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CNN Live Saturday
Interview with Rajeev Dhawan; 16 Killed In Car Bomb Explosions Outside Baghdad Green Zone
Aired December 04, 2004 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: It is 12:00 p.m. on the East coast, 9:00 a.m. on the West coast. Hello, I'm Fredricka Whitfield at CNN's global headquarters in Atlanta. Ahead this hour:
Those drug ads that are everywhere on TV, what are they telling you or selling you? And should be you buying?
A different kind of drug story, this one dominating the sports pages. What impact could the steroid scandal have on some high- profile careers and records?
And is there a Grinch out there waiting to steal Christmas this year? Why a sluggish job market has some economists worried, but first, a look at top stories.
In Iraq, 16 people have been killed and dozens more wounded in two massive car bomb explosions at the entrance to Baghdad's green zone. The area is home to the U.S. embassy and the Iraqi government. Earlier two U.S. soldiers died in roadside attacks, one in Baghdad, another near Baqubah. More on that in a moment with a live report from Baghdad.
The hunt for Osama bin Laden was on the agenda for talks today between President Bush and Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf. Pakistan recently scaled back the bin Laden manhunt on the Afghan border. The two leaders also talked about the continuing tension between Pakistan and India. Suzanne Malveaux has an update from the White House in a moment.
And Ukraine's parliament has adjourned without taking action on new election laws. The supreme court in Kiev has thrown out last month's election results, ordering another runoff vote the day after Christmas.
We begin, right now, with more disturbing news from Iraq. Insurgents are on the attack again today, setting off deadly car bombs in Baghdad. The death toll is at least 16, dozens more injured. CNN's Karl Penhaul is in the Iraqi capital.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Smoke billow skyward minutes after two car bombs explode. Seconds later, you can hear the bullets fly as insurgents trade fire with Iraqi guards ran into check points into the fortified green zone. Iraqi officials say the main target was just opposite, a district police station. As the ambulances shuttle away the dead and injured, it's clear the police have born the brunt of the blast. It's been a busy few days at Baghdad's Yarmuk Hospital after a wave of guerrilla strikes across the capital.
MUSHTAQ CALID ALI, IRAQI POLICE (through translator): We were standing outside when we saw the car drive up with the young man. Suddenly, it exploded. It's a process that took no longer than 10 seconds and then everybody was dead in the street.
PENHAUL: Insurgents seem to be increasingly targeting Iraqi security forces instead of better equipped, better trained coalition troops. Mushtaq Calid Ali joined the police just nine days ago, one of the riskiest jobs in the country right now. The pay, roughly $220 a month.
ALI (through translator): The hunger was killing my family. We have no work. What are we supposed to do, steal?
PENHAUL: He's been watching medics bandage up his wounded buddies all morning and wheeling out others who died. He says he had a premonition.
ALI (through translator): Just this morning we were thinking that today something was going to happen to us. I had a dream last night that I was passing around empty glasses. If they were full, I would have died.
PENHAUL: Ali's leg has been ripped apart. Looking at the stretchers and blood in the yard, it could have been worse. Each day since Ali began his new job, he kisses his wife goodbye and warns her he may not make it home.
ALI (through translator): I tell her if I die, she should get married again. Where else would she go, back to her family? It's better for her to remarry.
PENHAUL: Insurgents struck elsewhere Saturday, hitting a military convoy and killing a U.S. soldier with a roadside bomb in Baqubah. And another U.S. soldier was killed when rebels bombed Army trucks were bombed in east Baghdad.
(on camera): And as the countdown to the January 30 elections continues, government officials believe the resistance fighters, whom the describe as desperados, will step up their sabotage campaign.
Karl Penhaul, CNN, Baghdad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: The U.S. military is investigating a dozen or so photographs that have surfaced on the internet. They appear to show the abuse of Iraqi prisoners at the hands of Navy Seals. CNN's Kimberly Osias joins us from Washington with more on the disturbing images -- Kimberly.
KIMBERLY OSIAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello Fredricka. Well, Navy officials tell CNN none of these photos, we're told show clear-cut abuse. A Seal team exhibited poor judgment, perhaps, they say, but not prisoner abuse. The photos, some 200 in all, a few of which are now drawing attention, date back to May 2003, several months before the far more brutal photos from Iraq's Abu Ghraib Prison photos were taken.
At this point it's unclear just who took the pictures. The "Associated Press" reports that a woman placed the images on the web after her husband returned from his tour of duty. That site is now blocked by password. Take a look at the pictures.
They show captured detainees being moved by Navy Seals. And another photo we'll show you in just a moment shows a boot on a prisoner's thigh. Several of the photos show service men smiling and seeming to ham it up. Now, what all this means is difficult to say, because Navy official rs still investigating the context in which the photos were taken. Navy Special Warfare Command Spokesperson Jeff Bender says the matter is under investigation. He adds: "There are strict Navy regulations prohibiting the photographing of detainees for other than official purposes. Additionally, prior to deployment, Navy Special Warfare personnel are instructed that taking unofficial photographs of POWs and detainees is prohibited."
Sources say if the preliminary investigation suggests criminal wrong doing, the Navy Criminal Investigative Services will be called in. And as of yet, that has not happened -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right. Kimberly Osias.
Well, President Bush is departing the White House at this hour, heading for the Army/Navy game in Philadelphia. He spent part of the morning in critical meetings with Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf, one of the key subjects, the global war on terror. CNN's Suzanne Malveaux is at the White House now -- Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Fred, really, it was a brief, but very packed meeting, both of them, of course, talking about issues that are critical to their countries, to their administrations. As you know, Pakistan is a key ally in the war on terror. It was really instrumental in routing out the Taliban in neighboring Afghanistan.
Of course, both of them talking about Pakistan's role for the hunt of Osama bin Laden. There is a joint effort, the U.S. on the Afghan side, as well as Pakistan on the Pakistan side on the border looking for Osama bin Laden and senior al-Qaeda, but recently a Pakistan military officials said that they were scaling back on that effort and that operation, but both leaders today went out of their way to talk about and stress the cooperation between the countries and not necessarily the fact that they are pulling away.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Quite the contrary, his army has been incredibly active and very brave in southern Waziristan, flushing out an enemy that had thought they had found safe haven. His army has suffered casualty and for that, we want to thank their loved ones for the sacrifice that their family has made. The president has been a determined leader to bring to justice not only people like Osama bin Laden, but to bring to justice those who would inflict harm and pain on his own people.
GEN. PERVEZ MUSHARRAF, PAKISTANI PRESIDENT: We discussed with him, in its entire complexity and within that, hunting every terrorist was discussed, of course. The operation against terrorists Pakistan on our borders was discussed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Now, Musharraf has said recently that he believes that Osama bin Laden is, in fact, alive, but not hiding in that particular area inside of Pakistan. Of course, that is yet to be determined just where he is. The U.S. is still trying to pursue to find Osama bin Laden and, as well, other issues came up. President Bush making a point that he would like to see democratic reforms in place in Pakistan. Also, of course, Pakistan is looking for, in some ways, some rewards for its loyalty, perhaps even being able to purchase F- 16s from the United States, but there were no announcements on either of those issues today -- Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right, Suzanne Malveaux, thank you.
Well, be sure to join Wolf Blitzer tomorrow at Noon Eastern, for a CNN exclusive. Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf will join Wolf on CNN's "Late Edition."
The steroid drub scandal has expanded to included some of the biggest name is sports including slugger, Barry Bonds. Now one of the biggest players on Capitol Hill is responding. Senator John McCain is issuing a tough warning: Clean it up or else. McCain told the "Washington post" he will introduce legislation requiring drug testing for professional athletes if major league baseball and team owners don't crack down by next month.
Well, McCain comments come after a report that San Francisco's Barry Bonds used substances supplied to him by a trainer, but Bonds' attorney says his client believes he was taking a nutritional supplement, not steroids. On ABC's "20/20" the head of BALCO, the maker of the performance enhancing drugs, allegedly given to elite athletes made this starting assertion.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VICTOR CONTE, BALCO LAB FOUNDER: Let me tell you the biggest joke of all. Do you know what that is? I would guesstimate that more than 50 percent of the athletes are taking some form of anabolic steroids.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Baseball players?
CONTE: Absolutely, without a doubt.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: More than 50 percent. CONTE: More than 50 percent. OK? But, I'll tell you something else they're doing that they've never addressed at all. And that's this: My guess is greater than 80 percent are taking some sort of stimulant before each and every game.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: And we'll have more on the steroid scandal coming up at 12:45 when we talk it over with CNN's sport correspondent, Michelle Bonner.
Well, job growth in the U.S. is weaker than expected. Will it put a damper on the holiday season? The experts weigh in.
Plus, the obligations of holiday giving when times are tough. Our ethics guy weighs in on that.
Later on, when patients learn about medication on TV, where do doctors fit in? That and much more on this CNN SATURDAY.
ORELON SIDNEY, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Here's a look at your cold and flu report to the latest activity report through November the 20th shows the only widespread activity through Alaska, sporadic activity through the rest of the United States. There is some local activity in the northeast.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: The jobs market shifted into lower gear last month, just when retailers need holiday overdrive. CNN financial correspondent Kathleen Hays has the numbers. Why they aren't so ho, ho, ho.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATHLEEN HAYS, CNN FINANCIAL CORRESPONDENT: Could a sluggish U.S. job market be the Grinch that steals Christmas this year? The nation's payrolls increased by just 112,000 workers last month, barely half of what was expected.
JOHN SILVA, CHIEF ECONOMIST, WACHOVIA: Those that have the jobs are spending. Those that do not have the jobs are less confident they're going to get a job and therefore, they are being very careful on their spending this holiday season. I think that's what the employment number tells us.
HAYS: And U.S. retailers were anything but merry and bright. Instead of adding works to gear up for the holiday season, more than 16,000 jobs were cut in November.
JOHN CHALLENGER, CHALLENGER, GRAY & CHRISTMAS: Well, that was a surprising number at a time when many had hoped the consumer would be strong, driving more people in the stores, causing retailers to hire. They didn't do that.
HAYS: Plump Christmas stockings or lumps of coal? Word on the street is mixed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I work for transit myself, so it kind of worries me will I even have my job? So, things like that makes me worry and what I could spend and how far I could go.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think regardless of whatever the economic indicators are, people are going to spend based upon just feeling good and wanting to have some sense of family at Christmas and just holiday.
HAYS: Luxury retailers are expected to do well this year, because people who are working are willing to buy pricey gifts. For those less fortune, it's the age-old solution, put it on plastic.
DIANA SWONK, ECONOMIST: We've seen consumers willing to step up their credit card purchases, willing to cushion and circumvent the squeeze of higher oil prices with more credit usage and that means you'll probably still see fairly good spending.
HAYS (on camera): That's one reason why the economic outlook is so cloudy, because if consumers charge up big bills now, in the holiday season, it could leave them with a bad debt hangover in the New Year.
Kathleen Hays, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: The November jobs report isn't all Grinch. Rajeev Dhawan Is the director of Economic Forecasting at Georgia State University.
Good to see you. Happy holidays.
RAJEEV DHAWAN, GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY: Thank you. Same to you.
WHITFIELD: All right, lots of mixed messages. We saw in the piece, there's a lot of big spending and then a lot of credit card use and a lot of job layoffs. So, how do we read into whether this is, indeed, going to be -- you know, a good holiday season or not.
DHAWAN: This is going to be a good holiday season. You know, the number of jobs in the last four months is close to half a million total. Yeah, one month was lower, but the month before that was higher. You do the average; you start to see the trend. It's much better than it was a year ago. But, when you start comparing it to four years ago, it looks a little bit weak, you know, and that's what the nature of this recovery is.
WHITFIELD: Is it pretty discouraging to see, though, however, that the job market has kind of dropped off, just heading into the holiday season, when people need their jobs more than any other time during the year and a lot of companies are -- you know, handing out very sizable layoffs? DHAWAN: I think the number is not that low. You know, there are some technical factors, as well, as I say, take the average over the last four months, it's 185,000 jobs per month. But one month was 337 for the 112. So, you see, that disparity is there that makes people a little bit edgy. The gas prices are still up. It's taking a hit -- people are taking a hit to their pocket. They're spending less on the retail store, but the higher end retail stores are booming, because the stock market hasn't been so great in the last months. They got money and they're buying the big ticket items.
WHITFIELD: So, when we look ahead and we try to assess what 2005 might look like economically, how much do we use this holiday season as a barometer?
DHAWAN: I think it will be -- it will be important with how people spend in the Christmas shows the spirit for the rest of the year, too. And also depends upon the consumer mood, which again depends upon the jobs being created and if that number keeps at this 200,000 plus, we're going to have a good 2005.
WHITFIELD: Has it been a while we've been able to say that the holiday season has been -- you know, wonderful for everybody across the board?
DHAWAN: Oh, let me think -- 1999, that was the last time probably.
WHITFIELD: Yeah, just before Y2K?
DHAWAN: Just before Y2K. Just before the NASDAQ reached 5,000.
WHITFIELD: What's so different?
DHAWAN: You see, the world has changed after 9/11 and also the stock market is nowhere near the highs we saw in 1999 and 2000. So, we are going to pay a price for that. The great '90s was a great boom. The excesses of the '90s have now led to the correction, so we're feeling a little bit of pinch. The basic are fine. The fundamentals are OK. The issue is, the icing on the cake is not as thick as it used to be.
WHITFIELD: All right, Rajeev Dhawan, good to see you.
DHAWAN: Thank you. Thanks. Happy holidays.
WHITFIELD: Thanks very much.
Well, tricky Christmas giving and nasty breakups. That's what our ethics guy tackles coming up next, but first, an ethics quiz for you. Can you say ethics? No, just kidding.
You notice that a coworker is taking money from a petty cash box at work. She asks you to keep the matter to yourself. "I need to buy food for my little girl. Her deadbeat dad is short with child support again," she explains. "I promise I won't do it again." Would you: A. do as she asks, B. Tell her to put the money back and give her the money she needs yourself, C. Tell the boss or, D. Leave the boss an anonymous note?
The ethics guy has the answer when CNN SATURDAY comes right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Exposing a petty cash thief, telling tales on ex- lovers, and getting out of the annual holiday gift exchange. Questions of ethics and here with some of the answers is professional ethicist and syndicated columnist, Bruce Weinstein, the "Ethics Guy."
Good to see you, Bruce.
BRUCE WEINSTEIN, "ETHICS GUY": Hello, Fredricka. How are you?
WHITFIELD: I'm doing pretty good. Let's begin with a little quiz before the break. And here is the question: You noticed a coworker is taking money from the petty cash box at work. She asks to keep the matter to yourself. "I need to buy food for my little girl, here deadbeat dad is short with child support again," she explains. "I promise I won't do it again." So, would you, A. Do as she asks, B. Tell her to put the money back and give her the money she needs yourself, C. Tell the boss, or D. Leave the boss an anonymous note. What is the correct answer? Is there one correct answer, Bruce?
WEINSTEIN: Some answers are better than others and our task is to try to find the way to honor all of our responsibilities: Our responsibilities to our coworker, to the boss, and to ourself. The right answer is C. Tell the boss, because the boss has a right to know what is going on under his or her watch and doing nothing will simply allow the problem to continue. It is also not our moral obligation or our responsibility, rather, to monitor our colleague's behavior, our coworker's conduct Now...
WHITFIELD: Whatever happened to wanting to help out mankind? You know, you want to help out your coworker a little bit because maybe if you tell the boss, they might get fired right away. You feel sorry for them.
WEINSTEIN: Well, you know, these are things that have to be taken into consideration. Companies can make it easier on employees that have policy that direct us into knowing how to respond to these situations and so, it's understandable that someone would feel terrible about reporting this to the boss, but ethically, that satisfies most of the responsibilities.
WHITFIELD: All right. Here is another e-mail, this one coming from Mary, she writes, "This is the first year my husband and I will be unable to exchange Christmas gifts with most of the people that we've given to in the past. Most of the people on our Christmas gift list are relatives. Would it be appropriate for me to call those with whom we are unable to exchange gifts and alert them to not get anything for us, because we won't be able to reciprocate this year?"
WEINSTEIN: There's no shame in not having enough money and falling on hard times and not being able to spend money on a gift, but there are other ways to expressing our gratitude besides buying gifts. We can give services in kind, we can create a certificate on our computer that's good for ten babysitting...
WHITFIELD: But then should she actually alert them? Because it sounds like that's part of her quandary -- you know, should she let them know?
WEINSTEIN: The problem with receiving a gift is that it creates a feeling of obligation on our part to give the gift back, so the viewer's concern is well taken, because if she alerts her relatives, they will know not to give gifts. Although, you know, quite frankly, giving -- alerting the relatives may not stop the relatives from giving a gift in return. They may very well want to give a gift, because after all, a gift is a symbol of what a relationship means to us and so we shouldn't feel bad for giving something and not getting something in return.
WHITFIELD: OK. And here's another e-mail, this one coming from Laura, and she writes, "In recent months my boyfriend and I have gone through a tumultuous breakup. I've divulged very private information about him. He feels uncomfortable around mutual friends as he does not know who knows what about him. How may I correct this wrong?"
WEINSTEIN: I would like to compliment Laura for having the courage to submit this question, because it's not easy to admit that we've made a mistake, as Laura has, because obviously she took the low road and she recognizes that. But, it's also very difficult to tell someone to disregard information that they've already heard. This is why when a judge directs a jury to say "disregard the testimony you just heard just now, which you should not have heard," it's difficult for a jury to do that. So, the best thing Laura can do at this point is alert her friends and let them know that she did something that she should not have and, eventually, these mutual friends will not be mutual friends for long. Usually -- you know, factions develop and one group of friends sides with one person over another...
WHITFIELD: And...oh, go ahead, sorry.
WEINSTEIN: The most important thing Laura can do is to consider taking the high road the next time and I suspect that given the nature of her question and the fact she wrote to us, she will do that, so...
WHITFIELD: Is it worth -- you know, perhaps even she start talking about some of the more positive things about that individual so that those might be kind of the more lasting impressions that some of these mutual friends may have of him as opposed to -- you know, the negative things that she divulged?
WEINSTEIN: That's a good point, Fredricka. And also, to mention that the reason she did this, the reason she took the low road earlier, was because she was going through a lot of emotional upheaval, as we all do when we breakup with someone, and so her revelation of these less than savory qualities of her ex-boyfriend were more of a reflection of her own anger than anything that anyone else should have known, so...
WHITFIELD: All right, Bruce Weinstein, thanks so much and happy holidays. WEINSTEIN: Same to you, Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Well, if you have a question for the "Ethics Guy," e- mail your dilemma to ethics@CNN.com.
With an onslaught of ads everywhere we look, drug companies are bypassing doctors and going straight to the patient. We'll look at who gains and who loses?
And later on, today's the day of the Army/Navy football game. We'll hear from players, coaches, and alumni about why this game makes such an impact.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired December 4, 2004 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: It is 12:00 p.m. on the East coast, 9:00 a.m. on the West coast. Hello, I'm Fredricka Whitfield at CNN's global headquarters in Atlanta. Ahead this hour:
Those drug ads that are everywhere on TV, what are they telling you or selling you? And should be you buying?
A different kind of drug story, this one dominating the sports pages. What impact could the steroid scandal have on some high- profile careers and records?
And is there a Grinch out there waiting to steal Christmas this year? Why a sluggish job market has some economists worried, but first, a look at top stories.
In Iraq, 16 people have been killed and dozens more wounded in two massive car bomb explosions at the entrance to Baghdad's green zone. The area is home to the U.S. embassy and the Iraqi government. Earlier two U.S. soldiers died in roadside attacks, one in Baghdad, another near Baqubah. More on that in a moment with a live report from Baghdad.
The hunt for Osama bin Laden was on the agenda for talks today between President Bush and Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf. Pakistan recently scaled back the bin Laden manhunt on the Afghan border. The two leaders also talked about the continuing tension between Pakistan and India. Suzanne Malveaux has an update from the White House in a moment.
And Ukraine's parliament has adjourned without taking action on new election laws. The supreme court in Kiev has thrown out last month's election results, ordering another runoff vote the day after Christmas.
We begin, right now, with more disturbing news from Iraq. Insurgents are on the attack again today, setting off deadly car bombs in Baghdad. The death toll is at least 16, dozens more injured. CNN's Karl Penhaul is in the Iraqi capital.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Smoke billow skyward minutes after two car bombs explode. Seconds later, you can hear the bullets fly as insurgents trade fire with Iraqi guards ran into check points into the fortified green zone. Iraqi officials say the main target was just opposite, a district police station. As the ambulances shuttle away the dead and injured, it's clear the police have born the brunt of the blast. It's been a busy few days at Baghdad's Yarmuk Hospital after a wave of guerrilla strikes across the capital.
MUSHTAQ CALID ALI, IRAQI POLICE (through translator): We were standing outside when we saw the car drive up with the young man. Suddenly, it exploded. It's a process that took no longer than 10 seconds and then everybody was dead in the street.
PENHAUL: Insurgents seem to be increasingly targeting Iraqi security forces instead of better equipped, better trained coalition troops. Mushtaq Calid Ali joined the police just nine days ago, one of the riskiest jobs in the country right now. The pay, roughly $220 a month.
ALI (through translator): The hunger was killing my family. We have no work. What are we supposed to do, steal?
PENHAUL: He's been watching medics bandage up his wounded buddies all morning and wheeling out others who died. He says he had a premonition.
ALI (through translator): Just this morning we were thinking that today something was going to happen to us. I had a dream last night that I was passing around empty glasses. If they were full, I would have died.
PENHAUL: Ali's leg has been ripped apart. Looking at the stretchers and blood in the yard, it could have been worse. Each day since Ali began his new job, he kisses his wife goodbye and warns her he may not make it home.
ALI (through translator): I tell her if I die, she should get married again. Where else would she go, back to her family? It's better for her to remarry.
PENHAUL: Insurgents struck elsewhere Saturday, hitting a military convoy and killing a U.S. soldier with a roadside bomb in Baqubah. And another U.S. soldier was killed when rebels bombed Army trucks were bombed in east Baghdad.
(on camera): And as the countdown to the January 30 elections continues, government officials believe the resistance fighters, whom the describe as desperados, will step up their sabotage campaign.
Karl Penhaul, CNN, Baghdad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: The U.S. military is investigating a dozen or so photographs that have surfaced on the internet. They appear to show the abuse of Iraqi prisoners at the hands of Navy Seals. CNN's Kimberly Osias joins us from Washington with more on the disturbing images -- Kimberly.
KIMBERLY OSIAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello Fredricka. Well, Navy officials tell CNN none of these photos, we're told show clear-cut abuse. A Seal team exhibited poor judgment, perhaps, they say, but not prisoner abuse. The photos, some 200 in all, a few of which are now drawing attention, date back to May 2003, several months before the far more brutal photos from Iraq's Abu Ghraib Prison photos were taken.
At this point it's unclear just who took the pictures. The "Associated Press" reports that a woman placed the images on the web after her husband returned from his tour of duty. That site is now blocked by password. Take a look at the pictures.
They show captured detainees being moved by Navy Seals. And another photo we'll show you in just a moment shows a boot on a prisoner's thigh. Several of the photos show service men smiling and seeming to ham it up. Now, what all this means is difficult to say, because Navy official rs still investigating the context in which the photos were taken. Navy Special Warfare Command Spokesperson Jeff Bender says the matter is under investigation. He adds: "There are strict Navy regulations prohibiting the photographing of detainees for other than official purposes. Additionally, prior to deployment, Navy Special Warfare personnel are instructed that taking unofficial photographs of POWs and detainees is prohibited."
Sources say if the preliminary investigation suggests criminal wrong doing, the Navy Criminal Investigative Services will be called in. And as of yet, that has not happened -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right. Kimberly Osias.
Well, President Bush is departing the White House at this hour, heading for the Army/Navy game in Philadelphia. He spent part of the morning in critical meetings with Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf, one of the key subjects, the global war on terror. CNN's Suzanne Malveaux is at the White House now -- Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Fred, really, it was a brief, but very packed meeting, both of them, of course, talking about issues that are critical to their countries, to their administrations. As you know, Pakistan is a key ally in the war on terror. It was really instrumental in routing out the Taliban in neighboring Afghanistan.
Of course, both of them talking about Pakistan's role for the hunt of Osama bin Laden. There is a joint effort, the U.S. on the Afghan side, as well as Pakistan on the Pakistan side on the border looking for Osama bin Laden and senior al-Qaeda, but recently a Pakistan military officials said that they were scaling back on that effort and that operation, but both leaders today went out of their way to talk about and stress the cooperation between the countries and not necessarily the fact that they are pulling away.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Quite the contrary, his army has been incredibly active and very brave in southern Waziristan, flushing out an enemy that had thought they had found safe haven. His army has suffered casualty and for that, we want to thank their loved ones for the sacrifice that their family has made. The president has been a determined leader to bring to justice not only people like Osama bin Laden, but to bring to justice those who would inflict harm and pain on his own people.
GEN. PERVEZ MUSHARRAF, PAKISTANI PRESIDENT: We discussed with him, in its entire complexity and within that, hunting every terrorist was discussed, of course. The operation against terrorists Pakistan on our borders was discussed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Now, Musharraf has said recently that he believes that Osama bin Laden is, in fact, alive, but not hiding in that particular area inside of Pakistan. Of course, that is yet to be determined just where he is. The U.S. is still trying to pursue to find Osama bin Laden and, as well, other issues came up. President Bush making a point that he would like to see democratic reforms in place in Pakistan. Also, of course, Pakistan is looking for, in some ways, some rewards for its loyalty, perhaps even being able to purchase F- 16s from the United States, but there were no announcements on either of those issues today -- Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right, Suzanne Malveaux, thank you.
Well, be sure to join Wolf Blitzer tomorrow at Noon Eastern, for a CNN exclusive. Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf will join Wolf on CNN's "Late Edition."
The steroid drub scandal has expanded to included some of the biggest name is sports including slugger, Barry Bonds. Now one of the biggest players on Capitol Hill is responding. Senator John McCain is issuing a tough warning: Clean it up or else. McCain told the "Washington post" he will introduce legislation requiring drug testing for professional athletes if major league baseball and team owners don't crack down by next month.
Well, McCain comments come after a report that San Francisco's Barry Bonds used substances supplied to him by a trainer, but Bonds' attorney says his client believes he was taking a nutritional supplement, not steroids. On ABC's "20/20" the head of BALCO, the maker of the performance enhancing drugs, allegedly given to elite athletes made this starting assertion.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VICTOR CONTE, BALCO LAB FOUNDER: Let me tell you the biggest joke of all. Do you know what that is? I would guesstimate that more than 50 percent of the athletes are taking some form of anabolic steroids.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Baseball players?
CONTE: Absolutely, without a doubt.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: More than 50 percent. CONTE: More than 50 percent. OK? But, I'll tell you something else they're doing that they've never addressed at all. And that's this: My guess is greater than 80 percent are taking some sort of stimulant before each and every game.
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WHITFIELD: And we'll have more on the steroid scandal coming up at 12:45 when we talk it over with CNN's sport correspondent, Michelle Bonner.
Well, job growth in the U.S. is weaker than expected. Will it put a damper on the holiday season? The experts weigh in.
Plus, the obligations of holiday giving when times are tough. Our ethics guy weighs in on that.
Later on, when patients learn about medication on TV, where do doctors fit in? That and much more on this CNN SATURDAY.
ORELON SIDNEY, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Here's a look at your cold and flu report to the latest activity report through November the 20th shows the only widespread activity through Alaska, sporadic activity through the rest of the United States. There is some local activity in the northeast.
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WHITFIELD: The jobs market shifted into lower gear last month, just when retailers need holiday overdrive. CNN financial correspondent Kathleen Hays has the numbers. Why they aren't so ho, ho, ho.
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KATHLEEN HAYS, CNN FINANCIAL CORRESPONDENT: Could a sluggish U.S. job market be the Grinch that steals Christmas this year? The nation's payrolls increased by just 112,000 workers last month, barely half of what was expected.
JOHN SILVA, CHIEF ECONOMIST, WACHOVIA: Those that have the jobs are spending. Those that do not have the jobs are less confident they're going to get a job and therefore, they are being very careful on their spending this holiday season. I think that's what the employment number tells us.
HAYS: And U.S. retailers were anything but merry and bright. Instead of adding works to gear up for the holiday season, more than 16,000 jobs were cut in November.
JOHN CHALLENGER, CHALLENGER, GRAY & CHRISTMAS: Well, that was a surprising number at a time when many had hoped the consumer would be strong, driving more people in the stores, causing retailers to hire. They didn't do that.
HAYS: Plump Christmas stockings or lumps of coal? Word on the street is mixed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I work for transit myself, so it kind of worries me will I even have my job? So, things like that makes me worry and what I could spend and how far I could go.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think regardless of whatever the economic indicators are, people are going to spend based upon just feeling good and wanting to have some sense of family at Christmas and just holiday.
HAYS: Luxury retailers are expected to do well this year, because people who are working are willing to buy pricey gifts. For those less fortune, it's the age-old solution, put it on plastic.
DIANA SWONK, ECONOMIST: We've seen consumers willing to step up their credit card purchases, willing to cushion and circumvent the squeeze of higher oil prices with more credit usage and that means you'll probably still see fairly good spending.
HAYS (on camera): That's one reason why the economic outlook is so cloudy, because if consumers charge up big bills now, in the holiday season, it could leave them with a bad debt hangover in the New Year.
Kathleen Hays, CNN, New York.
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WHITFIELD: The November jobs report isn't all Grinch. Rajeev Dhawan Is the director of Economic Forecasting at Georgia State University.
Good to see you. Happy holidays.
RAJEEV DHAWAN, GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY: Thank you. Same to you.
WHITFIELD: All right, lots of mixed messages. We saw in the piece, there's a lot of big spending and then a lot of credit card use and a lot of job layoffs. So, how do we read into whether this is, indeed, going to be -- you know, a good holiday season or not.
DHAWAN: This is going to be a good holiday season. You know, the number of jobs in the last four months is close to half a million total. Yeah, one month was lower, but the month before that was higher. You do the average; you start to see the trend. It's much better than it was a year ago. But, when you start comparing it to four years ago, it looks a little bit weak, you know, and that's what the nature of this recovery is.
WHITFIELD: Is it pretty discouraging to see, though, however, that the job market has kind of dropped off, just heading into the holiday season, when people need their jobs more than any other time during the year and a lot of companies are -- you know, handing out very sizable layoffs? DHAWAN: I think the number is not that low. You know, there are some technical factors, as well, as I say, take the average over the last four months, it's 185,000 jobs per month. But one month was 337 for the 112. So, you see, that disparity is there that makes people a little bit edgy. The gas prices are still up. It's taking a hit -- people are taking a hit to their pocket. They're spending less on the retail store, but the higher end retail stores are booming, because the stock market hasn't been so great in the last months. They got money and they're buying the big ticket items.
WHITFIELD: So, when we look ahead and we try to assess what 2005 might look like economically, how much do we use this holiday season as a barometer?
DHAWAN: I think it will be -- it will be important with how people spend in the Christmas shows the spirit for the rest of the year, too. And also depends upon the consumer mood, which again depends upon the jobs being created and if that number keeps at this 200,000 plus, we're going to have a good 2005.
WHITFIELD: Has it been a while we've been able to say that the holiday season has been -- you know, wonderful for everybody across the board?
DHAWAN: Oh, let me think -- 1999, that was the last time probably.
WHITFIELD: Yeah, just before Y2K?
DHAWAN: Just before Y2K. Just before the NASDAQ reached 5,000.
WHITFIELD: What's so different?
DHAWAN: You see, the world has changed after 9/11 and also the stock market is nowhere near the highs we saw in 1999 and 2000. So, we are going to pay a price for that. The great '90s was a great boom. The excesses of the '90s have now led to the correction, so we're feeling a little bit of pinch. The basic are fine. The fundamentals are OK. The issue is, the icing on the cake is not as thick as it used to be.
WHITFIELD: All right, Rajeev Dhawan, good to see you.
DHAWAN: Thank you. Thanks. Happy holidays.
WHITFIELD: Thanks very much.
Well, tricky Christmas giving and nasty breakups. That's what our ethics guy tackles coming up next, but first, an ethics quiz for you. Can you say ethics? No, just kidding.
You notice that a coworker is taking money from a petty cash box at work. She asks you to keep the matter to yourself. "I need to buy food for my little girl. Her deadbeat dad is short with child support again," she explains. "I promise I won't do it again." Would you: A. do as she asks, B. Tell her to put the money back and give her the money she needs yourself, C. Tell the boss or, D. Leave the boss an anonymous note?
The ethics guy has the answer when CNN SATURDAY comes right back.
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WHITFIELD: Exposing a petty cash thief, telling tales on ex- lovers, and getting out of the annual holiday gift exchange. Questions of ethics and here with some of the answers is professional ethicist and syndicated columnist, Bruce Weinstein, the "Ethics Guy."
Good to see you, Bruce.
BRUCE WEINSTEIN, "ETHICS GUY": Hello, Fredricka. How are you?
WHITFIELD: I'm doing pretty good. Let's begin with a little quiz before the break. And here is the question: You noticed a coworker is taking money from the petty cash box at work. She asks to keep the matter to yourself. "I need to buy food for my little girl, here deadbeat dad is short with child support again," she explains. "I promise I won't do it again." So, would you, A. Do as she asks, B. Tell her to put the money back and give her the money she needs yourself, C. Tell the boss, or D. Leave the boss an anonymous note. What is the correct answer? Is there one correct answer, Bruce?
WEINSTEIN: Some answers are better than others and our task is to try to find the way to honor all of our responsibilities: Our responsibilities to our coworker, to the boss, and to ourself. The right answer is C. Tell the boss, because the boss has a right to know what is going on under his or her watch and doing nothing will simply allow the problem to continue. It is also not our moral obligation or our responsibility, rather, to monitor our colleague's behavior, our coworker's conduct Now...
WHITFIELD: Whatever happened to wanting to help out mankind? You know, you want to help out your coworker a little bit because maybe if you tell the boss, they might get fired right away. You feel sorry for them.
WEINSTEIN: Well, you know, these are things that have to be taken into consideration. Companies can make it easier on employees that have policy that direct us into knowing how to respond to these situations and so, it's understandable that someone would feel terrible about reporting this to the boss, but ethically, that satisfies most of the responsibilities.
WHITFIELD: All right. Here is another e-mail, this one coming from Mary, she writes, "This is the first year my husband and I will be unable to exchange Christmas gifts with most of the people that we've given to in the past. Most of the people on our Christmas gift list are relatives. Would it be appropriate for me to call those with whom we are unable to exchange gifts and alert them to not get anything for us, because we won't be able to reciprocate this year?"
WEINSTEIN: There's no shame in not having enough money and falling on hard times and not being able to spend money on a gift, but there are other ways to expressing our gratitude besides buying gifts. We can give services in kind, we can create a certificate on our computer that's good for ten babysitting...
WHITFIELD: But then should she actually alert them? Because it sounds like that's part of her quandary -- you know, should she let them know?
WEINSTEIN: The problem with receiving a gift is that it creates a feeling of obligation on our part to give the gift back, so the viewer's concern is well taken, because if she alerts her relatives, they will know not to give gifts. Although, you know, quite frankly, giving -- alerting the relatives may not stop the relatives from giving a gift in return. They may very well want to give a gift, because after all, a gift is a symbol of what a relationship means to us and so we shouldn't feel bad for giving something and not getting something in return.
WHITFIELD: OK. And here's another e-mail, this one coming from Laura, and she writes, "In recent months my boyfriend and I have gone through a tumultuous breakup. I've divulged very private information about him. He feels uncomfortable around mutual friends as he does not know who knows what about him. How may I correct this wrong?"
WEINSTEIN: I would like to compliment Laura for having the courage to submit this question, because it's not easy to admit that we've made a mistake, as Laura has, because obviously she took the low road and she recognizes that. But, it's also very difficult to tell someone to disregard information that they've already heard. This is why when a judge directs a jury to say "disregard the testimony you just heard just now, which you should not have heard," it's difficult for a jury to do that. So, the best thing Laura can do at this point is alert her friends and let them know that she did something that she should not have and, eventually, these mutual friends will not be mutual friends for long. Usually -- you know, factions develop and one group of friends sides with one person over another...
WHITFIELD: And...oh, go ahead, sorry.
WEINSTEIN: The most important thing Laura can do is to consider taking the high road the next time and I suspect that given the nature of her question and the fact she wrote to us, she will do that, so...
WHITFIELD: Is it worth -- you know, perhaps even she start talking about some of the more positive things about that individual so that those might be kind of the more lasting impressions that some of these mutual friends may have of him as opposed to -- you know, the negative things that she divulged?
WEINSTEIN: That's a good point, Fredricka. And also, to mention that the reason she did this, the reason she took the low road earlier, was because she was going through a lot of emotional upheaval, as we all do when we breakup with someone, and so her revelation of these less than savory qualities of her ex-boyfriend were more of a reflection of her own anger than anything that anyone else should have known, so...
WHITFIELD: All right, Bruce Weinstein, thanks so much and happy holidays. WEINSTEIN: Same to you, Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Well, if you have a question for the "Ethics Guy," e- mail your dilemma to ethics@CNN.com.
With an onslaught of ads everywhere we look, drug companies are bypassing doctors and going straight to the patient. We'll look at who gains and who loses?
And later on, today's the day of the Army/Navy football game. We'll hear from players, coaches, and alumni about why this game makes such an impact.
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