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CNN Live At Daybreak

'Here's What I Don't Get'; A Look at Hurricane Michelle as it Skirts Florida

Aired November 05, 2001 - 08:32   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.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: We are introducing a new segment this morning. We are calling it, "Here's what I don't get." So every at this time, we will attempt to clear up one of the day's confusing issues, with our very own Jack Cafferty. He's one guy who is always willing to tell us what's on his mind. Today he's been talking about the latest videotaped message from Osama bin Laden.

Good morning.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

Last week, this fellow who were he not so malignant would be almost comical I think, issued this proclamation that all Muslims in the world should come to Afghanistan to aid in the struggle he's undertaken. So I got to thinking, you know, are they really ready, what if the Muslims in this country -- there are almost six million -- decide it is a good idea, let's go to Afghanistan and help Osama bin Laden. There are 5.8 million of them, which means you need a lot of caves to put them in.

ZAHN: Right, we know where the caves are.

CAFFERTY: Right, well, we know where some of the caves are, but do they have enough caves to accommodate all the people who would maybe put their house up for sale in the United States, leave incomes of $50,000, $60,000, $70,000 a year, pull the kids oust the store, stop by the feed store, get some burlap sacks for mom to wear when she gets over there. The kids don't have to worry about a back-to-school post (ph), because they won't go to school, they'll be out looking for food packets everyday while they're dodging the bombs that are falling. You can spend the winter in one of these mountainsides with these guys. There is no electricity. There is no running water. Winter is coming, which means you probably won't get out for a lot of fresh air, at the risk of either freezing to death being shot, so by spring, it's probably going to get a little ripe in those places, you know, no shower facilities.

And yet the media rushes, they can't wait to legitimize the statement from this guy that he is summoning his colleagues from around the world to come aid him. I mean, come on, the average per capita income in Afghanistan is less than $1,000 a year. The women, of course, don't work. Kids don't -- there are no jobs for kids, so that's one income for a family of four. ZAHN: Well, women beg. So women are forced to beg.

CAFFERTY: Or get beaten in the street, if the men take -- I mean, this is insanity, this whole thing being played out is just insane, and the news media, in their rush to grab on to any little piece of the story, this guy puts out a videotape, and he's summoning the Muslims to come back -- who the hell in their right mind would go to Afghanistan any reason, let alone help this guy, who is nuts?

ZAHN: So basically, you are saying this morning that bin Laden is winning the propaganda war?

CAFFERTY: Well, I just think the media in this country is so hungry any little tidbits. You know, we've done overkill with this story. I mean, right here, we've been on the air with this thing 24-7 for five weeks now.

ZAHN: Keeping us all employed, Jack.

CAFFERTY: I understand. Well, I do a business show downstairs, so we got to do a little stock market, Wall Street stuff. I supplement my income that way. But it's just, the media, people criticize the media, there is room to do that, and this kind of thing...

ZAHN: But there's an important point in all of this, because now the administration is going to set up this special service, where they make sure that every time Osama bin Laden talks there is some sort of reaction from the administration to counteract it. Good idea or bad idea, Jack?

CAFFERTY: Who cares what he says? The guy's a murdering thug, who cares what he says? Get his head on a stick and go on.

ZAHN: I don't think there's any question to what Jack wants to happen here, Miles.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: It's opinion day.

ZAHN: Jack?

CAFFERTY: I just say, you know, why legitimize this guy? He doesn't represent the legitimate political views of anybody except for a little murderous gang of thugs that is operating under the umbrella of the Taliban, which is another little murderous gang of thugs. Nobody with an IQ over 28 gives this guy any credibility at all, and you know, who cares what he has to say? Let's just, you know, take him out, and his people with him, and the government that lets him operate, and then go on to next group, the Hezbollah, and get them all cleaned up. It's like killing cockroaches. Get Black Flag and get rid of him.

ZAHN: I wish it was that easy, except some of the roaches in New York, as you will discover, Miles, if you spend more time here.

Jack, see you tomorrow morning, same time, same place, nice to see you.

O'BRIEN: All right, from the winds of war to winds of another kind, let's look at Hurricane Michelle as it skirts Florida.

CNN's Miami bureau chief, John Zarrella, noted hurricane chaser is out there on the beach there in Miami, and has the latest for us.

Good morning, John.

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Miles, wish you were here with us this morning. I tell you, it's gusts about 40 miles per hour, right at tropical storm force, hurricane Michelle at 150, 170 miles to the east of us. You could see here, we are getting a lot of beach overwash here. At the ocean, we're reaching high tides the next hour. The waves really pounding in on the shoreline. That wind from Michelle coming in directly from the east. You can see the wind whipping the tops off those whitecaps there. Now this is really adding insult to injury here. In many place along Hollywood, Hollywood Beach, all of Broward County, they've lost 40-60 yards of beach already, after a week of pounding by other high-pressure system that brought in wind and rain, and high surf, and then adding Hurricane Michelle too this.

Now fortunately, I guess to use that old cliche, really dodged a bullet here, because Michelle stayed true to form, stayed east. That was a worry for the folks at the National Hurricane Center.

CAFFERTY: We were concerned last night about a possible shift to left. We're not concerned at all. This is really good news for the southeastern United States. The core of this hurricane stayed well down to the south of us, and we're not going to have any problem in Florida here whatsoever, even in the Florida Keys.

ZARRELLA: Again, very good news, you can see the trees, the palm trees really blowing here, we expect here to last for a few more hours, until the storm moves far enough away. Schools closed in Miami-Dade County, Broward County, Florida Keys, no power outages. Florida Keys fine from reports emergency officials down there today. So all in all, it's South Florida, again, use the cliche, Miles, really, just barely dodged a bullet here from a very, very powerful hurricane.

John Zarrella, reporting live from Hollywood, Florida.

O'BRIEN: Looks like in the nick of time; we lost his satellite transmission.

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