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CNN Live Sunday

Head NASA Administrator Resigns; Bomb, Gunfire Kills 4 At Gaza Checkpoint

Aired December 12, 2004 - 16:00   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.


ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Just months before a planned return to space, changes are coming to NASA: The head of the agency calling it quits.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Son, excuse me, do you have attention deficit? then sit up, look at me and pay attention.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Hard lessons from prison: a program gives at risk kids a real look at life behind wars.

And is Google on to something when it comes to internet IPOs? The New York Times magazine thinks it's one of the best ideas of the year. We'll also take look at some of the others.

Hello, thanks for joining us on CNN LIVE SUNDAY. I'm Erica Hill. We'll bring you all of that and more after this check of the headlines.

A bomb and bullets rock an Israeli checkpoint in Gaza. At least four Israeli troops were killed, seven other people were wounded. We'll have a live report for you on the violence from Jerusalem in just 6 minutes.

Marwan Barghouti apparently doesn't want to be the next Palestinian leader. While currently in an Israeli jail, he is bowing out of the upcoming election to pick Yasser Arafat's successor. Barghouti's decision leaves the field wide open for former Palestinian prime minister Mahmoud Abbas.

Ukrainian opposition presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko is praising his doctors and thanking them for saving him after his recent poisoning. New details on what doctors found out about the attempt on Yushchenko's life coming up in 12 minutes.

We begin now with what the White House thought was an ideal choice to head the Department of Homeland Security, but Bernard Kerik's decision to withdraw his nomination is now raising all sorts of questions. Lawmakers today wondering about the candidate himself and the vetting process that allowed him to be nominated in the first place.

CNN White House correspondent Dana Bash joins us with the details. Good afternoon, Dana.

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Erica. Well, the president started the day going to church just around the corner. And while there he heard a sermon about Christmas. And it just so happens that is the date that his aides are shooting for to find a replacement for Bernard Kerik, a new pick to head the Homeland Security Department.

And you're right, there has been a lot of hand wringing still, though, about what went wrong with Bernard Kerik. On the talk shows this morning, some Democratic senators were asking whether or not the White House lawyers dropped the ball, or why the vetting process was flawed in their view and whether or not and why the White House did not know that Bernard Kerik had a nanny that had questionable legal status when that is a big issue for any candidate, particularly somebody in charge of immigration.

Now, White House officials insist that they did their due diligence. And that Bernard Kerik was asked questions specific to this. And that they did not have anything that raised any red flags. And they essentially blamed Kerik and so does the Republican chairman of the committee that is in charge of confirming the homeland security secretary.

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SEN. SUSAN COLLINS, (R) MAINE: It is disturbing that apparently there was information in his background that was not shared with the White House. I know that the White House vetting process is a thorough one. I know for certainty that there are questions asked about domestic employees, financial matters, and legal disputes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: And the president's aides say certainly he is disappointed. That Bernard Kerik is somebody he likes very much personally, somebody who campaigned for him when he was running for a second term. But they also say that he's moving on, already looking to see who can be his next pick to run homeland security.

Some names that we heard the first time around that he considered are coming up again. There you see Asa Hutchinson. He now runs border seurity for Homeland Security. Mike Leavitt, the EPA commissioner. And the president's adviser inside the White House for homeland security, Frances Townsend.

But Erica, there is another name that passed the lips of many here in Washington, many senators from both sides of the aisle, and that is Joe Lieberman. He, of course, is a Democrat. Somebody who ran on an opposing ticket in 2000. But he is also somebody who has been aligned with the president in terms of issues on national security, many of them on homeland security, somebody who was one of the original to push for the idea of the Homeland Security Department when this White House actually opposed it.

Now, Republican sources do say that the White House has considered adding Lieberman to the cabinet in some shape or form, whether or not he will be asked for this particular spot is definitely still an open question, but a source close to Lieberman says that likely if he is asked to take a job like this, he would take it -- Erica.

HILL: He would be an interesting addition to the cabinet. Dana Bash, live from Washington, thanks.

BASH: Thank you.

HILL: Big news from NASA today. Top administrator Sean O'Keefe is stepping down from the space agency, possibly to take a job at Louisiana State University. He is expected to make an official announcement tomorrow. Our space correspondent Miles O'Brien is on the phone with us now from New York with details on O'Keefe's departure.

Miles, good to have you.

First of all, was this a surprise?

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (via telehpone): Well, I guess you could say, Erica, there was a surprise that Sean O'Keefe was there for as long as three years. When he first came on board at NASA, he came from the office of management and budget. He came in with sort of a short-term goal of straightening out the space station budget, which was skyrocketing out of control.

Of course, a year into his tenure, the Columbia tragedy occurred and that forever changed his tenure and extended his stay. He wanted to be able to stay until the shuttle returned to flight, but for personal reasons, primarily his oldest daughter headed off to college, Ivy League, we're told, he decided to make a move that would make it a little more financially possible to support that.

HILL: You mention he wanted to stay on until the space shuttle program was moving back towards the direction that it had been, heading back into space. What happens now to those efforts?

O'BRIEN: Well, those efforts will continue. But it is not an easy process, getting the shuttle back to flight. There have been repeated delays. And I think as he looked at it, Administrator O'Keefe realized there was no certainty that the shuttle could fly before the early part of the summer.

And given all of that, and given his concerns about his family and financial considerations, as well as the fact that that has been an incredible burnout job, tremendous amount of exhaustion involved in doing that job, he decided it was time to go. I think he would have liked to have seen it through, but that's not the way it happened.

HILL: So now, of course, the obvious question, who is next?

O'BRIEN: Well, I think it's unlikely there will be an internal candidate. I think the candidate that is chosen will be from outside NASA. There's all the lingering concerns about what led to the tragedy of Columbia. And someone who was inside NASA, involved in states during that period of time when the management really broke down at NASA leading to the Columbia tragedy would have a very difficult time being confirmed and would face a lot of scrutiny on the Hill.

So, look for someone with some experience in the space sector, maybe some military background, somebody on the outside.

HILL: All right, we know you'll be keeping an eye on that for us as well. Miles O'Brien, thanks again.

HILL: Welcome.

Turning our attention now to the Middle East where a bombing at an Israeli checkpoint in Gaza is being called the largest Palestinian attack since the death of Yasser Arafat. More than a ton of explosives, a tunnel and hail of gunfire made it a deadly day for Israeli troops.

CNN's John Vause joins us live from Jerusalem. Hi, John.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Erica. By all accounts, this attack was well-planned, well-coordinated and it was deadly. A statement released from Hamas said that 1.5 tons of explosives was packed into a tunnel about a half mile long which took them about four months to dig. The target here was an Israeli checkpoint, where Palestinians crossed from Gaza into Egypt.

Now moments after the blast, as rescue crews tried to evacuate the wounded, militants open fire with automatic weapons and mortars. At least four Israeli soldiers have been killed, at least six others have been seriously hurt.

In a video statement released within hours of the attack, Hamas said it was a joint operation with a group known as the Fatah Hawks. A military officer said the Fatah political party, which was founded by the late of Yasser Arafat.

Now, the month since the death of Arafat, hopes were high that the Israelis and the Palestinians were moving towards a lasting peace. It had been relatively quiet, but in the last week or so in the Gaza Strip there has been increasing violence.

Just today, Palestinian doctors say 8 Palestinian children were hurt when an Israeli tank shell landed in their school yard. However, the Israeli army says yes it did fire small arms in the general direction of the school, however they were firing at a group of militants and the Israeli army denies, infact, that a tank shell was fired -- Erica.

HILL: John, correct me if I'm wrong, but the explosion that happened here, the explosions in Gaza at the checkpoints that we were talking was actually at an international terminal that was just open for Palestinians going in between Gaza and Egypt. Is that correct? And if so, why target, specifically a route being used by the Palestinians? VAUSE: Well, this is a checkpoint which is manned by both Israeli and Palestinian security sources. However, the Palestinians go home at 4:30 in the afternoon local time, and the checkpoint closes down leaving in place the Israeli security forces. The first blast happened an hour after the checkpoint was closed down at 5:30 local time. And there are some reports of a secondary explosion which has not caused a great deal of damage an hour or so after. So, the obvious target in all of this, becuase of the timing, was in fact the Israelis -- Erica.

HILL: All right, John. We appreciate the update, thank you.

Now, an explosion also rocked a crowded outdoor market in the Southern Philippines today. It happened in General Santos City, the site of previous bombings blamed on Islamist terrorists groups. At least 14 people were killed in today's blast, dozens were wounded. It's the latest in a rash of attacks and mass kidnappings in the Phillipines recent years, most blamed on Muslim extremists.

The U.S. is trying to help, providing training and gear for the Philippine army. The country is a key ally in the U.S. war on terror.

In Iraq, the U.S. death toll grows again. A marine killed in Iraq's volatile al Anbar Province. Now it's the same area where a soldier assigned to the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force died in action yesterday.

Meantime, Iraqi authorities have a grisly task on their hands trying to identify 5 beheaded bodies found yesterday. Four were discovered in the town of Hasaw, the other in Balad.

Violence flared up again meantime in Mosul, where a suicide bomber attacked a multinational forces patrol while insurgents opened fire on the convoy. Seven U.S. soldiers were wounded. U.S. planes came to the rescue, dropping a bomb on the attackers. About ten were killed in a separate attack. Insurgents also trying to take over a police station in the city.

A new military operation is starting up in Afghanistan. Financial Times reporter Victoria Burnette tells CNN it involves thousands of U.S. soldiers based in a southern part of the country near the border of Pakistan. That's where Taliban loyalists and al Qaeda militants remain active.

Burnette says the goal of the operation: to secure the countryside in time for parliamentary elections in April.

Now earlier today, Afghan president Hamid Karzai told CNN's Wolf Blitzer preparations for the voting are going as planned.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PRES. HAMID KARZAI, AFGHANISTAN: Everything is moving on schedule. The election preparations are taking place. The political parties are trying to have as many candidates as they can, and to win the elections. The parliament will complete the section of Afghanistan, something we need very, very much to have a legitimate order established in Afghanistan. So, I'm looking forward to a Parliament and to a complete Democratic system in the country to emerge in another hopefully five to six months.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Mr. Karzai also said he believes Osama bin Laden is still in the region and will be caught sooner or later.

Now to Austria, where Viktor Yushchenko expressed gratitude today to the doctors he credits with saving his life after he was poisoned. It is the first time the Ukrainian opposition presidential candidate has spoken publicly about his harrowing experience.

Jill Dougherty brings us the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): His doctors by his side, his American-born wife Katrina acting as interpreter, Viktor Yushchenko gave no details about how he thought he was poisoned with dioxin or who had done it.

VIKTOR YUSHCHENKO, UNKRAINIAN OPPOSITION LEADER (through translator): I am very happy to be alive in this world today. And I thank these people for this.

DOUGHERTY: But one of his physicians shed new light, saying the poison was not detectable in routine forensic tests. And, thanking his medical colleagues around the world for working on a complex case.

DR. MICHAEL ZIMPHER, RUDOLPHINERHAU'S HOSPITAL: Regardless of any political backgrounds, who were helping us, who were consulting us to -- again, to clarify the difficult Yushchenko illness that has not been observed anywhere else beforehand.

DOUGHERTY: Yushchenko fell ill in September, as he was beginning his presidential election campaign. A team of doctors in Vienna said Saturday, there is no doubt he was poisoned with the toxic chemical dioxin. That it was likely administered orally in food or a liquid- like soup. And most likely in an unnamed third party.

Yushchenko's supporters believe he may have been poisoned at a dinner with the leadership of the Ukrainian Security Service. And claim the plot may have been carried help with someone outside the Ukraine, but provided no evidence.

As he left the Vienna clinic, Yushchenko said his orange revolution had already turned Ukraine into a different country. And the regime in power for 14 years is now living its last days.

YUSHCHENKO (through translator): We hadn't seen anything like that for the past 100 years. I think it would be appropriate to compare this to the fall of the Soviet Union or the fall of the Berlin Wall.

DOUGHERTY (on camera): Yushchenko now returns to the Ukraine for the repeat of the runoff election that was canceled by Ukraine's Supreme Court because of massive fraud. Doctors say he is recovering from the poisoning but could encounter physical problems down the road. However, his face may take years to return to normal. Jill Dougherty, CNN, Moscow.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: Call it tough love from prison.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Realizing that we made a mistake. And for us to step out and say now we're being held accountable for the things that we done. I think it kind of wakes them up too.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Inside a new program that looks to straighten out some troublesome kids before it's too late.

Silence at Target stores nationwide: No Salvation Army bell ringers there. Now, the organization that helps the needy during the holidays needs some help of its own.

And later, geering up for the Golden Globe Nominations. Which movies and actors should get recognized? Our movie critic weighs in just a little bit later on CNN LIVE SUNDAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: The Salvation Army's red kettle brings to mind Christmas for many American's. But this year's kettle campaign has taken a direct blow from Target Corporation. CNN's Denise Belgrave took a look at the ongoing flap.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DENISE BELGRAVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The flap over Target's decision to ban the red kettles from the front of its store is continuing to simmer.

MAJ. KENNETH JOHNSON, SALVATION ARMY: Well, obviously the decision that was made by Target was a real disappointment for the Salvation Army. And yet, when we think about it, we have to recognize that the Target Corporation has been very good to allow the Salvation Army to ring for so many years.

BELGRAVE: Shoppers and retailers are critical of the move. And some have even taken some action. The nationwide chain's BJ's Warehouse and Books-A-Million responded to the news by inviting the bell ringers to their store fronts. And New Jersey's acting governor opened all rest areas on the state's highways hoping to recover the $200,000 New Jersey shoppers donated at Target stores last year. In a letter to Target's chairman, the acting governor said, "At a time when the humanitarian services are most needed, I appeal to your sense of moral responsibility."

CNN requested an on-camera interview with Target, but the company declined. In a statement, the company said if it allowed the Salvation Army to continue, it would have to permit solicitation by organizations whose causes or behavior may be unacceptable to it's guests. The statement also said the decision no way diminishes the company's commitment to its communities, noting that Target donates more than $2 million per week to charity.

But for Alicia Brown-Cook, an Atlanta shelter manager, the decision still wrankles. Brown-Cook's a graduate of the shelter's drug rehab program. And has a request for Target's general manager.

ALICIA BROWN-COOK: To give it another thought. Just to forget about all of the people that have lots and lots of -- all of the children that have lots and lots of toys, all of the men and women that do have jobs. Think about the people that don't.

BELGRAVE: Denise Belgrave, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: Elsewhere across America, Michael Jackson's attorney in Santa Barbara, California, has no comment on reports that the pop star's fingerprints and those of the boy he is accused of molesting turned up on pornography magazines. The prosecution and the defense in Jackson's upcoming trial are under gag orders.

Friends of a comatose Florida woman at the center of a right to die controversy are celebrating her 41st birthday at a rally in Penelis Park. Terri Schiavo's husband is in an ongoing legal battle to have her feeding tube disconnected.

And no injuries, but some scary moments for dozens of Virginia Beach high school students on their way home from New York. Their charter bus caught fire today on the New Jersey Turnpike.

It may be kinder and gentler than the scared straight program, but the Maryland State Program, known as Impact, does expose at-risk children to the harsh realities of prison life. In fact, it doesn't shy away from confrontation.

And as CNN's Brian Todd explains, that might be just what these troubled kids need.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Oswaldo Santana's mom saw it coming. At just 13, he was already hanging out with the wrong crowd, coming home late, suspended twice from his Baltimore school. She feared he'd end up in a place like this, the maximum security state prison in Jessup, Maryland. So, she sent him here. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Welcome to my hell. This is the Maryland house of corrections. This is a maximum men prison. Real inmates doing real time.

TODD: Oswaldo joined about a dozen other students on this day to take part in the Impact program, designed to give at-risk kids an uncomfortably close look at prisons raw reality. It starts with a so- called greeting from a correction sergeant.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Excuse me, do you have attention deficit? Then sit up, look at me and pay attention.

TODD: Then it's off to visit the inmates, most of whom are convicted killers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm serving a life sentence for a felony crime. To be more specific with you, I'm serving a life sentence for first degree murder and the carrying and concealing of a deadly weapon.

TODD: For about 4 hours, these kids are indoctrinated to life on the inside.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ain't no secrets in prison. Ain't no secrets here.

TODD: Inmates here. And at other Maryland state prisons have spoken to some 4,000 teenagers over the past 5 years.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stand up. Name, age, grade.

TODD (on camera): Prison officials and inmates are quick to point out, this is not like the Scared Straight program that became famous in the 1970s. The idea here, they say, is to move away from intimidation.

One inmate put it best. He said if a kid comes from a broken or abusive home and you scream at him, you're just giving him what he's used to.

(voice-over): But that doesn't mean prisoners like convicted murdered Bobby Pringle aren't in kids' faces.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Anything you seen that you don't want. How you like that dorm you? Want to sleep with them 80 something people, beds that close to you, smelling their feet? That sound all good to you? How about that shower? You like that?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.

BOBBY PRINGLE, CONVICTED MURDERER: For us to step out and say now we're being held accountable for the things that we done.

TODD: Prison officials say there's no way to track how many kids they've saved, or how many fell through the cracks. At times, it appeared Oswaldo and others didn't get the message. Later, there was a glimmer.

OSWALDO SANTANA, HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT: There was a pattern that I started on right now and that I'm doing now that needs to stop.

TODD: Later, Oswaldo's mother told us he's walked a straight line since that day. Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: Anonymous letters have a community on edge. Words of hate targeting high school students. That story ahead on CNN LIVE SUNDAY.

And jewelry for your eye? Don't blink.

We also have retractable high heeled shoes for you. The New York Times magazine thinks these are the two best ideas of the year and we have a few others coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: It's that time of the year. Forget the holiday stress, we're talking about top and best of lists. They're all come out these days. In fact, in today's edition of the New York Times Magazine, folks there are looking at some of the best ideas of the year.

Think you may know what they are? James Ryerson helps edit the list forever the magazine. And some of the ideas might surprise you. He joins us now from New York. Great to have you with us.

JAMES RYERSON, NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE: Thank you for having me.

HILL: These were really some kind of wacky, out there ideas. I had a great time reading through the list. We're going to start off with one called acoustic keyboard eavesdropping. This is a little scary, though.

RYERSON: Yes, the idea here, or the discovery in this case was that simply by listening to the sound of someone typing on a computer keyboard, it is possible to reconstruct what they've actually typed. A researcher at IBM was able to record examples of people typing and he took advantage of the fact that each key sounds ever so slightly different than the others. And by running it through a sophisticated computer program, he was able to reconstruct what had been typed.

HILL: So one more reason to make sure all of your privacy software and firewalls are updated I would guess.

RYERSON: Yes. For sure.

HILL: Also on the list, Google in the lists the benign corporate oligarchy. What's so different and novel about Google's IPO?

RYERSON: Well, the benign corporate oligarchy, which was our name for Google's idea this year, is sort of the counterintuitive notion that shareholders will be better off, ironically, if they have less influence over the decisions and behavior of the corporations in question.

Google was very explicit in its IPO prospectus about this. They said that companies had been too open to the pressures of shareholders, trying to get corporations to meet quarterly targets. Google wanted none of that. They're not going to be releasing earnings targets. And they've diluted their voting stock so that they retain more power.

They're basic message is, trust us and you'll be better off as as a result.

HILL: Definite shift in the way things are done. Well see if it catches on. This next one I have to say, I love. In fact I'd like to volunteer to be a beta tester for the escalator shoes. And I think maybe our executive producer, Jenny, would as well. Talk to us about these shoes.

RYERSON: The escalating high heel shoe is a high heel shoe whose height can be adjusted with the simple press of a button. It was invented this year, I believe, by a graduate student in industrial design at Pratt, if I remember correctly. And the shoe can be as flat as zero degrees to the ground and as high up as 38. So if you want to go to work in a flat, but head out afterwards for a night on the town at 38 degrees, you just press the button and you're off.

HILL: And then you can press the button again so you can actually walk home and not take the shoes off, which is key.

I remember reading about this earlier this year, also on the list is skin-lit.

RYERSON: Skin literature is -- the idea here is to publish a short story, not in a magazine, not in a book, but in tattoo form. Shelly Jackson, who is a writer in Brooklyn, has written a 2095 word short story. And her goal is to get 2095 people to tattoo individual words from the story on their bodies, and as of this fall, she already had about 1,800 volunteers. Many of them she said are librarians.

HILL: Isn't that interesting. I wonder if next is the Dewey decimal system. Lastly, I this is all we have time for but when it comes to baseball, American league pitchers are more likely to hit their batters?

Yes, that was an idea discovery this year from an economist and mathematician, and their hunch was that, because pitchers in the American League never have to face opposing pitchers, that they never bat, they would have less sense to be careful about throwing the ball. They're ensured against any risk because they never bat and so the idea essentially was that they crunched eight years' worth of statistics and they realized that any given batter has between an 11 to 17 percent greater chance of being hit as a result of the designated hitter rule.

HILL: How about that? The things you find out. Well the full list can be found -- found rather in today's "New York Times Magazine." From A to Z, missing a few letters there but we won't hold it against you. James Ryerson, thanks for coming in today. We appreciate it.

RYERSON: Thanks for having me.

HILL: A landmark flight to Southeast Asia, the first time in nearly 30 years an American commercial jet heads to Vietnam.

And if you are our of ideas for Christmas presents? CNN's Ali Velshi shows us the gadget just about everyone can use.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: John Kerry announced today he will go to Iraq next month. I guess he heard they're having presidential elections and maybe can he win that one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: All right, sit down and get ready for a laugh. This week's edition of "late night laughs" just ahead.

ORELON SIDNEY, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I'm Orelon Sidney with a look at the cold and flu report. The very latest data from the CDC through December 4 showing some regional activity across parts of Alaska and New York also some local activity for parts of the south, the central Appalachians and back into the northern plains. For most of the nation, either no activity or very sporadic, which is certainly some good news for this time of the year.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: A quick look now at stories now in the news. A deadly day in troubled Gaza City. Where Palistian militants set off an explosion killing four Israeli soldiers. The blast was set off in a tunnel beneath an Israeli military checkpoint. The militant group Hamas has claimed responsibility for the attack.

NASA's top dog is leaving to become a by you Bengal. CNN has learned NASA's administrator Sean O'Keefe will announce his resignation tomorrow. O'Keefe is expected to leave his post at NASA to become chancellor at Louisiana State University.

An Arizona man who claimed ex-boxing champ Mike Tyson attacked his car outside the Pussycat Lounge in Stockdale last month has decided to drop his criminal complaint. The man said he was dropping the charges out of respect for the owners of the lounge and after being reimbursed for the damage.

High school is tough for many kids. It's a time filled with homework, peer pressure and of course, the always difficult task of simply growing up. For some Ohio students this year has brought an added pressure, the burden of racist threats. CNN's Keith Oppenheim explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The boys at St. Ignatius High School change classes like it's a typical day, but the sense of security here has been threatened because of what arrived in the mail. Eight letters came in November, letters filled with racist language and hate for black men who date white women.

School officials say the target of these letters was two African- American student athletes. Investigators believe because those students were seen in the newspaper posing in prom photos with white females, the letter writer threatened castration and death, and urged white students to stop associating with the two black students.

PETER CORRIGAN, ST IGNATIUS PRINCIPAL: It shakes the individual kids who think they're a potential victim.

OPPENHEIM: Another school, St. Edwards, got two threat letters the FBI believes is from the same author.

SPEC. AGENT ROBERT HAWK, FBI: What we're concerned with is maybe this behavior may become more aggressive and someone may get hurt.

OPPENHEIM: The FBI's Robert Hawk says agents believe these most recent letters are connected to at least 60 other similar letters sent to prominent black men in the last two years to players in the NFL.

HAWK: Actors, members of Hollywood, members of the judiciary, those kinds of people have received letters here in the U.S.

OPPENHEIM: Investigators say this is the first time they know that high school students have been the target of this writer's hate mail. At St. Ignatius, the letters triggered deep fears.

CORRIGAN: There was a larger scale level of alarm by parents of, you know, many minority students and athletes as well.

OPPENHEIM: Keith Oppenheim, CNN, Cleveland.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: News around the world now. The United Arab Emirates is the first middle eastern country committing to take part in a U.S. container security initiative. UAE has agreed to prescreen all cargo bound for the U.S. through the port of Dubai.

Police in Columbus, Ri Lanka (ph) are investigating a deadly grenade attack at a concert just hours after a violent street demonstration against the event. Police yesterday used tear gas to break up protest by Buddhist who wanted only religious activities on the anniversary of a leading Buddhist cleric death. Last night a grenade blast at a packed stadium killed two-concert goers and left five fighting for their lives.

The out come of Taiwan's legislative elections could ease tensions with China. The opposition party calling for closer ties with the mainland has dealt a surprising defeat to the president's pro- independence party.

Destination Vietnam, the flight takes nearly 20 hours from the U.S. West Coast, but in a way, it's a journey that's actually decades in the making. CNN's Eli Flournoy explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELI FLOURNOY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It's been nearly years since an American commercial airliner sat on a Vietnamese tarmac until now. United Airlines is adding Hochi Minh City to its international roster with daily flights from San Francisco. The inaugural flight was greeted by fan fair, Vietnamese girls in traditional dress. And the U.S. Ambassador Michael Marine.

Actor David Hasselhoff was on the flight to promote a charity bringing wheelchairs for disabled Vietnamese. U.S. commercial airline service to what was then Saigon grounded to a halt in April, 1975, when the United States severed diplomatic ties with the communist regime.

But since the U.S. and Vietnam normalized relations in 1995, trade between the two countries has grown steadily. The International Air Transport Association predicts Vietnam's air travel industry will grow 10 percent each year for the next ten years. United hopes to take advantage of the trend by appealing to California's large Vietnamese community.

HUYNH BANH YU, PASSENGER: It's very convenient for all of the Vietnamese, obviously, staying in America, easy for them to come back to visit the people here.

FLOURNOY: Marketing the service has proved tricky for United. Many Americans, especially American Vietnamese, object to the name of Hochi Minhs City as Saigon was renamed for the communist leader. United is attempting to smooth this over by advertising the services to Vietnam or Hochi Minhs City also known as Saigon. United Airlines says whatever the label, the company believes the route will be a success.

MARTIN WHITE, UNITED AIRLINES SENIR V.P: This has huge sacrifice for United Airlines both from an economic standpoint and from a tourist standpoint, we're so proud to be the first U.S. carrier to fly a commercial flight in nearly 30 years.

FLOURNOY: Other U.S. air carriers may decide to follow suit. If United's venture is a success. Eli Flounoy, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: Will aviator soar when the Golden Globes nominations are announced or will Clint Eastwood and Hillary Swank know out the competition with "Million-Dollar Baby" our movie critic weighs in on what films and which stars should get tapped for the trophies. That is next on "CNN Live Sunday."

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have made it to Tokyo and starting Monday, exclusive reports only on "American Morning." We will talk about the future for the U.S. military here, we will talk with the U.S. Ambassador Howard Baker and our exclusive interview with the prime minister who just announced his decision regarding the future for Japanese troops in Iraq, starting on Monday, live in Tokyo, only on "American Morning." See you then.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: Hollywood is anxiously awaiting tomorrow's announcement of nominations for the coveted Golden Globe Awards. In the running among others are films about billionaire flying, Howard Huges, a boxing trainer and the creator of "Peter Pan." We turn now to New York where film critic and commentator Tom O'Neill is sifting through the hype. Good to have you with us.

TOM O'NEILL, FILM CRITIC AND COMMENTATOR: Thanks Erica. Good to be here.

HILL: This could be a pretty tough race. Let's start off taking a look at who or which films I should say you think may be up for best picture in the drama category.

O'NEILL: OK, this will be lead by the "Aviator" this looks like the big epic bio picture that Hollywood voters love, it is going to face against "Finding Neverland," Johnny Depp portrays the author of "Peter Pan." "Million-Dollar Baby" which is the last-minute entry in the race this year, a movie that Clint Eastwood had on the blotter to be released in 2005. He loved it so much it's in this race, it is a boxing movie, it is going to face off again with "Hotel Rwanda," the Don Chigal (ph) about the Civil War in Africa ten years ago and probably "Kinsey."

HILL: The list in general this year just seems to be a bunch of powerhouses, that is not to downplay of course the entries from years past but it seems this year we have a lot of competition.

O'NEILL: A lot of competition and a lot of bio pictures which have not done well at the awards lately but this year it does seem to dominate.

HILL: The next category we will take a look at best picture for a comedy or musical. This to me I would think would be incredibly difficult to vote for. Because some of the entries can be so different between a comedy and a musical, there is talk of maybe putting "Phantom of the Opera" up against "The Incredibles." How do you even compare the two?

O'NEILL: I know it's a hodgepodge category. The Oscars remember don't do this, they don't separate comedies and musicals from dramas. They make a valiant every at the globes but sometimes it's ridiculous. This category is going to be led by "Sideways," which is the little buddy art house movie that won best picture yesterday from the L.A. Film Critics Association and it's probably going to win the Globes as well. It is gong to face off against "Phantom of the Opera" which you have already mentioned and "Ray" the Jamie Fox movie about Ray Charles, "The Incredible" and maybe they'll bring back "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" from earlier this year.

HILL: Much earlier this year. All right moving along, let's talk about the people. Best actor, best actress, starting off with best actor, also a little "Aviator" action here. O'NEILL: Yes and we she a lot of heartthrob guys in this category who have never won Golden Globes. Which is unusual to think Leo Dicaprio has never won a Golden Globe? But he's the front-runner this year with "Aviator." Of course and he not only gets to give a full bodied performance as a kind of a matinee star, Hughes was in his day, too, but a crazy billionaire, so it gives him an advantage and an edge here, theatrically and he'll face off against Johnny Depp "Finding Neverland." And Clint Eastwood has never even been nominated for acting wards at the Globes. He has won twice for directing, he'll be in this lineup too, probably Lian Nielsen from "Kinsey" and Hovery Bardam (ph). Watch out for him in these Spanish movie "The Sea Inside."

HILL: Could be the underdog. All right we are going to have to move straight to the ladies. I don't want to run out of time without mentioning the women. And talk about a list this year, really some meaty roles out there for women.

O'NEILL: Yes, Hillary Swank is back a few years after "Boys Don't Cry," thanks to "Million-Dollar Baby," here is where she plays a want to be boxer. She is going to face off against Amelda Staunton, who has portrays a doubly British abortionist in "Vera Drake." Amelda Staunton has been sweeping the critics awards, she won L.A yesterday. They're both going to face off against, I don't have my full list here. Here we go, Audrey Tattoo from "A Very Long Engagement" and Julia Roberts from "Closer."

HILL: Talk about a list there. Boy it will be keeping you busy for the next few weeks. Well the nominations out tomorrow morning. Can't wait to dish more on those tomorrow. And of course once we're done with the Golden Globes it's on to the Oscars.

O'NEILL: All right .

HILL: All right let the fun begin. Tom O'Neill thanks again for coming in today. We appreciate it.

O'NEILL: Thanks Erica.

HILL: It's portable, durable and might just be the first gadget everyone on your shopping list can use. Straight ahead in Ali Velshi's latest adventure, the lowdown on USB flash drives and this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Colin Powell is everybody's favorite. We love him because we think he's the one guy in the meeting going, guy, guys, guys, we can't invade New Hampshire. It's one of our states.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: That is right a few late night laughs coming your way.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: If you haven't finished all of your holiday shopping, you might want to consider a gadget that almost everyone on your list can use. Portable computer memory may not be the flashiest gift under the tree but lower prices, brighter colors and increased storage, they might be the best gift this holiday season. CNN's Ali Velshi explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Take digital pictures? A good quality digital photo takes up about 1 megabyte of storage space. How about downloading music? That takes about 1 megabyte per minute. Flash drives make today's bigger computer files easy to carry around. OK, let's start with how to choose, don't be intimidated by what they are called. Some people call them flash drives, some people call them pen drives, key drives, thumb drives. They all do the same thing, they're all storage.

Look at this $13 bucks for 16 megabytes, 16 megs, that's about the equivalent of nine floppies. What if you have a heavier user on the list? Why don't you try this? Two gigabytes for $249. Two gigs is more memory than most computers came with five years ago. This is about 20 minutes of live video, it is also the equivalent of about 1400 floppies or 2,200 photos or 500 songs. A quick check of the Web turned up several 4 gigabyte USB flash drives.

OK you know how to choose it? Let me show you how to use it, it is really simple. Lets say I have this picture on the computer and I want to carry it around with me, I want to on my parents' computer somewhere else. So all I do is I take the flash drive and I want to put it into the one of the computer's USB ports. Every computer comes with them now. So you just take it and you stick it in like so. Now look at what happens on the screen. Removable disk e, that's the flash drive. So you take the file you're looking for, that one there and you just drag it down and now that picture is on that drive.

Now I take it out, and I take it anywhere I want to go. While flash drives are good on the road, they're useful if you're not going anywhere because they're good for saving important information. You can store valuable documents away from your computer.

Ali Velshi, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: Fredricka Whitfield is here with a preview of what's ahead on "CNN Live Sunday." Taking over at 6:00 p.m. today.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right at 6:00 Eastern, we know the Yushchenko, the Viktor Yushchenko investigation is just beginning, this after Austrian doctors say they've pinpointed now what has been ailing him. He's been poisoned by dioxin. Well now it's up to the authorities in Ukraine to figure out, say the doctors, just how he may have been poisoned and who might be responsible.

So we have a former FBI lead investigator that we're going to be talking to at 6:00 to help us understand where the investigation goes from here. Especially since it's now like three months after his alleged poisoning. HILL: It's been so long and it's fascinating, thinking it was in a liquid, possibly a dinner. It almost makes you think back, sounds like the days of having royal tasters in the court hundreds and hundreds of years ago.

WHITFIELD: That's right, and who knows whether they will be revisiting that kind of culture again. But for now, it's about the investigation. So that's at 6:00 Eastern. Then at 10:00 Eastern, perhaps you haven't finished your Christmas shopping? We have some ideas. I haven't even started.

HILL: I haven't either, good!

WHITFIELD: Well some ideas, perhaps a book, but not just any book. Maybe a treasure trove of books, and it's actually called, the book that we're going to be focusing on, "The Sinatra Treasures" and it is written by Charles Pinione along with there will be some exerts out of in that book as well from Quincy Jones and even Frank Sinatra Jr. and it is not just a book of stories from people who knew him intimately. But on each page, almost every page is like a treasure trove, like a little pocket of information. There are copies of sheet music.

HILL: I have it but I think I may know someone I can buy it for. You've already helped me.

WHITFIELD: It's a beautiful book, there is copies of sheet music, photos and even telegrams you know conversations he's had.

HILL: Well we will look for that one. I'll have to tune in to get other ideas.

WHITFIELD: It's a good idea for Christmas.

HILL: We will see new an hour. All right thanks Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right.

HILL: It may be the season of peace, charity and good will but not for the politicians lampooned by late night TV comedians, including one who joined our own Larry King. Here is a look in the week in the review.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At 5:00 p.m. on election night we should all walk outside and raise our hands for one of the two candidates, and just had a helicopter fly over. I just think it would be easier.

JAY LENO, TH TONIGHT SHOW:" And the president and Laura bush sent a record 2 million Christmas cards this year, one to each resigning member of his cabinet.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And you fail miserably. You need to go to Iran.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You wear the same shirt by the way, is that it?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Honestly that's the saddest part.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go to Wal-Mart.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I do believe I'm going to go home and change. This is like doing the walk of shame. It's as though I actually stayed at CNN overnight. I got drunk and slept over and now I'm doing the walk of shame from "Crossfire" to your show.

LENO: My mother was there and Bush thanked all of the people in California who voted for him. That's all it took was a moment.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Colin Powell is everybody's favorite. We love him because we think he's the one guy in the meeting going "guys, guys, guys, we can't invade New Hampshire. It's one of our states!"

LENO: John Kerry announced today he will go to Iraq next month. I guess he heard they were having presidential elections maybe he thought he'd win that one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Well that is going to do it for us. "Next@CNN" is straight ahead. Here is Daniel Seiberg with a preview.

DANIUEL SIEBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Ahead on "Next@CNN," a special show on the fast-paced big bucks world of video and computer gaming. Meet some people who play games for a living and others living their fantasies in the online world.

WHITFIELD: Thanks so much for joining us. I'll be back with the headlines after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com


Aired December 12, 2004 - 16:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Just months before a planned return to space, changes are coming to NASA: The head of the agency calling it quits.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Son, excuse me, do you have attention deficit? then sit up, look at me and pay attention.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Hard lessons from prison: a program gives at risk kids a real look at life behind wars.

And is Google on to something when it comes to internet IPOs? The New York Times magazine thinks it's one of the best ideas of the year. We'll also take look at some of the others.

Hello, thanks for joining us on CNN LIVE SUNDAY. I'm Erica Hill. We'll bring you all of that and more after this check of the headlines.

A bomb and bullets rock an Israeli checkpoint in Gaza. At least four Israeli troops were killed, seven other people were wounded. We'll have a live report for you on the violence from Jerusalem in just 6 minutes.

Marwan Barghouti apparently doesn't want to be the next Palestinian leader. While currently in an Israeli jail, he is bowing out of the upcoming election to pick Yasser Arafat's successor. Barghouti's decision leaves the field wide open for former Palestinian prime minister Mahmoud Abbas.

Ukrainian opposition presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko is praising his doctors and thanking them for saving him after his recent poisoning. New details on what doctors found out about the attempt on Yushchenko's life coming up in 12 minutes.

We begin now with what the White House thought was an ideal choice to head the Department of Homeland Security, but Bernard Kerik's decision to withdraw his nomination is now raising all sorts of questions. Lawmakers today wondering about the candidate himself and the vetting process that allowed him to be nominated in the first place.

CNN White House correspondent Dana Bash joins us with the details. Good afternoon, Dana.

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Erica. Well, the president started the day going to church just around the corner. And while there he heard a sermon about Christmas. And it just so happens that is the date that his aides are shooting for to find a replacement for Bernard Kerik, a new pick to head the Homeland Security Department.

And you're right, there has been a lot of hand wringing still, though, about what went wrong with Bernard Kerik. On the talk shows this morning, some Democratic senators were asking whether or not the White House lawyers dropped the ball, or why the vetting process was flawed in their view and whether or not and why the White House did not know that Bernard Kerik had a nanny that had questionable legal status when that is a big issue for any candidate, particularly somebody in charge of immigration.

Now, White House officials insist that they did their due diligence. And that Bernard Kerik was asked questions specific to this. And that they did not have anything that raised any red flags. And they essentially blamed Kerik and so does the Republican chairman of the committee that is in charge of confirming the homeland security secretary.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. SUSAN COLLINS, (R) MAINE: It is disturbing that apparently there was information in his background that was not shared with the White House. I know that the White House vetting process is a thorough one. I know for certainty that there are questions asked about domestic employees, financial matters, and legal disputes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: And the president's aides say certainly he is disappointed. That Bernard Kerik is somebody he likes very much personally, somebody who campaigned for him when he was running for a second term. But they also say that he's moving on, already looking to see who can be his next pick to run homeland security.

Some names that we heard the first time around that he considered are coming up again. There you see Asa Hutchinson. He now runs border seurity for Homeland Security. Mike Leavitt, the EPA commissioner. And the president's adviser inside the White House for homeland security, Frances Townsend.

But Erica, there is another name that passed the lips of many here in Washington, many senators from both sides of the aisle, and that is Joe Lieberman. He, of course, is a Democrat. Somebody who ran on an opposing ticket in 2000. But he is also somebody who has been aligned with the president in terms of issues on national security, many of them on homeland security, somebody who was one of the original to push for the idea of the Homeland Security Department when this White House actually opposed it.

Now, Republican sources do say that the White House has considered adding Lieberman to the cabinet in some shape or form, whether or not he will be asked for this particular spot is definitely still an open question, but a source close to Lieberman says that likely if he is asked to take a job like this, he would take it -- Erica.

HILL: He would be an interesting addition to the cabinet. Dana Bash, live from Washington, thanks.

BASH: Thank you.

HILL: Big news from NASA today. Top administrator Sean O'Keefe is stepping down from the space agency, possibly to take a job at Louisiana State University. He is expected to make an official announcement tomorrow. Our space correspondent Miles O'Brien is on the phone with us now from New York with details on O'Keefe's departure.

Miles, good to have you.

First of all, was this a surprise?

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (via telehpone): Well, I guess you could say, Erica, there was a surprise that Sean O'Keefe was there for as long as three years. When he first came on board at NASA, he came from the office of management and budget. He came in with sort of a short-term goal of straightening out the space station budget, which was skyrocketing out of control.

Of course, a year into his tenure, the Columbia tragedy occurred and that forever changed his tenure and extended his stay. He wanted to be able to stay until the shuttle returned to flight, but for personal reasons, primarily his oldest daughter headed off to college, Ivy League, we're told, he decided to make a move that would make it a little more financially possible to support that.

HILL: You mention he wanted to stay on until the space shuttle program was moving back towards the direction that it had been, heading back into space. What happens now to those efforts?

O'BRIEN: Well, those efforts will continue. But it is not an easy process, getting the shuttle back to flight. There have been repeated delays. And I think as he looked at it, Administrator O'Keefe realized there was no certainty that the shuttle could fly before the early part of the summer.

And given all of that, and given his concerns about his family and financial considerations, as well as the fact that that has been an incredible burnout job, tremendous amount of exhaustion involved in doing that job, he decided it was time to go. I think he would have liked to have seen it through, but that's not the way it happened.

HILL: So now, of course, the obvious question, who is next?

O'BRIEN: Well, I think it's unlikely there will be an internal candidate. I think the candidate that is chosen will be from outside NASA. There's all the lingering concerns about what led to the tragedy of Columbia. And someone who was inside NASA, involved in states during that period of time when the management really broke down at NASA leading to the Columbia tragedy would have a very difficult time being confirmed and would face a lot of scrutiny on the Hill.

So, look for someone with some experience in the space sector, maybe some military background, somebody on the outside.

HILL: All right, we know you'll be keeping an eye on that for us as well. Miles O'Brien, thanks again.

HILL: Welcome.

Turning our attention now to the Middle East where a bombing at an Israeli checkpoint in Gaza is being called the largest Palestinian attack since the death of Yasser Arafat. More than a ton of explosives, a tunnel and hail of gunfire made it a deadly day for Israeli troops.

CNN's John Vause joins us live from Jerusalem. Hi, John.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Erica. By all accounts, this attack was well-planned, well-coordinated and it was deadly. A statement released from Hamas said that 1.5 tons of explosives was packed into a tunnel about a half mile long which took them about four months to dig. The target here was an Israeli checkpoint, where Palestinians crossed from Gaza into Egypt.

Now moments after the blast, as rescue crews tried to evacuate the wounded, militants open fire with automatic weapons and mortars. At least four Israeli soldiers have been killed, at least six others have been seriously hurt.

In a video statement released within hours of the attack, Hamas said it was a joint operation with a group known as the Fatah Hawks. A military officer said the Fatah political party, which was founded by the late of Yasser Arafat.

Now, the month since the death of Arafat, hopes were high that the Israelis and the Palestinians were moving towards a lasting peace. It had been relatively quiet, but in the last week or so in the Gaza Strip there has been increasing violence.

Just today, Palestinian doctors say 8 Palestinian children were hurt when an Israeli tank shell landed in their school yard. However, the Israeli army says yes it did fire small arms in the general direction of the school, however they were firing at a group of militants and the Israeli army denies, infact, that a tank shell was fired -- Erica.

HILL: John, correct me if I'm wrong, but the explosion that happened here, the explosions in Gaza at the checkpoints that we were talking was actually at an international terminal that was just open for Palestinians going in between Gaza and Egypt. Is that correct? And if so, why target, specifically a route being used by the Palestinians? VAUSE: Well, this is a checkpoint which is manned by both Israeli and Palestinian security sources. However, the Palestinians go home at 4:30 in the afternoon local time, and the checkpoint closes down leaving in place the Israeli security forces. The first blast happened an hour after the checkpoint was closed down at 5:30 local time. And there are some reports of a secondary explosion which has not caused a great deal of damage an hour or so after. So, the obvious target in all of this, becuase of the timing, was in fact the Israelis -- Erica.

HILL: All right, John. We appreciate the update, thank you.

Now, an explosion also rocked a crowded outdoor market in the Southern Philippines today. It happened in General Santos City, the site of previous bombings blamed on Islamist terrorists groups. At least 14 people were killed in today's blast, dozens were wounded. It's the latest in a rash of attacks and mass kidnappings in the Phillipines recent years, most blamed on Muslim extremists.

The U.S. is trying to help, providing training and gear for the Philippine army. The country is a key ally in the U.S. war on terror.

In Iraq, the U.S. death toll grows again. A marine killed in Iraq's volatile al Anbar Province. Now it's the same area where a soldier assigned to the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force died in action yesterday.

Meantime, Iraqi authorities have a grisly task on their hands trying to identify 5 beheaded bodies found yesterday. Four were discovered in the town of Hasaw, the other in Balad.

Violence flared up again meantime in Mosul, where a suicide bomber attacked a multinational forces patrol while insurgents opened fire on the convoy. Seven U.S. soldiers were wounded. U.S. planes came to the rescue, dropping a bomb on the attackers. About ten were killed in a separate attack. Insurgents also trying to take over a police station in the city.

A new military operation is starting up in Afghanistan. Financial Times reporter Victoria Burnette tells CNN it involves thousands of U.S. soldiers based in a southern part of the country near the border of Pakistan. That's where Taliban loyalists and al Qaeda militants remain active.

Burnette says the goal of the operation: to secure the countryside in time for parliamentary elections in April.

Now earlier today, Afghan president Hamid Karzai told CNN's Wolf Blitzer preparations for the voting are going as planned.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PRES. HAMID KARZAI, AFGHANISTAN: Everything is moving on schedule. The election preparations are taking place. The political parties are trying to have as many candidates as they can, and to win the elections. The parliament will complete the section of Afghanistan, something we need very, very much to have a legitimate order established in Afghanistan. So, I'm looking forward to a Parliament and to a complete Democratic system in the country to emerge in another hopefully five to six months.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Mr. Karzai also said he believes Osama bin Laden is still in the region and will be caught sooner or later.

Now to Austria, where Viktor Yushchenko expressed gratitude today to the doctors he credits with saving his life after he was poisoned. It is the first time the Ukrainian opposition presidential candidate has spoken publicly about his harrowing experience.

Jill Dougherty brings us the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): His doctors by his side, his American-born wife Katrina acting as interpreter, Viktor Yushchenko gave no details about how he thought he was poisoned with dioxin or who had done it.

VIKTOR YUSHCHENKO, UNKRAINIAN OPPOSITION LEADER (through translator): I am very happy to be alive in this world today. And I thank these people for this.

DOUGHERTY: But one of his physicians shed new light, saying the poison was not detectable in routine forensic tests. And, thanking his medical colleagues around the world for working on a complex case.

DR. MICHAEL ZIMPHER, RUDOLPHINERHAU'S HOSPITAL: Regardless of any political backgrounds, who were helping us, who were consulting us to -- again, to clarify the difficult Yushchenko illness that has not been observed anywhere else beforehand.

DOUGHERTY: Yushchenko fell ill in September, as he was beginning his presidential election campaign. A team of doctors in Vienna said Saturday, there is no doubt he was poisoned with the toxic chemical dioxin. That it was likely administered orally in food or a liquid- like soup. And most likely in an unnamed third party.

Yushchenko's supporters believe he may have been poisoned at a dinner with the leadership of the Ukrainian Security Service. And claim the plot may have been carried help with someone outside the Ukraine, but provided no evidence.

As he left the Vienna clinic, Yushchenko said his orange revolution had already turned Ukraine into a different country. And the regime in power for 14 years is now living its last days.

YUSHCHENKO (through translator): We hadn't seen anything like that for the past 100 years. I think it would be appropriate to compare this to the fall of the Soviet Union or the fall of the Berlin Wall.

DOUGHERTY (on camera): Yushchenko now returns to the Ukraine for the repeat of the runoff election that was canceled by Ukraine's Supreme Court because of massive fraud. Doctors say he is recovering from the poisoning but could encounter physical problems down the road. However, his face may take years to return to normal. Jill Dougherty, CNN, Moscow.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: Call it tough love from prison.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Realizing that we made a mistake. And for us to step out and say now we're being held accountable for the things that we done. I think it kind of wakes them up too.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Inside a new program that looks to straighten out some troublesome kids before it's too late.

Silence at Target stores nationwide: No Salvation Army bell ringers there. Now, the organization that helps the needy during the holidays needs some help of its own.

And later, geering up for the Golden Globe Nominations. Which movies and actors should get recognized? Our movie critic weighs in just a little bit later on CNN LIVE SUNDAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: The Salvation Army's red kettle brings to mind Christmas for many American's. But this year's kettle campaign has taken a direct blow from Target Corporation. CNN's Denise Belgrave took a look at the ongoing flap.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DENISE BELGRAVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The flap over Target's decision to ban the red kettles from the front of its store is continuing to simmer.

MAJ. KENNETH JOHNSON, SALVATION ARMY: Well, obviously the decision that was made by Target was a real disappointment for the Salvation Army. And yet, when we think about it, we have to recognize that the Target Corporation has been very good to allow the Salvation Army to ring for so many years.

BELGRAVE: Shoppers and retailers are critical of the move. And some have even taken some action. The nationwide chain's BJ's Warehouse and Books-A-Million responded to the news by inviting the bell ringers to their store fronts. And New Jersey's acting governor opened all rest areas on the state's highways hoping to recover the $200,000 New Jersey shoppers donated at Target stores last year. In a letter to Target's chairman, the acting governor said, "At a time when the humanitarian services are most needed, I appeal to your sense of moral responsibility."

CNN requested an on-camera interview with Target, but the company declined. In a statement, the company said if it allowed the Salvation Army to continue, it would have to permit solicitation by organizations whose causes or behavior may be unacceptable to it's guests. The statement also said the decision no way diminishes the company's commitment to its communities, noting that Target donates more than $2 million per week to charity.

But for Alicia Brown-Cook, an Atlanta shelter manager, the decision still wrankles. Brown-Cook's a graduate of the shelter's drug rehab program. And has a request for Target's general manager.

ALICIA BROWN-COOK: To give it another thought. Just to forget about all of the people that have lots and lots of -- all of the children that have lots and lots of toys, all of the men and women that do have jobs. Think about the people that don't.

BELGRAVE: Denise Belgrave, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: Elsewhere across America, Michael Jackson's attorney in Santa Barbara, California, has no comment on reports that the pop star's fingerprints and those of the boy he is accused of molesting turned up on pornography magazines. The prosecution and the defense in Jackson's upcoming trial are under gag orders.

Friends of a comatose Florida woman at the center of a right to die controversy are celebrating her 41st birthday at a rally in Penelis Park. Terri Schiavo's husband is in an ongoing legal battle to have her feeding tube disconnected.

And no injuries, but some scary moments for dozens of Virginia Beach high school students on their way home from New York. Their charter bus caught fire today on the New Jersey Turnpike.

It may be kinder and gentler than the scared straight program, but the Maryland State Program, known as Impact, does expose at-risk children to the harsh realities of prison life. In fact, it doesn't shy away from confrontation.

And as CNN's Brian Todd explains, that might be just what these troubled kids need.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Oswaldo Santana's mom saw it coming. At just 13, he was already hanging out with the wrong crowd, coming home late, suspended twice from his Baltimore school. She feared he'd end up in a place like this, the maximum security state prison in Jessup, Maryland. So, she sent him here. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Welcome to my hell. This is the Maryland house of corrections. This is a maximum men prison. Real inmates doing real time.

TODD: Oswaldo joined about a dozen other students on this day to take part in the Impact program, designed to give at-risk kids an uncomfortably close look at prisons raw reality. It starts with a so- called greeting from a correction sergeant.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Excuse me, do you have attention deficit? Then sit up, look at me and pay attention.

TODD: Then it's off to visit the inmates, most of whom are convicted killers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm serving a life sentence for a felony crime. To be more specific with you, I'm serving a life sentence for first degree murder and the carrying and concealing of a deadly weapon.

TODD: For about 4 hours, these kids are indoctrinated to life on the inside.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ain't no secrets in prison. Ain't no secrets here.

TODD: Inmates here. And at other Maryland state prisons have spoken to some 4,000 teenagers over the past 5 years.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stand up. Name, age, grade.

TODD (on camera): Prison officials and inmates are quick to point out, this is not like the Scared Straight program that became famous in the 1970s. The idea here, they say, is to move away from intimidation.

One inmate put it best. He said if a kid comes from a broken or abusive home and you scream at him, you're just giving him what he's used to.

(voice-over): But that doesn't mean prisoners like convicted murdered Bobby Pringle aren't in kids' faces.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Anything you seen that you don't want. How you like that dorm you? Want to sleep with them 80 something people, beds that close to you, smelling their feet? That sound all good to you? How about that shower? You like that?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.

BOBBY PRINGLE, CONVICTED MURDERER: For us to step out and say now we're being held accountable for the things that we done.

TODD: Prison officials say there's no way to track how many kids they've saved, or how many fell through the cracks. At times, it appeared Oswaldo and others didn't get the message. Later, there was a glimmer.

OSWALDO SANTANA, HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT: There was a pattern that I started on right now and that I'm doing now that needs to stop.

TODD: Later, Oswaldo's mother told us he's walked a straight line since that day. Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: Anonymous letters have a community on edge. Words of hate targeting high school students. That story ahead on CNN LIVE SUNDAY.

And jewelry for your eye? Don't blink.

We also have retractable high heeled shoes for you. The New York Times magazine thinks these are the two best ideas of the year and we have a few others coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: It's that time of the year. Forget the holiday stress, we're talking about top and best of lists. They're all come out these days. In fact, in today's edition of the New York Times Magazine, folks there are looking at some of the best ideas of the year.

Think you may know what they are? James Ryerson helps edit the list forever the magazine. And some of the ideas might surprise you. He joins us now from New York. Great to have you with us.

JAMES RYERSON, NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE: Thank you for having me.

HILL: These were really some kind of wacky, out there ideas. I had a great time reading through the list. We're going to start off with one called acoustic keyboard eavesdropping. This is a little scary, though.

RYERSON: Yes, the idea here, or the discovery in this case was that simply by listening to the sound of someone typing on a computer keyboard, it is possible to reconstruct what they've actually typed. A researcher at IBM was able to record examples of people typing and he took advantage of the fact that each key sounds ever so slightly different than the others. And by running it through a sophisticated computer program, he was able to reconstruct what had been typed.

HILL: So one more reason to make sure all of your privacy software and firewalls are updated I would guess.

RYERSON: Yes. For sure.

HILL: Also on the list, Google in the lists the benign corporate oligarchy. What's so different and novel about Google's IPO?

RYERSON: Well, the benign corporate oligarchy, which was our name for Google's idea this year, is sort of the counterintuitive notion that shareholders will be better off, ironically, if they have less influence over the decisions and behavior of the corporations in question.

Google was very explicit in its IPO prospectus about this. They said that companies had been too open to the pressures of shareholders, trying to get corporations to meet quarterly targets. Google wanted none of that. They're not going to be releasing earnings targets. And they've diluted their voting stock so that they retain more power.

They're basic message is, trust us and you'll be better off as as a result.

HILL: Definite shift in the way things are done. Well see if it catches on. This next one I have to say, I love. In fact I'd like to volunteer to be a beta tester for the escalator shoes. And I think maybe our executive producer, Jenny, would as well. Talk to us about these shoes.

RYERSON: The escalating high heel shoe is a high heel shoe whose height can be adjusted with the simple press of a button. It was invented this year, I believe, by a graduate student in industrial design at Pratt, if I remember correctly. And the shoe can be as flat as zero degrees to the ground and as high up as 38. So if you want to go to work in a flat, but head out afterwards for a night on the town at 38 degrees, you just press the button and you're off.

HILL: And then you can press the button again so you can actually walk home and not take the shoes off, which is key.

I remember reading about this earlier this year, also on the list is skin-lit.

RYERSON: Skin literature is -- the idea here is to publish a short story, not in a magazine, not in a book, but in tattoo form. Shelly Jackson, who is a writer in Brooklyn, has written a 2095 word short story. And her goal is to get 2095 people to tattoo individual words from the story on their bodies, and as of this fall, she already had about 1,800 volunteers. Many of them she said are librarians.

HILL: Isn't that interesting. I wonder if next is the Dewey decimal system. Lastly, I this is all we have time for but when it comes to baseball, American league pitchers are more likely to hit their batters?

Yes, that was an idea discovery this year from an economist and mathematician, and their hunch was that, because pitchers in the American League never have to face opposing pitchers, that they never bat, they would have less sense to be careful about throwing the ball. They're ensured against any risk because they never bat and so the idea essentially was that they crunched eight years' worth of statistics and they realized that any given batter has between an 11 to 17 percent greater chance of being hit as a result of the designated hitter rule.

HILL: How about that? The things you find out. Well the full list can be found -- found rather in today's "New York Times Magazine." From A to Z, missing a few letters there but we won't hold it against you. James Ryerson, thanks for coming in today. We appreciate it.

RYERSON: Thanks for having me.

HILL: A landmark flight to Southeast Asia, the first time in nearly 30 years an American commercial jet heads to Vietnam.

And if you are our of ideas for Christmas presents? CNN's Ali Velshi shows us the gadget just about everyone can use.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: John Kerry announced today he will go to Iraq next month. I guess he heard they're having presidential elections and maybe can he win that one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: All right, sit down and get ready for a laugh. This week's edition of "late night laughs" just ahead.

ORELON SIDNEY, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I'm Orelon Sidney with a look at the cold and flu report. The very latest data from the CDC through December 4 showing some regional activity across parts of Alaska and New York also some local activity for parts of the south, the central Appalachians and back into the northern plains. For most of the nation, either no activity or very sporadic, which is certainly some good news for this time of the year.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: A quick look now at stories now in the news. A deadly day in troubled Gaza City. Where Palistian militants set off an explosion killing four Israeli soldiers. The blast was set off in a tunnel beneath an Israeli military checkpoint. The militant group Hamas has claimed responsibility for the attack.

NASA's top dog is leaving to become a by you Bengal. CNN has learned NASA's administrator Sean O'Keefe will announce his resignation tomorrow. O'Keefe is expected to leave his post at NASA to become chancellor at Louisiana State University.

An Arizona man who claimed ex-boxing champ Mike Tyson attacked his car outside the Pussycat Lounge in Stockdale last month has decided to drop his criminal complaint. The man said he was dropping the charges out of respect for the owners of the lounge and after being reimbursed for the damage.

High school is tough for many kids. It's a time filled with homework, peer pressure and of course, the always difficult task of simply growing up. For some Ohio students this year has brought an added pressure, the burden of racist threats. CNN's Keith Oppenheim explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The boys at St. Ignatius High School change classes like it's a typical day, but the sense of security here has been threatened because of what arrived in the mail. Eight letters came in November, letters filled with racist language and hate for black men who date white women.

School officials say the target of these letters was two African- American student athletes. Investigators believe because those students were seen in the newspaper posing in prom photos with white females, the letter writer threatened castration and death, and urged white students to stop associating with the two black students.

PETER CORRIGAN, ST IGNATIUS PRINCIPAL: It shakes the individual kids who think they're a potential victim.

OPPENHEIM: Another school, St. Edwards, got two threat letters the FBI believes is from the same author.

SPEC. AGENT ROBERT HAWK, FBI: What we're concerned with is maybe this behavior may become more aggressive and someone may get hurt.

OPPENHEIM: The FBI's Robert Hawk says agents believe these most recent letters are connected to at least 60 other similar letters sent to prominent black men in the last two years to players in the NFL.

HAWK: Actors, members of Hollywood, members of the judiciary, those kinds of people have received letters here in the U.S.

OPPENHEIM: Investigators say this is the first time they know that high school students have been the target of this writer's hate mail. At St. Ignatius, the letters triggered deep fears.

CORRIGAN: There was a larger scale level of alarm by parents of, you know, many minority students and athletes as well.

OPPENHEIM: Keith Oppenheim, CNN, Cleveland.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: News around the world now. The United Arab Emirates is the first middle eastern country committing to take part in a U.S. container security initiative. UAE has agreed to prescreen all cargo bound for the U.S. through the port of Dubai.

Police in Columbus, Ri Lanka (ph) are investigating a deadly grenade attack at a concert just hours after a violent street demonstration against the event. Police yesterday used tear gas to break up protest by Buddhist who wanted only religious activities on the anniversary of a leading Buddhist cleric death. Last night a grenade blast at a packed stadium killed two-concert goers and left five fighting for their lives.

The out come of Taiwan's legislative elections could ease tensions with China. The opposition party calling for closer ties with the mainland has dealt a surprising defeat to the president's pro- independence party.

Destination Vietnam, the flight takes nearly 20 hours from the U.S. West Coast, but in a way, it's a journey that's actually decades in the making. CNN's Eli Flournoy explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELI FLOURNOY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It's been nearly years since an American commercial airliner sat on a Vietnamese tarmac until now. United Airlines is adding Hochi Minh City to its international roster with daily flights from San Francisco. The inaugural flight was greeted by fan fair, Vietnamese girls in traditional dress. And the U.S. Ambassador Michael Marine.

Actor David Hasselhoff was on the flight to promote a charity bringing wheelchairs for disabled Vietnamese. U.S. commercial airline service to what was then Saigon grounded to a halt in April, 1975, when the United States severed diplomatic ties with the communist regime.

But since the U.S. and Vietnam normalized relations in 1995, trade between the two countries has grown steadily. The International Air Transport Association predicts Vietnam's air travel industry will grow 10 percent each year for the next ten years. United hopes to take advantage of the trend by appealing to California's large Vietnamese community.

HUYNH BANH YU, PASSENGER: It's very convenient for all of the Vietnamese, obviously, staying in America, easy for them to come back to visit the people here.

FLOURNOY: Marketing the service has proved tricky for United. Many Americans, especially American Vietnamese, object to the name of Hochi Minhs City as Saigon was renamed for the communist leader. United is attempting to smooth this over by advertising the services to Vietnam or Hochi Minhs City also known as Saigon. United Airlines says whatever the label, the company believes the route will be a success.

MARTIN WHITE, UNITED AIRLINES SENIR V.P: This has huge sacrifice for United Airlines both from an economic standpoint and from a tourist standpoint, we're so proud to be the first U.S. carrier to fly a commercial flight in nearly 30 years.

FLOURNOY: Other U.S. air carriers may decide to follow suit. If United's venture is a success. Eli Flounoy, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: Will aviator soar when the Golden Globes nominations are announced or will Clint Eastwood and Hillary Swank know out the competition with "Million-Dollar Baby" our movie critic weighs in on what films and which stars should get tapped for the trophies. That is next on "CNN Live Sunday."

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have made it to Tokyo and starting Monday, exclusive reports only on "American Morning." We will talk about the future for the U.S. military here, we will talk with the U.S. Ambassador Howard Baker and our exclusive interview with the prime minister who just announced his decision regarding the future for Japanese troops in Iraq, starting on Monday, live in Tokyo, only on "American Morning." See you then.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: Hollywood is anxiously awaiting tomorrow's announcement of nominations for the coveted Golden Globe Awards. In the running among others are films about billionaire flying, Howard Huges, a boxing trainer and the creator of "Peter Pan." We turn now to New York where film critic and commentator Tom O'Neill is sifting through the hype. Good to have you with us.

TOM O'NEILL, FILM CRITIC AND COMMENTATOR: Thanks Erica. Good to be here.

HILL: This could be a pretty tough race. Let's start off taking a look at who or which films I should say you think may be up for best picture in the drama category.

O'NEILL: OK, this will be lead by the "Aviator" this looks like the big epic bio picture that Hollywood voters love, it is going to face against "Finding Neverland," Johnny Depp portrays the author of "Peter Pan." "Million-Dollar Baby" which is the last-minute entry in the race this year, a movie that Clint Eastwood had on the blotter to be released in 2005. He loved it so much it's in this race, it is a boxing movie, it is going to face off again with "Hotel Rwanda," the Don Chigal (ph) about the Civil War in Africa ten years ago and probably "Kinsey."

HILL: The list in general this year just seems to be a bunch of powerhouses, that is not to downplay of course the entries from years past but it seems this year we have a lot of competition.

O'NEILL: A lot of competition and a lot of bio pictures which have not done well at the awards lately but this year it does seem to dominate.

HILL: The next category we will take a look at best picture for a comedy or musical. This to me I would think would be incredibly difficult to vote for. Because some of the entries can be so different between a comedy and a musical, there is talk of maybe putting "Phantom of the Opera" up against "The Incredibles." How do you even compare the two?

O'NEILL: I know it's a hodgepodge category. The Oscars remember don't do this, they don't separate comedies and musicals from dramas. They make a valiant every at the globes but sometimes it's ridiculous. This category is going to be led by "Sideways," which is the little buddy art house movie that won best picture yesterday from the L.A. Film Critics Association and it's probably going to win the Globes as well. It is gong to face off against "Phantom of the Opera" which you have already mentioned and "Ray" the Jamie Fox movie about Ray Charles, "The Incredible" and maybe they'll bring back "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" from earlier this year.

HILL: Much earlier this year. All right moving along, let's talk about the people. Best actor, best actress, starting off with best actor, also a little "Aviator" action here. O'NEILL: Yes and we she a lot of heartthrob guys in this category who have never won Golden Globes. Which is unusual to think Leo Dicaprio has never won a Golden Globe? But he's the front-runner this year with "Aviator." Of course and he not only gets to give a full bodied performance as a kind of a matinee star, Hughes was in his day, too, but a crazy billionaire, so it gives him an advantage and an edge here, theatrically and he'll face off against Johnny Depp "Finding Neverland." And Clint Eastwood has never even been nominated for acting wards at the Globes. He has won twice for directing, he'll be in this lineup too, probably Lian Nielsen from "Kinsey" and Hovery Bardam (ph). Watch out for him in these Spanish movie "The Sea Inside."

HILL: Could be the underdog. All right we are going to have to move straight to the ladies. I don't want to run out of time without mentioning the women. And talk about a list this year, really some meaty roles out there for women.

O'NEILL: Yes, Hillary Swank is back a few years after "Boys Don't Cry," thanks to "Million-Dollar Baby," here is where she plays a want to be boxer. She is going to face off against Amelda Staunton, who has portrays a doubly British abortionist in "Vera Drake." Amelda Staunton has been sweeping the critics awards, she won L.A yesterday. They're both going to face off against, I don't have my full list here. Here we go, Audrey Tattoo from "A Very Long Engagement" and Julia Roberts from "Closer."

HILL: Talk about a list there. Boy it will be keeping you busy for the next few weeks. Well the nominations out tomorrow morning. Can't wait to dish more on those tomorrow. And of course once we're done with the Golden Globes it's on to the Oscars.

O'NEILL: All right .

HILL: All right let the fun begin. Tom O'Neill thanks again for coming in today. We appreciate it.

O'NEILL: Thanks Erica.

HILL: It's portable, durable and might just be the first gadget everyone on your shopping list can use. Straight ahead in Ali Velshi's latest adventure, the lowdown on USB flash drives and this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Colin Powell is everybody's favorite. We love him because we think he's the one guy in the meeting going, guy, guys, guys, we can't invade New Hampshire. It's one of our states.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: That is right a few late night laughs coming your way.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: If you haven't finished all of your holiday shopping, you might want to consider a gadget that almost everyone on your list can use. Portable computer memory may not be the flashiest gift under the tree but lower prices, brighter colors and increased storage, they might be the best gift this holiday season. CNN's Ali Velshi explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Take digital pictures? A good quality digital photo takes up about 1 megabyte of storage space. How about downloading music? That takes about 1 megabyte per minute. Flash drives make today's bigger computer files easy to carry around. OK, let's start with how to choose, don't be intimidated by what they are called. Some people call them flash drives, some people call them pen drives, key drives, thumb drives. They all do the same thing, they're all storage.

Look at this $13 bucks for 16 megabytes, 16 megs, that's about the equivalent of nine floppies. What if you have a heavier user on the list? Why don't you try this? Two gigabytes for $249. Two gigs is more memory than most computers came with five years ago. This is about 20 minutes of live video, it is also the equivalent of about 1400 floppies or 2,200 photos or 500 songs. A quick check of the Web turned up several 4 gigabyte USB flash drives.

OK you know how to choose it? Let me show you how to use it, it is really simple. Lets say I have this picture on the computer and I want to carry it around with me, I want to on my parents' computer somewhere else. So all I do is I take the flash drive and I want to put it into the one of the computer's USB ports. Every computer comes with them now. So you just take it and you stick it in like so. Now look at what happens on the screen. Removable disk e, that's the flash drive. So you take the file you're looking for, that one there and you just drag it down and now that picture is on that drive.

Now I take it out, and I take it anywhere I want to go. While flash drives are good on the road, they're useful if you're not going anywhere because they're good for saving important information. You can store valuable documents away from your computer.

Ali Velshi, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: Fredricka Whitfield is here with a preview of what's ahead on "CNN Live Sunday." Taking over at 6:00 p.m. today.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right at 6:00 Eastern, we know the Yushchenko, the Viktor Yushchenko investigation is just beginning, this after Austrian doctors say they've pinpointed now what has been ailing him. He's been poisoned by dioxin. Well now it's up to the authorities in Ukraine to figure out, say the doctors, just how he may have been poisoned and who might be responsible.

So we have a former FBI lead investigator that we're going to be talking to at 6:00 to help us understand where the investigation goes from here. Especially since it's now like three months after his alleged poisoning. HILL: It's been so long and it's fascinating, thinking it was in a liquid, possibly a dinner. It almost makes you think back, sounds like the days of having royal tasters in the court hundreds and hundreds of years ago.

WHITFIELD: That's right, and who knows whether they will be revisiting that kind of culture again. But for now, it's about the investigation. So that's at 6:00 Eastern. Then at 10:00 Eastern, perhaps you haven't finished your Christmas shopping? We have some ideas. I haven't even started.

HILL: I haven't either, good!

WHITFIELD: Well some ideas, perhaps a book, but not just any book. Maybe a treasure trove of books, and it's actually called, the book that we're going to be focusing on, "The Sinatra Treasures" and it is written by Charles Pinione along with there will be some exerts out of in that book as well from Quincy Jones and even Frank Sinatra Jr. and it is not just a book of stories from people who knew him intimately. But on each page, almost every page is like a treasure trove, like a little pocket of information. There are copies of sheet music.

HILL: I have it but I think I may know someone I can buy it for. You've already helped me.

WHITFIELD: It's a beautiful book, there is copies of sheet music, photos and even telegrams you know conversations he's had.

HILL: Well we will look for that one. I'll have to tune in to get other ideas.

WHITFIELD: It's a good idea for Christmas.

HILL: We will see new an hour. All right thanks Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right.

HILL: It may be the season of peace, charity and good will but not for the politicians lampooned by late night TV comedians, including one who joined our own Larry King. Here is a look in the week in the review.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At 5:00 p.m. on election night we should all walk outside and raise our hands for one of the two candidates, and just had a helicopter fly over. I just think it would be easier.

JAY LENO, TH TONIGHT SHOW:" And the president and Laura bush sent a record 2 million Christmas cards this year, one to each resigning member of his cabinet.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And you fail miserably. You need to go to Iran.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You wear the same shirt by the way, is that it?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Honestly that's the saddest part.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go to Wal-Mart.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I do believe I'm going to go home and change. This is like doing the walk of shame. It's as though I actually stayed at CNN overnight. I got drunk and slept over and now I'm doing the walk of shame from "Crossfire" to your show.

LENO: My mother was there and Bush thanked all of the people in California who voted for him. That's all it took was a moment.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Colin Powell is everybody's favorite. We love him because we think he's the one guy in the meeting going "guys, guys, guys, we can't invade New Hampshire. It's one of our states!"

LENO: John Kerry announced today he will go to Iraq next month. I guess he heard they were having presidential elections maybe he thought he'd win that one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Well that is going to do it for us. "Next@CNN" is straight ahead. Here is Daniel Seiberg with a preview.

DANIUEL SIEBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Ahead on "Next@CNN," a special show on the fast-paced big bucks world of video and computer gaming. Meet some people who play games for a living and others living their fantasies in the online world.

WHITFIELD: Thanks so much for joining us. I'll be back with the headlines after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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