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More U.S. Troops Could Be Headed to Australia
Aired November 16, 2011 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CARL AZUZ, HOST, CNN STUDENT NEWS: It`s time for you to take 10 minutes away from your schoolwork and let CNN Student News catch you up on the world`s headlines. I`m your guide, Carl Azuz. We`re starting today in the Pacific.
More U.S. troops could be headed to Australia. That`s one of the headlines that`s expected come out of President Obama`s trip there this week. The U.S. and Australia are allies. Australia has supported the U.S. in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as other military conflicts in the 20th century.
Now some countries are concerned about how strong China is becoming in the Western Pacific region. So as Brianna Keilar explains, having more American troops in Australia could be seen as a kind of defense against the spread of China`s influence.
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BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN REPORTER (voice-over): The third time`s a charm. After canceling planned trips to Australia twice now, President Obama is finally headed down under.
KEILAR: While the president`s visit to the APEC summit here in Hawaii was more about emphasizing U.S. trade interests in Asia, his visit to Australia is more about U.S. military interests in the region.
KEILAR (voice-over): President Obama`s first stop, the capital city of Canberra, where he will address parliament, commemorating America`s 60- year military alliance with Australia.
Then he heads north to the military stronghold of Darwin, where he`s expected to announce a plan for a more pronounced U.S. military presence in the country. It`s a symbolic increase of America`s profile in the region, as China demonstrates its might.
VICTOR CHA, CSIS: Clearly the Chinese, as they experience larger and larger amounts of economic growth, are starting to flex their diplomatic muscle further away from the shores of China into Southeast Asia. And I think countries in the region are looking to the United States to help balance against that.
KEILAR (voice-over): American allies like Japan and Korea are concerned U.S. budget cuts could shrink America`s military commitments in Asia. China recently launched its first aircraft carrier, and has made territorial claims to much of the South China Sea.
ADM. ROBERT WILLARD: The South China, of vital interest to the region, of national interest to the United States, an area that carries an immense amount of commerce and an area in which we must maintain maritime security and peace.
KEILAR: The president`s stop in Australia is part of a push to highlight a new era in U.S. foreign policy, focusing less on Iraq and Afghanistan, and instead looking east -- Brianna Keilar, CNN, Honolulu.
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AZUZ: Trouble and confusion surrounding the Occupy Wall Street protests in New York.
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AZUZ (voice-over): . police moved in on Tuesday to kick protesters out of Zuccotti Park. It`s a private park they`ve used as a base to speak out against a lot of different issues. Protesters have been there two months, and city officials and the park`s owners say conditions have gotten dangerous and dirty.
So the park was cleared out on Tuesday morning. A couple of court battles followed. And when the dust settled, the New York Supreme Court had decided that, while protesters are allowed to gather in the park under their First Amendment rights, those rights do not allow them to stay there indefinitely, camping in tents and setting up other structures.
So to sum up: they can protest there; they can`t camp there.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Today`s Shoutout goes out to Mr. Madigan`s study skills class at Miamisburg Middle School in Miamisburg, Ohio. What Central African country is home to the most active volcano on the continent? Here we go. Is it Democratic Republican of Congo, Ivory Coast, South Africa or Somalia? You`ve got three seconds, go.
The Democratic Republic of Congo is the only Central African nation here and it`s where you`ll find Africa`s most active volcano. That`s your answer, and that`s your Shoutout.
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AZUZ: And that volcano is putting on a major fireworks show.
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AZUZ (voice-over): You can see why tourists at Virunga National Park aren`t coming just to see the gorillas. This eruption started more than a week ago. Scientists don`t know when it`ll end. They do believe the lava is heading to an area that`s uninhabited and that it`s not a threat to the endangered gorillas in the area. You can see these pictures are pretty close-up.
Virunga National Park has actually set up a camp, one a mile away from the eruption, where tourists can spend the night if they want. The lava`s estimated to be spewing almost a thousand feet from the top of the volcano. For perspective, Old Faithful`s water reaches about 140 feet in the air.
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AZUZ: If banning sugary drinks at school doesn`t stop students from drinking them otherwise, should schools still ban the drinks?
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AZUZ (voice-over): At cnnstudentnews.com, Kara says school is about 61/2 hours every weekday. That`s 61/2 hours that kids aren`t drinking soda or other sugary drinks.
Claire says banning the drinks on campus gets the anti-childhood obesity message across and it may encourage students to refrain from drinking them altogether.
On the other side of this, Brenda doesn`t think sugary drinks should be banned because students are going to drink them anyway. It`s not the school`s job to raise awareness about obesity, she writes.
Majdahlin says a soda may not be as healthy as orange juice, but will it really affect your grade on a math test? I believe the choice should be the student`s, not the school`s.
And from Victory, to solve obesity, we must start at the homes, not the schools. Bringing sugary drinks back to school will help sales at the school.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is this legit? According to the CDC, the best way to reduce the number of germs on your hands is to wash them with soap and water.
Totally true, and the CDC recommends washing them for at least 20 seconds at a time.
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AZUZ: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention adds that washing your hands is one of the best ways to avoid getting sick. But there are parts of the world that don`t have access to clean soap and clean water, things that you and I take for granted.
Derreck Kayongo says this isn`t an issue of availability. It`s an issue of costs, and it`s what he`s doing about it that`s why he`s one of this year`s top 10 CNN Heroes.
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DERRECK KAYONGO, CNN HERO: A child of war can be simply described as a kid caught between a rock and a hard place. You wake up every morning thinking, we just want to survive.
Sanitation, is it a priority? We have about 2 million kids that die of sanitation issues, mainly because they don`t wash their hands.
I am Derreck Kayongo. I`m a former refugee. Now I help people fight disease with better sanitation.
Do you have some soap for me?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, it`s over here.
KAYONGO: Yes, this is great.
The issue is not the availability of soap, but the issue is cost. Can they afford it?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Housekeeping.
KAYONGO: Eight hundred million bars of soap that the hotels throw away in the U.S. alone every year, we`re able to get a lot of soap, which we can process and make brand new soap out of it.
We clean it, melt it and then cut it into final bars. We box it and ship it.
GROUP: Welcome, welcome, welcome. Welcome, Derrick.
KAYONGO: Being here in Kenya at this orphanage is coming full circle, but with good news. It`s very important for them to have the bar of soap, but also to use it so they can fight off diseases.
Those are clean. That`s very good.
One of the things that I have learned from the kids is a sense of resilience. To know that they have this sense of hope and joy is remarkable. Do I feel like I`m having an impact on them? Yes. I think so.
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AZUZ (voice-over): There`s more than a minute left in today`s show, but time is running out for you to vote for the CNN Hero of the Year. Go to our home page -- cnnstudentnews.com, scroll down to the Heroes bin. That is where you`ll learn more about Derreck Kayongo and the rest of this year`s top 10.
Teachers, it`s also where you can find our free CNN Heroes discussion guide. The CNN Heroes Tribute Special airs December 11th on CNN.
And teachers, you`re going to love this. CNN has launched a new education blog. It`s called "Schools of Thought," and it offers food for thought on all things education. The policies, the practices, the people - - you can get there from cnnstudentnews.com. Just look for "Schools of Thought," and join in on the education conversation.
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AZUZ: All right. You know that when a cruise ship sails, propellers are actually pushing it through the water. It`s not really sailing.
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AZUZ (voice-over): This is how sailing got its name. Ships like the "Star of India" were blown by the wind across the sea. Built in the 1860s, this is the oldest active sailing ship. She`s been around the world 21 times, though in retirement she stays closer to her California home. A crew of volunteers sails this ship -- literally -- every November.
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AZUZ: Makes for a good history segment as long as you don`t leave your notes in Davy Jones` Locker. And while that pun might not have been seaworthy, once I get started, there just no way of "mutin` me." CNN Student News is always your harbor for headlines. We`ll set sail with more tomorrow.
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