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CNN Live Saturday

Mardi Gras In New Orleans; Mardi Gras In Biloxi; Port Deal Compromise; Terror Alarm; Iraq On Edge

Aired February 25, 2006 - 18:00   ET

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

CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: More than 30 people were hurt.
The state of the world is giving the oil industry, well, the jitters. Crude prices bounced yesterday 4 percent after a botched suicide attack on a Saudi refinery. Prices closed in New York just shy of $63 a barrel.

And three U.S. Army paratroopers face punishment from the military. The charge, exchanging sex for money. A total of seven soldiers are named in the investigation. They reportedly posed for pictures and videos for a military-themed gay porn site.

To our top story.

And you are looking at fresh pictures of what's happening in New Orleans. A hurricane threatens to destroy their lives just six months ago. But, look, today it's raining on their parade as well. The people in New Orleans and along the Gulf Coast are determined to celebrate Mardi Gras. They're enjoying a short break from the pain and the drudgery of rebuilding. But a stormy Saturday has postponed some of the big events.

Now, CNN has complete coverage of Mardi Gras celebrations across the Gulf Coast. Susan Roesgen has been tracking today's parades in New Orleans, our Chris Lawrence is standing by on Bourbon Street, and Sean Callebs is in costume at the New Orleans Convention Center.

Sean, you're going to have some explaining to do.

But first, let's start with you, Susan. How are the parades today?

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The parades that were able to roll, Carol, were wonderful. Hurricane Katrina could not cancel the parades here in New Orleans, but it did postpone a big one. And so the folks along the parade route here behind me were disappointed but they'll be back tomorrow because New Orleans loves its parades. Maybe this year more than ever.

We had several parades this morning. A couple of small neighborhood parades. These are really the parades for the locals in New Orleans. They line St. Charles Avenue every year.

And, Carol, much has been made today about the cost of putting on these parades. Should the city but putting that money towards the recovery effort instead? And I think what's been forgotten in all this is that the people who ride on the floats pay for those parades themselves. They buy their own beads, they pay for the construction of the floats, they buy their own costumes. Really the only big expense for the city of New Orleans is the cost of police overtime for crowd control.

In a normal year, that's about $5 million. And yet, the economic boost to the city of New Orleans from Mardi Gras in a normal year again is about $1.5 billion. So something to thing about. In some sense, these parades, this celebration of carnivals, is contributing to the recovery of New Orleans.

Carol.

LIN: All right. Thanks very much, Susan.

Obviously we had tape there, but we're going to share it with the folks as soon as we get it.

In the meantime, take a look at what's happening on Bourbon Street. It's usually the party headquarters on the final weekend of Mardi Gras. Well, it's been crowded this year too, but not like usual. CNN's Chris Lawrence is standing by in the French Quarter.

Although, it looks like, Chris, things are pretty busy.

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. You know, when you say it's not as crowded as usual, Carol, you know, that -- New Orleans is normally just packed on Bourbon Street. So even a little drop-off from that is still a pretty good crowd here.

You know it was interesting what Susan was saying, most of the families and locals patronize the parades that are part of the tradition. Here on Bourbon Street we're getting a different crowd here. I mean this is a rowdier, more raucous crowd. A lot of bars here. It's very loud. You know, of course, you've got the girls, you know, down on the street flashing the beads that are getting thrown from the balconies.

There's a lot of energy on Bourbon Street. Rain's have been coming off and on. It chases people indoors for a little bit, but then it stops, everybody rushes back out on the street.

These are a lot of tourists. These are people who came from, you know, outside of New Orleans to come here to party. Some of them have been coming for 10, 15 year. You know, been to a lot of Mardi Gras before. Talked to one young lady from Texas who actually this is her first Mardi Gras. Her friend said, well, this is a scaled-down version. You're getting kind of broken in easily right here.

But again, there is a lot of energy here. A lot of people here just to have fun. It's interesting because when you go around the city and you're always reminded that it's only been six months since Hurricane Katrina came through here, if you just stayed right here on Bourbon Street, you'd be hard pressed to find any evidence that Hurricane Katrina even happened.

Carol. LIN: I bet. The beads are flying behind you, Chris. We see that. A lot of happy people out tonight.

LAWRENCE: Yes.

LIN: Well, tonight we didn't expect to take you to a party at a place where you saw some of the most disturbing images six months ago after Hurricane Katrina hit, the New Orleans Convention Center. But tonight, it is the city's biggest Mardi Gras party and Sean Callebs is there wearing gold lamay (ph).

Sean, what's up?

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol.

And one of the regulations to take part in the Endymion Parade, which I was supposed to ride in today, apparently going to ride in tomorrow, the weather cancelled that, you have to be in costume. So this is what we're going to wear. Like this from head to toe. I feel like a giant plum.

Behind me you can hear The Commodores. They are going to be performing in front of the 10,000 or so people expected to be at this ball this evening. And if you look down this way, they're in the process of opening up these large doors. Behind there are the many, many floats of Endymion that will wind their way through the city.

But, of course, this area, where we're at right now, the convention center, that's all decked out and ready for a series of grand balls over the next several days, really the flash point for everything that went wrong right after Hurricane Katrina. So many people came here as a site of last refuge. It was here when then FEMA Director Mike Brown said three days after the hurricane he had no idea that there were thousands of people trapped here by flood waters with no food, no water.

It's amazing the amount of work they have done in this facility over the last six months to get it up and ready. And, of course, the convention center, one of the economic lynch pins of this area. Something that really has to be up and running to prove to people from outside this area that this city can once again host the kind of conventions and bring the kind of business leaders that it needs to lure to show that it can be economically viable and economically successful city again.

A lot has been made about the overtime that police and firefighters are going to have to be paid during this Mardi Gras. About $2.7 million from the city. But if the numbers are right, this could bring in hundreds of millions of dollars for the city. And also, Carol, send the message that once again New Orleans, if only taking a small step at this point, is on the road to recovery.

We'll be back here later on this evening. The floats are going to make their way through here. So we'll talk to you later on tonight, Carol.

LIN: All right. In costume and all. Sean, thank you so much.

Well, heading east from New Orleans, people along the Mississippi Coast are also trying to make the most of this year's Mardi Gras. Our Kathleen Koch standing by for us in Biloxi.

How are they doing, Kathleen, out there?

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, right now we're in a working class neighborhood in Biloxi, Mississippi. It's called The Point and we're on Esters Boulevard (ph). The home you see behind me was completely under water when the massive 34 foot storm surge from Hurricane Katrina roared in here. And so people are living in FEMA trailers. So many homes here are completely destroyed.

But still everyone feels like it's important to give especially the children a reason to celebrate, a reason to smile. And so there was a children's parade in the streets of Biloxi today. A very sweet and very simple affair. There was a high school band that played. Children donned costumes. They pulled wagons. They threw beads. And it was a really joyous occasion for everyone.

And having Mardi Gras and this really important family celebration for many people, it means a lot to the grown-ups too. We caught up with a woman named Cindy Meyers who is a member of the Krewe of Neri (ph). It's an all female crew in Waveland, Mississippi. And she talked with us about how important it was for her to participate in their parade recently.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CINDY MEYERS, WAVELAND, MISS. RESIDENT: This was one of the best parades I have ever been in.

KOCH: Why?

MEYERS: Normally when you're on a float, you know, and you're seeing your friends and things and it's a great feeling to be up there. But this year, instead of people running to our floats wanting a bead or wanting a stuffed animal, they were thanking us for being here. And it meant a lot to all of us. We all kind of got together after the parade was over and so many people were in tears talking about how people were running to our float. And I thought it was just me. And it was . . .

KOCH: So people were coming up and saying thank you for having Mardi Gras?

MEYERS: Yes. You know, they -- well, every day we shovel and rebuild and we see this mess every day. Debris everywhere. Our streets are filthy. And for one day, there was no work, no nothing, just beads and floats. And I think we all needed that. It was, um, it was great day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOCH: In some ways it's hard to believe, but just a few blocks from here, from the destroyed homes of the point from the FEMA trailers that dot these streets, there are big, huge casinos that have reopened. Lots of neon, lots of lights. Some of the casinos are still in ruin but they are really some of the businesses in Biloxi making the fastest comeback.

It's kind of tough for the people here in these homes to look over there and see the money, the gambling that's going on. But, at the same time, the city says, these are the engines that drive the economy of the Gulf Coast. The much-need tax dollars that they're now pumping back into these struggling cities economies. The dollars are really important to them.

Carol.

LIN: All right. Thanks very much, Kathleen. Appreciate it.

And remember to stay with CNN's Mardi Gras coverage. It's going to be a Mardi Gras to remember beginning Monday on "American Morning." They're going to be live at the Mardi Gras celebrations. And also, "Anderson Cooper" leading our prime time coverage of Mardi Gras all the way through fat Tuesday.

All right. We've got new developments in the controversy involving the Arab companies takeover of some American ports. CNN's Elaine Quijano live at the White House with more.

Elaine, we're hearing of a compromise.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's right, Carol, a possible compromise. CNN has been told that GOP congressional leaders are, in fact, working on shaping a compromise that would essentially allow that controversial Dubai Ports World deal to go forward, but only if a 45 day investigation is a part of that deal.

Now, of course, that is exactly what lawmakers have been calling for, some of them on Capitol Hill, both Democrats and Republicans, saying they feel there should have been a 45 day review of this particular transaction. The White House has resisted any calls for that saying that, look, this was a deal that was properly vetted by the committee on foreign investments and they feel that an extra review isn't necessary.

Well, what this deal would allow all sides involved to do essentially is to save face. On the one hand, lawmakers would get their 45 day investigation. Also, at the same time, the company itself, according to sources, as part of this potential compromise, would be the ones to ask the government to review the deal itself, not the White House. So in that sense, the White House would not then be seen as perhaps backing down or changing position. And at the same time, the company, Dubai Ports World, would then have a mechanism by which to let its deal move through.

Now all of this is still very much a fluid situation. In fact, no comment from the White House on this at this point. No comment from the company, Dubai Ports World. And, in fact, the Treasury Department only saying that this is a fluid situation, but not going into any further detail.

But, of course, as you know, Carol, there have been a lot of discussions about how perhaps they can break through the impasse. There was perhaps going to be a showdown on this between the White House and lawmakers. President Bush said he was going to veto any legislation lawmakers passed if they tried to block the deal. Well now perhaps it seems, according to congressional leaders, that a deal is being worked out. And that information coming to us in part from a top aide to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist.

Carol, back to you.

LIN: Yes, good work, Elaine. Thank you so much.

Well, coming up, wielding an old weapon in a new way. Up next, two Virginia towns become the first in the nation using sirens to warn of a terror attack.

And, it's a prime target for terror, but is Los Angeles International Airport ready for the worst case scenario? Some say no way. You're going to hear why.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: At this sage in our lives, we've been talking about retirement. It never occurred to me that Ray could go to war again after almost 40 years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIN: Well it is war all over again. This grandfather, you don't quite see him in this picture, but the grandfather of five says he is ready, there he is, and he's going to get back on the battlefield.

You are watching CNN SATURDAY. Stay right there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: Arabian oil is not safe and will be attacked again. That is according to somebody inside al Qaeda posting an arabic language website -- a note there. Now a suicide attack on an enormous Saudi refinery failed to damage the facility yesterday but two bombers and three Saudi security guards died in the attempt. Al qaeda, on a website they frequently use, claims that the attackers came from their ranks. Now the refinery on the shores of the Persian Gulf handles more than half of Saudi Arabia's oil. A successful attack there could be devastating on the world markets.

Now back in this country, how better can you be warned if a terrorist attack is going down in your town? Two D.C. area communities are experimenting with a way to make that warning loud and clear. CNN's Gary Nurenberg reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY NURENBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Warning sirens get your attention. Talking warning sirens do more.

ROBERT GRIFFIN, ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA, EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT: The intent is to be able to give people a warning sign. And then a burst message explaining what the situation is.

NURENBERG: San Francisco installed a $2 million talking siren system in 2004 using acoustical design maps to place 65 sirens in specific locations where they can most easily be heard.

JOHN FUOTO, ENGINEER, SIREN EXPERT: What you're trying to do is tell the public what it is they need to do to protect themselves.

NURENBERG: Not far from the site of the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon, Arlington and Alexandria, Virginia, are doing tests to see if the talking sirens can effectively be used to inform the public in case of a terror attack in or near the national capital area.

GRIFFIN: We have a variety of systems currently in place, including the ability to send e-mails, pages, telephone calls, reverse 911. We also have an AM radio station. But we recognize that we needed a system to contact people who may be outside, away from their computers.

NURENBERG: Non-talking sirens have long been used near nuclear plants to warn of accidents. They're used near Washington's Mt. Rainier to warn of a pending volcanic eruption. The American military uses sirens to warn of trouble on military bases. Oklahoma uses them to warn of tornados. Sirens have recently been erected in Southeast Asia tsunami areas to warn of tidal waves. That history, coupled with the new talking technology, could mean a more widespread use of sirens in urban areas.

FUOTO: These systems have the capability of being multi-hazard warning systems, not just for terrorist events, but also very natural events and accidents.

NURENBERG: Planners are trying to get the new technology to work in areas as diverse as the urban canyons of a city and the wide open spaces of a shopping mall parking lot or suburban park. The tests in Virginia should yield some results by this summer.

Gary Nurenberg, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: More on our nation's security still to come. Including an enlightening report on one of America's busiest airports. How vulnerable is LAX to terror attacks? And how feasible are plans to tighten it up? A report from Los Angeles later this hour.

CNN is your security headquarters. So stay tuned day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

Overwhelmed and under curfew, Baghdad erupts in bloodshed. Now fears Iraq could be heading towards civil war. SHANON COOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And today, a population milestone for planet earth. Coming up, I'll tell you how many people you're sharing the world with.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: President Bush personally called seven political and religious leaders in Iraq. He offered his support for their efforts to reduce the religious tension fueling the latest violence. CNN's Aneesh Raman is in Baghdad and he has more on the growing concerns that the fighting cannot be contained.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Extreme measures for a desperate situation. The ministers of interior and defense announcing Baghdad will be under extended curfew for 34 hours, Saturday night through Monday morning. But despite curfews, despite cleric calls for an end to the attacks, the country is far from calm.

In Karbala, where no curfew had been imposed, a remotely detonated car bomb killed at least five, wounding some 30 others. In Baghdad, the funeral of al-Arabiya reporter Atwar Bahjat, killed in Samarra on Wednesday, came under attack. Gunmen fired on the procession which was being escorted by Iraqi police. At least two security officers were killed.

In Baquba, a snapshot of sectarian strife. Eleven members of a Shia family were gunned down after armed men stormed their home. And on Baghdad TV, a Sunni channel, video of what they say are Sunni sites targeted in the aftermath of Wednesday's attack on the sacred Shia mosque in Samarra. Some 140 sites nationwide, say Sunni politicians, have been targeted. Close to 20 mosques destroyed.

As the violence continues, there are signs of political progress. Sunni, Shia and Kurdish leaders agreeing to start talks anew on a unity government. Trying again to achieve the only solution to a problem the defense minister says has long been brewing.

SAADOUN DULAIMI, IRAQI DEFENSE MINISTER, (through translator): What is happening in Iraq is not the reaction to a single incident, it's an expression of a culmination of what Iraqis have gone through over two years.

RAMAN: And another important image. Senior Sunni and Shia clerics held hands, announcing an agreement to not attack religious sites.

The biggest threat now, analyst say, are Shia militias. They're angry, on the offensive, not heeding the calls for calm. And with the country's fledgling security forces unable to reign them in, if the militias decide that enough is enough, civil war would be near impossible to avert. Tensions in Iraq have now hit a new level as the country tries desperately to avert the worst-case scenario.

While many Iraqis are calling for unity, tensions here remain incredibly high, an opportunity for any number of extreme groups to exploit the situation and send things spinning out of control.

Aneesh Raman, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: Looks like bird flu is on the move. The virus has spread to domestic poultry in France. Shanon Cook has that story and other world headlines.

Shanon.

SHANON COOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, Carol. Thanks very much.

Now we've heard of cases of wild ducks being infected with bird flu in Europe. But now French agricultural officials have confirmed the European Union's first case of bird flu on a farm. They say the H5N1 strain killed hundreds of birds on a turkey farm in France's southeast. The farm has been sealed off and the rest of the flock slaughtered. Now French President Jacques Chirac says there's no need to panic and that it's still safe to eat poultry.

Moving on to the U.K. now. Two more arrests have been made in connection to what could be the biggest cash robbery in British history. Three others remain on police bail. Earlier this week, an armed gang made off with at least $44 million from a cash depot near London. Authorities say the actual figure could be as high as $88 million.

OK, now see if you can wrap your head around this. In less than an hour's time, somewhere in the world a woman is going to give birth to the earth's 6.5 billionth child. According to a forecast by the U.S. Census Bureau, at around 7:16 p.m. Eastern Time, the world's population is expected to reach that number. So, Carol, you know, if you're waiting in a long line for something, now you know why it's such a long line, you're sharing the world with 6.5 billion people. It's staggering.

LIN: Oh, Shanon, how do these scientists come up with that precise moment and that precise number?

COOK: Well, they basically sent someone around in a helicopter and they do a quick head count. You know, it's not at all scientific.

LIN: All that satellite imagery.

COOK: No, it's quite scientific. I mean they collect all this data -- the U.S. Census Bureau collects all this data from 227 countries involving like mortality rates, fertility rates, and they can come up with these really interesting figures like every second 4.1 births occur around the world on average and 1.8 deaths occur and that helps them to arrive at these estimates. Just estimates, of course. We may have already reached the 6.5 billion mark or we might not reach it for another month or so.

LIN: All right, but 7:16 will feel a little different tonight.

COOK: It should.

LIN: Eastern Time.

All right, thanks Shanon.

COOK: Thank you.

LIN: All right, folks, coming up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Cause a lot of fatalities and injuries with a fairly small bomb in a suitcase.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIN: Is Los Angeles International Airport a ticking time bomb. Officials say beef up the security now or have regrets later.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

by: Ed Lavandera, Sibila Vargas, Barbara Starr, Ali Velshi guest: James McManus; Paul Sanchez; Fred LeBlanc

LIN: Happening now in the news. New Orleans is putting on a brave Mardi Gras face. Two parades stepped off tonight. But another scheduled for tonight was postponed because of the threat of bad weather.

And police arrested more than a dozen people at a neo Nazi march and rally in Orlando, Florida today. Most of the arrests came when fights broke out between marchers and protesters from a predominantly Black neighborhood.

And in Boston today, fans and friends said good-bye to sports broadcaster Curt Gowdy. He called 13 World Series and 16 All-Star Games. He died Monday of leukemia at the age of 86.

Welcome back. The FBI and emergency crews in Austin, Texas are taking hazardous material alarm very seriously. That's after a U.T. student found a suspicious powderer that initial tests determined was a very poisonous substance. We've heard from investigators within the past 90 minutes. CNN's Ed Lavandera live in Austin, Texas.

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol. The good news is here officials so far on the ground tend to think this is probably going to be a false alarm. The tests coming back on the substance which they believe might have been ricin will probably turn out to be a false positive test here on the ground which means it was probably not the case.

Thursday afternoon a student who was on their way to the laundry room here at the Moore Hill (ph) Dorm on the University of Texas campus in Austin unrolled a stack of quarters from a roll and found a white substance inside that roll of quarters. Immediately she had that substance and officials and hazmat teams have been testing that substance over the last 48 hours. And at one point last night they evacuated the dorm when one of the three tests that was done showed that it was a positive test for ricin. So because of that, 390 students from this dormitory were evacuated.

Everyone's been allowed back in now. And that substance is on its way to Ft. Detrick in Maryland where investigators will continue to do the final tests on this substance. Right now officials here on the ground in Austin feeling very good that no one will be adversely effected by what was found here.

CMDR. MIKE ELLIOT, TRAVIS COUNTY EMERG. SVCS.: We had one presumptive test that came back positive out of three. And so the likelihood of it actually being ricin in this situation is extremely unlikely.

LAVANDERA: Officials here say that the student who had the roll of quarters and her roommate have been evaluated. They have not shown any symptoms of being in contact with ricin. And they say that in the 48 hours since this happened, if they were exposed to this ricin, they would have already been showing symptoms which can be deadly. But they are fine. They have not shown any of these symptoms. So people here breathing a sigh of relief. Carol.

LIN: All right, thanks very much, Ed. We have news just into the CNN Center. Don Knotts, the actor, is dead. The thin high-voiced actor is best known as Deputy Barney Fife from the long running "Andy Griffith Show." In fact, he's won more than five Emmies for that role. He has more than 70 film and television credits to his name. He last appeared in last year's "Chicken Little" as the voice of an animated character. Don Knotts was 81. Sibila Vargas has more on his life.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SIBILA VARGAS (voice-over): Don Knotts created the lovable, high-strung deputy Barney Fife on the classic sitcom "The Andy Griffith Show." This Mayberry maverick earned the actor five Emmy awards.

DON KNOTTS, ACTOR, 1924-2006: I have had over the years, I don't know how many hundreds of people. Guys come out and say, hey, we have a Barney Fife down at our station.

VARGAS: A native of West Virginia, Knotts was a decorated Army Veteran for his service in World War II. Back home in a move to New York the comedian found work in television. He first made a name for himself as the jittery guy on "The Steve Allen Show."

KNOTTS: When I started out in the business, I didn't have any originality. I came across the nervous character in "The Steve Allen Show" -- I actually dreamed that character.

VARGAS: A slapstick movie career followed in 1958. The Griffith-Knotts pairing debuted in "No Time for Sergeants." He starred in 1966 Mayberry-esque, "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken." And in 1967's madcap comedy, "The Reluctant Astronaut."

On the small screen, Knotts became a series regular on "Three's Company." Then in the late '80's there was a re-teaming of the famous TV duo in "Matlock."

KNOTTS: Me, no, I'm retired.

VARGAS: Well into his '70s, he played the TV repairman in the fantasy "Pleasantville." The next year he published his autobiography, "Barney Fife and Other Characters I Have Known."

Two marriages and two children added to the story.

Knotts was a brilliant comedian and writer who spent a lifetime making people laugh. Sibila Vargas, CNN, Hollywood.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: American skier Bode Miller will be leaving the Winter Games without a medal. He was disqualified from the men's slalom earlier today. Miller is the reigning World Cup skiing champion. He was favored to win a medal in all five of the events he had entered.

American speed skater Apolo Anton Ohno won the gold in today's 500 meter short track final. He upset the skater from South Korea who was favored to win. It's Ohno's second medal at Torino. He won a bronze in the 1,000 meter race earlier in these games.

Ohno's teammate, speed skater Joey Cheek, has been chosen to carry the American flag in tomorrow's closing ceremonies. Cheek won gold and silver medals at Torino. He also made headlines when he announced he was donating all of his medal winnings to charity.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: Every week we like to bring you the more personal stories from the front lines. And today we meet a National Guard pilot heading to Iraq. He flew helicopters during the Vietnam War and is still answering the call to duty. Here's CNN's Barbara Starr.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As Ray Johnson leaves for Iraq, there's the familiar uniform, the usual hugs and tears. But look closely. His face is etched by the years.

CWO RAY JOHNSON, ARMY NATIONAL GUARD: I knew eventually my turn would come. It didn't matter what age.

STARR: Fifty-eight-year-old Ray Johnson flew Huey helicopters 37 years ago in Vietnam. Now, he is headed back into combat, this time in northern Iraq.

R. JOHNSON: Since I'm a Black Hawk instructor and everything, you know, I've trained a lot of helicopter pilots in my years in the service, and now my number's come up, so, you know, I feel that I must serve.

STARR: We met him last year, flying for the Maryland State Police, but always a member of the Army National Guard.

R. JOHNSON: As long as I signed up, and, you know, received the benefits, I felt that whenever they need me, where they need me, I had to pay back.

DIANE JOHNSON, SOLDIER'S WIFE: Because at this stage in our lives, we've been talking about retirement. And it never occurred to me that Ray could go to war again after almost 40 years.

R. JOHNSON: Go get us a hot dog, OK?

STARR: A few weeks ago, Johnson went to Georgia, to say goodbye to his four children and five grandchildren. He managed to squeeze in two school basketball games.

R. JOHNSON: I don't know if they have these in Baghdad.

CATHY COOK, SOLDIER'S DAUGHTER: I'll be behind him 100 percent. I don't like the idea of him going, but I'll be here for him.

STARR: What does it say that the stretched U.S. Army is sending Vietnam veterans and grandfathers off to war?

ASHLEY JOHNSON, SOLDIER'S SON: It's a sign that they're doing an excellent job of continuing to train the people that they've trained in the past.

COOK: I wish they'd leave the grandfathers home, to be here for the basketball games for the grandchildren. I don't like it. I don't think it's right.

STARR (on camera): We know Ray Johnson is not the first Vietnam veteran to serve in Iraq. The Army cannot say exactly how many who learned their combat skills so long ago in the jungles of Southeast Asia are now serving in combat in the deserts of Iraq.

Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: Other news across America. A three alarmer in Philadelphia. This is the Whosoever Gotham (ph) Mission and Rescue Home. The fire broke out there shortly before noon. Everyone inside was evacuated. No word on any injuries.

Shark fears hit Hawaii. Officials believe a snorkeler reported missing off Maui may have been killed by a shark. Officials searching for the California man found human remains with injuries consistent with shark bites. The remains have yet to be identified.

And the search for an 8-year-old Florida boy ends in the worst imaginable way. An amber alert had been issued for Jared McGuire when his mother reported him missing from their Palm Beach County home. Jared's body was found in a pond less than 100 yards from his house. The boy was autistic.

Now in the midst of disaster, one local band is celebrating the joys of life like never before. Tonight New Orleans will rock away to the tunes of Cowboy Mouth. I'll talk with the band members who just completed their first album since Katrina, and boy are they glad to be alive.

But first, here's what's coming up on CNN's "ON THE STORY."

ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: We are ON THE STORY at the George Washington University in the heart of the nation's capital. Our correspondents have the inside word about covering the news six months after Hurricane Katrina.

Susan Roesgen and Sean Callebs look at Mardi Gras and why New Orleans is partying when so much work remans. Kathleen Koch looks at why the rest of the Gulf Coast feels left out. Tom Foreman digs into whether FEMA has learned from its mistakes. All that's coming up all ON THE STORY.

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LIN: On your "Health Watch." A new study suggests doing something is better than doing nothing when it comes to prostate cancer. An analysis of 50,000 patients shows older men live an average of three years longer with cancer treatment versus what's called watchful waiting. That's when doctors keep an eye on the disease to see whether it spreads.

And when it comes to going to the doctor for a regular check-up. It's pretty safe to say unfortunately most people aren't exactly beating the clinic door down. Especially adult men. What keeps them away? Author James McManus tackles this question and chronicles his experiences at the doctor's office in his new book called "Physical: An American Checkup." He joins us live from Chicago. Good to have you.

JAMES MCMANUS, AUTHOR: I'm happy to be here.

LIN: This is an interesting assignments. The editor at Harper's magazine offers you the opportunity to go to the Mayo Clinic to get a head to toe physical. What prompted that, a story idea?

MCMANUS: Uh, two years before that in 2000 he sent me to the World Series Of poker. So this was -- and I ended up finishing fifth in that tournament. This was a slightly different assignment. I needed to get a colonoscopy and have my cholesterol checked. Very different kind of assignment. But I'm happy that I went on both of them.

LIN: Yes, and you learned a lot from that experience. What prompted you to write this book? MCMANUS: Being sent to the Mayo Clinic, getting a sate-of-the- art physical that very few people were fortunate enough to be able to get, I felt very lucky to have that opportunity. I was over 50 years old. I needed to get a complete head to toe. And the Mayo was one of the better places to be able to go.

LIN: Because you hadn't had a check-up in eight years. So why is it that men tend to be reluctant to go to the doctor for a checkup and women go on a routine basis?

MCMANUS: I think it has to do with the fact that men are supposed to be strong and to admit that you might be unhealthy or that you might be afraid of something happening is less socially acceptable for men than it is for women. I don't know exactly, but in my case, I was not a big -- in a big hurry to go through something that might have given me bad news.

LIN: So, how often are you supposed to get a check-up. Is it once a year, or in some cases once a month depending on the conditions.

MCMANUS: I think it's once every five years in your 30s and 40s and every other year. By the time you get to your 50s it's like every year. So eight years was definitely too long for me to have gone. Especially since I have young children and I had some heart disease and my family with my grandfather and father dying younger than expected.

LIN: Well they gave you some advice. Are you following it?

MCMANUS: They got me to quit smoking which is they say is the most important risk factor that you have any control over. I need to drink less, exercise to the point where you are breathing. It's hard to have a conversation. Just about every day, five, six, seven days a week. And eat lots of green, leafy vegetables. Nothing terribly surprising.

LIN: And yet you don't say that with a smile, James. But I imagine you might be taking your doctor's advice?

MCMANUS: I'm doing my best.

LIN: All right, James McManus, pleasure to have you. Author of "Physical: An American Checkup."

LIN: Coming up, folks. You are going to hear from a band which has made the Gulf Coast their life. And they have an amazing concert coming up tonight and a new CD. We are talking to Cowboy Mouth and their time. The tough times after Katrina.

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LIN: Well, you were just listening to a new song called "Home" by the rock group Cowboy Mouth which reflects the mood of many displaced Katrina victims. The band is the city's favorite home-grown rockers. Two of its members Fred LeBlanc and Paul Sanchez were heavily affected by Hurricane Katrina. But they join us live now from New Orleans all ready and rocking to go for their performance at Mardi Gras. Good to have both of you.

Fred loves the beads. What does your performance at Mardi Gras mean to you?

FRED LEBLANC, COWBOY MOUTH: It's a chance to show the world that New Orleans is coming back and it's going to be bigger and better than ever and that New Orleans is the greatest place in the world. And Mardi Gras is the greatest time of year in the world period. I love Mardi Gras.

LIN: You got the spirit back. Paul, what about you?

PAUL SANCHEZ, COWBOY MOUTH: I love it. My wife and I live in the French Quarter now. We lost our place. But we embrace New Orleans. We are glad it's Mardi Gras and glad we are home.

LIN: Your new CD, "Voodoo Shop," listening to some of the songs, they really hit home. I'm wondering, Paul, what refrain on this CD really expresses what you feel post-Katrina? Means the most to you?

SANCHEZ: Well, you guys were kind enough to play a song called "Glad to be Alive" on the intro to the piece, but there's a song called "Home" on there that tells how it went down for all of us. And we all wrote it together. And somebody asked me if it was my expression. And I said no, it was a scream of pain. That says it.

LIN: And for you, Fred? A refrain that really sticks out in your mind?

LEBLANC: Uh, I guess probably combination of "Home" and another song called "The Avenue." The thing about New Orleans is the spirit here is that you just have to do what you can to keep yourself from crying. And the rest of the world thinks we're crazy for doing Mardi Gras, but it makes perfect sense to us because that's what we do here. We celebrate the fact that we are glad to be alive.

LIN: And you were 400 miles away in Atlanta finishing up this CD at the time when Hurricane Katrina was hitting. I'm wondering, Paul, what was it like for you to be so far away and watch this on television with the rest of America?

SANCHEZ: Well, my wife was with me. She's our tour manager. So I was relieved that the person I love most in the world was with me. And then you are horrified. Nobody could call anybody.

LIN: Yes, we are looking at your home. And the devastation. You can see the water line nearly up to the ceiling.

SANCHEZ: Yes, we had one suitcase apiece with us when we were in the studio making the record. And that's still to this day what we have. We rented a place in The Quarter. And got a bed and a couch and a TV so we could watch CNN.

And you know, that's home again now. We'll start again. We have each other and that's what we had then and that's the biggest relief, which a lot of folks didn't have the still don't. Losing the person you love most is worse than losing your stuff.

LIN: You know what Fred what really struck me about your music was just the passion. I mean you love New Orleans. And "Avenue" I think really speaks to it. And because you talk about coming home. And never leaving the avenue.

LEBLANC: Yes. Well, I'm never leaving. That's all there is to it. I was on St. Charles Avenue today just sitting around having a cocktail. Looking at all these people and the parades go by and I just realized I love it here. I frickin' love it here and I'm never, ever leaving. Ever. Ever, I don't care if they try to flood us out or whatever. I don't care what the government does or doesn't do, I ain't leaving.

LIN: Yes. And you know what, Fred, so maybe you can share with us. How did you get those beads tonight?

LEBLANC: Uh, well, you know, let me show you.

LIN: Oh, maybe not.

LEBLANC: Showing certain parts of your anatomy.

LIN: No, I think we are OK. I think we are OK, Fred. Let's get a chance to share some of your music. Fred LeBlanc, Paul Sanchez, everybody join in on listening to Cowboy Mouth, "Voodoo Shop" and all the emotion of Hurricane Katrina.

LEBLANC: Thank you, guys. Happy Mardi Gras.

LIN: There's lots more ahead on CNN tonight. Up next at 7:00 eastern "ON THE STORY." And then at 8:00 "CNN PRESENTS: Reasonable Doubt." Can crime labs be trusted?

At 9:00 Larry king. Tonight inside the TV sensation "Dancing With the Stars." And I'll be back at 10:00 eastern tonight. Should lawmakers legislate abortion? Changes could be in the store for South Dakota. What does it mean for the rest of the country? A heated debate, I promise you, tonight. A check of the hour's headlines next, and then "ON THE STORY."

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