who will be testifying actually Monday, beginning tomorrow, at the inquiry in London. The inquiry was set up in response to accusations of widespread phone hacking by journalists working for Rupert Murdoch's "News of the World." It examine the links between Britain's media and politics.

Tony Blair is former director of communications just days ago testified about a cozy relationship between some in Britain's press and those in power. Also, for those following that, later this week on Thursday, culture secretary Jeremy Hunt will testify as well. Something else you should know about coming out this week, it's called random hacks of kindness, it opens next weekend. It is an annual event in which hackers' pool brain power to focus on world problems. It takes place in a bunch of cities. Last year about 1,500 took part. Some disaster relief and climate change organizations get together with hackers, programmers and developers, and together try to generation new solutions.

And get this, according to our story on CNN.com, Fred, these events often end with fully functional products. So, we will see what they take on this year.

WHITFIELD: OK. We look forward to that one.

OK. And then, you know, a quick look at a pop culture.

LEVS: Yes.

WHITFIELD: And, you know, it's all about Madonna. She just continues to rock on. She is just amazing.

LEVS: It's incredible. I listened to her as a kid and here she is with a huge world tour. She is kicking of a world tour Tuesday in Tel Aviv. She has plans to hit arena stadium. It is an outdoor site across the world from Canada to south America to Australia, where she has not performed for 20 years.

WHITFIELD: Wow.

LEVS: There. So excited. I know. Many places around the world.

WHITFIELD: She is ageless and tireless.

LEVS: It's just astounding her energy and the shows she can still put on. You know, (INAUDIBLE) like that.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

LEVS: As always, folks, for more of what is coming out this week, check us out. It is going to be the ahead of the curve, at CNN.com. A lot of the stories over the next seven days. I always have a lot of links for you on everything I'm talking about online, facebook and twitter, joshlevscnn, cnn.com/josh.

What do you think Fred? You can go to that concert when she comes to America?

WHITFIELD: I don't know. I should. She is definitely one iconic figure I haven't seen yet. I do like to check out all the icons when I can.

LEVS: I'll get you the dates for when she's around here.

WHITFIELD: OK. Please let me know.

LEVS: Yes. WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much.

JERAS: You bet.

WHITFIELD: All right. In Indianapolis, Dario Franchitti wins the Indy 500 for the third time. He won right after a crash on the final lap. The driver barely miss Franchitti going for the lead in to that first turn, right there. Franchitti who is married to actress Ashley Judd, was able to speed across that finish line and become the tenth driver to win at least three Indy 500s. Instead of soda or champagne, he drinks milk. And today's raid also included a first for the Indy 500, driver Katherine Leg got backed by the first all-female team as you seat right there.

All right. This sounds like a setup to a joke. Five guys and a goat are walking down the road.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It really started the show. People love the goat.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: But they have a serious mission. To lift the baseball curse and to fight cancer.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: U.N. officials now say 108 civilians, up from 85, were massacred this weekend in the Syrian town of Houla. Among the victims, 49 children. The U.S. security council has just wrapped up a meeting on a Syrian crisis and it is expected to issue a statement at any moment now.

Today the U.S. joined the growing number of nations blasting the Syrian government for the kills at Houla. Bashar al Assad regime denies responsibility and blames the attacks on al Qaeda terrorists.

And by this time tomorrow, five guys and a goat hope to be at Wrigley field in Chicago. And when they get there, they will have walked almost 2,000 miles, and raised thousands of dollars to fight cancer. And they hope to lift a curse on the Chicago Cubs baseball team.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

T.J. FISHER, TRAVELER: T.J. Fisher.

PHILLIP ALDRIDGE, TRAVELER: Phillip Aldridge.

MATT GREGORY, TRAVELER: I'm Matt Gregory. I'm with a group of four friends and Wrigley the goat. We're going from Arizona to Chicago, trying to raise $100,000 for cancer research and break the curse for the cubs.

We started February 25th. We walked through the southern desert in Arizona and New Mexico. We went through Texas Pan Am and Oklahoma city, Tulsa, the Ozarks in Missouri, right through the heart of cardinal country of St. Louis.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And here we are, 88 days into it. And we can smell Chicago. And surely they can smell us coming. So it feels good. It's a journey almost done.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've traveled close to 1,900 miles. It's going to be about 2,000 when it's all said and done. We've raised over $13,000 so far.

Our target is $100,000. We still feel it's a possibility. And a lot of that comes in the form of people stopping by and giving $5, $10, $20.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wrigley.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Wrigley.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're outside McDonald's and this guy donated $125. And it's just because his kid wanted to pet the goat. He's really the star of the show. People love the goat. We have probably had five or six people ask if they can buy them. He is not for sale.

He's from cave creek, Arizona. He found him on craigslist.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tell the cubs up there, if they don't let that goat in there, they won't have a win.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My story with cancer research was my mom was pregnant with me. She had leukemia. In early '79 she took part in a sibling bone marrow transplant. She lived 20 years off that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a cause we believe in. Doing something for our team. Everybody's got their team, whether it be the cubs or anything. This is far bigger than sports.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's an experience a lot of people don't get to get. We've been fortunate enough to have the time to do it. And be able to experience this journey. With each other, and with the goat.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: If you want to keep track of the group's progress, go to their Web site, it's crackthecurse.com.

It is memorial day weekend here in the U.S. and for many Americans it's a great time to spend with family and friends. But one author said we should not forget how we got to a place where we can be free.

If you have to go out today, just a reminder, you can continue watching CNN from your mobile phone. You can also watch CNN live from your desktop. Just go to CNN.com/TV.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. It is memorial day weekend here in the U.S. and you are looking a live pictures right now. The U.S. marine corps war memorial in Arlington. Many known it as the Iwo Jima memorial where have stone sculpture reminds us of the last territory our troops captured from the Japanese during world war II. President Barack Obama will honor our fallen soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery tomorrow.

So, what does memorial day mean to you? For many Americans, it's a long weekend. Time to spend with family and friends, at the beach or maybe a backyard barbecue. Some of us may need some reminding how we arrived at this holiday weekend, the tolls taken and sacrifices made.

CNN opinion columnist and best-selling author, Bob Greene, said that is what we should be thinking about this weekend.

Good to see you, Bob, joining us from Chicago.

So why do you suppose -- why do you think it is a lot of Americans have lost the meaning of what is behind memorial day weekend?

BOB GREENE, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, it turned into a three-day weekend, once all holidays were changed, or almost all holidays were changed to Monday. And it makes sense, it's the beginning of the summer, people have barbecues and ball games.

But, the reason we have memorial day in the first place is to honor those who gave their lives in the pursuit of peace for us. And there is a quotation that is variously ascribed to Winston Churchill and (INAUDIBLE).

And the quotation is, "we sleep soundly in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence upon those who would do us harm."

And so I do think that it is incumbent upon us, on this weekend, to take some time off from the relaxation, and realize what sacrifice was given for us to achieve that most elusive thing, peace.

WHITFIELD: Yes. And extend our gratitude to so many who have sacrificed so much.

GREENE: Yes. And it extend our gratitude to so many who have sacrificed so much.

GREENE: Yes. It is the most famous beloved picture about peace ever, from world war II, is the famous picture taken by Alfred Eisenstaedt of "Life" magazine of the sailor and the nurse in times square. And of course, it makes up more sense that people prefer to look at that picture of the first hours of peace, than think about the last hours of war. Because just days before, to end the killing, and to bring home the soldiers, sailors, marines and airmen to their families, the atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. And so, there was such a short period between that absolute carnage and heart break and sorrow of world war II, and that wonderful picture of what it feels like when peace finally comes, and you just can't help the very word peace is such a beautiful and earful word because it's such a simple word and yet it's so hard to find it, it seems. WHITFIELD: Bob Greene, thanks so much for helping us bring perspective to this weekend and why so many of us are able to be with friends and family this weekend on an extended holiday weekend.

Thanks so much, Bob Greene.

GREENE: Thank you, Fredericka.

WHITFIELD: And of course, you can read Bob's columns and other great opinions on the issues that shape your world at CNNopinion.com.

So, as we honor our fallen soldiers this memorial day weekend, thousands of motorcyclists called the rolling thunder pay tribute to prisoners of war and soldiers missing in action.

Today, they had the parents of U.S. soldier Bowe Bergdahl riding along with them. Their son is the only known American prisoner of war in Afghanistan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT BERGDAHL, FATHER OF POW BOWE BERGDAHL: Thanks to you our P.O.W.S and M.I.A.s will never be forgotten and they never will be forgotten Bowe, if you can hear me, you are not forgotten, and so help me God, we will not leave you behind.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The Taliban captured their son in 2009. Bergdahl's father says the length of his beard is a chronology of his son's captivity.

From nearly 25 years of U.S. military service to the big screen now, war hero colonel Greg Gadson made his film debut in a movie "battleship." He served in four major wars since 1991 and became a double amputee after being hit by a roadside bomb in Iraq in 2007.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I got this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And now he's taken that experience to the big screen in "battleship." He plays a wounded war vet, a guy speaks for a knowing number of vets would want to see more service members in movies.

Yesterday I spoke to Colonel Gadson about his experience.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: How in the world did these two come together, your experience, you know, as a war vet and this opportunity to be in this movie that does showcase real-life war heroes such as yourself?

COLONEL GREG GADSON, DIRECTOR, ARMY WOUNDED WARRIOR PROGRAM: Well, you know, Peter Berg is a New York fan, New York giants fan, from New York and had been aware of my role with the giants and then I happened to be part of a small article that "the national geographic" did in 2010 that was spotlighting and showing the advancements in prosthetics and my photo was part of that article, and Peter Berg saw that and that's where he got the idea of casting me in the movie.

WHITFIELD: So, when they reached out to you and said, hey, we want you to be in the movie, were you reluctant or did you said, you know, I can do this? Had you ever acted before?

GADSON: I played a free in a school play and I actually halfheartedly just said yes when he asked me. You know, part of me was let's just see where this goes but really didn't believe I was going to ultimately end up acting. They'd eventually find out I couldn't act and have to go for direction.

WHITFIELD: But clearly you did a very good job, you know, this is a blockbuster movie. I mean, if you're going to start, why not start big and this is exactly what you did.

Do you think this is going to kind of help open the door maybe for other vets to, you know, be extended the same kind of opportunities especially when you talk about movies that are conveying ha veteran experience, that war experience?

GADSON: I hope so. You know, there is -- I'm certainly not the first war veteran to play in a movie and so it's really unique, what's really nice that Hollywood has taken an interest. And I tell you, Pete Berg has really taken a special interest. He really highlights the service of those that are fighting and currently serving as well as those that served in the past. It's really neat how he's woven the real service of service members into this movie.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right. He's very inspiring. Colonel Gadson says he is grateful and humbled by the opportunity to honor veterans with that role in the film "battleship."

All right. The economy is issue number one in this year's presidential election. Check out what folks in Washington had to say on the Sunday morning talk shows today.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RUDY GIULIANI, (R), FORMER NEW YORK MAYOR: If the economy doesn't improve between now and September or October, I don't think President Obama will be re-elected. If he gets an economy that starts improving then it could be anybody's ball game.

ROBERT GIBBS, OBAMA CAMPAIGN SENIOR ADVISER: We're certainly happy to talk a little about Mitt Romney and his record of not creating jobs in virtually every step of his life. That's what this campaign is going to be about. Are you going to be better - Who are you going to better off with in the next four years.

NEWT GINGRICH (R), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm totally committed to Romney's election. I think given this economy, this level of unemployment, this level of deficits, it's very likely he will win and I think that you'll see it pull away in September and October.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: Horrible things are happening in Syria. This administration has a feckless foreign policy which abandons American leadership. I know because I visit with these people that they are ready to help these people and they are already helping them some but it cries out for American leadership, American leadership is not there.

SEN. RICHARD LUGAR (R), INDIANA: It's a difficult situation. So when you talk about Syria and talk about troops or intervention, the president has been very cautious. I think properly so.

LEON PANETTA, DEFENSE SECRETARY: Fundamental premise is that neither the United States or the international community is going to allow Iran to develop a nuclear weapon. We will do everything we can to prevent them from developing a weapon.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE ANCHOR: The American ambassador to Israel said a few days ago the U.S. is quote "ready from a military per perspective to carry out a strike on Iran." that's true.

PANETTA: One of the things we do at the defense department is plan. And we have plans to be able to implement any contingency, we have to, in order to defend ourselves.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And doggone heartbreaking story out of California with the happy ending.

This little dog was severely injured after someone strapped it with explosives and then detonated it. Police rushed the dog to an animal hospital where staffs affectionately named him rocket. The dog's real name is Dexter. A $2500 reward is being offered for information leading to an arrest and conviction in the case.

All right. That is going to do it for me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Much more of "NEWSROOM" straight ahead with Alina Cho in for Don Lemon.

Have a great week.

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