now, the u.s. attorney is deciding if he'll face the death penalty. the attack knocked the city down, but it was far from defeated. >> can feel like we're all boston. >> the whole country united with one resounding message. >> strong. not just strong. boston strong. >> that's it for me. see you at 5:00 eastern on "the situation room." "newsroom" continues right now with kyra phillips. and brianna, thanks so much. good afternoon, everyone. i'm kyra phillips. we begin with that fight over your privacy and how it's become a fight in the u.s. legal system. a federal judge has just ruled that the white house endorsed nsa program that digs into your phone records and is completely legit. legal. that's a 180-turn from last week when another judge called the nsa snooping program, quote,

almost orwellian technology, not so, says judge william polley. here's what he says. quote, no doubt the bulky telephone metadata program vacuums up information about virtually every telephone call to or within the united states. as the september 11th attacks demonstrate, technology allowed al qaeda to operate decentralized and plot international terrorist attacks remotely. the bulky telephone met adata telephone collection program represents the government's counter' punch collecting fragments and fleeting conversations to reconstruct al qaeda's terror network. joining us now, evan perez. what exactly does today's ruling ultimately mean? >> kyra, it means that you have two judges of equal ranks who have opposite conclusions based on the same set of facts, the same program that's run by the nsa. now, what this means is that the

nsa will keep doing this data collection. you know, the judge last week allowed the government to appeal, and today in this lawsuit filed in new york, the aclu says it will appeal. so it may take probably a couple years of going through the appeals process before we may yet see a supreme court ruling that decides this once and for all. >> so what happens now? where does this back and forth go next? >> well, as you know, the president appointed a blue ribbon panel to look at these issues, and they came to the conclusion that this program needs some changes. now, they suggest that the nsa turned it over to the phone companies and they store the data and the nsa has to go to court to look at it. now, the obama administration says this is something they're going to look at. the president says next month, he's going to decide or maybe make some decisions on what to do with this. but you know, this is not

something that's going to go away just yet. like i said, the supreme court may yet have to decide the legality of this. >> let me ask you because it was just yesterday on this program that we were talking about how president obama called al qaeda just a few months ago, a, quote, shadow of its former self. now the judge says because of al qaeda we need this snooping program, this counterpunch, so which is it? >> that's what's so interesting about the ruling. this judge is looking at 9/11, the failures of the government that brought on 9/11, that failed to prevent it. he's saying that this nsa program and this is an excuse, but this is a reasoning, at the nsa, for instance, gives for the reason the program exists, this judge says that this is a program that could have perhapsed prevented the attacks on 9/11. the judge last week in washington, he came to the opposite conclusion. he said he didn't see any reason for this program to exist. and he says that the government has to prove that it does anything to prevent an imminent

attack. again, differing conclusions based on the same program, the same set of facts. >> evan perez, thanks so much. new this afternoon, target with a stunning reversal. we now know that personal identification numbers on pins were in fact stolen along with credit and debit card information when target stores were hacked earlier this month. it was a massive data breach with more than 40 million accounts affected. so pretty huge news considering that it was just yesterday we were telling you about target, saying, hey, don't worry. your pin wasn't compromised. for its part, target believes the pins do remain safe and secure, but obviously, this has huge implications for anyone who shopped at target using a debit card. if you did shop at target, you probably should change your pin number. i did. well, more than a million people who are making ends meet with help from the federal government will take on yet another problem starting tomorrow. their jobless pay is ending.

it's all used up. you know, a lot of these folks have christmas bills coming, and who knows what other expenses. no two ways about it. some 1.3 million workers will start 2014 in a jam. tom foreman with us from washington. introduce us to these people and give us an idea of what exactly they're losing. >> yeah, kyra, let's click through a few basic kwequestion about this. who is being effected? 1.3 million people who have used up their regular unemployment benefits. they're considering long-term unemployed means they have been unemployed for more than 26 or 27 weeks. now they're in a special category covered by emergency unemployment compensation checks. when did the special aid start? that happened back in 2008 when the recession was raging away. basically, the federal government said there are too many people who are going to

struggle too long, and the economy is going to be hurt too much if they don't have any money to spend, so these extensions were added to the regular unemployment relief to make it last longer. it's been renewed 11 times since then. finally, they're saying there will be no more renewal. how much money are we talking about to these people? that's really what it comes down to. probably $300, maybe $350 for some people, per week. as a point of reference, if you look at the stats for a family of four, particularly with teenagers, anywhere from half to two thirds of $300 a week will go to food alone. let alone your transportation and your housing and your utilities and communication and everything else people need if they want to have a hope of getting a new job. >> information that congress started this program as a emergency response to the great recessi recession, but if you look at the numbers, the jobs emergency is over. unemployment topped out at 10%

in october. that's 2009. it's down to 7% now. so is the justification gone for continuing to extend these jobless benefits? >> i don't think really anybody here will argue that the additional benefits are helpful to people. particularly the people who are receiving them. there's also this question of how you count this. one of the issues with unemployment rates these days is so many people have fallen out of the workforce who aren't being counted anymore. i'm not sure 7% unemployment means the same thing today as 15 years ago when we were talking about much lower rates of insurance -- or of unemployment. the bottom line is, kyra, i don't think anybody here thinks the job situation is where it ought to be. everybody acknowledges that the people out there are suffering. the question is, how much money should the federal government pour into continuing this? obviously, some on the right say if you cut it off, it encourages people to finally take jobs, even if they pay less than they did before and start working

again, many people on the left will say these people are already trying to find work. they just can't find it. it's a very difficult situation which congress will take up again as they consider reopening this box as soon as they come back in january. we'll have to see -- >> you mean the do-nothing congress we have been talking about all this week, tom foreman? let's hope it's a better year, indeed, thanks, tom. >> right now, another story we're following for you in ant ark taw. this dramatic rescue operation not going as planned. here's the deal, the chinese ice breaking ship is within sight of the russian vessel that became christmas morning, but the ice blow is far worse than the rescue ship anticipated and a blizzard has slowed down the progress. the crew onboard the research expudishz did tweet out this picture saying their savior boat is just in sight. i think it's about 12 miles now, as well as penguins on the

bottom left. they sent out a distress beacon christmas day after the whipping winds pushed the sea ice around the ship, froze it in place, and onboard the paralyzed vessel, 74 passengers and crew. and one of the crew members has been speaking with us here on cnn. take a look. >> morale is remarkably high. we had a great christmas. we have just been incredibly unfortunate. deeply frustrated, not getting out to the open ocean. we were down here following in the footsteps of one of the greatest explorers on his antarctic expedition, looking at how much change has been in the vierlt in the last 100 years. we had a great day on the 23rd. the ship was heading north. the satellite data has been great the day before. just as we were coming back, the conditions were closing in. we moved as quickly as we could, but the ship just couldn't get through, and christmas morning,

we had to alert, someone please help us break out. we're continuing the work. we weren't lucky to be here. now we are here. we're trying to make the best of a bad bunch. we're looking at the life underneath the ice, trying to get to the sea bed. we're dropping microphones down to listen to seals in the area. >> amazing, so their work is still continuing as they wait for their rescue. a decade ago, i had my own expedition to the south pole. it was pretty darn amazing, and i got to witness exactly what this rescue ship and the two behind it are doing right now. the incredible process of cutting through the ice. we'll have more of that document "harsh continent" in an hour. how much do you think a flight from boston to honolulu is? if you were one of the lucky delta customers yesterday, it would have cost you 68 bucks.

>> and the same day a man dressed in drag hopped a fence in newark airport, another man was caught doing the same thing on the other side of the country. all the details next. and protect financial futures. to help communities recover and rebuild. for companies going from garage to global. on the ground, in the air, even into space. we repaid every dollar america lent us. and gave america back a profit. we're here to keep our promises. to help you realize a better tomorrow. from the families of aig, happy holidays. every weekend worked, every idea sold... ♪ ...you deserve a cadillac, the fastest growing full-line luxury brand in the united states. including the all new 2014 cadillac cts, motor trend's 2014 car of the year. get the best offers of the season

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once in a lifetime deal, perhaps the christmas present of all christmas presents. cheap airfares. i'm telling you, we mean cheap. delta airlines accidentally posted on its website ultra low prices for flights across the u.s. accidentally, okay? so if you were trolling delta.com just at the right time, well, you were good to go. we're talking first-class round-trip fares for as low as $13. cross country flights from florida to los angeles, $27 each way. it was definitely a dream for travelers. and of course, not so much fun for delta, who's going to have to basically eat a pretty penny now, but the airline says it will honor those fares. joining us, cnn business correspondent zain asher. what exactly happened? >> hi, kyra. it looks like the result of a pretty significant computer glitch. this happened a few months ago with united continental back in september, but there are reports that delta was sort of trying to

change the fares in their system by about $10 or $20, and then a junior programmer, we're hearing, may have made a mistake. that's how you ended up with a fare going from florida to los angeles for $27. but good news is that they did honor them, so certainly a very generous christmas present from delta to its customers. >> no doubt. okay, so i guess we'll probable find out more in the coming days. i hope nobody gets fired because hey, it was great for people who were traveling, right? so they were meaning to discount the flights. so that's good news, right? >> they weren't meaning to discount the flights? >> by $10 or $20. a little bit. >> they were meaning to discount them by a little bit, but this was actually a pure mistake, basically, but these glitches have become so common that a lot of savvy flyers search for them. so if you're looking for a flight that costs slightly less than the down payment of a car,

the important thing to do this is to get on the price alert lists. i have a couple. farecompare.com is a good one. it notifies you the instant an air fare changes. the site says it could be the difference between saving or overpaying by hundreds of dollar. let's say you're watching that florida to los angeles route, for example, you mentioned. maybe it was $400. farecompare would let you know as soon as it fell to $27. so other good ones out there, orbitz as well, travelocity, kayak. it's important to get on the watch lists, the price compare lists if you want to find out the next time the glitches arise. >> i see. take advantage of the glitches next time around. okay, now i understand. >> absolutely. >> zain, thanks so much. >> of course. well, the same day police saw a man hop a fence and run across the runway at new jersey's newark international airport, security cameras caught another man doing the same thing at phoenix's sky harbor airport. here's the video.

airport authorities say early christmas eveening, 49-year-old robert balk climbed over an 8-foot fence and ran onto the tarmac. workers spot him and he ran up to a southwest jet that had just landed. police say that he actually struck the plane's engines with his hands before they caught him working to the terminal. yes, that is his mugshot. the engines had already been turned off and authorities say he appears to be drunk and he really didn't have a motive. can we look at the mugshot just one more time? seriously, that is a mugshot of all mugshots. bump was not having a good day. next up, cnn has learned intercepted messages from senior al qaeda operatives are renewing concerns that the terrorist group is plotting new attacks. >> they're still capable of conducting attacks outside of yemen, including plotting attacks against the united states. >> here's a scary question.

could strepthreat kill you? or an infected knee scratch. that's the warning from one u.s. congresswoman over antibiotic-resistant superbugs. she joins me next. you make a great team. it's been that way since the day you met. but your erectile dysfunction - it could be a question of blood flow. cialis tadalafil for daily use helps you be ready anytime the moment's right. you can be more confident in your ability to be ready. and the same cialis is the only daily ed tablet approved to treat ed and symptoms of bph

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well, a car bombing today sent a shock wave through beirut. it left four people dead, including a lebanese cabinet member. no one has claimed responsibility. as you know, recent terror attacks in lebanon are widely seen as a product of the war in neighboring syria. >> despite losing commanders to drone strikes, al qaeda has been busy, gearing up for attacks in 2014. that's the story from the pentagon. here's barbara starr. >> cnn has learned recent intercepts of messages from senior al qaeda operatives in yemen are renewing concern the group is planning new attacks. the intercepts don't indicate certain targets but are described by one source as, quote, active plotting. >> there are multiple

indications that al qaeda in the arabian peninsula is plotting attacks, both within yemen, against u.s. and other western structures as well as overseas. >> the group in yemen already well known for the failed underwear bomber attempt to bring down an airplane christmas day 2009. four years later, the u.s. intelligence community believes it poses the greatest threat of an attack on the u.s. >> they're still capable of conducting attacks outside of yemen, including plotting attacks against the united states. in multiple locations, including trying to conduct attacks against the u.s. homeland, especially by taking down aircraft. >> analysts say the group rebounded in 2013 from battlefield losses. u.s. drone strikes have had mixed results. a drone attack this month failed to kill an al qaeda planner believed to be behind a plot to attack the u.s. embassy.

yemen says more than a dozen members of a wedding party were killed in that attack. yemen's al qaeda leader also advising al qaeda fighters across the region. and those al qaeda affiliates from yemen to syria, iraq, and libya, are growing stronger. the threat they pose worries key members of congress. >> are we safer now than we were a year ago, two years ago? >> i don't think so. >> i absolutely agree we're not safer today. >> in iraq, police are trying to crack down. but al qaeda openly operates training camps near the syrian border. and from there, al qaeda has moved into syria with weapons and tactics learned during the u.s. war in iraq. inside syria, a key al qaeda affiliate also stronger than a year ago. about 100 americans along with potentially hundreds from europe are fighting alongside thousands

of militants. >> if they were able to return to europe and to get access to the united states or return directly to the united states, they were not put on any watch list, they would pose a very serious threat. they're well trained. they're radicalized, and they have the ability and the intent to strike the u.s. homeland. >> analysts say the rise of the new al qaeda affiliates is part of the price paid for years of attacks against the old core al qaeda. many of those leaders are long gone, including osama bin laden, and now, the new affiliates have much more autonomy, much more freedom to operate as they see mitt. barbara starr, cnn, the pentagon. >> straight ahead, the mile high city is about to get, well, a little higher for some. in less than a week, marijuana becomes legal to sell for recreational use in colorado, and today, businesses became officially legit. plus, the winners and losers

in 2013 culture. the list may surprise you, and some people may be on both. our panel standing by with their favorite picks. this is the quicksilver cash back card from capital one. it's not the "limit the cash i earn every month" card. it's not the "i only earn decent rewards at the gas station" card. it's the no-games, no-signing up, everyday-rewarding, kung-fu-fighting, silver-lightning-in-a-bottle, bringing-home-the-bacon cash back card. this is the quicksilver card from capital one. unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase,

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2014 was quite a year in pop culture, whether it was the blockbuster return of beyonce or reality star scandals, the headlines kept coming. >> hunger games. would you like to be in a real one? ♪ >> 100 pounds a week, not 50, as in starting a new lab. you can cook all your own. why not? you deserve it. >> going to do the thing that god put ron burgundy on this earth to do. have salon-quality hair and read the news. ♪ >> stay close.

♪ and we can't stop and we won't stop ♪ ♪ don't take nothing from nobody ♪ >> oh, yeah. plenty of hype to keep people talking, but was everybody a winner? lonny love, comedium and cafe mocha host, and chris, commentator and vanity fair senior west coast editor. everybody loves a winner, guys. why don't we start there? your picks for 2013. david, kick it off? >> here we go. so miley cyrus. i have to tell you, i think miley is a winner. she's not exactly the young woman i would want my daughter looking up to as a role model. however, i think she's a big winner in the terms she made everyone look at her and say, you may not like what i'm doing, but i'm making a lot of money. my music is topping the charts.

"duck dynasty," i'm from louisiana, not a huge fan of what he said. however, can you be surprised? he's from north louisiana. i wasn't really surprised when he said that. it's what he believes in. i think he's a winner. i think a&e might end up being a loser. speaking of the south, ms. paula deen, wonderful cook, nice lady, but not quite sure, kyra. >> you're not allowed to get to losers yet. you can't. >> sticking with winners? >> staying positive at this half hour. >> "duck dynasty," miley cyrus. we're calling them winners. you agree? >> got you. even though she's not a role model. i'll get back to that with you. christa. i know christa loves beyonce. who else is a winner? >> aside from beyonce, i would say jennifer laur nls. this girl has become the world's sweetheart, from tripping on her way up to receive her best actress oscar, to having jack nicklaus flirt it wer however

and she's on a roll to cruise into another nomination for best supporting actress for "american hustle." her clothes keep us talking, her haircuts keep us talking. >> she's pretty funny. you also said robert redford. no one else made that pick. >> it may seem out of the ballpark, i have a 23-year-old and a 77-year-old, but i'll tell you why. he made a movie called "all is lost." it was him alone in a boat, no dialogue, and he was fantastic. he can't your attention for 90 minutes. on the flipside, he's celebrating the 30th anniversary of the sun dance film festival and that influence on film cannot be underestimated. it's incredible what he does. >> he's pretty amazing. all right, lonie, who were your winners? >> the pope is a winner, okay? >> yes. >> all day long. >> yes. >> i love this man. and i'm a baptist, kyra, okay? so i love him. also -- >> what is it about him? >> you know what?

he used to be a bouncer. anybody who used to be a bouncer and could become a pope is a winner in my book, all right? he does his birthday, and he eats with the homeless. i have a birthday, i don't even eat with my family, so god bless the pope. we need this right now. i love that man. he deserves everything that he gets. >> our girl is leaving the southern baptist church and going catholic. you're going to be our new vatican correspondent. i love it. david, now's your opportunity. losers. >> all right, here we go. paula deen. i think, kier a, the rebound, what she tried to do to make up for it, to say she was sorry was, you know, just continuing of what she did that was bad. i think she had a bad year. i think she can rebound. we like people who are able to rebound and start over. i think there's hope for her in the future, but she was a loser of 2013. alec baldwin, he finally got his butt tossed off the network. look, how many things can this guy say without getting in trouble? he reminded me of george

zimmerman. he was like the teflon man, nothing stuck to him and finally something caught up with him. both of them are losers for 2013. >> it was like he was playing his real character in "blue jasmine." lt, christa, you weren't too thrilled with the twerking dance craze, right? >> i wasn't, and i have to say, i need twerking to be done. unless you're a certified twerk instruct instructor, i dont want to see your twerking. i have had 2346. the other thing is i was a big proponent of selfies. i was excited about it in the start of 2013, and now i'm done with selfies. i don't want to see any more duck-lip selfies. i don't want to see anybody's behind anymore. all right, obama got into it, the pope got into it. i think that's okay, but enough already. no more selfies, please. and i would have to agree -- >> is it okay, lonie, the pope got in on selfies? >> i love it. whatever the pope does is fine. >> right. >> that's right.

>> big losers for lonie? i know you want to take paula deen downtown. >> oh. >> not too happy with your man kanye, either. >> ooh. >> yeah, that video, that video with him and his little honey, we could have dealt without that, okay, kanye? you can do better than that. the whole kardashian clan right now -- >> preach, preach. >> you know who are the winners? the winners or the wieners? you want to bring robert wiener and his selfies? >> the real winners from the kardashian clan is bruce jenner and lamar odom because they got out of there. and also, another loser, kyra, is that foam finger for that, you know, miley cyrus was using. that foam finger, that was abuse to the foam finger. that was a loser. that's mine. >> every mascot can no longer use the foam finger. every football fan, forget it.

you just can't go there anymore. lonie, david, christa, thanks, guys, and happy new year. >> happy new year, kyra. >> happy new year. here's a headline. could a cow kill you? it's the concern of one congresswoman who said the new fda guidelines for antibiotics in our meat aren't strong enough. and on your mark, get set, smoke. the first businesses got their recreational pot rilicenses tod. we're one week away from the grand openings. ♪

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how a cow could kill you. that headline grabs your attention, right? it's the title of an op-ed on cnn.com, and it got us talking this morning, too. here's the bottom line. bacteria, the germs that cause infections, are getting used to superpowerful antibiotics and becoming resistant, growing stronger. now doctors and scientists are warning that minor infexzs and illnesses could become deadly. here's how it all happens. strong antibiotics are placed in feed for animals. all in an effort to keep them plump and healthy. those animals are then used for food or their waste gets used on fertilizer on vegetable farms. then in the form of meats, vegtblg

vegtblgitables or fruits, they make it to your dinner table and inside your body. scientists say those never before seen super powerful antibiotics are actually causing bacteria to grow stronger and immune to treatment. joining me now from rochester, new york, congressman louise slaughter. you're not only a congressperson, but a microbiologist as well. forget the politics for a second. >> i can do that easily. >> i know you can. >> go into microbiologist mode now and tell me how i am, my family, not protected enough by these fda guidelines. >> because there's an absolute crisis that almost nobody knows about, and it's tragic. we have been trying now. this is about the eighth year we have been trying to pass this bill. we can't even get a hearing on it. congress, they don't care much, either. but scientists who know tell us that within ten years or maybe

less, that a scratch or a strepthroat could become fatal. the overuse of antibiotics by the medical profession is part of it, but 80% of the antibiotics produced in the united states are used every day in the feed of animals. now, not because they're sick but as you pointed out, so they'll be worth more at the market. the harm that that's causing is almost incalculable. let me give you an example of what that could mean. anytime someone has a joint replacement, organ transplant, dialysis, dental work, you get antibiotics to cut down the infrekzs. what if they didn't work anymore? what if all that science couldn't be used anymore. over 2 million people a year get sick from the fact that these animals are causing this -- bacteria rather, are still on the meat and are resistant to the antibiotics. the latest outbreak, over 500 people went to the hospital.

a larger percentage than normal died. many had sepsis, blood poisoning. the people who perused the chickens that were at risk here, claimed they didn't cook it. they blamed the victims, not themselves, and the way they processed the chickens. but what happened is costco did take some of that chicken and cooked it more than the recommended 160 degrees to 180, and still had to throw out 40,000 pounds because it was resistant to bacteria. >> let me address -- >> how do i address it? >> no, let me ask you about the political side of this. >> absolutely. >> this has been a concern since the '70s, right? >> 1977. >> okay -- >> so the fda itself said it was a problem. >> it found antibiotics to food animals at low dosed to promote growth and prevent disease could contribute to a health crisis. here's my question. it's almost 40 years later. >> yes.

>> why wasn't anything done? >> i have 400 outside groups supporting this piece of legislation i have been touting for three or four sessions of congress, seven or eight years. they all are saying the same thing. scientists all over the country are saying we have watched europe do away with the use of antibiotics in cattle feed and they're doing extremely well with it. but the lobbying against this bill, 12% of about 2 million -- $190 million spent in lobbying against this bill, comes from the growers and the producers. and the new guidelines that the fda put out for people who produce the animal antibiotics which are often the same as we use for people, have said it won't affect their bottom line at all. they're right. the fda guidelines have no teeth. they're asking them in three years would they kindly stop using antibiotics as a daily feed? there's no penalty if they don't and really no way to check, no metric to see if they do. >> that's because they're

voluntary guidelines, right? >> yes. >> and the fda says that's the fastest most efficient way to make the changes. i assume you disagree with that. >> totally, i disagree with that. so does all the medical professionals, most have all signed on to our bill and helping to support us. if we can't get the public aroused and if they need to be, i would like them to look on "washington post" article they printed about six or eight months ago on how chickens are inspected and ask themselves is that what they want for dinner tonight? >> point well made. appreciate your passion and thank you for being with me today. >> it is a crisis, and thank you for your attention to it. >> you bet. well, it may not be as bad as last year, but flu season is starting to kick into gear. the centers for disease control said today the number of states reporting widespread flu activity jumped from four states last week to ten this week. widespread means more than 50%

of a state is reporting flu activity. flu season usually begins in the winter months and peaks in january or february. well, coming up -- >> money does grow on trees and it's called the cannabis plant. >> business is about to be booming in colorado, where next week recreational pot is legal. what you wear to bed is your business. so, if you're sleeping in your contact lenses, ask about the air optix® contacts so breathable they're approved for up to 30 nights of continuous wear. serious eye problems may occur. ask your doctor and visit airoptix.com for safety information and a free one-month trial. i've got a big date, but my sinuses are acting up. it's time for advil cold and sinus. [ male announcer ] truth is that won't relieve all your symptoms. new alka seltzer plus-d relieves more symptoms than any other behind the counter liquid gel. oh what a relief it is. than any other behind the counter liquid gel. it's been that way since the day you met. but your erectile dysfunction - it could be a question of blood flow. cialis tadalafil for daily use

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bigger. state-licensed medical marijuana shops are set to open their doors to recreational smokers. today, the city of denver handed out the first licenses issued by the state of colorado. that means no prescription needed. just walk into the store and buy your weed. the demand for legal weed is expected to be pretty darn high. an cucabrera has the story from denver. >> the countdown is on. marijuana becomes legal to sell for recreational use here in colorado is less than a week. the state hoping to generate tens of millions of dollars in new tax revenue. businesses are seeing green as well. as certain pot shops already operating as medical marijuana dispensaries open their doors to a whole new clientele. >> the green rush here in colorado is about to get even bigger. this week, state licenses went out to local businesses giving them the green light to sell

recreational marijuana. >> money does grow on trees and it's called the cannabis plant. >> pot sales will be legally and regulated by state and local authorities. anyone over the age of 21 will soon be able to buy marijuana. 136 medical marijuana dispensaries now have state licenses to sell it. and 178 businesses can now grow it for recreational use. >> i kind of say we're sort of like the united states amsterdam. >> morgan runs canyon cult vashz. they make marijuana edibles, cr drops, and candies. she expects business to double. >> i hope people are responsible and don't mess it up for the rest of us. >> but cult vashz won't be ready for many places on the 1st. retail outlets had hurdles to get the licenses. fees up to $15,000 and

background checks. tony fox says she has more than a million dollars invested in her store. her store is one of only a handful expected to be ready for business on that first day. >> a year ago, i would have said i wish i hadn't done it. now, i'm very excited that i've done it and i'm looking forward to the future. >> a future she and the state hope will pay off that massive investment. it was medical marijuana that paved the way for this new retail surge, so a lot is rolled out on the existing infrastructure surrounding or supporting medical marijuana. including how the state plans to regulate or safeguard this product. and there are even stricter rules when it comes to recreational sale of marijuana. but keep in mind, the federal government still considers all this criminal. anna cabrera, cnn. >> thanks so much. victory today for the justice department as a federal judge rules that the national security agency was within the law when it collected massive amounts of

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famous boyfriend on valentine's day. a teenage athlete suffocated

inside a gym mat. a shooting spree inside a military base. we can't close the books on 2013 without a look at the year's most notorious crimes, trials, and mysteries. here's ashleigh banfield. >> number ten. >> we have a report that shots have been fired at the washington navy yard. >> the u.s. navy is telling us three shots were fired. they tell us an active shooter is still inside that building. >> former navy reservist aaron alexis, a military contractor, gunned down 12 people before police shot and killed him. number nine. the mysterious death of 17-year-old kendrick johnson. >> got some questions about the kendrick johnson case. >> i'm not going to discuss that with you. >> why not, sir? >> because our case is closed. >> his body found upside down in a rolled up wrestling mat in the high school gym last january. local authorities ruled it an

accident. kendrick's parents believe he was murdered. now federal authorities are investigating. >> we are kendrick johnson. that's my child and we're going to fight until it's all over. >> number eight. oscar pistorius, the blade runner. a double-amputee, beloved south african olympic athlete indicted on charges of murder in august for the shooting of his model girlfriend reeva steenkamp. he admits he shot her on valentine's day, but says it was an accident. his trial starts in march. number seven. california teen hannah anderson rescued after a week-long hunt for her abductor in august. family friend james dimaggio killed her mother and her brother and the family dog. their bodies found in his burned home. fbi agents killed him in a shootout. number six. a woman who needs no

introduction. >> you should have at least done your makeup, jodi, gosh. ♪ it might change my memory snlts ♪ >> her outrageous behavior in the interrogation room, the brutal murder of her ex-boyfriend, travis alexander, and x-rated details of their sex life gripped the nation. jodi arias convicted of first degree murder, but the jury could not decide if she should live or die for the crime. number five. a gang of bikers taking on an suv driver on a highway in manhattan. his wife and 2-year-old daughter inside. it started with a bump and moments later, this terrible scene. the driver runs over one biker. his wife says he was left paralyzed. 11 other bikers, including an undercover cop, are indicted. number four.

edward snowden, branded by some as a hero, by others a traitor. for exposing the nsa's spying programs in may. perhaps the biggest intelligence leak in u.s. history. charged with espionage, granted asylum in russia. number three, george zimmerman. found not guilty in july of murdering trayvon martin. >> help! >> do you think he's yelling help? >> yes. >> all right, what is your -- >> a tragic case that ignited questions about race. >> trayvon martin put race in this. >> no. >> you don't think that creepy ass cracker is a racial comment? >> no. >> a 17-year-old in a hoodie with a pack of skittles. enduring images from a case that's prompted cries for civil rights charges. and an emotional debate even the president weighed in.

>> if i had a son, he would look like trayvon. >> since zimmerman's acquittal, he's had a few other run-ins with the law. number two. inside a cleveland house of horrors. three girls kidnapped, raped, and held captive for more than a decade. but on may 6th, amanda berry, gina dejesus, and michelle knight finally broke free. >> i will not let the situation define who i am. i will live on. you will die a little every day. >> ariel castro sentenced to life in prison plus more than 1,000 years. >> i am not a violent predator, a monster. i'm not a monster. >> but ultimately, he would do himself in, killing himself in his cell. that was ten through two. this is number one. >> apparently, there's been an explosion at the boston marathon. i am told. >> a 26-mile, 385-yard marathon.

and it was wrapping up. wrapping up when you look at these devastating pictures right at the finish line. these are pictures that were shot just moments ago. >> double bombings at the finish line of the boston marathon on april 15th. three people were killed. 264 others were wounded. >> get them back! >> and days later, a police officer would be killed, another wounded. within four days, one suspect, tamerlan tsarnaev, shot and killed by police. then the manhunt for his brother, dzhokhar, that shut down the city. >> we believe that the suspect is cornered in a boat. >> tsarnaev arrested april 19th and later charged. now, the u.s. attorney is deciding if he'll face the death

penalty. the attack knocked the city down, but it was far from defeated. >> i kind of feel like we're all boston. >> the whole country united with one resounding message. >> strong. not just strong. boston strong. >> our ashleigh banfield, thanks so much. you can vote on the top ten overall stories of 2013. go to cnn.com/yir for year in review. and good afternoon, everyone. i'm kyra philfil phillips in fo baldwin. let's get into it. new this afternoon, target with a stunning turnaround. they say the personal information numbers or pins were in fact compromised along with credit and debit card information. when target stores were hacked earlier this month, we talked about this massive data breach with more than 40 million accounts affected. this has huge implications now for anyone who shopped at target using a debit card. for more now, we go to zain

asher at the new york stock exchange. just yesterday, we were reporting that target was saying, oh, not to worry. your pin was not stolen. now we have the complete opposite that we're telling folks today. what the heck is going on? >> hi, kyra. you know, target basically is in full-scale damage control mode right now. they're sort of walking this tightrope between having to tell the public the truth and trying to prevent a full-scale panic. yes, they're now coming out and saying pin data was in fact compromised but it was encrypted and they don't believe these hackers will be able to unscramble that data. let me give you an analogy. imagine thieves stealing a safe with your life savings in it but not having the combination code. that's what we're dealing with right now. the hackers did steal pin data, but target does not believe they'll be able to unscramble the data. it's very different from what we heard from them-year-o yesterda.

we reached out to them yesterday and asked what the deal was with pins. here's what they told us. they said to us yesterday, to date, there's no evidence that unencrypted pin data was compromised. no evidence is what they told us yesterday. they also added, based on our communications with financial institutions, they have not seen any indication that any pin data was compromised. you can see how cleverly worded that was. i was talking to a hacker, and i said, should people be worried royalty now? he said there's two things you should understand. first, target doesn't store the encryption key in their system, so that's good news, and they have one of the more robust type of systems so it looks good for target right now. it is possible these hackers could eventually get the numbers, but they would have to be very sophisticated to do that. >> for full disclosure, i

shopped at target at that time. i reached out to my bank and they told me, we're monitoring it, don't worry. don't cancel your card or change your card. i talked to them again today after this news. i was still told, hold on. however, at the first of the year, we are going to issue new cards, new pin numbers. so for everybody across this country, that's just my bank, zain, what should folks do besides monitor their account every single day, because what i have been told is that banks are going to basically not let its customers lose money. >> right. we have to understand that if there were any fraudulent charges on your account, you're probably not going to be libel for those charges. that's one piece of good news. also, if you did shop at target like yourself, kyra, between the end of november and mid-december, you might want to be better safe than sorry and cancel your card and order a new one. in terms of the pin data, target has emphasized pin numbers, they

believe, are safe and secure, but i think the damage has been done. pin numbers are important because they would allow hackers to withdraw money directly from people's accounts and check their balances, but they can still make fraudulent charges. if you shopped at target between those dates, it's better to be safe than sorry, cancel your card and get a new one, especially with debit cards. >> good advice. thanks. another story about your personalida data scoops up. thi this one, though, about the nsa, and apparently it's legal. a federal judge says the white house-endorsed nsa program that digs into your phone records is totally legit. that's an about-face from last week when another judge called the program, quote, almost orwellian technology. joining me to try to decipher this he said/he said set of rulings, jeffrey toobin and paul callan. what do you take away from

today's ruling? >> that this is a tough legal question. and very intelligent judges disagree about it, and it all increases the chance that the united states supreme court will have to settle this issue. it's worth pointing out, these two judges in one in washington, one in new york, were addressing the exact same question. is this metadata program legal? and they came to exactly opposite conclusions. the judge here in new york said it's legal. the judge in washington says it's illegal. both of them will be appealed. and we'll see what happens. >> all right, so paul, let me put this to you because just yesterday, we were talking about president obama a few months back calling al qaeda, quote, a shadow of its former self. but listen to what the judge said here. no doubt, he says, the bulky telephony met adata program vacuums up information about virtually every telephone call to, from, or within the united

states, but it represents the government's counterpunch to eliminate al qaeda's terror network. so this judge says because of al qaeda, we need this nsa program. so how do we reconcile these two statements? >> well, you know, the judge interestingly enough, addresses that specifically. he says we can reconcile the needs of liberty with the needs of security. he write a very powerful decision here. in which he talks about the 9/11 attack. he talks about one of the 9/11 hijackers in saying that if we had the information, the telephone identifier, that is really the subject of this metadata lawsuit, we could have stopped possibly the attack on the world trade center. he says the biggest enemy of liberty in the end is not having this information and allowing our society to be attacked by terrorists. so it's really a powerful decision saying we've got to protect the united states, and this is legal, what's being done. this information is not being

seized from american citizens. it's being seized from telephone companies and they own the metadata, and there's a reasonable process in place. very different from judge leon's decision, which of course, was the exact opposite. >> jeffrey -- >> kyra, if i could add one point. >> yes. >> what's especially confusing in these two opinions is that judge leon said, the one in washington, that this collection program hasn't prevented any terrorist attacks. it hasn't done any good. judge polley here in new york says it has prevented terrorist attacks. it has been helpful. frankly, i'm left puzzled. i don't know. >> we as americans, we haven't seen another attack, jeffrey, you know? it's kind of how we look at it, like, okay, we haven't been attacked on our soil since 9/11. >> there have been terrorist acts, the attempted christmas bombing in detroit. >> but thwarted. >> the shooting at the army

base. i mean, there have been attempted terrorist attacks. certainly nothing on the scale of 9/11, fortunately, but al qaeda is not gone. and judge polley in new york is making the point that it's not gone and it's still a threat, and that's why we need this program. >> so what do you -- well, paul, i'm curious. i want to know if you guys think it will go all the way to the supreme court? paul? >> yes, i think these things will and we should understand this decision was issued really right at the beginning of the case. there hasn't been any discovery or extentative depositions. this judge said there's no case here, and i'm dismissing, throwing the whole thing out. judge leon on the other hand said the case is so strong, i'm granting a preliminary injunction. these two judges are at total opposite end of the spentroom. when that happens, it goes up to appeal on the circuit court and eventually maybe the supreme court. >> jeffrey, you have written the book on the supreme court. you're our expert. >> i think the appeals courts

will get it first. if the appeals courts disagree with each other like the trial courts have, certainly, the supreme court will take it. but this will take quite some time. so i think we need to wait six months or so until we know for sure whether the appeals courts disagree, and if they do, then the supreme court will definitely take it. >> jeffrey, paul, thanks, guys. >> nice speaking with you. >> pleasure. more than a million people making ends meet with help from the federal government will have another problem starting tomorrow. their jobless pay is ending. it's all used up. that's the money to assist the chronically unemployed that didn't make it into the newly passed budget. president obama wants congress to try again next month. a person accused of sucker-punching an elderly man charged with a hate crime. now we're learning he was very specific about choosing his victim. >> and a chinese ice breaker on its way to rescue a stranded cruise ship in antarctica,

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the u.s. justice department isn't playing around when it comes to this game. i'm talking about a disturbing and sometimes deadly trend known as the knockout game. you're looking at an example of one of those incidents. typically, strangers randomly just sucker punch people on the street. they film it, and then they post the whole event online. the goal here -- to knock your victim unconscious with a single blow. now, that brings us to this man. conrad alvin barrett of texas. the first to be arrested over this knockout game. he's also been charged with a hate crime. and his unduing may have been what he said in a video of the attack that was posted online. cnn's margaret conley joining me. before we get to the video, what exactly is barrett accused of doing to his victim, exactly. >> kyra, knocking him out cold. there's a hearing happening right now in houston, texas. 27-year-old conrad barrett has been charged with a knockout

hate crime, assaulting a 79-year-old man. this is a federal charge. and the first federal charge we have seen for these knockout assaults. i have spoken to attorneys on both sides, the attorney for barrett and the victim's attorney. he said he's going to argue this is not a federal case. he said it's unconstitutional for it to be federal and it should go to the state. he's also going to say his client has been diagnosed as bipolar and he was off his meds the day the assault happened on november 24th. he says his client is extremely depressed right now. that's the defense. the victim's attorney and the victim does not want to be identified, the victim's attorney says the victim's recovering, but he's having trouble communicating. o'neill williams told me the victim, who was also a great grandfather is suffering physically from a loss of teeth and fractures in his jaw. he said there was a dislocation in his jaw when he was hit by barrett, but the harder part will be recovering emotionally. his said his client is having a

really hard time with that. that he's scared and frightened. kyra. >> there's a lot involved here, right? the race issue, the fact that this is a federal case. all the details surrounding what happened and also this barrett guy. >> that's right, very complex, kyra. barrett is a 27-year-old caucasian male. the victim is a 79-year-old african-american male. race is on the table because according to the federal complaint, barrett attacked because of the man's race and color. there's also apparently video of the attack with barrett saying that the plan, quote, is to see if i were to hit a black person, would this be nationally televised? we have seen a lot of those so-called knockout cases in the last year. they have been reported in illinois, washington, and right here in new york. the justice department says there have been knockout incidents as far back as 1992, but this is the first time we're seeing a federal charge, at least in the latest string of knockouts and the defense is going to argue that.

they want it to go to state. if it does go through, he could face a $250,000 fine and up to ten years in prison. if that does go through, that hearing is going on right now, we can expect to see if will go to grand jury in a couple weeks. >> anybody involved in this game should be held accountable. appreciate it. thanks. well, right now, in antarctica, a paralyzed vessel is wedged in an ice floe, and the rescue operation to free the passengers onboard has encountered a problem, a blizzard. the chinese ice breaking ship says it may take just a little longer to get to that vessel that became stuck on christmas morning. the crew onboard the research expudishz actually tweeted out this picture saying, their savior boat was just in sight. >> morale is remarkably high. we had a great christmas. we have just been unfortunate. incredibly unfortunate.

deeply frustrateed not getting out to the open ocean. we just can't break out. a change in wind direction to a more westerly direction, would help enormously. >> that's the leader, by the way, of the expedition. right now, the rescue ship, the ice breaker, is just about 12 miles away. and that may seem close, but the conditions on the harshest place on earth, well, they're always unpredictable. it was actually a decade ago that i traveled all the way to the bottom of the earth, the south pole, cutting through 6 to 8-foot thick sheets of ice. it's fascinating to watch. as you're about to see in part of my documentary "harsh continent" you're going to get a sense of what lies ahead for the rescue team. meet the u.s. coast guard's ice breaker crew of 2002. >> life at mcmyrtle station relies on a constant flow of supplies to its open harbor. a big challenge in a place where the ocean can freeze almost instantly.

pack ice like this, kept explorers away from antarctica for centuries. wooden ships were crushed by the relentless moving ice. today, the u.s. coast guard breaks pack ice every season in specialized ships like the polar sea. this is breaking the ice. cutting a 56-mile channel for a supply ship to bring in fuel and food. two of the most crucial supplies for winter survival. commander steve wheeler is executive officer of the polar sea. >> this is called staff cutting. we have the channel over here. what we want to do is run a parallel track and shave off big

chunks of ice between us and the channel. >> then next year when we come down and break the channel, it's fist-year ice, which is much easier to break. this is second-year. we have gotten rid of the first-year ice. the older ice is, the hotter it is, all the salt and dirt and whatnot leeches out of it. it becomes rock hard. >> how thick is this ice, commander? >> that's six foot out here. you know, every once in a while, you get an eight-foot chunk. >> i remember he made it look and sound so easy. but trust me, it's not. we will continue to follow that chinese vessel coming through to try to rescue the scientists, who, by the way, say they're still working on their research. well, up next, violence in egypt has turned deadly as police battle supporters of a newly designated terror organization in the streets. and google, apple, samsung, just a few of the big names in tech this year. so who are the winners and

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it has called off a planned offensive against a rebel group. the announcement followed a meeting in kenya of leaders in africa who plan to stand by the current government and also demanded both sides move to halt two weeks of fighting. the rebels haven't yet responded. egypt's government, backed heavily by the u.s., faced a stunning decision to outlaw the country's biggest political party. at least four people died as backers of the muslim brotherhood took to the streets to protest the party's designation this week as a terrorist group. the u.s. still backs egypt even after the coup last summer that removed their president with the head of egypt's army just weeks before the coup. washington said it wants a return to democracy in egypt asap. with us from temple, texas, the

associate professor of law at texas a&m university. how does egypt's military leadership justify calling the country's biggest political party a bunch of terrorists? >> well, unfortunately, what they have done is essentially closed the door to any political solution. which is going to cause the country to go into meore violence, and as you saw yesterday, there was a bus bombing. and extremist groups who may or probably are not part of the muslim brotherhood are going to exploit the situation to engage in more vile olencviolence, kno people will blame the muslim brotherhood. >> as we know, egypt's military is deeply beholden to washington. we fund them, we train them, we work together as allies. should we just assume that the u.s. is okay with what the egyptian military is doing? >> well, i hope that that is not

the case, because it will be a major misjudgment on the part of the american government and the american military. closing the door to a political solution to a political problem, by using military force and violence and mass arrests and mass designations is not going to lead to democracy. it's also going to spread, as we saw in the recent trials of three very well known and highly respected people from the movement for military trials for civili iaians and other blogger this is going to turn egypt into a police state. and in my opinion, lay the groundwork for another solution that will not be as non-violent as the one in 2011. >> we still can't forget the pictures from the square in 2011. is there any indication to you that the egyptian military will follow through with the u.s. demand that democracy be restored? >> i think the egyptian military

has a very vested interest in making sure there's a political solution, not a military solution, a political solution to this problem. so i hope that they're looking at their long-term future because at some point when the violence increases based on their escalation, it's going to come down on their heads. they're going to be held accountable. they're governing the country right now. they're the ones who deposed morsi on july 3rd, not withstanding many egyptians supported that, but they'll be held accountable. i don't think it's a wise move, and i hope the american government continues to advise them and tell them they need to engage in negotiations and mediations. they have to find a political solution to the political problem. >> professor, great insight for us today. thanks so much. up next, imagine this. you're going out for a nice, relaxing swim on christmas day. when suddenly, a swarm of piranha appears out of nowhere. it actually happened to people in argentina.

we have that story and the pictures coming up. and next, the winners and losers in the world of tech. smart watch, anyone? what do you think? winner or loser? what about smart tvs. we're talking 2013 tech trends, next. [ male announcer ] every inch. every minute. every second -- we chip away. with an available ecodiesel engine... and a best-in-class 30 mpg highway and 730-mile driving range... for all the times you dreamed of running away from home -- now you can. with enough fuel to get back. this is the new 2014 jeep grand cherokee. it is the best of what we're made of. well-qualified lessees can lease the 2014 grand cherokee laredo 4x4 for $359 a month.

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technology, we haven't always been the best at predicting what gadgets will be a hit, right? a western union exec once said telephone has too many short-comings. and one exec once said no one would ever want a computer in their home. that obviously hasn't stopped us from trying. 2013 brought us very cool tech and some not so much. we have three experts today to separate the tech fails from the tech phenomenal. brett larson is host of techbitis. christina warren with us, and scott signberg. we're taking a look at all the gadgets and tech companies. first gadgets that were your tech fabulous this year, and then we'll get to the tech fails. if one of your disagrees with another, i want you to chime in. but christina, i mean, just thinking that there were shortcomings in the telephone,

and not everybody is going to want a computer in their house, that's pretty hilarious if you think about it. >> it shows that anything we're saying today, don't hold it against us in 50 years, right? >> exactly. boy, have we come a long way. so, christina, the best, and then the worst. you start. >> all right, so one of my big winners this year is google and google glass. yes, it's creepy. yes, it's ugly. yes, you're going to look lick a glass hole, but it's also one of the coolest things we have seen, and it's kind of the future of this wearable tech stuff. no one could stop talking about it. it was in vogue, on the runway, so it's a huge win. it's one of those things love it or hate it, it was a big product we couldn't stop talking about. that's my first winner. my second is actually going to be kind of controversial, i think. i'm going to say apple. as much flack as everybody gives them, i think they had the best products they've had in years out this year. the iphone 5s with the finger

sensor is amazing. the ipad air is thinner than ever, and the mac pro is a phenomenal piece of engineering. i'm going to say apple really won this year. >> i'm going to disagree slightly with the assertion. i agree they have had some great things. i think it's kind of a hit or miss with apple. i feel like they're kind of starting to lose the game that they started. i mean, they created the whole concept of all of us carrying around tablets or made them cool, but i feel like they're starting to lose to the competition. the surface 2 sold out. the amazon kindle has just as nice a display. >> the surface 2 sold out because they cut the price by $500. come on, guys. >> all right, go ahead. >> there's also the bigger picture. it doesn't matter if you're buying from apple, sony, samsung, tablets have grown. the irony of not have agpc in every house, the argument to counter that is smartphones and

tablets are computers, they're just more portable and user friendly. >> scott, what was your favorite, then? >> my favorite was the growing sense of practicality and performance. we saw how more and more gadgets are much more easy to use, more practical, everyday features and everybody is doubling down on power and performance. as we saw even with apple and other manufacturers, it's not always the latest and greatest. it's what's most useful. >> scott, what do you think was the least useful, then? >> a lot of lot -- boy, way to put me out there. some of these connected tvs. i'm going to put them on the line and say a lot of the connected tvs because surveys were saying people were not using most of the features. they were streaming netflix, listening to pandora, but everything else went by the wayside. all these advancements cost millions, but they weren't a lot of practical. >> brett, what about you? >> i want to speak quickly to what scott said about the smart tvs. the other problem is people are

using things that give them good content. they're using netflix and pandora was those are two entertainment things. i'm not a fan of major league baseball, so i'm not going to use the mlb plug-in, but i may watch amazon programming on the streaming app. i think we dismiss a lot of technology for its not being very practical, but it's really just a conduit to provide entertainment or content, and when it's not used properly, it's going to die by the wayside. like beta, there was no content on beta, which is why vhs won. >> i go back to three quarter, so that's a whole other discussion. shows how old i am. >> interesting you brought that up, because that was another big loser this year, physical media. streaming, you can get it all digitally now. i wouldn't want to be in the business. i know music has been right sizing itself, but i don't know i would want to be in the business of selling cds.

>> bold prediction for 2014? christina? >> i think that the wearables are going to go mainstream. i think they're finally going to get attractive and i think we might see a comeback with physical media only because 4k is going to be a big tax on broad bndz and people might have to buy blue ray to watch that content on their tvs. >> scott? >> i'm going to say it's going to come down to as far as winners go, not necessarily the most performance oriented, but the most practical. it's not necessarily about the technology but the human elements, how we use it, who offers the most affordable and practical everyday convenient features. >> brett? >> i think we'll see big changes in privacy. people are becoming concerned with what the nsa can see and do with our stuff. the winner next year, the bold prediction, is whoever steps forward and says your secrets are safe with us. park them here, they're going to win next year. >> i tell you, all the gray areas with regard to the law, all the legal stuff we talked

about because of social media and technology, it's crazy. brett, christina, scott, thanks, guys, so much. >> thank you. >> all right. coming up, check this out. a van slams into the building at the georgia department of revenue, but it was no accident. we'll tell you what was going on. also later, i'm going to speak with the founder of this website, helpyourhero.org. the mission -- helping children faced with serious medical issues by turning them into superheroes. you won't want to miss it. [ female announcer ] who are we? we are the thinkers. the job jugglers. the up all-nighters. and the ones who turn ideas into action. we've made our passions our life's work. we strive for the moments where we can say, "i did it!" ♪ we are entrepreneurs who started it all... with a signature. legalzoom has helped start over 1 million businesses, turning dreamers into business owners. and we're here to help start yours.

it's hard to describe, because you have a numbness, but yet you have the pain like thousands of needles sticking in your foot. it was progressively getting worse, and at that point i knew i had to do something. once i started taking the lyrica the pain started subsiding. [ male announcer ] it's known that diabetes damages nerves. lyrica is fda approved to treat diabetic nerve pain. lyrica is not for everyone. it may cause serious allergic reactions or suicidal thoughts or actions. tell your doctor right away if you have these, new or worsening depression, or unusual changes in mood or behavior. or swelling, trouble breathing, rash, hives, blisters, changes in eyesight including blurry vision, muscle pain with fever, tired feeling, or skin sores from diabetes. common side effects are dizziness, sleepiness, weight gain and swelling of hands, legs and feet. don't drink alcohol while taking lyrica. don't drive or use machinery until you know how lyrica affects you. those who have had a drug or alcohol problem may be more likely to misuse lyrica. ask your doctor about lyrica today. it's specific treatment for diabetic nerve pain.

some of the hottest stories in a flash. rop udfire. let's roll it. take a rolook at this amazi vid yod from inside the georgia department of revenue. a van smashes into the building, narrowly missing the security guard inside. the suspects grabbed two atms. it took less than three minutes. police found the get-away car and the atms. >> in argentina, a christmas day swim turned out bad. a swarm of flesh-eating piranha injured about 70 swimmers including some kids who may have lost fingers in the attack. locals said an isolated attack isn't that uncommon, but to have so many people attacked at once is unheard of.

>> and a sal vashz army bell ringer emptied her bucket to find coins and a letter. it asked the sal vashz army to find a couple that was in love. along with the letter, a diamond engagement ring and a wedding band. >> a lady walks up to the kettle and she had a wad of money and was trying to push it in. we tried to help her, and she kind of didn't want any help. she didn't want us to see what was in the middle of the money. we opened the kettle and i kind of looked through and there was a note that when i opened the note, there were the wedding band set. >> now the salvation army is holding a contest to find a couple who can make use of the rings. the winners will be announced next month in time to celebrate valentine's day together. it was a hobby that turned into an obsession and now it's a world record. kevin silva has packed his bat cave with bat toys and other items. he said he started collecting the stuff piece by piece as a

kid. now the bat cave, which is really just his basement, holds 2,500 pieces of bat stuff. it sets a new guinness world record, too, and it's worth about $100,000. of course, superheroes are the good guys. they fight evil, but for some kids, the villain they're battling is a serious medical problem. now those kids have a way to become their own superhero and maybe get a little help in their fight. on helpyourhero.org, kids battling serious illness connect with kids just like them. they and their families can share stories, find comfort, maybe even help each other. jackie waters created the sight and joins me from cincinnati, ohio. first tell us how you help turn the kids into mini superheroes. i have seen the pictures and the website. it's been very cool. >> thank you. thank you for having me.

basically, what we do is with their parents' help, they can come on the site and we have a way for them to walk through how it works to see what superhero they would like to become. they choose their superhero caricature, their own name, and they even name their nemesis. then we create a superheroes headquarters for them where they're able to share their real-life story as much as they like. and also to create their superhero story. so it's really exciting to be able to give them an opportunity to be able to go into this, what we call heroverse, this fixzal place where they can go in and become the superhero and take on their nemesis, which is of course the medical condition. >> what a creative way to work through this. and have a therapeutic experience. and this was all inspired through your sister, right? you recently lost her. tell me about her and how your relationship led to this fabulous project.

>> well, she was diagnosed when she was seven months pregnant in 1991. and fortunately, she was able to deliver a healthy baby boy a month later. and at the time, she was told that out of 15 documented cases, no one had survived the type of tumor, which was a rare brain cancer. and when that happened, of course, you're devastated. this is before the internet, but the doctor said don't go to the library, whatever you do. it's not good news. so tracy took on a belief that she was going to overcome this, you know, diagnosis and do whatever she had to. she had a newborn, austin, and then a 3-year-old, chaz, at home. and she had to take this on and, you know, with the belief she was going to beat it. so at that time in 1991, we had seen so many people come forward and want to do anything they could to help tracy and our family, so we began a journey 22

year said ago of paying it forward. tracy said, how are we going to pay all these people back? i said, we're not, at the time, pay it forward wasn't a coined saying, but now it is. i said we're going to pay back the people who need it. throughout her journey of this really rare cancer, she just kept the belief she was going to beat it. then when it came back in 2000, she actually said, i need to be made of steel. i need to take on this with a different perspective of i need to be strong for everybody else. i'm like, strong for everybody else? you know, you're the one going through this. she said no, i want to be strong for mire boys, because they were older at the time. and all of us, all of her family and friends. she put on superman pajamas and went in for her third brain surgery and said i'm made of steel, and nicknamed herself. this is when jennifer lopez came out with her nickname of j. lo, and tracy heard her say that, and she's like, j. lo.

t.sy. so she became known as superwoman t.sy. awesome, as hard as it is not to have her here, she is the inspiration behind help your hero because we wanted to pay it forward in a big way for what somebody did for us. she's here with me all the time, and she's just made help your hero to what we're even hoping to help so many people with what we have to offer. >> yeah. her spirit is definitely working within you. that's for sure. jackie, what an absolutely amazing project. thanks for inspiring us today. really appreciate you, jackie. >> no problem. thank you for having us. we appreciate it. at help your hero, we can't cure medical conditions, but we can help the how can i help my hero condition. >> next, hundreds of thousands of people have been without power for days. no sign of relief, and a new storm is about to make matters

worse. we'll update you next. i'm nathan and i quit smoking with chantix. when my son was born, i remember, you know, picking him up and holding him against me. it wasn't just about me anymore. i had to quit. [ male announcer ] along with support, chantix (varenicline) is proven to help people quit smoking. it reduces the urge to smoke. chantix didn't have nicotine in it, and that was important to me. [ male announcer ] some people had changes in behavior, thinking or mood, hostility, agitation, depressed mood and suicidal thoughts or actions while taking or after stopping chantix. if you notice any of these, stop chantix and call your doctor right away. tell your doctor about

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hundreds of thousands of people have been without power for days. 14 people are reported dead. jennifer gray in the cnn weather center. is it showing any sign of letting up? >> yeah, temperatures are actually going towarm up briefly. there's only a couple days, though. we have a tiny window where temperatures will be above

freezing in the north. we have 38 in detroit right now, and syracuse hitting freezing at 32. temperatures are going to stay just a little bit warmer for the next couple of days. burlington finally hitting 36 by saturday. but then on sunday, back to 32. we're also going to see temperatures in maine hit 35, but then plunging again on sunday at 25. so temperatures do get above freezing. detroit should stay above freezing all the way through sunday. this is our next storm system that's already setting up and it's going to spread rain all across the deep south. saturday morning and then into sunday morning. you can see atlanta right here, already under a flood watch for the weekend. and then it's going to ride up the mid-atlantic sunday morning through sunday afternoon. you can see dumping quite a bit of rain across new york city, boston. good news, it looks like it's mainly going to be a rain maker. we could see an icy mix, a little snow, but it's going to be confined to the northeast. we could see quite a bit of snow

across portions of maine, but 2 to 5 inches in places like vermont, new hampshire, really not all that bad. so it looks like it's going to be mainly a rain event. around atlanta, we could pick up 1 to 3 inches of rain. could see isolated amounts, even more, 1 to 2 inches in the carolinas and across the deep south, could see 2 to 3 inches of rain with this system. so as of today, though, really not much going on. we are seeing a little bit of lake effect snow still going on in upstate new york. that's really it. we'll be tracking the system through the weekend, but the good news is it looks like it's mainly going to be rain. >> all right, jennifer, thanks. >> oscar pistorius on trial for the murder of his girlfriend. the birth of a new baby royal. violence, political upheaval, and the word welcomes a new pope. just some of the top international stories of the year we're counting down for you next. i need you. i feel so alone. but you're not alone.

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2013, the world welcomed a new british heir and said good-bye to a leader who inspired the world with his calm, courage and strength. those were just two of the top international stories that we witnessed. all together this year. >> number ten -- >> we're getting word of a deadly shooting involving international sports icon oscar pistorius and his model girlfriend. >> the olympian admits to

shooting reeva steenkamp in his lavish south african home on valentine's day. but he says it was all an accident. >> oscar pistorius appearing before the magistrate. he was clearly upset, at times sobbing, crying. >> pistorius, nicknamed blade runner for the prosthetic legs he uses for sprinting, was charged with premeditated murder. he's fighting that charge, saying he mistook steenkamp for an intruder. number nine. the royal announcement heard around the world. >> the duchess of cambridge was safely delivered of a son at 4:24 p.m. local time. >> the fountains of trafalger square illuminated in blue light. >> the new royal heir in the united kingdom. >> baby george was born in july to prince william and his wife, kate. number eight -- >> tens of thousands of people have poured on to the streets in

what is another demonstration against the government. >> about a year after the arab spring ushered in egypt's first democratically elected president, mohammed morsi is then ousted in a military coup. many egyptians frustrated by what they saw as the slow pace of change, and the rise of islamic fundamentalism. number seven, after decades of distrust and a diplomatic gridlock, there's a thaw with iran. >> the phone call that's making history. president obama called iran's new president rouhani. >> in november, a breakthrough in geneva. >> a deal has been reached, a deal involving iran and six world powers. >> the preliminary deal limits iran's ability to work towards a nuclear weapon and loosens some international sanctions. critics say it doesn't go far enough. number six. >> all around us you hear the sounds of windows breaking. you hear the sounds of large objects falling, crashing to the

floor. >> typhoon hiyan wipes out entire towns in the philippines. one of the strongest storms to hit any country ever. >> the smells are overwhelming. the smell of death, the smell of decay. >> more than 5,000 people killed. number five, terror at a mall in kenya. gunmen opened fire, killing dozens and taking many hostages. >> everyone here in nairobi is on a razor's edge. i'm standing just a short distance away from the westgate mall that is under siege, in its third day. >> surveillance cameras capture this chilling video of gunmen shooting their way through a supermarket in the mall, and al qaeda affiliate al shabaab claims responsibility. number four, grief and gratitude as the world says good-bye to nelson mandela. >> he's now at peace. >> the former south african president and nobel peace prize

laureate died at the age of 95. >> behind me, you can see a crowd. they have been dancing and singing almost nonstop since the news came. >> his life celebrated for ending apartheid and creating a democratic and inclusive south africa. for ten days, south africans and dignitaries from around the world honored the man who taught the world about compassion, patience, reconciliation and freedom. >> now we see nelson mandela making that final journey. >> number three, the person who says he leaked top secret information about a u.s. government surveillance program has emerged from the shadows and identified himself. >> my name's ed snowden. >> the u.s. manhunt for edward snowden turns into an international game of cat and mouse. >> the man who has been spilling u.s. intelligence secrets is on the move. but where is his final destination? >> first hong kong lets him go, then russia refuses to extradite

him. snowden's leaks were a major embarrassed for the nsa, revealing the extent to which the agency was spying on americans as well as international leaders and citizens. number two -- >> the pope resigns. the leader of the catholic church stepping down at the end of the month. >> pope benedict becomes the first head of the catholic church to resign in 600 years. the 86-year-old said it was because of poor health. >> the bell is ringing in rome. that means one thing. what does it mean? it means -- >> we have a pope. >> the first pope elected from south america. >> the curtains are open. the cross bearer is coming out. there he is. >> dubbed the people's pope, francis has laid out a vision of a more inclusive catholic church, focusing on compassion for the poor and afflicted. number one, the civil war in syria. more than two years of fighting,

some 100,000 have been killed, more than two million are refugees. in august, the chemical weapons attack killed hundreds. >> it's absolutely horrifying. we've seen video showing the bodies of lifeless children. >> syria denied responsibility. >> the u.s. is making a case for military intervention in syria. >> the u.s. on the brink of military action. but a last minute deal brokered by russia averted an international crisis. the agreement dismantles syria's chemical arsenal, but left bashar al assad in power. a civil war raging and a civilian population still suffering. >> thank you so much. michael holmes. you can also vote on the top ten overall stories of 2013. just go to cnn.com/yir for year in review. you got to see these pictures.

secretary of state john kerry, normally traveling the world, having very serious discussions internationally, making international headlines, meeting with world leaders, check this out. kerry and snoop dogg. apparently the two met backstage at the kennedy center honors. they fist bumped. we have no idea what they're saying. i don't know. maybe they had a little gin and juice. here's a story that we wanted to leave you with. jon kitna. last week at this time he was teaching math and coaching football at a tacoma, washington high school. but get this. he just got hired by the dallas cowboys. he's going to be the third string emergency quarterback for the weekend's game. the team's starting quarterback was injured and can't play. great story, right? but here's what makes it even better. the 41-year-old says he's donating his entire $53,000 game check to the high school where he works.

you got to love it. joe johns is filling in for jake tapper today on "the lead." that starts right now. get used to it. spying on you and everyone else in the country is the new normal according to a judge. i'm joe johns. this is "the lead." the national lead. a few days after a judge ruled the other way, a different federal judge says the nsa's mass collection phone data program is legal because of 9/11. she's a young teen who has been declared brain-dead by doctors and a judge agrees but her family is still hoping and praying for a miracle and wants her moved. will the hospital that already considers it too late help them? the world lead. you thought breaking the ice with your in-laws was tough. the race to reach a ship frozen in place off the coast of antarctica hits a snag when a