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CNN Saturday Morning News
An NBA Christmas?; Mission to Mars Set to Go; 24 Soldiers Killed in Pakistan; Government Investigating Volt Safety
Aired November 26, 2011 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: OK. We're all kind of grossed out by this next story because you're going to be at the mall, picking out that gift and all this. And you're thinking about all kinds of things. You're not thinking about germs and bacteria and viruses that you're actually picking up. But Health.com has a list of the germiest places you should try to avoid, and look at this.
The restroom sink. Where you wash your hands. They say it's actually disgusting. It's worse than the doorknobs and even the toilet handles.
Number two on their list, the food court tables. You do not want to sit down. Some nasty stuff on that table.
Also number three, also, the handrails on the escalator. You could make probably make sense of that one.
The fourth germiest place, the ATM keypad. That makes sense. Everybody's going through, typing on those things.
And then to round up the top eight just in general, toy stores. You want to avoid them, probably makes sense. Fitting rooms are nasty. Gadget shops and also makeup samples. Happy shopping.
We're at the top of the hour on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Hello to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes. Thank you for being here. And we're going to watch something together, some history here, that's coming up within the next hour.
NASA launching an ambitious mission. Where are they going? They're going to Mars. They're sending a rover up, it's poised to blast off to the red planet, in just about an hour. It's the rover Curiosity is looking for signs of life on Mars.
It's not going to happen, right away. We're not going to get those answers. Its' not going to land on Mars until next August and then the real work can begin. It is going to take a 354 million mile trip to get to Mars, an exciting morning for NASA. This is happening again in about an hour 10:02 Eastern time is the scheduled launch. We will have that for you live.
Also, story to bring you this morning from overseas, still a developing story. New violence report in Syria. (INAUDIBLE) security forces killed at least 11 civilians across the country today. Meanwhile, Arab League ministers are meeting in Cairo to discuss sanctions against Damascus for failing to meet Friday's deadline to allow observers into Syria.
We just past the bottom or the top of the hour. Let's say good morning to our friend here, Joe Carter, from HLN Sports. You're up here and you're right now talking to us because this is a big deal. Big day. We still have a deal.
JOE CARTER, HLN SPORTS: Looks like we have a tentative deal on the table between the players and the owners. They spent 17 hours yesterday hammering out this deal. Looks like the lockout after 149 days is going to end on Christmas Day, that's when the season is supposed to tip off. David Stern, he spoke earlier this morning.
Remember, last week he said we were heading into a nuclear winter. Well, his tone, much, much different earlier this morning. Here's Mr. Stern.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID STERN, NBA COMMISSIONER: We've reached a tentative understanding that is subject to a variety of approvals and very complex machinations, but we're optimistic that that will all come to pass, and that the NBA season will begin on December 25th, Christmas Day.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARTER: All right. We're looking at, he said, Christmas Day being the tip-off. A lot's got to happen between now and then. It is going to be a 66-game season, which means it's going to be a shortened season by about 16 games. Training camp add and free agency begins December 9th. We got a 10-year deal tentatively on the table. Both sides can opt out after about six years but if you're keeping scores.
Some are saying early that the owners won on this deal big time but they also said that back in 1999 when there was the last collective bargaining agreement and we all know that it wasn't in the owners' favor, they fought really hard to get the basketball related income down to 50/50, and all that other jazz. But details in terms of who won on either side are still trickling in.
At this point, we do know the next 30 days is going to be a mad dash to get that season off and running with free agency, with writing the actual deal and obviously with the tip-off being December 25th.
HOLMES: All right. Good news at least. Joe Carter, we appreciate you as always. We'll see you here shortly.
We're four minutes past the hour. Turning overseas to another developing story and we're keeping a close eye on today. At least 24 Pakistani soldiers killed after their checkpoints were hit. At least two checkpoints hit and Pakistan says NATO is responsible. We have two correspondents we're going to check in with this morning. One in Islamabad, our Reza Sayah. He's there live. And Nick Paton Walsh is live for us in Kabul.
Reza, let me start with you. Strong words coming from Pakistan right now.
REZA SAYAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, T.J., the way things stand right now, this is an ugly incident that could certainly damage U.S.-Pakistani relations. (INAUDIBLE) on the newest information. The Pakistani Army now telling us two check posts hit by NATO air strikes on Pakistani soil killing 24 Pakistani soldiers and Pakistani government not happy with this incident. We're already seeing the fallout. The prime minister here Yousaf Raza Gilani issuing a blistering condemnation. He cut short a trip earlier today. He's heading back to Islamabad, calling an emergency meeting with government officials.
The government has also shut down two NATO supply routes going from Pakistan to Afghanistan. So right now about 40 percent of NATO supplies are sitting in parking lots. Not clear when that equipment is going to start moving again. Again, these check posts according to the Pakistani military, in a district right inside the Pakistani border, right along the Afghan border. There's militant activity there. NATO troops often launch operations there, but they're supposed to stay on the Afghan side.
Again, according to the Pakistani military, they crossed over and hit these two check posts on Pakistani soil. I just got off the phone with the top spokesperson for the Pakistani military and he told me there is no justification for these hits. They say these check posts are clearly marked, and NATO officials know exactly where they are.
The U.S. ambassador to Pakistan, a couple of hours ago, released this statement saying, "I regret the loss of any Pakistani servicemen and pledge that the United States will work closely with Pakistan to investigate this incident" -- T.J.
HOLMES: Let me bring in our Nick Paton Walsh who is keeping an eye on things in Kabul and what we're getting from NATO. Nick, are they acknowledging yet not just an incident, but it happened the way that Pakistan is saying it happened?
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, let's start on what they're saying on the record here. General (INAUDIBLE), the American head of ISAF here expressing his condolences to the families of any Pakistani security forces who may have been killed in this instance, but also saying that he will personally oversee a lengthy investigation.
Now we're getting a bit more detail from a senior NATO official here. He acknowledges that there was a strike of some description in that area, but does not specify at this point, they can't confirm, whether NATO personnel crossed the border at all, pointing out it cannot confirm also that there were helicopters involved, the use of something called close air support. Now that could be, in my opinion, an air strike, or some description or maybe even a drone, drones are used in that area.
He also points out that they were going after insurgents on that area, on the Afghan side of the border at that time when this incident occurred. So some things we're hearing privately from NATO officials that suggests they may be slightly at odds with the Pakistani description, but certainly they're stressing at this point that the investigation is early and they don't have all the facts yet. T.J.?
HOLMES: All right. Nick Paton Walsh for us in Kabul and our Reza Sayah for us in Islamabad. Thank you both.
We're about seven minutes past the hour now and three American students arrested during protests in Egypt are all expected to be headed home this weekend. They were accused of taking part in the sometimes violent protest in Tahrir Square. (INAUDIBLE) officials say the students threw Molotov cocktails during the demonstrations, but the parents of at least two of the teenagers say the kids didn't do anything wrong.
Meanwhile, one protester in Tahrir Square was killed this morning. He was hit by a police vehicle. The Interior Ministry says the truck was trying to get away from the chaos there in Cairo when it hit the man. Tens of thousands of Egyptians have been gathered to protest the government ahead of Monday's scheduled elections.
And turning to politics here in this country, Newt Gingrich, he is responding to his rivals who say he supports amnesty for illegal immigrants. Gingrich expressed support this week for a process to allow some undocumented immigrants who had been in the U.S. for years to remain legally. In Naples, Florida, yesterday, Gingrich said his opponents had twisted his words.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NEWT GINGRICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I am not (INAUDIBLE) - I'm not saying amnesty for anyone. I'm not for citizenship for - but I am for legality to those people who started (INAUDIBLE) deeply in America it would be truly tragic to try to rip their family apart. So couldn't become a citizen unless they went back home and applied from back home wherever that is and (INAUDIBLE),
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Gingrich also said that controlling the border and making English the country's official language would be among his first tasks as president.
We're about nine minutes past the hour now. And there are some new fears over car fires that is now leading to a formal safety investigation into the Chevy Volt.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says the Volt's batteries could catch fire in a crash, but they do however say - it's important to stress that this has not happened in a real accident yet. It's only happened in simulations. Chevy says they're working with the federal government on this investigation.
And we are less than an hour away from that liftoff of the Mars rover. It's set to take off on a mission to Mars. So is it going to uncover some brand new clues about life out there?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: We're 13 minutes past the hour and we are just minutes away from a launch. NASA is taking off the day. No, it's not some named mission, but still, this is a big deal nonetheless. Curiosity, the rover is about to head to Mars.
Let me bring in our John Zarrella live at the Kennedy Space Center and John, launches are always exciting. But this one's a bit special for a number of reasons. You give me the top two.
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, top two, of course, you're going to Mars.
HOLMES: Yes.
ZARRELLA: Number one. It's very difficult to get there to begin with. Number two, when you get there, you're going to be looking for evidence that life may exist or have existed on Mars. Those are pretty good top two.
HOLMES: Those are a very good top two. Always try to put you on the spot and you always deliver. No worries at all. All right. So when might we start, and we know it's not going to get there for a while, but even after it gets there, how long before we start getting some answers?
ZARRELLA: It will be pretty quick, because the way this landing system works, as soon as it comes down on the Martian surface, its wheels are going to be out, it's going to be ready to go. It will start taking pictures almost immediately after the systems are checked out.
In the past, you know, they used an air bag system, where these rovers which were smaller, literally bounced on the surface encased in these air bags, and so then they would - the air bags would, you know, deflate, the rovers would come out. It would take a little bit longer, but this rover is so big, they had to engineer a whole new landing system.
And, T.J., for our viewers, I've got a prop that will show everybody just how big the rover is. Look at this. This is one of the six wheels. This is a wheel - now, I didn't take it off of Curiosity.
HOLMES: Thank you.
ZARRELLA: I mean, it's - same thing. Identical size, shape of one of the wheels on Curiosity. Now, the rovers in the past, like "Sojourner," the first one that landed on Mars, was about the size across of this wheel.
HOLMES: Wow.
ZARRELLA: That's how big that rover was. So now you get an idea of the size and scope and dimension how big this vehicle is.
HOLMES: That's great perspective. I'll ask you off-air where you got that thing, but John Zarrella will be with us throughout the morning. This launch is only about 45 minutes away. You will see it here live, and John Zarrella is going to be back with more perspective and really just walk and talk us through this whole launch when it starts happening.
ZARRELLA: Sure.
HOLMES: So John, always good to have you. We'll see you again here shortly and also our Bonnie Schneider is here. She's going to check in with us here in just a second to let us know about the weather going on there, and if launch will go off without a hitch. She's next.
As we keep an eye on what's happening with NASA, I also want to remind you about our good friend, Dr. Sanjay Gupta. He's got a new show on CNN. Yes, he's got another one. It's called "The Next List," he's going to be profiling exceptional individuals, and this week he's talking to a molecular gastronomer obsessed with experimenting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HOMARD CANTU, MOLECULAR GASTRONOMER: We serve an edible menu here. We have almost since day one, and that's because serving edible menus makes a lot of sense. Every month about 20 tons of paper are wasted in restaurants alone. So you know, by that rationale, if you just ate your menu made from organic, local products, you could eliminate that paper waste.
It looks like a sushi roll, tastes like a sushi roll, but it's your menu.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: We're just about 40 minutes away. Bonnie Schneider. I just love these things. Just any NASA launch just sparks the imagination. Doesn't it? We're getting ready for the Mars rover taking off. Curiosity atop that rocket. It's going to be lifting off. A few clouds in there, Bonnie. They didn't necessarily say weather was going to be a problem. A lot of clouds. Could this be about issue?
BONNIE SCHNEIDER, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, it could be, depending on how long those clouds stick around. But remember, they have a little bit of a longer window in terms of launching. So overall, we're expecting sunshine. You know, the later it gets, the more chance we have of sun popping into the forecast.
You could see here our forecast calls for a mix of sun and clouds. Winds are fairly light out of the east-southeast at 12 miles per hour. And the temperatures are very mild. You know, this time of year the weather's a lot better in Florida than a lot of the launches we covered during the summer where thunderstorms and lightning is an issue. Well, that's not the issue across the country. In fact, we're looking at some cold weather. In Minnesota, snow is in the forecast tonight. That's right. Snow, two to four inches and you may see some snow mixed with sleet and freezing rain a little bit further south of Route 2 into Michigan. Keep that in mind. It's going to be a little treacherous out there in the late-night period. We're getting heavy rain right now through the plains states, a cold rain. The weather is definitely changing.
We're also looking at thunderstorms rumbling through Texas at this hour. What's important to note, we have wind advisories and even a freeze watch further south as far south as Odessa, Texas, because temperatures will get down to the freezing mark possibly if not tonight, then tomorrow night. There's a lot of colder air behind the system. High pressure to the west, low pressure of deep rooted area of low pressure to the east. The two coming close enough that it will really kick up the winds.
Now in advance of that, very mild temperatures and comfortable conditions on the eastern seaboard, possibly even record highs in some places. But as we go through Sunday, T.J., we're monitoring this weather system because Sunday really is the busiest travel day of the year. We're going to be watching for some potential airport delays this weekend due to some nasty weather rolling through.
HOLMES: All right. Bonnie Schneider, thank you so much. It's 22 minutes past the hour and I'm looking at the NASA countdown clock here and we now have less than 39 minutes before liftoff. Let me tell you about this Mars rover. Curiosity is taking off in just 39 minutes. Headed to Mars. It's going to make 350 plus million mile trip, it's take about eight months to get to Mars. But all eyes on NASA, on the launch pad this morning and also a couple other folks are there. Would you believe a pop star.
You know, one of the lead guys from the Black Eyed Peas is also there on hand for the launch. He has a very specific mission today as well.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: As we get to close to the bottom of the hour we're getting closer and closer to liftoff. Trying to get kids excited about science. Well, everybody's excited about science today, anytime you see one of these launches, but, yes, NASA blasting off today, sending the rover to Mars. So what better way can you really get kids excited than to put a little car on top of a rocket and send it up into space? That is the very idea, right?
That is what they are doing this morning with this Mars rover. Again, the liftoff is about 10:02 Eastern time this morning. So we're just about 30 minutes away. We'll have it for you live. But is all this really enough to really get kids excited about science and technology and to really spark the imagination?
Earlier, I posed that question to Will.i.am. of the Black Eyed Peas and also Leland Melvin, an astronaut.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) LELAND MELVIN, ASTRONAUT: Well, that's what it takes. You know, we're all about trying to inspire that next generation of explorers. And whatever means we can use, whether it's music, math -- whatever that means is, whether it's a rocket behind us taking off to take up this rover Curiosity, we'll take that and use that to get these kids motivated to do stem education.
HOLMES: And, Will, you tell us, and we've kind of familiar, and you've talked to CNN before about your interest in trying to get kids involved with stuff. But would you classify yourself as a space geek?
WILL.I.AM, THE BLACK EYED PEAS: I'm a tech geek, a space geek -- just curious like this rover here. So, yes. I'm a space geek.
HOLMES: So you say just curious. And I just mentioned this to Leland, what have you seen? As you've been involved and trying to get kids more involved, have you been disappointed? Have you been surprised at how much it takes sometimes to get kids into those fields?
WILL.I.AM: I'm blown away and inspired by these kids, especially the kids that work within Dean Kamen's robotics program. And there's like 200,000-plus kids who are writing code, building robots, doing amazing things with their skill set. And it's not like kids aren't -- it's just that we haven't shined the light on the kids that are to inspire other kids to get involved, as well.
HOLMES: Yet, Leland --
WILL.I.AM: So, I'm really, really inspired by these kids.
HOLMES: Yet, Leland, you pick up that point for me there. Translate this for us. How do we get to launch to today? And how does that translate into getting some kid in the classroom somewhere in this country involved in a field of math and science and maybe even a career?
MELVIN: Well, when I think about a kid seeing Curiosity, this rover, going around the surface of mars taking samples, doing things.
I was a chemistry major. I mixed these two chemicals together and blew up this creative explosion in my mom's living room. And that got me fueled and energized.
But, so maybe there's going to be a kid watching Curiosity going around the surface of mars and they may think -- well, how do I become a scientist or engineer? How do I become a musician? Because music and math use both the right and left side of the brain.
So, if you know music, you know math.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Again, we are about 30 minutes away from this. This is going to be happening right at the top of the hour. You're seeing live pictures there from NASA TV. They're giving us these pictures. But there's the shot of it. That is the Atlas rocket and on top of it, right in the middle of your screen, that white rocket in the middle, it's carrying the rover on top, the Curiosity" rover.
And it's going to launch here again, 10:02 Eastern time but it's taking off on a mission that's going to last about, the trip, at least, is going to last about eight and a half months. It's going to be next August when it finally gets to Mars, and this rover, which is about the size of a Mini Cooper, they tell us. A large rover, larger than the ones in the past, is going to land and look around for signs of life on Mars.
A big day for NASA. We will have all that for you at the top of the hour. Don't miss the launch. I'll see you then.
Right now, "YOUR BOTTOM LINE."
