ot willing to knowledge any other interpretation of islam. >> we'll have to continue the conversation another time. good to see you both. that brings us to the end of this edition of "inside story". thanks for being with us. in washington i'm ray suarez. programme that is giving wealthy foreigners an opportunity to dream. >> i don't think we should be selling visas to people whose claim to fame is they have money adam may on a steady flow of new investment, or is america selling out on citizenship also, hundreds of millions spent on the fight for ebola -

now standing empty and unneeded. what happened with the predictions as to the outbreak of ebola, and is it over? the fight on the farm. how farmers are fighting back against animal rights watch dogs. should states step in to silence the squooelers. >> if i witness said that on my farm, i would be outraged. we don't tolerate that kind of behaviour good evening, thank you for joining us. i'm joie chen. we begin with an immigration fight most americans know little about. one critics charge is letting foreigners buy their way into the american dream and a path to citizenship. this is a programme created to promote foreign investment in the united states. it's become an increasingly popular avenue, especially for

chinese investors, with more money to spend and more interest in the valuable green card. "america tonight"s adam may found the money is rolling in in unlikely places. >> if you agree that economic growth is good for the people, then this is a good programme this man, johannes von trapp - yes, those von trapps - one of the last surviving children of the family inspiring the music. ♪ the hills are alive with the sound of music ♪ >> reporter: his family settled and opened a resort after fleeing the nazis in world war ii. now the famous immigrant family is part of a little-known controversial government programme that puts wealthy foreign investors on a fast-track to u.s. citizenship. >> i said it's a privilege to states.

>> reporter: for a half a million investment foreign investors can essentially buy a green card. the programme is called eb5 and a whopping 85% are from china. here is how it works - foreign investors and their families get green cards and eventually full u.s. citizenship by writing a half a million check to fund an american development project. it has to create 10 full-time american jobs per investor. >> i think the programme should be terminated. >> david north is a big critics. ep b.p. 5 programme. a fellow at the think tank, the center for immigration studies, he says eb5 is bad for america. >> becoming a permanent resident in the united states is a boon for whoever gets it. i don't think we should be selling visas to people whose

money. >> so we are brewing vienna... >> reporter: for the von trapps, they enrolled in the eb5 programme two years ago, to expand a brewery operating in the basement of an old barn of the resort. operation. >> five years after making the lager, they can't make commuf. -- make enough. >> johannes and his son see the building of a new brewery. >> why didn't you go through a funding source like a bank. >> when you have a vision, some things are difficult to fund. once a brewery is up and running, improving itself, it can be easy to take out a loan. >> when you typically borrow money from a bank. they want to be paid interest, white the brewery is not going

to to throw off cash. more imaginative financing had to be found, and the eb5 programme was ideal. >> this is huge. >> thanks to millions of eb $5, construction is well under way at the new von trapp brewery. working. >> it employed dozens of construction workers. once complete it will be staffed with more than a workers. >> this is fun. beer. beer. >> government estimates showed eb5 created 57,000 full-time jobs since inception. >> it goes and goes. >> these jobs, do you believe they are sustainable. >> the eb5 created jobs? >> yes, we do. we work with an experienced and conservative economist.

he could have claimed more jobs. anyone that invests, we want to make sure they get their approved. >> that is what hunter and his family hope for - permanent u.s. residency. they are in the u.s. on a temporary work visa. >> america is desire place. liberty, freedom, justice. equal to everybody. >> the wongs sold their home and invested $500,000 in a down-town los angeles redevelopment project. after a lot of paperwork and a 2-year wait, wong recently received approval for his immigrant petition, and will be getting his green card. >> for the eb 5 programme, we put the money in the states to generate the job opportunity. we have better position for next

generation, but we needed to contribute our, you know, savings. situation. >> i want to ask you about a guy i met, hunter wrong. he bought a house, paying property taxes, his wife is working. they are paying income taxes. don't they have the right to well? >> i rather they came at it in a different way. that sounds like a very attractive - and i might add - specialised portrait of an eb5 investor. >> you don't think the hunter wongs are the typical investors. >> i don't think so. most of them have more money. many are well to do in china, but nervous. and they don't necessarily want to come to the united states right away. they want the opportunity to come if things go bad. >> are you against the programme simply because it's an immigration programme? >> no, i object to two things. i object to the selling of the

business. then in addition, i object to a sloppily run investment scheme. >> north says too many eb5 investors blindly put their money into projects they know little about, and that don't necessarily end up creating long-term jobs. in south dakota are the federal bureau of investigation investigated a failed beef plant that left eb5 investors broke. in missouri, a zero calorie sweetener that promised 600 jobs, went belly-up. still well over 8.5 billion eb $5 from china and elsewhere have economy. >> it's hard for me to understand all the arguments programme. >> reporter: geoff carr is a hired economic advisor for eb5 programs including the von trapp brewery in vermont.

he said the best majority of projects are not only safe for foreign investors, but benefit the american economy. >> i'm not sure saying other projects didn't fail, but it's a small amount relative to the ones that are on the way to being completed. >> of course, the entire eb5 programme depends on one thing - people with money who want to move to america. for some, that's a concept at odds with america's traditional immigration story. hardly the tired, poor and huddled masses immortalized on the statue of liberty. >> we have an obligation as a country to take on the refugees. these are real obligations, and i don't think bringing someone in with half a million is an equal obligation. >> what do you think your 5.

>> i think my grandparents would think it's great. they'd like something that provided the opportunity for people to earn their money obviously, to move to a country with this much potential. >> potential that the von trapps are still trying to tap into adam may rejoins us. seems like an enormous project for the von trop family. how is it going for them? >> it's a huge project. they are nearing completion with the main part of construction. they are $12.5 million short. they are waiting for investors to get approval. that's a problem with the programme. there are people wanting to put their money into the brewery, but they have been waiting months, even more than a year. >> for americans looking at all this, we think about how many jobs this does create. can the government confirm how projects. >> the number of jobs is a critical component surrounding this.

that is the subject of an inquiry. i just got an update from them. they are looking at the programme. they are analysing it. that report is due out this summer, probably about june, and back in 2013, there was another government investigation that looked into this from the inspector general's office. they raved the question - is this programme creating the jobs and had beens -- raised the question, is this programme creating the jobs. >> it's not just immigration it's to do with building business as well. >> that raises the problem of who should oversee this, immigration or the commerce department. that's what some critics are saying, people with the financial background and the backbone to look at this with a critical eye and see if it's washing, is there a net outcome of this that is benefitting the u.s. economy, and do we need it recession. >> "america tonight"s adam may. thank you very much

ahead on "america tonight" - prime-time's big play. a former n.f.l. star's latest field. >> it is a world-class failure when it comes to academics. >> dion sanders, his prime prep academy, and its losing record. later - shutting down the watch dogs, a growing effort to stop animal rights activists down on the farm. >> because i was african american i was trying to fit in >> misty copleland's journey wasn't easy >> dancing gave me the opportunity to grow into the person... i don't think i could be without it >> now, this trailblazer is opening the door for others >> i wanna give back to ballet what it's done for me... >> every sunday, join us for exclusive... revealing... and surprising talks with the most interesting people of our time... talk to al jazeera only on al jazeera america

a lesson now from the school of hard knocks. when n.f.l. hall of famers dion sanders launched a charter school in north texas, he brought the neon dion identity to education promising under privileged kids academics and big-time athletics. it's a programme that now will be remembered for its losing record. michael oku visited prime prep last summer and follows up on prime-time's last play. >> reporter: charles coaches youth football in a part of forth-worth where buying a full set of equipment is a financial stretch for many families. his son is six, but he has hopes. he's letting him practice with the 7 and 8-year-olds.

that's why hibler was excited former national football league great dion "prime-time" sanders was starting prime time academy in fort worth and dallas. >> how are you doing, dion sitting with my business partner. welcome to prime prep academy. >> i thought it would be amazing because they were going to have the prep school, where they were dealing with athletes and education making sure a kid gets everything they need in their education and sport - hands on with hopefully a few n.f.l. ex-players that - that can't give you pointers. >> reporter: football is seen as a way out, a ticket to college and beyond. perhaps nowhere is that dream more powerful than texas. prime prep opened 2.5 years ago. a

tax-payer-funded school with no tuition and open reminded. the school is in dallas, the elementary school in fort worth. and sanders spoke about it on this video. >> when it comes to education, normally they have a great education and not great athletics, or the other way around. how do we marry the two? we allow the children the opportunity to compete. >> reporter: last season the basketball team finished 33rd in the nation, out of almost 18,000 schools. and the football team played in the state championship game. no small feat in texas, home of "friday night lights." but prime prep has not racked up wins in the classroom. >> it's a world-class failure

when it comes to academics. >> bob sandborn is a c.e.o. of a schools. >> prime prep is a school that when we looked at the schools in the north texas, dallas fort worth area, it came in last. the k through 5 part, in north texas, when we look at the whole state of texas, second to last. this is a bad school. >> reporter: and you can't blame the neighbourhood. the local elementary school, sagmore hill finished 730 spots higher in the statewide rankings than prime prep. children at risk says it does not have enough data to rank the high school. the n.c.a.a. which governs college sports has taken issue with the academic credentials of prime prep graduates, declaring two star basketball players ineligible to play in college because high school course work

at prime prep was inadequate. the players appealed and were allowed to play. >> the cases against this... >> this man is an attorney and member of prime prep's board of directors. he, too, was sold by prime prep's vision, but heard stories about athletes out of control. >> being unruly to the staff, teachers. leaving campus without permission. coming in when they feel like, not following rules. not having a dress coat. that hit home from me a little bit because those issues, this learning. >> we are talking about athletic kids feeling that they own the joint. >> that's absolutely. >> when the school moved to discipline the athletes, dion stepped in to keep them being

suspended because his image and reputation is connected to their success. >> my concern is we shouldn't have dion in a board meeting telling us what to do. it shouldn't be that way. >> reporter: the board is catering to dion sanders move. >> most specifically the members. of... >> the kids' education. >> reporter: prime prep had other problems. sanders received a misdemeanour assault after a scuffle with the school administrator in 2015. 200 laptops were reportedly stolen from the fort worth campus. and more than 45,000 of federal meal money was not accounted for. on twitter sanders blames his former business partner, dl wallace, calling him a crook and heartless, offering to repay $45,000.

dion wallace resigned in 2013. and didn't return repeated messages left on a cell phone. >> we wanted to talk to dion sanders. initially he agreed, but then said he wouldn't do it unless the reality show was there taping - something we couldn't agree to. on the reality show, his family, education. >> i'm in the hood trying to do some good. that's where we have to be on our game. we have to make sure the teachers are teaching, and the kids are acting like young men college. >> sanders school has its fans. at 6 foot 3, 300 pounds, 16-year-old john perk jens is a promising offensive tackle. he was unhappy and struggling academically at his local high school. perkins. >> we feel like he has some potential to play football. and...

>> on the college level or maybe a pro football player. >> yes. you know, pro would take care of itself down the road, but certainly i think he has got potential to play at some level at college. >> the perkins enrolled their son at prime prep in 2013, after a meeting with deion sanders. >> what did you ask him? >> we asked if he could grow our son, and that was academically and athletically. he told us he will grow our son. >> he said he could develop him, get the best out of him, which is what we weren't getting at the school he was in. >> reporter: john and lisa perkins said their son seemed better in school, on standardized test and his self-confidence has improved. >> i said thank you to dion sanders after he'd been there 4-5 months. he brought my son's smile back, his passion back. >> i'm very confident with our decision to send him to prime prep academy.

>> since we spoke with the perkins, their son transferred schools. they remain supporters of prime prep academy. for this couple, their hopes have evaporated. they decided to pull their son charles out of prime prep midway through the kindergarten career, saying the primary school offered no curriculum, books or personality teacher conferences. >> reporter: when you switches your child out of prime prep to the new school, did you get a behind? >> maybe three months we were there, we had two parent teacher conferences and he had a reading reward. in a matter of months he was at another level. >> the texas education agency moved to promote prime prep's charter. the state last week announced

it'd take over operations of the school, which could result in closure. the school's founder dion sanders responded in a statement on facebook saying: all this means prime prep parents and children face for uncertainty in what could be the school's final year. school adds charter has been revoked by state officials in austin. no one from prime prep, including dion sanders stood to protect it. it could be shut within weeks. after the break, the picture that tells the story. millions incident to stop ebola. why did the special treatment centers stand empty. later, standing up to the squealers. "america tonight"s sheila

macvicar on the growing number of states taking action to stop animal rights activists. >> a crisis on the border... >> thery're vulnarable... these are refugees... >> migrent kids flooding into the u.s. >> we're gonna go and see josue who's just been deported... >> why are so many children fleeing? >> your children will be a part of my group or killed... >> fault lines al jazeera america's hard hitting... >> today they will be arrested... >> ground breaking... they're firing canisters of gas at us... emmy award winning investigative series... fault lines no refuge: children at the border only on al jazeera america

now, a snapshot of stories making headlines on "america tonight". the great blizzard of 2015 hammered the north-east and delivered a glapsing blow to new york -- glancing blow to new york city. long island and eastern massachusetts heaviest hit. it brought coastal flooding, heavy winds and blanketed new england with 2 feet of snow a man that accidentally crashed a drone on the white house lawn works for the national geospecial intelligence agency, and said he had been drinking at a friend's apartment near the white house before the incident and thought the drone might have crashed on the white house grounds, but went home hoping it hadn't.

the incident triggered a white house lockdown two vander vilt football players were convicted of raping a girl in a dorm room. they were found guilty following three hours. vaneden burg brought the unconscious woman back to the dorm, and he took pictures as the assault happened. two others are awaiting trial this is not news we expected to report. nearly a year since the start of the ebola outbreak, there are signs of a turn about and urgent warnings about what lays ahead. >> this is the picture of a medical mystery. one of the emergency treatment units set up at the height of the ebola crisis, today sits empty. a far cry from the plague-light scene shaun casey saw when he arrived in august in the center of the hot zone. >> there were bodies in the

streets, ambulances going back and forth through town looking for bed space. >> the first weeks were a blur for casey and other aid workers arriving to help. families arrived. medical workers were becoming infected and hospital workers forced to turn desperate victims away. >> at one point the unit was full. we were talking about turning the morgue building into a hospital as late as object the world health organization predicted the numbers of affected would spiral to 10 times the rate of infection by a year. the c.d.c. predicted the number infected could reach 1.4 million by now, end of january. instead, over 22,000 cases have been confirmed, and just under

8800 deaths. from those first horrible days, aid workers like shaun casey have seen an almost mir abbing u laws turn around. >> many cases that came were confirmed. now, newer than 10% of cases over the last month have been confirmed, and we have not admitted a new confirmed case since late december. >> the impact is visible through the region. numbers dropped so low, that senegal agreed to reopen the border. and today liberia reports only five confirmed cases. the w.h.o. puts the current number of infected across the region in the hundreds. >> the big question everyone is asking is this: have these people by affected countries and international community turned the tide? the data tells us we have bent

the kufb and avoided the worse-case scenario. >> how, what made sa difference? one thing that helped, sphere. -- fear. >> when i arrived there was a panic. it led to health-seeking changes of behaviour. care. >> reporter: people began to let the health workers help, bury their own dead carefully. differently. >> in liberia, i have been here since august, and have not shaken a hand since i got here. >> reporter: outside help was welcomed. the u.s. pledged many millions for state of the art ebola facilities. they are now empty. the u.s. forces tasked to set home. >> even one or two cases can spark a rebound of an outbreak.

i don't think it was wasted money at all to put a lot of effort there for preparedness and to be able to respond. >> the national newts of health will launch a study on the ground in liberia. an irony is the sharp drop in cases will make it harder to prove if a vaccine works. experts say it can be effective. >> if there are ongoing cases a vaccine trial could prove that it does protect. depending on the dynamics of the outbreak over the next few months at best, we'll be able to prove that a fact seen is effective. at worse, that it is safe and induces a response that you would predict would be protective. >> reporter: the big fear now is complacency, with fewer new cases, raises concerns.

the community may thing the danger is over. >> it could be driven to zero, it would be a huge error to think it could go to zero. that's a single biggest error. >> gavin siner helped officials -- skinner helped officials here and in the united states. you helped us so many times understand what is happening here. the united states made a tremendous investment. we talked about 350 million plus set on emergency treatment. now we are looking at pictures of them standing empty. did we get wrong what would happen here? >> this is an opportunity to celebrate the interventions put into the countries. if you look at the number of cases, they have decreased. the numbers deceased, but the geographical locations, in the cities, towns and villages is amazingly large. >> it's possible that we are not

seeing that the disease is still spreading, still happening in pocketed places. centers. >> not in the cities. where the treatment units were built. the cases didn't exist a few months ago. they didn't exist. they could be used for maternal health, h.i.v., malaria programs, why they are sitting there with ebola patients. what we see now is these small number of reports of ebola patients across the country in a wide geographical area. >> we should not think it's over. we looked in the report. at one point we predicted 1.4 million by the end of january could be affected. obviously there is nowhere near the numbers we are looking at now. how could they be so wrong. wrong? >> shows how challenging it is

to come up with a mathematical variable. >> it gave us a range. back in september of 2014, the c.d.c. said themselves medical interventions alone will not decrease the number of ebola patients down to zero. >> is there a risk that the public will look at this and see the numbers that came into play and say "you people are chicken little. the next time you come and make a warning saying the disease will spread, or now as you point out the disease may happen in pockets that we are not seeing, you could be accused, the health community, being the chicken little and it may be difficult for people to take it seriously in the future. >> that's the story of my career in public health preparedness. you try to tell people. get your children immunized. go out there, especially in west

africa, where there was a doctor per 55,000 people. we have seen 500 health care workers die from ebola in the three countries. the knock-on effect, the lasting effect. maternal trial health. all those programs will suffer because of what it has done to the health commission in these countries. the public health economiee was wrong going into this. >> let's look at what we had. we have known ebola since 1976. the largest outbreak is 475,000 patients. did we believe we'd get over 25,000 patients. >> no. >> all these new things happened. what happened was when we - when we reacted to the initial ebola outbreak, we didn't use the tools and skills that we have. the world health organisation

has great programs, polio, tush tuberculosis, but didn't use the expertise into responding a disease cold ebola. it creates fear amongst myself and my colleagues that we have to address. >> we have learnt more about it in the united states. gavin mcgregor-skipper joining us, public health preparedness expert from penn state. >> you are welcome. >> when we return, a tactic to tame animal rights activists. >> "america tonight"s sheila macvicar reports on the growing state movements to silence agricultural watch dogs. >> looking ahead to "america tonight" tomorrow. fuelling a fighter's agenda. money. >> where did the oil come from? >> it comes from syria. they bring it across the river, talk it to their village, store it in their homes, and we go to their houses and get it from them. nick schifrin investigates the

blood money behind the rise of that's tomorrow on "america tonight".

in some parts of the united states filming animal abuse on a farm is now a crime. to protect the farms, some states introduced laws making it illegal to trespass on agricultural facilities and record activities that takes place. that makes it impossible to expose and save abused animals. washington state is the latest to propose the law. sheila macvicar reports that it's not the only one. some of the video in the report is disturbing. >> reporter: acting on a tip, the animal rights group peta sent one investigator then a second to record what was happening at a large operation in iowa.

over several months they recorded pigs beaten with rods, kicked repeatedly and a crippled sou receiving an electric prod. >> if i witnessed that on my farm i would be outraged. we don't tolerate that behaviour, and shouldn't. >> reporter: craig hill is a hog producer in iowa. at a family farm he runs with wife and sun and is president of the iowa farm bureau. >> you want happy pigs. when you walk in the door you know. as a producer you sense by their activities, and how they are behaving and their actions. >> in iowa's capital, the peta video prompted action from state legislators, but not what you might think. they passed a law aimed not at animal abuse, but anyone going undercover to investigate abuse. the law was authored by lobbyists for the agricultural industry, making it a crime

punishable by gaol time to lie on a job application at a farm. if you want to work at the job facility where peta shot the tape, you have to answer this question - are you a member of peta, hs u.s., the human society of united states or any other animal rights organization. opponents call the ag-gag. >> the ag-gag law is a misnomer, it's not about gag, it's about agriculture, and it's about being authentic. >> why did the farm bureau support the law? >> we supported the law because we didn't want individuals coming to the farm, applying to work, telling us they had a history in animal care. the intent was to capture footage or video that could be used against you and put you out of business.

malicious? >> i think it's malicious when they show up, intent on putting you out of business. >> pork is big business in iowa. the number one pork-producing state. this is in a state with 3 million people. iowa's bill was the first law in the u.s. since then six other states passed familiar legislation. idaho, montana, north dakota and utah, designed to prevent video taping without a farmer's concept. paul ship era is from the human society of the united states. >> this is a clear effort from the meat industry to prevent whistleblowers gaining employment at factory farming because they don't want them taking photos of routine animal cruelty, food problems and more.

>> the cow is alive. >> reporter: last year in utah, amy shot this video tape from the side of the road on public property of a cow moved with a tract outside a slaughter house. >> oh, no. >> the police were not centered in the slaughter houseworkers. instead meier was arrested and charged with a misdemeanour. agricultural misdemeanourful. detained. >> you are being detained. >> the case against her was dropped. court. >> that is what the ag gag laws are about. like peta the human society used undercover video like this investigation at a slaughter house. at a result of the footage, the u.s.

department of agriculture suspended operations. activists argue video evidence over time helps to establish a pattern of abuse. so important in criminal abuse. without the reported abuse, it's hard to get charges. >> in total i spent five years minnesota. >> reporter: ted is author of "the chain", a book examining pork production in the united states. he met us outside the hog operation where in 2008 undercover peta operatives spent months shooting hidden camera footage. >> the result of that investigation is that eventually there were six people who were charged with livestock abuse. and there were several convictions. and - which was the first case

of livestock abuse being success fully prosecuted in iowa. >> the first time. >> yes, the first time on a midwestern farm. video? >> it was critical. for the sheriff's department, what they were able to do was to come out and interview the workers, and to show them the video, and to say here is video of the abuse and what you have to say. >> reporter: shaun lyons was the first worker spoken to. we found him at his home nearby - unemployed and angry about what had happened. >> doing what i had to do. >> reporter: lyons told us he was mad at the peta investigators for gathering the evidence that cost him his job. >> i work side by side next to this dude thinking he was all right. here he was, filming me, trying to get me in trouble. >> reporter: iowa farm bureau president craig hill says

workers should get in trouble for abusing animals. >> you would hope in an individual witnesses that, an employee, passer-by, or someone in the community sees it taking place, that they'd report it, go to the owner and say "that's not right, you shouldn't do that." if you don't get a recourse, you go to the deputy sheriff. >> if the real issue and concern is for animal welfare, why not report the abuses as soon as they are seen. why carry on an investigation that can last for months, where the animal is abused. >> we would never ask undercover police officers to out themselves one or two days after beginning an investigation. we allow them the ability to continue their investigation sometimes for weeks or months to gather the evidence. >> when the peta investigator finally reported the abuse he witnessed to an investigator was fired.

and the initial investigator that contacted peta was fired when he complained too. >> these are facilities where the workforce is largely unskilled and untrained. you can replace people very quickly. and so it doesn't take anything that decides that somebody is being a trouble maker by reporting something and to get rid of them and hire somebody that doesn't complain. >> reporter: peta is unapoll getting about its agenda. it wants video like these to break-in an end to animals raised for food. the human society goals. >> the industry views them as commodities. the humane society of the united states views them as creatures that deserve to be treated with

a mode couple of decency and compassion. craig hill says farmers don't want animals mistreated. last year they launched the animal coalition with a hotline to report abuse. >> this is something that people miss. our goals are aligned. the better i care for an animal, the more healthy they are, the more productive they are. >> formers and the groups that watch over them have very different ideas about how to stamp out animal abuse, and there's no sign they'll see eye to eye any time soon. as we mentioned earlier, lawmakers in washington state are pushing an ag-gag bill, but it has strong opposition. opponents say the criminal activity addressed in the bill is illegal. under trespass and vandalism statutes

in our final segment - a heavenly brew. the prayer amongst an abby - the product should be tapped out. >> on techknow cars... the science behind keeping us safe on the road >> oh... >> oh my god... >> the driving force behind these new innovations >> i did not see that one coming >> techknow's team of experts show you how the miracles of science... >> this is my selfie... what can you tell me about my future? >> can effect and surprise us... >> sharks like affection >> techknow... where technology meets humanity... only on al jazeera america >> king county is going both directions with a low income fare of $1.50 and at the same time, fares will go up for richer riders to a high of $3.25 at peak hours. >> sort of a classically good-hearted seattle move to say

"you folks need to ride the bus... ride it for $1.50". is this in its own way redistribution? >> it's not just about altruism though, you know? it's about economic development. we need to make sure workers can get to work. it's about economic opportunity. >> in a transit system that has had 5 fare hikes in 5 years, price is a sensitive point. san francisco is the only other major metropolitan area with a similar two teired system, with 20,000 people buying half price fare cards. in king county it could cost 7 to 9 million dollars in lost fare revenue every year, plus a few million more for administrative start up costs. >> we're eliminating routes, we're cutting back service in some areas, there's pressure on the system in terms of money and we're saying "okay, we're gonna make things cheaper"... so it seems almost counter intuitive. >> yeah, well not everyone has the money to afford the kinds of fares we've arrived at in king county... we need 'em, we need 'em to bring in the revenue to keep the busses on the road.

>> there was no vote on this the policy came out of a county council comity. the new fares, higher and lower, start in march.

finally tonight - a survival story. when jams and preserves didn't cover the bills, a group of

monks turned to something more spirited to help make ends meet. it is part of a century's roman catholic order, only selling money made by their own hand. so they opened a brewery. we introduced you to them weeks after the brewery opened. now with a year under its belt, the business is booming. we head to spencer, massachusetts, and go behind the scenes the st. joseph's abbey. >> it's about hope and the future and giving us a new beginning. it's about survival of the community here. [ bell tolls ] >> this is one of the most precious things we have for me personally, because it helps me pay attention to stay alive and attention to the mystery and goodness that i'm seeking. to me,

the learning curve was 1 100%. my background is pottery. the brother with the idea brought me in because i could private that spect. >> tappist monk belongs to a religious order following the rule of st benedict, going back to the 6th century, and we were founded in 1098. we gather 10 times a day to pray, and in solitude. >> this is all bottled beer. the first batch was released and sold out in a day in the retail store. that is good and challenging, because we need to get more beer out to the

public. >> in our monastery we have 63 members. the oldest is 97, 98. the youngest is 27. it's a slice of life you might want to call it. in the united states, there's a total of 17 monasteries, trappists and trappist teams. we have monks and nuns. there are probably 160, 165 mon aft res in the world. -- monasteries in the world, and several thousand members, including the male and female branch of the order. >> we put the neck labels on, front labels on and we are kind of getting close to running it. we are about five weeks into conditioning it, trying to make it work. >> our goal is to be self-supported. so have we supported it financially. when we came

to spencer, we inherited a prized firm and we were farmers. when it was no longer viable. it. >> we are preparing the shipping carton one by one. it's one of my favourite machines. over here, we put a lot of cartons together. we did it automatically. it was fantastic. >> as time went on, our expenses out ran our income. we had to find a way to sustain ourselves. in a way we are trying to reinvent the economy and our capacity to live in this monastery.

which a whole generation spent their lives building. and there's a huge community of people who find home. >> when the idea came up, especially the younger monks thought it would be great. it would be more interesting than making jams and preserves. the older monks were cautious, because it's something new, and we don't know how it works and how does it fit in american culture and how does it reflect our values. all of that is important. when it came time to vote, it was presented in this room, and the results were 85-87% - an overwhelming majority, to proceed with this. >> here is something the monks like. the packer. when the carton comes down, packing it. puts the 24 button in. many of us spent years putting

six jars and jelly in the cartons for several hours a day. >> what is a big significance of our brewery is we are the first american trappist brewery, the first in our order of europe. >> i say traffic has a golden sensor. i drove people crazy with this phrase. there's a distinctive pace that communicates body, a wholesomeness. and has a really... >> when one is a monk, they are making a life-long commitment, meaning they stay in the monastery that they enter until they die. we have two happy occasions - the day he makes his fine vows, and the second is when we bring him to the cemetery, that's a happy day. that's when you complete your final vows. anything we do has that dimension that you give yourself totally to it. >> early on we looked for funding.

one of the first bankers "why are you doing this?" and he paused. and said "survival." . the banker said that's the right answer. he said most start-ups don't do it, but people doing it to survive have the greatest area of success. >> we think about the future. if you don't change, you won't go. the brewery is a symbol of something. it's high tech. it goes toot. the future will be different. it's important. >> that solitude and spirited suds. draft magazine racked it as one of the 25 best bears of 2014. that is not bad for a first year out. that is "america tonight". if you would like to comment on stories seen, log on to the website. aljazeera.com/americatonight. join in the conversation at twitter or facebook. goodnight.

we'll have more of "america tonight" tomorrow. >> >> announcer: this is al jazeera. welcome from he david foster to this al jazeera newshour. these are some of the stories in the next 60 minutes. young and old celebrate kurdish forces victory against i.s.i.l. in the syrian town of kobane as the fight to cut the group's major points is in iraq. >> greec