a chilling statement from this u.s. soldier captured by the taliban. what private first class bowe bergdahl says is his biggest fear and a message from his friends and family back home. also, word of a possible new motive in the killing of a florida cup who will had adopted 13 special-needs children. who's moving into the house to take care of those kids now? and a florida man loses two fingers in a gator attack. who he was trying to save when this all happened. thank you for being with us. i'm christi paul. welcome to hln "news and views." the weekend is already over. we're into a new week. we have a lot of news to cover here. first of all, this u.s. soldier who vanished in afghanistan is shown held captive on a taliban video posted online.

he's 23-year-old private first class bowe bergdahl. he was stationed at base along the afghan/pakistan border when he went missing in action late last month. two u.s. officials explained he just walked off with three afghans after his shift, but a few days later the taliban claimed he'd been captured. in this 28-minute video, if you haven't seen it, bergdahl says he fears that he'll never see his family or his girlfriend again. >> i have my girlfriend, who i'm hoping to marry. i have my grandmas and grandpas. i have a very, very good family that i love back home in america. and i miss them every day that i'm gone. i miss them. and i'm afraid that i might never see them again and they'll never be able to tell them that i love them again, i'll never be

able to hug them. >> you can imagine now the family feels about this. in fact, that is a sheriff speaking on behalf of the family right now. he's answering some questions. let's listen in. >> i did not know specifics prior to that, but i was contacted that, you know, that this was going to be coming out and that to let me know exactly the details. [ inaudible question ] that was last week. >> can you tell us what kind of [ inaudible ]? >> no. i'm going to stay away from that to respect the family's wishes. [ inaudible question ]

>> well, i anticipate as this gets out in the media, and certainly yesterday a lot of people were calling over the weekend because they were starting to hear this, wondering, asking us what can we do, what can we do for bergdahl family. you know, is there a place that we can send flowers, you know. that outpouring is already starting to happen. i anticipate as it moves forward that we'll see a great, you know, outpouring from this community. and, you know, i can tell you, that's helpful to the bergdahl family. you know, as they see that support coming forward, that just helps to reinforce, you know, they're trying to stay positive in this situation. [ inaudible question ] you know, i don't know at this point. the mayor haley is here. i don't know if he has any plans

for that right now. danny's coffee shop has been kind of the focal point. there's, you know, a lot of flowers and things that support landing in that area, but anything beyond that i'm not sure. [ inaudible question ] i don't have at this time that that's been set up or, you know, if it's going to be. most certainly as we get more information about those kinds of things, we'll try and give that out to everybody. anything else? [ inaudible question ] >> okay. so, again, that is the sheriff out of idaho speaking on behalf of bergdahl's family.

you saw the video from bergdahl just a couple of minutes ago. the family is very private but they say they're really relying on their faith because they believe in the power of prayer so, that's what they're keeping their focus on. the sheriff said earlier their sole focus is seeing their beloved son, bowe, come home again. so, we're going to keep you posted on, you know, any developments out of idaho and any developments in this particular situation with bergdahl. but he was on his first deployment to afghanistan when he was captured. a u.s. marine blew up a room full of chemicals used to make heroin. this was yesterday. the marines found the stockpile apparently during a nighttime market rate in afghanistan and also found chemicals used to make ieds. afghanistan accounts for 90% of the world's heroin supply and the profits are often used, of course, to fund the insurgency. big day today, at least for

space programs. 40 years ago today, the eagle lunar module landed on the surface of the moon, and as neil armstrong said, he took one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind. earthlings, generations of humans had really only dreamed of it. as people gathered to celebrate, they made a pitch for the u.s. space program to achieve new goal. nasa's focused on returning a crew to the moon by 2020 and building a temporary base there by 2025. well, the second man to walk on it, buzz aldrin, said we've been there, we've done that, and nasa should be focused on taking a trip to the nearest planet. >> no life on the moon. >> nope. >> okay. >> we don't know about mars. >> okay. >> there may be life on mars. if there is, for damn sure we ought to go there and look at it. >> right on. >> when we get there and we don't find any life on mars, from that point on there will be

life on mars because we'll bring it there, whether it's germs and leftover urine bags or whatever it is. >> whatever it is. in a cup offensively howeverurs first astronauts will get a chance to push for a mission to mars in person when president obama meets with members of the apollo 11 crew. astronauts at the international space station are marking the moon landing with a space walk. david wolf and thomas marshburn are hooking spare parts to the station right now. 40 years, of course, to the day that armstrong and al drin walked on the surface of the moon. crew members are working themselves to repair broken toilets, obviously not as fascinating there. until it's fixed, the 13-member crew is using the station's other working toilet and the one that's on the shuttle "endeavour." but live pictures of that space walk in the work that wolf and marshburn are doing right now. it is streaming live on our website. you'd like to watch more, go to

cnn.com/live. and let me ask you what you think of the program. should the u.s. fund a manned mission to mars, or do you think there are better things to spend your taxpayer dollars on? give us a call. give us a call, 1-877-tell-hln, e-mail us at cnn.com/hln. or you can text us. all kinds of ways to get in touch with us. text the word "views" plus your comments and name to hlntv. standard text rates do apply. and we're so grateful to hear from you every day, so we're going to share your views shortly and throughout the day. six dead in two states, and police have charged this man with killing all of them. jacob shaffer was arrested in fayettevil fayetteville, tennessee, saturday. he's suspected of killing his wife, their son, a teenager aged neighbor and others. he said the couple had their fight bus he never imagined it would come to this. >> i've known him for 10, 11

years, and as far as something like this, you can't pick him out of the crowd. you know? i've known him. we've had our ups and downs, of course. we hadn't been friends probably for the last year and a half. >> investigators say the victims died either friday or saturday, possibly because of a domestic dispute. seven-foot gator grabbed a dog. what would you do in this case? well, the dog's owner fought back.

well, investigators say another motive could be revealed this week in the home invasion killings of byrd and melanie billings. surveillance video captured masked intruders, remember, breaking into the florida couple's home. here that is. officials have said the primary motive was robbery, that a safe was taken, it didn't have any values in it, they say, but officials are trying to fission your out who, if anyone, was supposed to disable the home security system and not capture

this. they say they're searching for three people they would like to question. they've arrested eight suspects including a woman and a 16-year-old. the woman, pam wiggins, was arrested and charged with being an accessory after the fact. she's now free on bond. investigators say she owned the van used as the getaway car. the billings, remember, had 13 adopted children, many of them with special needs. and take a look at these pictures. forest fires coming dangerously close to homes. this is in british columbia, canada. 11,000 resident vbs evacuated. this is about 170 miles east of vancouver, to give you some perspective. at least three homes have been destroyed. more are being threatened, obviously. low humidity, high temperatures, strong winds are making this really rough. even tougher for firefighters here. fire officials haven't said what triggered the blaze, but they say they doubt lightning was a

factor. the flip of a switch could have made all the difference in the transit train crash over the weekend. the ntsb says if the driver hadn't turned off that autopilot the train would have slowed down before the collision. >> just barreling in, not looking. the driver's head was down like he was asleep or passed out or -- couldn't tell, but he was not looking up, he was not slowing down or braking or -- no signals, no nothing. i knew and he just crashed right into the rear. >> investigators ambassad s als driver did not apply the emergency brake. let's get back to this florida story. a man lost two of his fingers trying to save his dog from an alligator. he let his dog out unleashed on his waterfront property. this was in west palm beach. the man says when the gator grabbed his dog, he jumped in.

>> said, okay, well she's loose but now you've got an alligator by the mouth. i couldn't let him go, you know. when he grabbed my hand and started spinning, he was so powerful. i mean, i'd have been a goner if he got my arm or my leg. >> good question. perplexing. once you got him, how do you let him go without being hurt? the dog isn't seriously hurt. that gator will be euthanized. a young boy held a yard sale to help get some money for his out-of-work dad. see how the 11-year-old has inspired people all around the state of ohio.

today marks the 40th anniversary of the first apollo moon landing and i-reporters have been sending in their memories. listen to this. we have some great photos from his grandfather, edmund briarton. he apparently worked at the space industry who is built the lunar module. he says his grandfather was a tester of electronic equipment and very proud to be part of the lu mar module program. his grandfather loved the poster all the workers signed and some of the other pictures include an official moon map, an apollo 11 pad, some of the protective skin even used on the lander. he said his grandfather only had a high school education so he

may not have been one of the big engineers on the project but he'll always be part of history. james, thank you so much for sharing some of your family history with us. it is fascinating. thanks to all our i-reporters. if you have stories to share with us, go to ireport.com and click on the upload now link. well, a private funeral for legendary newsman walter cronkite will be held thursday at st. bartholomew's church in new york. remember, cronkite will be buried next to his late wife in kansas city, missouri. the veteran cbs journalist often was referred to as the most trusted man in america. he died friday at the age of 92. dan rather took over the cbs anchor chair in 1981 after kron cite retired. >> for the so-called boomer generation of americans, walter cronkite repped a time line of their life. >> mm-hmm. >> civil rights movement, kennedy assassination, vietnam, space program, just in that

whole period of mid-20th century america, he was the time line. >> a separate memorial for cronkite will be held in the next few weeks talt lincoln center, as well. frank mccourt has died of cancer. he was 78. he was best known for his 1996 book "angela's ashes." it became an international bestseller and was actually paed into a movie, you might recall. it was a memoir of mccourt's childhood in ireland set in deep foifr and neglect. he talk english in new york city high schools for 30 years before launching his literary career. two new york state workers are in big trouble after allegedly turning a state parking garage into their own personal man cave. inspectors say the men used the garage to sleep, watch tv, even do drugs while they were on the clock. one worker may have even used a state vehicle to deliver marijuana. >> there was a television.

there were couches to sleep on. there were, you know, games, playing cards, you know, kind of like a break room except ha the break room was where you could, you know, bag your pot and get high. >> wow. one worker is facing drug charges. the other is suspended without pay. okay. let's get you some good news. an 11-year-old ohio boy who is too young to work did the only thing that he could to help get some money for his family. he sold his toys. jack mcguire recently held a yard sale to help his out of work dad. his father says he is just overwhelmed by this. >> i've prayed to god, let me win the wot lothry, as i'm sure a lot of people do. this is better than the lottery. >> what a great family. some people who heard this story have actually sent in cash donations, as well. a little bit of relief for the recession could be on the

horizon. a private sector forecast of u.s. economic activity roads for the third straight month. the conference board issued the index of leading economic indicators. that's a forecast of economic activity over the next three to six months. the board says several things are on the rise including building permits and stock prices. one thing that's on a favorable down swing is first-time unemployment claims, as well. move canning take a toll on your back and your back pocket. hln money expert clark howard has a tip to prepare you and your wallet for this. >> you moving this summer? let me tell you something about moving. you've got to be so careful. and if you're moving from state to state, there are lot of people out there who are really sleazy. there are also very legitimate movers. first place you should go is moving.o moving.org. you go there and you'll be at the website of the trade association for real movers. that doesn't mean you're always going to get a great move but it

puts you in the direction of dealing with somebody legit. if you go a step further and only hired a certified mover, you're going to improve the chances that your move is going to be handled by somebody who treatious right. the two other things you've got to do, one, an estimate means nothing in the moving industry, moving from state to state. the key word is binding. only a binding estimate caps what you're going to have to pay for a move. and next, you have to buy separate insurance in order to protect your item. without it, you're not covered. >> more consumer advice from clark howard every saturday and sunday at noon and 4:00 p.m. eastern here on hln "news and views." he'll help you save more, spend less, and avoid getting ripped off. so, as we celebrate landing on the moon 40 years ago, many people are looking ahead to

what's next for the u.s. space program. a return to the moon, a mission to mars, or should we skip the heavens all together to focus on more earthly matters?

[ music ] >> welcome to comcast local edition, i'm donna richardson, and my guest this hour is christine bergmark who is the executive director of the southern maryland agricultural development commission. welcome, christine, it's good to have you here. >> thank you for having me. >> that's a big mouthful, and i know that you're working on an extremely exciting program, bi-local challenge. >> it is an initial that we launched two years ago, and essentially what it is is the last full week of july we ask everyone across the state of maryland and beyond to take a pledge, and the pledge is eat something or drink from a farm

every day during that week. >> oh. so where do we get the information about where to find the farms or how do we sign up for this pledge? >> well, there's a website. it's www.by-local-challenge.com that website will give you all sorts of information why to buy local and where to buy local and it connects you to other statewide initiatives that are going on at the same time. if you go to the website, we've added a count. people used to say, where do i sign up? normally you have to go buy, eat something from a local farm. this year we decided to add a counter to the website. when you are' counted, you can receive a certificate with your name on it that you can put up in your office or your home or wherever. >> which is very, very important. it's reduces your carbon foot

print because you're driving hopefully a shorter distance, you have access to local products that are available, and also it helps the farmers. >> well, and in fact, our theme this year is healthy plate, healthy planet. all kinds of benefits to buying local, benefits for you, healthy, nutrition, it's fresh, and preserving our farms survive, we keep clean water, we keep clean air, we reduce the carbon footprints from things traveling 1500 miles, and it tastes good. >> exactly. now for those people who may not cook, how can they be a part of this? >> yeah, sometimes people say, well, i hate to cook. that's okay. you can go to a store or to a restaurant that features local farm products, and there are more and more restaurants every year, some of them are on our website, and you can click throughout to find out who they are,. >> what kind of items can we

acquire localfully. >> during the last week of july, there is so much product available. there's sweet corn, blackberries, all kinds of tomatoes and melons are in season, and of course, there's always wine, cheese, eggs, meatss. >> so we do have a wide variety of things we can get. say that i go and i go to a local farmer's market and purchase something, what is a vegetable that i'm not quite familiar with, how did i find a recipe. >> excellent question. there are recipes on our website. people can post their own recipes of their own events and own blogs by why they buy local. some of the things i wanted to mention is the economic benefits. we talked about the planet, we talked about the fact that it tastes good, and it's fun, but

there's also the benefit of supporting our farms, and if every household in the state mucofmaryland were to buy just 2 worth of products for 8 weeks, basically the summer season that, would put $200 million straight back into the pockets of our farmers. that would do a lot to keep our farmers thriving. >> which is so important. i know we have less than 30 seconds, but you have some partners that you wouldn't typically think of who have now joined in. >> yes. hospitals are joining in this year. fact, they're looking to do a competition to see how many people they can get involved. >> have you exciting. christine, thank you very much for coming in today. >> thank you. >> my guest today has been christine bergmark with the southern agricultural commission. if you're interested in what comcast is doing in your area, go to on demand and click get local. for comcast local edition, i'm

donna richardson. [ music ]

it is so good to have you with us today. you're looking at a u.s. soldier who vanished in afghanistan, shown now being held captive on a taliban video posted online. that's 23-year-old private first class bowe bergdahl. he was stationed at a base along the afghan/pakistan border when he went missing in action late last month. two u.s. officials explained that he just walked off with three afghans after his shift, but a few days later the taliban claimed he'd been captured. in the 28-minute video bergdahl says he fears he's never going to see his family or his girlfriend again.

>> i have my girlfriend, who i'm hoping to marry. i have my grandmas and grandpas. i have a very, very good family that i love back home in america. and i miss them every day that i'm gone. i miss them. and i'm afraid that i might never see them again and they'll never be able to tell them that i love them again, i'll never be able to hug them. >> bergdahl was on his first deployment to afghanistan. he arrived there five months ago. he's an only son, grew up in small-town idaho, and when word of his capture started to leak a couple weeks ago, the tight-knit community kept it secret for the sake of bergdahl's family. a short time ago, the county sheriff read a statement from the bergdahl family. >> we have been overwhelming with the outpouring of support and concern toward bowe and our family. as you know, the situation is

extremely difficult for everyone involved. we'd like to involve all of you that our sole focus is seeing our beloved son, bowe, safely home. please continue to keep bownext your thoughts and prayers, and we'd ask for your continued respect of our need for privacy in this difficult situation. thank you. the bergdahl family. >> boy, certainly can't imagine what they're going through. his family's described as being deeply private and says they're very grounded in their faith, relying on the power of prayer. the family did post a cardboard sign on their front gate that reads, "no visitors." marines blew up a stockpile of chemicals used for heroin. also found chemicals used to make ieds. afghanistan accounts for 90% of

the world's heroin supply and the profits are often used, of course, to fund the insurgency. you know it's been 40 years ago today since the eagle lunar module landed on the surface of the moon. and as neil armstrong said, he took one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind. earthlings, generations of humans had really only dreamed of it. today, as members of the apollo program gathered to celebrate the moon landing, look at them all there, they made a bid for a new space program to achieve new goals. nasa's focused on returning a crew to the moon by 2020 and building a temporary base there by 2025. well, the second man to walk on it, buzz aldrin, said we've been there, we've done that, and nasa should now be focused on taking a trip to the nearest planet. >> no life on the moon. >> nope. >> okay. we don't know about mars. >> right. >> there may be life on mars. if there is, for damn sure we ought to go there and look at it. >> right on.

>> ok? when we get there and we don't find any life on mars, from that point on there will be life on mars because we'll bring it there, whether it's germs and leftover urine bags or whatever it is. >> i bet he'd be ready to go, too. in a couple hours, the first astronauts will get a chance to push for a mission to mars in person when president obama meets with the members of the apollo 11 crew. astronauts at the international space station are marking the moon landing with a space walk. isn't it fascinating what we can see thanks to technology and science? david wolf and thomas marshburn are hooking spare parts to the station right now. 40 years, of course, to the day that armstrong and aldrin walked on the surface of the moon. crew members are working themselves to repair broken toilets, obviously not as fascinating there. until it's fixed, the 13-member crew is using the station's other working toilet and the one that's on the shuttle "endeavour." the website is streaming live

pictures of that work. you'd like to watch more, go to cnn.com/live. we want to know your views on this. should the u.s. fund a manned mission to mars, or do you think there are better things to spend your taxpayer dollars on? should we continue the space program? give us a call, 1-877-tell-hln, e-mail us at cnn.com/hln. you can text us, as well. text the word "views" plus your comments and name to hlntv. standard text rates do apply. but this is the segment where we want to give you a chance to let us know who what's on your mind so, thank you for doing so. six dead in two states, and police have charged this man with killing all of them. jay sob shaff jay sob shaffer. hl suspected of killing his wife, their son, and others. a man says the couple had a fight but he never imagined it would come to this. >> i had known him for 10, 11

years. and as far as something like this, you can't pick him out of the crowd. you know? i've known him. we've had our ups and downs, of course. we hadn't been friends probably for the last year and a half. >> investigators say the victims died either friday or saturday, possibly because of a domestic dispute. well, investigators say another motive could be revealed this week in the home invasion killings of byrd and melanie billings. surveillance video captured masked intruders breaking into the florida couple's home. here that is. officials have said the primary motive was robbery, that a safe was taken, but it didn't have any valuables in it. they say, but officials are trying to fission your out who, if anyone, was supposed to disable the home security system and not capture this. they say they're searching for three people they would like to question. they've arrested eight suspects including a woman and a 16-year-old.

the woman, pam wiggins, was arrested and charged with being an accessory after the fact. she's now free on bond. investigators say she owned the van used as the getaway car. the victims had 13 adopted children, many of them with special needs. and the billings' daughter says she will now care for the 13 special-needs kids that her parents adopted. she's only 26 years old. but she told the "pensacola news journal" she and her husband will move into her parents' home and raise those kids. markham says that was her mother's wish. byrd and melanie billings were killed july 9th, remember. and, again, eight people are facing charges there. michael vick, meanwhile, is a free man right now. an attorney for the disgraced nfl star says he was released from federal custody today after spending two months on house arrest. vick served 23 months for a federal dogfighting conviction. his future very much in doubt, though. nfl commissioner roger goodell, who banned vick from the league, says he's reviewing the quarterback's status. vick won't return to his old

team, atlanta. the falcons released him, in fact, just last month. a documentary about michael jackson's final days could be in the works. "the wall street journal's" web site says aeg live may reach a deal with a major hollywood studio this week. aeg is the company that planned jackson's comeback tour. the documentary would be made mostly of footage of jackson preparing for a 50-run show in london that was supposed to kick off a week ago. this is some of that footage right here. a seven-foot gator grabs your dog. well, this dog owner fought back.

when a florida man tried to protect his pet from an alligator, he lost a couple fingers to that reptile. our affiliate in west palm beach tells us how this seven-foot gator was taken into custody eventually. >> well, we saw him throw some chicken out into the water. i think it was frozen chicken. and he had a big fishing pole. and i kept thinking how is he going to catch it with this fitching pole? >> residents in the san andrews development in west palm beach kept their distance as they waited and watched a trapper with florida fish and wildlife go to work. >> we couldn't believe he got in the water. he got in there. >> there he is. there he is. >> he wrapped up his snout and he got him. he got him. >> reporter: it didn't take long for the trapper to snag the seven-foot alligator, and it didn't take residents long to

show their appreciation. wildlife officials say the reptile attacked a terrier named mandy after his owner let him out in the back yard saturday morning. >> was out and went back down that little dip and an alligator came out and -- >> for gator then attacked mandy's owner, david, when he tried to stave the dog. >> said, okay, well she's loose but now you've got an alligator by the mouth. >> reporter: neighbors, especially those with pets, are on alert. brown says he's lucky to be alive. >> when he grabbed my hand and started spinning, he was so powerful. i mean, you know, i'd have been a goner if he'd have got my arm or my leg. >> our thanks to wpvf for the report there. grounds is recovering many the hospital. luckily his dog wasn't seriously hurt but the alligator was euthanized apparently.

the flip of a switch could have made all the difference in a transit crash over the weekend. 48 people were hurt when one train plowed into another parked at a san francisco station. the ntsb says if the train hadn't turned off the auto pilot, the train would have slowed down before the collision. >> barreling in, not going down. the driver's head was down, looked like he was asleep or passed out or -- you could tell he was not looking up, he was not braking, no signals, nothing. we just crashed right into the rear. >> investigators also say the drivers didn't apply the emergency break. look at these pictures opinion forest fires there dangerously close to home in british columbia, canada. in fact, 11,000 residents have been evacuated. this this is east of vancouver. at least three homes have been destroyed. more are being threatened,

obviously. low humidity, high temperatures, strong winds are making this a tough job for firefighters. fire officials haven't said what triggered the blaze, but they say they doubt lightning was a fact factor. a young boy held a yard sale to help get some money for his out-of-work dad.

well, president obama's plan to revamp the nation's health care system is hitting some big obstacles on capitol hill. it looks like the overhaul will take longer than the president hoped. the president wanted the new health care pushd through congress by next month. it seems unlikely, though, the legislation will be ready before the august recess now. in the meantime, critics are worried about the costs here, apparently. one estimate predicts the legislation would increase the country's deficit by $239 billion over the next decade, but the obama administration says people need to wait to see the final product before issuing a verdict. >> hasn't happened in 50 years for a reason. it's a complicated lelgtive

process working. i think people are sort of reaching judgment about who's going to win the marathon based on who's ahead at, like, mile 19. not a good way of judging things. >> republicans certainly have something to say about this, not waiting for their final product before offering their views here. they thsay that president obama proposal would hurt small businesses, leave workers without coverage at all, and despite saying he doesn't want it run by the government, the head of the republican party says the health care changes would be a form of socialism. >> in america, we don't allow one man to troll dice with our entire nation. we do not allow one political leader to risk our health care system and our entire economy. we do not allow one political group to gamable with the fate of generations. we'd never allowed one political party to experiment with the future of our country. that is, until now. >> time may be on the side of

the krit critics. new polling numbers show approval for the president's handling of health care reform have dropped below 50% for the first time. a private funeral for legendary newsman walter cronkite will be held at st. bartholomew's church in new york. remember, cronkite will be buried next to his late wife in kansas city, missouri. the veteran cbs journalist often was referred to as the most trusted man in america. he died friday at the age of 92. dan rather took over the cbs anchor chair in 1981 after kron cite retired. >> for the so-called boomer generation of americans, walter cronkite represented a time line of their life. >> mm-hmm. >> civil rights movement, kennedy assassination, vietnam, space program, just in that whole period of mid-20th century america, he was the time line. >> a separate memorial for cronkite will be held in the next few weeks at the lincoln center, as well.

center, as well. pulitzer prize-winning author frank mccourt has died of cancer. he was 78. he was best known for his 1996 book "angela's ashes." it became an international bestseller and was actually made into a movie, you might recall. it was a memoir of mccourt's childhood in ireland set in deep poverty and neglect. he talk english in new york city high schools for 30 years before launching his literary career. two new york state workers are in big trouble after allegedly turning a state parking garage into their own personal man cave. inspectors say the men used the garage to sleep, watch tv, even do drugs while they were on the clock. one worker may have even used a state vehicle to deliver marijuana. >> there was a television. there were couches to sleep on. there were, you know, games, playing cards, you know, kind of like a break room except that the break room was where you could, you know, bag your pot and get high. >> wow. one worker is facing drug charges. the other is suspended without pay.

let's get you some good news. an 11-year-old ohio boy who is too young to work did the only thing that he could to help get some money for his family. he c money for his family. he sold his toys. he recently held a yard sale to help his out of work dad. imagine, zack's father says he is just overwhelmed by this. >> i've prayed to god, let me win the lottery, as i'm sure a lot of people do. this is better than the lottery. >> some people who have heard zack's story sent in cash donations now as well. bit of relief from the recession could be on the horizon. u.s. economic activity rose for the third straight month. the conference board issues index of leading economic indicators, a forecast of economic activity over the next three to six months. several things are on the rise including building permits and stock prices.

one thing on a favorable down swing is first-time unemployment claims as well. we are all feeling the pinch right now, aren't we? still. it feels like it's been a while, hasn't it? hln money expert clark howard wants to help you out. log on to cnn.com/clark. submit your i-report and be selected to be profiled on our network and get valuable money advice from america's money coach. a man and woman in florida who have the same first and last names are engaged. kelly hildebrandt is marrying kelly hildebrandt. they met on facebook when the female kelly decided to look for other people with her same name. a three month courtship turned into a proposal. a planned cruise was almost canceled when the travel agent deleted one of the tickets in the system thinking the same name was entered twice. lands on the moon was one of america's finest hours.

40 years after the historic moment, many are asking, what's next?

a chilling statement from a u.s. soldier captured by the taliban. what private first class bowe bergdahl says is his biggest fear. a message from his friends and family back home. also, landing on the moon 40 years ago. many are looking ahead to what's next for the u.s. space program. a return to the moon, a mission to mars, or skipping the heavens all together to focus on more earthly matters? your views on what nasa should be doing. paid a debt to society for his federal dog fighting conviction. michael vick is a free man. is a return to the nfl next? hope you're having a great monday so far. this is hln "news and views." here's the very latest now. we take you to a u.s. soldier who vanished in afghanistan.

there is the videotape. shown being held captive on that taliban vid you posted online. 23-year-old private first class bowe bergdahl was stationed at a base along the pakistan/afghanistan border. two u.s. officials explained he walked off with three afghans after his shift. a few days later the taliban claimed he had been captured. in the 28-minute video, bergdahl says he fears he will never see his family or his girlfriend again. >> i have my girlfriend who i was hoping to marry. i have my grandma and grandpas. i have a very, very good family that i love back home in america. and i miss them every day. when i'm gone, i miss them. and i'm afraid that i might never see them again and that

i'll never be able to tell them that i love them again. i'll never be able to hug them. >> bergdahl is on his first deployment to afghanistan. he arrived there five months ago. he's an only son who grew up in smalltown idaho. the tight-knit community kept it quiet for the sake of bergdahl's safety and respect for his family. a short time ago the county sheriff read a statement from the family. here it is. >> we have been overwhelmed with the outpouring of support and concern toward bowe and our family. as you know, the situation is extremely difficult for everyone involved. we'd like to remind all of you that our soul focus is seeing our beloved son, bowe, safely home. please continue to keep bowe in your thoughts and prayers. and we ask for your continued respect of our need for privacy in this difficult situation.

thank you, the bergdahl family. >> bergdahl's family, meanwhile, described as deeply private. in fact, the family posted a cardboard sign on their front gate that reads, "no visitors." u.s. marines blew up a stock pile of chemicals that are used to make heroin. they found the room stacked waste high with bags of the stuff during a nighttime market raid in afghanistan. there were also chemicals used to make ieds. afghanistan accounts for 90% of the world's heroin supply and the profits are often used to fund the insurgency. 40 years ago today, the eagle lunar module landed on the surface of the moon. neil armstrong took one small step for man, one giant leap for man kind. accomplished a trip generations of americans had only dreamed of. today, members of the apollo group made a pitch for the u.s.

space program to achieve a new gel. focus odd returning a crew to the moon by 2020 and building a temporary base by 2025. buzz aldrin says we've been there, done that, and nasa should be focusing on taking a trip to the nearest planet. >> there's no life on the moon. we don't know about mars. okay? there may be life on mars. if there is, we ought to go there and look at it. when we get there and don't find any life on mars, from that point on, there will be life on mars. because we'll bring it there. whether it's germs and leftover urine bags or whatever it is. >> and in about an hour from now, the first astronauts will get a chance to push for a mission to mars in person, when president obama meets with members of the apollo 11 crew. we want your view on this. what do you think? should the u.s. fund a manned mission to mars or do you think there's better things to spend your taxpayer dollars on?

give us a call. 1-877-tell-hln. let us know. emil us, cnn.com. text your comments or viewers to hln tv. we'll air some of your responses. astronauts of the international space station are marking the moon landing with this, a space walk. david wolf, hooking parts to the station 40 years to the day armstrong and aldrin walked on the surface of the moon. inside the station, crew members are working to repair a broken toilet. until that's fixed, the 13-member crew is using the station's other working toilet and one on the shuttle "endeavour." great shots there for you. the only surviving suspect in the mumbai terrorist attacks has confessed in court. he is one of ten pakistanis police accused of taking over three luxury hotels and a jewish

center three days last september. more than 160 people were killed in last year's attacks including at least five americans. update for you now. investigators say another motive could be revealed this week, even today in the home invasion killings of byrd and melanie billings. masked intruders breaking into the florida couple's home. the primary motive was robbery and a safe was taken from the home. it didn't have any valuables in it, though. officials are trying to figure out who, if anyone, was supposed to disable the home security system and they say they're searching for three more people they'd like to question. the video led to the arrest of eight suspects including a woman and 16-year-old. the woman, pam wiggins, charged with being an accessory after the fact. she is now free on bond. she owned the van used as a getaway car. the billings had 13 adopted children.

the billings' daughter will care for her adopted siblings. she's 26 years old. her name is ashley mark come. she and her husband will move into her parents home and raise the children. she says that was her mother's wish. byrd and melanie billings were killed july 9th. eight people face charges. a seven-foot alligator grabs a dog. the owner of the dog fights back. how he saves the dog from the jaws.

welcome back to hln. a private funeral for legendary newsman walter cronkite will be held thursday at st. bartholomew church in new york. he will be buried next to his late wife in kansas city, missouri. often referred to the most trusted man in america died on friday. he was 92. dan rather took over the cbs anchor chair after walter cronkite retired.

>> i would say more than any other person he invented television news as we know it today. you're quite right. people born after 1981 say, whom are you talking about here? this was a man that brought us in in terms of news into the television age. television news came of news with the assassination of president kennedy in 1963. before that newspapers were dominant. after that, television news became dominant. >> a separate memorial for walter cronkite will be held at the lincoln center. pulitzer prize winner author frank mccourt has died of cancer. he was 78. mccourt was known for his 1996 book "angela's ashes." it became an international best seller and made into a movie. a memoir of mccourt's childhood in ireland spent in poverty and neglect. mccourt taught school in new york before launching his literary career. yesterday is the day.

it marks the 40th anniversary of the first apollo moon landing. i-reporters have been sending in memories of the mission. james sent us great photos from his grandfather. edmond briarton worked at the aerospace industries. he says his grandfather was a tester of electronic equipment and was proud to be part of the lunar module program. his grandfather loved the lunar module poster the workers signed. an aofficial moon map and apollo 11 map and some of the skin used on lunar lander. his grandfather only had a high school education, but may not have been one of the big engineers on the project but will always be a big part of history. our thanks to james and i-reporters sending in pictures and memories. if you have stories you want to send us from your part of the world, go to ireport.com.

it has been 40 years since neil armstrong and buzz aldrin took their famous stroll on the surface of the moon and ushered in a new relationship between humans and our planet's natural satellite. richard roth has been talking to people about the landing and moon, itself. richard, you got an interesting reaction from the picture you were showing. >> reporter: not aefb knows it's the 40th anniversary. it's harder for many people on the streets of new york to remember who were the three men

who went up in apollo 11 and still, to this day, are american heroes? this should not be the world's most famous moonwalk. this is. >> one small step for man. >> that was one of america's finest moments. not only for america, but to the world. >> reporter: who are these men? >> that's a good question. >> reporter: on the 40th anniversary of man landing on the moon, people have gotten, well, spacey. >> well, these men, i haven't the slightest idea who they are. >> brain surgeons or doctors? >> i don't know. maybe some actors? >> reporter: the auto executives that went to d.c. for the hearing? >> cheney did not fly there. >> reporter: we've been moon struck since the landing. these people in arizona think moon rays help them live longer.

in california, thousands get behind the annual moon over amtrak july day and drop their pants as passenger trains roll by. people always threaten to go to the moon. >> you want to go to the moon? do you want to go to the moon? >> reporter: has he ever threatened to send you to the moon? >> all the time. >> i see the moon as still a place to investigate. we've been to half a dozen places on the moon. that would be like going to a half o dozen places on earth and say we're done. on to some other planet. >> armstrong said one small step for man, one giant step for man kind. what would you say? >> i made it up here. >> what are your first words from the moon? looking good. >> i would probably say, wow. one small step for woman kind, not just man kind. >> reporter: ladies, you can lose weight there. the easiest way to lose weight is to go to the moon.

you'll weigh one-sixth of what you weigh here. >> the sun is gone from behind it, shooting the light. >> okay. >> reporter: there's a new movie called "moon" which keeps an astronaut up there for three years alone. do you want to go to the moon? >> if i have a space suit with air, i don't want to chi on the moon. >> reporter: displaying a flag that's been to the moon is a worldly man named moon. >> yes, i have some special opportunity for this moon. because my name was so -- >> reporter: we did finally find someone who recognized the astronauts in the photo. who are these men? >> these are very lucky people that came along at the right time and were part of apoll employeelow 11. >> reporter: the two men who went to the moon, buzz aldrin and neil armstrong, michael collin was circling up there. those were the three and many

others who followed, susan. it's a major day in american history. 40 days ago man landing and walking on the moon. >> it is. i love the guy who said auto executives testifying. >> some of them would like to send those executives to the moon. he wanted to send his wife. >> very true. thanks so much. great job on that. michael vick is a free man. attorney for the disgraced nfl star said he was released from federal custody today after spending two months on house arrest. sent 23 months for a federal dog fighting conviction. his future is very much in doubt. nfl commissioner who banned vick from the league is reviewing the quarterback's status. vick will not return to his old team in atlanta. two new york state employees are in trouble after turning a government parking garage into their own personal man cave. inspectors say the men used the garage to sleep, watch tv and do drugs while they were on the

clock. one worker may have used a state vehicle to deliver marijuana. >> there was a television, there were couches to sleep on. there were, you know, games, playing cards. kind of like a break room, except that the break room was where you could, you know, bag your pot and get high. >> one of the workers is facing drug charges, the other is suspended without pay. a florida man lost two of his fingers to this guy trying to save his dog from that gator. he let his dog out unleashed on his waterfront property in palm beach. when the gator grabbed his dog, he went right in. >> i remember cops saying, okay, well, she's loose, but now you've got an alligator by the mouth. how do you let him go? when he grabbed my hand and started spinning, he was so powerful. i mean, you know, i might have been a goner if he had got my arm or my leg. >> the dog is not seriously hurt. there he is.

the seven-foot alligator will be euthanized. a bit of relief from the recession could be on the horizon. a private sector forecast of the u.s. economic activity rose for the third straight month. the conference board issues the index of leading economic indicators. there's a forecast of economic activity over the next three to six months. the board says several things are on the rise including building permits and stock prices. one thing that's on a favorable down swing is first-time unemployment claims. maybe you've gone back to school lately, i don't know, to learn a trade maybe? a lot of people are doing this. "usa today" reports enrollment at trade school across the country has spiked due to the economy. one tennessee hair stylest is going to school to become a surgical technician. many new students are in 40s and 50s and a lot have college degrees. if you've done it, you know that moving can take a toll on your back and back pocket as

well. hln money expert clark howard has a tip to prepare you and your wallet. >> reporter: moving this summer? let me tell you something about moving. you've got to be so careful. if you're moving from state to state, know there are lots of people out there who are really sleazy. they're very legitimate movers. first place you should go? moving.org. you go there and you'll be at the website of the freight association for real movers. it doesn't mean you're always going to get a great move but it puts you in the direction of dealing with somebody legitimate. if you go a step further and only hire a certified mover, you're going to improve the chances that your move is going to be handled by somebody who treats you right. two other things you've got to do. one, an estimate means nothing in the moving industry. moving from state to state. the key word is binding. only a binding estimate caps what you're going to have to pay for a move. next, you have to buy separate

insurance in order to protect your items. without it, you're not covered. i'm clark howard. for more money-saving tips, go to my website, cnn.com/clarkhowarded. really great consumer advice for you. get it every weekend on the clark howard show. saturday and sunday at noon and 4:00 p.m. eastern on hln "news and views." he'll help you save more, spend less. forest fires becoming dangerously close to homes in british columbia. 11,000 residents evacuated 170 miles east of vancouver. three homes destroyed and more threatened. low humidity, high temperatures and strong winds making it very tough for firefighters. officials have not said what triggered the fire. they say they doubt that lightning was a factor here. we, of course, will keep you posted. as we celebrate landing on the moon 40 years ago, many are looking ahead to what's next for the u.s. space program. return to the moon? mission to mars?

or skipping the heavens to focus on more earthly matters? we'll hear your views on what nasa should be doing. xxx not long ago, this man had limited mobility.

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astronauts at the international space station are marking the moon landing with the space walk. you are watching it live right now. hooking up spare parts to the station. 40 years to the today that armstrong and aldrin walked on the surface of the moon. inside the station, crew members have fixed a broken toilet. early indications are it's good to go. the 13-member crew had been using the station's other working toilet and one on the shuttle denv"endeavour." the space walk streaming live on our website now. if you'd like to watch more of it, go to cnn.com/live. 40 years ago today, as i mentioned, the eagle lunar mode yule landed on the surface of

the moon. neil armstrong took one small leap for man, one giant step for man kind. earthlings finished a celestial trip. members of the apollo 11 gathered to celebrate the moon landing. they had a pitch for the u.s. space program to reach a new goal. returning a crew to the moon by 2020 and building a temporary base there by 2025. buzz aldrin says we've been there, done that and nasa should be focused on taking a trip to another planet. >> no life on the moon. we don't know about mars. there may be life on mars. if there is, we ought to go there and look at it. >> right on. >> when we get there and we don't find any life on mars, from that point on, there will be life on mars. because we'll bring it there. whether it's germs and leftover urine bags or whatever it is. >> at the top of the hour, the

first astronaut to get a chance to push for a mission to mars when president obama meet ws members of the apollo 11 crew. how a 10-year-old boy in guam played a crucial role in the apollo crew's return to earth. we'll have more on that in a few moments to you. should the u.s. fund a manned mission to mars or do crow think there's better things to spend your taxpayer dollars on? give us a call, 1-877-tell-hln. e-mail us. text, text the word view and your comment and names to hln tv. standard text rates apply. video posted by the taliban shows private first class bowe bergdahl held captive. what, if anything, is being done militarily to get him out? chris lawrence is at the pentagon. how is the military reacting to this situation? what can they do? >> susan, they're calling it a violation of the international

laws of war. they say that private bergdahl is now being used for propaganda purposes. they have known that he was missing. they've known his identity, the u.s. military has, for a few weeks now. they've been keeping it private so this sort of thing wouldn't happen. of course now that the taliban has put out the public video, they have released the information on private bergdahl. there is another point, also, susan, in that video where he seems to address other families of service members saying, you know, you who have loved ones over in this region, you have the power to pressure the government to bring us home where we belong. the u.s. military will be examining statements like that very closely because they know a lot of this could have been scripted for private bergdahl in trying to discern exactly what are his own words and what he was told to say by his captors. >> chris, when you hear this video and see this, it's really heartbreaking to hear from bowe

and hear him talk about his fiancee or his girlfriend at the time or his family members. we here not knowing him feels helpless. is there something the u.s. can do, some sort of rescue mission? >> the first thing you would have to do is pinpoint where he is. there was reference on the tape by bowe bergdahl and his captors to him being in kandahar. the u.s. military believes he has been moved several times since his capture. at this point, they can't verify whether kandahar is his actual location. it may be, it may not be. once they were able to do that, then they've got a very, very difficult decision to make. that's if you mount some sort of rescue mission, do you put his life in even greater danger? that is a very, very tough choice for military planners to make. it's something they certainly don't take very light. >> i a lot of difficult choices ahead of them. we feel for his family. chris lawrence, thanks so much. bergdahl is on his first deployment to afghanistan.

he arrived there five months ago. he is an only son who grew up in small town idaho. when word of his capture started to leak a few weeks ago, the tight-knit community kept it quiet out of bergdahl's safety and the family. a short time ago the county sheriff read a statement from his family. >> we've been overwhelmed with the outpouring of support and concern toward bowe and our family. the situation is extremely difficult for everyone involved. we'd like to remind all of you that are focus is seeing our beloved son, bowe, safely home. please continue to keep bowe. your thoughts and prayers. we ask for your continued respect in our time of privacy in this difficult situation. thank you. >> bergdahl's family is described as deeply private. the family posted a cardboard

sign on their front gate that read no visitors. another story we're bringing you today. the only surviving gunman in the mumbai terrorist attacks has confessed in court. one of ten pakistani nationals who took over three luxury hotels last november. his confession today caught prosecutors by surprise since he had pleaded not guilty earlier. the special prosecutor says this. we're quoting here. not only is he a grade-a terrorist, he's a good actor also. his team will determine whether the suspect is telling the truth or not. more than 160 people were killed in last year's attacks including at least five americans. a private funeral for walter cronkite will be held thursday at st. bartholomew church in new york. will be buried next to his late wife in kansas, missouri. the veteran cbs journalist referred to as the most trusted man in america, died friday. he was 92. dan rather took over the cbs

anchor chair after cronkite retired. >> i would say more than any other person, he invented television news as we know it today. you're quite right, people born after 1981 say, whom are you talking about here? this is a man who brought us in in terms of news into the television age. television news came of age with the assassination of president kenny in 1963. before that, newspapers were dominant. after that, television news became dominant. >> a separate memorial for walter cronkite will be held in the next few weeks at the lincoln center. frank mccourt has died of dancer. he was 78. mccourt was best known for his 1996 "angela's ashes." it became an international best seller and was made into a movie. it was a memoir of mccourt's childhood in ireland spent in deep poverty and neglect. mccourt taught english in new york city high schools for 30 years before launching his literary career. a heartwarming story is coming up. a young boy held a yard sale to

help get some money for his out of work dad. see how the 11-year-old has inspired people all around the state of ohio and the country.

a documentary about michael jackson's final days could be in the works. "the wall street journal"'s website says aeg live may reach a deal with the hollywood studio this week. aeg is the studio that planned the comeback tour. the documentary would be made of footage for michael jackson prepared for a 50-run show in london that was supposed to kick off a week ago. on today's 40th anniversary of the apollo landing, we are hearing a lot of stories from

the major players in the event. one you may not have heard about involves a then 10-year-old boy in guam and how his small arm played a huge role in the crew's safe return. plenty of attention on cnn.com. >> it was all the ground breaking technology used in the mission. it was the skinny arm of a 10-year-old boy that helped save the day. 10-year-old greg force, you could say he was a force to be reckoned with. i had to give it a shot. director of the nasa tracking station in guam. a crucial antenna, a night before the astronauts for supposed to slash down. it went on the brink. it wasn't working because a bearing failed. greg's dad realized there was no time to dismantle it and try to fix it the right way. he surmised if there was enough grease on it it would work okay. none of the adults could get

their arms down there to get the grease. greg comes in. they sent for him. he put grease on the bearing and apollo splashed down safely the next day. at the time greg says he had no idea this was such a big deal. of course, it turns out without that antenna, nasa would not have been able to make its final communications with the astronauts before their splashdown. his role was chronicled in the official nasa transcript of the mission and greg got a thank you note from neil armstrong. he owns a gymnastics school in south carolina and is proud of the small role he says that he played. he did want to be an astronaut. he wanted to be part of the space program. go to cnn.com/tech, you'll find out why he couldn't. >> with all the technology available, a 10-year-old little boy's arm and how crucial that was. great stuff, as you know, virginia. we're talking about the past and u.s. space program. it looks like the future may belong to china.

>> it's incredible how far china has come. they have already successfully completed a space walk. may just be the beginning for this country trying to be the next great space station. they want to get space labs up into the skies. they wrap two in orbit. they have a small lab planned to launch next year. a mirror-like space station is planned for 2020. the projects are said to be on schedule. if they get them back on track, they'll be going up just as the united states scales back our programs and retires the shuttle fleet. little bit on symbolism going on. the space program will do wonders for their national pride. listen. >> a space program like this will say to every young person in china what our space program once said to our young people which is, science, you can become part of exploring and pioneering new worlds. what could be more exciting than

that that? >> if you want to hear why buzz aldrin questions their motivation, go to cnn.com/video and get more details on the story. >> virginia, thanks. great stuff today. appreciate it. we're talking about an 11 boy who did amazing things, too. he did the only thing he could do to help get money for his family. he sold his own toys. zach mcguire held a yard sale to help his out of work dad. zach's father said he's overwhelmed. >> i've prayed to god, let me win the lottery, as i'm sure a lot of people do. this is better than the lottery. >> it really is touching. some people who have heard zach's story have sent in cash donations. hanging out in your man cave to watch tv and take a nap, it's a good way to relax, right? two guys are accused of taking things a little bit further. their cave wasn't even at their home.

president obama spoke at the children's national medical center in washington, d.c. he took part in a round-table discussion on what's become a huge priority for his administration, reforming health

care is what we're talking about. the president wants to make sure health insurance is available to the 46 million americans currently uninsured. >> just the other day, one republican senator said, and i'm quoting him now, if we're able to stop obama on this, it will be his waterloo. it will break him. think about that. this isn't about me. this isn't about politics. this is about a health care system that is breaking america's families. breaking america's businesses, and breaking america's economy. >> republican national committee chairman michael steele calls the president's plan a risky, multi-trillion experiment that will undermine the country's economic future. obviously a lot of people against that. six dead in two states. police charged this plan with killing all of them. jacob shaffe arrested in fayetteville, tennessee, on

saturday. suspected of killing his wife, her son, father and brother. also a teenage neighbor and another man in huntsville, alabama. another man said the couples had their fights but never imagined it would come to this. >> i've known him for 10, 11 years. as far as seeing something like this, you can't pick him out of the crowd. you know? i've known him. we've had our ups and downs, of course, like friends do. we haven't been friends probably for the last year and a half. >> investigators say the victims died either friday or saturday, possibly because of a domestic dispute. investigators say another motive could be revealed this week in the home invasion killings of byrd and melanie billings. surveillance video captured masked intruders breaking into the florida couple's home. officials said the primary motive was robbery and a safe was taken from that home. it didn't have any valuables in it, though.

officials are trying to figure out who, if anyone, was supposed to disable the home's security system. they are searching for three more people they would like to question. the video led to the arrest of eight suspects including a woman and a 16-year-old. the woman we're talking about, pam wiggins, was arrested and charged with being an accessory after the fact. she is free on bond. she owned the van used as a getaway car. the billings had adopted 13 chirp with special needs. many people wonder where the children will go. we heard the billings' daughter will care for the adopted siblings now. she is 26 years old. she cold the pensacola news journal she and her husband will move into her parent's home and raise the children. that was her mother's wish. byrd and melanie billings were killed july 9th. eight people facing charges. michael vick is a free man. an attorney for the disgraced nfl star says he was released

from house arrest. vick served 23 months for a dog fighting conviction. goodall who banned vick from the league says he's reviewing the quarterback's status. he won't return to his old team in atlanta. it looks like the flip of a switch could have made all the difference in a transit train crash over the weekend. 48 people were hurt when one train plowed into another parked at a san francisco station. the ntsb says if the driver hadn't turned off the autopilot, the train would have slowed down before the collision. >> it was barreling in, not slowing down. the driver's head was down. he looked like he was asleep or passed out or couldn't tell, but he was not looking up. he was not slowing down or braking or no signals, nothing. you could tell he was not going to stop. he just crashed right into the rear. >> investigators also say the driver did not apply the

emergency break either. bit of good news, a bit of relief from the recession could be on the horizon. a private sector forecast of the u.s. economic activity rose for the third straight month. the conference board compiles the index of leading economic indicators, a forecast of economic activity over the next three to six months. the board says several indicators are on the rise, including building permits and also stock prices. first time unemployment claims are on a favorable down swing. that's also good news. all right. maybe you're one of the ones who were going back to school to learn a trade. apparently a lot of people are doing that. usa today reports enrollment at trade schools across the country has spiked mainly because of the economy. one tennessee hairstylist is going back to school to become a surgical technician. a lot of students have college degrees. as you know, firefighters often save people's lives. it's a normal, but wonderful

part of their job, but not every fire crew is specifically outfitted to save the life of an animal. what one team did to save an elderly woman's best feline friend. don't miss it. ;?;?;?;?;?;?;?;?;?

a chilling statement from the u.s. soldier captured by the taliban. what private first class bowe bergdahl says is his biggest fear and a message from his friends and family back home. word of a possible new motive in the killing of a florida couple who adopted 13 special needs children. who is stepping in to care for the kids and make sure they stay together? also, as we celebrate landing on the moon 40 years ago, many are looking ahead to what's next for the u.s. space program. a return to the moon? a mission to mars maybe? or should we skip the heavens to focus or more earthly matters? oh, do you believe it's monday already? where did the time go? i'm christi paul. thank you for sharing some of

your time with us. let's get you caught up on the story of this u.s. soldier who vanished in afghanistan. this video is being shown with him held captive. it's bowe bergdahl. he was stationed on a base along the afghanistan/pakistan border. two u.s. officials explained he just walked off with three afghans after his shift, but a few days later the taliban claimed he'd been captured. in this 28-minute video, bergdahl says he fears he'll never see his family or his girlfriend again. >> my girlfriend, who i was hoping to marry. i have my grandma and grandpas. i have a very, very good family that i love back home in america. and i miss them every day that i'm gone.

i miss them, and i'm afraid that i might never see them again and that i'll never be able to tell them that i love them again. i'll never be able to hug them. >> well, you really can't imagine what it musti be like fr his family to watch that. bergdahl is on his first deployment to afghanistan. he's an only son. when word of his capture started to leak, the tight-knit community stayed quite for his safety and out of respect for his family. a short time ago the sheriff read a statement from the family. >> we have been overwhelmed with the outpouring of support and concern toward bowe and our family. as you know, the situation is extremely difficult for everyone involved. we'd like to remind all of you that our sole focus is seeing our beloved son, bowe, safely

home. please continue to keep bowe in your thoughts and prayers, and we'd ask for your continued respect of our need for privacy in this difficult situation. thank you, the bergdahl family. >> that family described as deeply private. the family posted a cardboard sign that said no visitors. they want to try to deal with this on their own, of course. well, u.s. marines blew up a stockpile of chemicals that are used to make heroin. they found a room stacked waist high with bags of the stuff during a nighttime market raid in afghanistan. there were also apparently chemicals used to make ieds. afghanistan accounts for 90% of the world's heroin supply, and the profits are often used to fund the insurgency. it was 40 years ago that man

landed on the moon. neil armstrong taking one small step for man and wone large lea for mankind. well, today take a look at the members of the apollo program as they gathered to celebrate the moon landing. making a pitch for the u.s. space program to achieve a new goal. nasa's focused on returning crew to the moon by 2020 and building a temporary base there by 2025, but the second man to walk on it, buzz aldrin, says that we've been there, done that, and nasa should be focused on taking a trip to the nearest planet now. >> no life on the moon, okay? we don't know about mars. >> right. >> there may be life on mars. if there is, it's for damn sure we ought to go there and look at it. >> right on. >> okay? when we get there and if we don't find ni life on mars, from that point on, there will be life on mars, bulldog we'll bring it there, whether it's germs and leftover urine bags or

whatever it is. >> he got a little chuckle out of that. looked like he'd probably be willing to go, of course. this hours the first astronauts are getting a chance to push for a mission to mars in person because they are meeting with president obama. meanwhile, astronauts at the international space station marking the moon landing with a space walk. here are some live pictures. isn't that fascinating to see that view? imagine what they're saying. well, david wolf and thomas marshburn are hooking spare parts to the station. 40 years to the day that armstrong and aldrin walked on the surface of the moon. inside the station we should know crew members have made an important repair. they have fixed a broken toilet. for the past day the 13-member crew had to use the station's other toilet as well as the one one on dts d"endeavour." we do want to ask you for

your views on the space medications. should the u.s. fund a manned mission to mars or do you think there are pet better things to spend your taxpayer dollars on? give us a call at 1-877-tell-hln. or e-mail us at cnn.com/hln. or text views your comments and name to hlntv. standard text rates apply certainly, but we'd love to hear from you, so thanks for being part of our conversation here. six dead in two states and police have charged this man with killing all of them. jacob shaffer was arrested in fayetteville, tennessee, saturday. he's suspected of killing his wife, her son, her father and brother, a teenage neighbor, and another man in huntsville, alabama. a family friend says the couple had their fights, but, well, he never imagined it would come to this. >> i have known him for 10, 11 years. as far as seeing something like this, you can't pick him out of

a crowd, you know. i have known him. we've had our ups and downs, of course, like friends do. we hadn't been friends probably for the last year and a half. >> investigators say the victims died either friday or saturday, possibly because of a domestic dispute. and investigators samo tiff -- another motive could be revealed this week in the home invasion killings of byrd and melanie billings. remember that surveillance video that captured the masked intruders breaking in the florida couple's home? officials said the primary motive was robbery. a safe was taken. officials are trying to figure out who, if anyone, was supposed to disable this home security system, and they say they're searching for three people they'd like to question. the video led to the arrest of eight people. a woman, pam wiggins, was charged with being an accessory after the fact and she's free on

bond. investigators say she owned the van used a the getaway car. the billings had 13 adopted children, many of them with special needs. we've learned the billings' daughter says she will care for her adopted siblings. she's 26 years old. ashley mark hasm here. s she said she and her husband would move into the home and raise those children. byrd and melanie billings were killed july 9th. a private funeral for legendary newsman walter cronkite will be held thursday at st. bartholomew's church in new york. he will be buried there next to his late wife in kansas city, missouri. the journalist often referred to as the most trusted man in america died on friday. dan rather took over the cbs anchor chair in 1981 after cronkite retired. a separate memorial for cronkite will be held in the next few weeks at the lincoln center. a seven-foot gator grabs a

dog. what would you do? well, the dog's owner fought back. we'll tell you what happened. x

well, a bit of relief from the recession could be on the horizon. a private sector forecast of u.s. economic activity rose for the third straight month. now, the conference board issues the index of leading economic indicators. that's a forecast of economic activity over the next three to six months. the board says several things are on the rise, including building permits, stock prices. one thing that's on a favorable down swing is first-time unemployment claims as well. reports that c.i.t. group, a main street lender, will get a bailout, not from uncle sam though. poppy harlow is joining us from the krcnnmoney.com newsroom. fill us in on this one, poppy. >> a lot of folks didn't know what c.i.t. was even a week ago

but there's been a lot of debate about this lender. it's one of the largest lender for small and medium-sized businesses. it's been facing a major cash flow shortage. what we're hearing from multiple reports, including "the wall street journal," is that c.i.t. was struck a tentative deal with its bondholders for an emergency $3 billion loan. the goal there, stave off bankruptcy. so what is c.i.t. and why does it really matter to you? that's the important thing afterall. well, it's a 101-year-old lender, small and medium-sized businesses rely on c.i.t. to get cash for their day-to-day operations. it has 1 million customers among small and medium-sized business owners. it operates in about 30 different industries, and it's actually the top lender to both women and minorities in this country. it has always focused on somewhat less creditworthy borrowers. it's had a lot of exposure,

ill-timed bets on home loans and student loans. that's hurt the company. but in terms of who relies on this company, again, small business owners. for more than really just startup money. they use it for something called fak -- factoring. they have seen rising defaults. that has been a huge problem, and christi, this all comes at a point in time when these small businesses are shedding hundreds of thousands of jobs. so this is a company that matters a lot to main street, christi. >> okay. but i wanted to ask, didn't c.i.t. already get help from the government? >> you're exactly right this. company got $2.3 billion in t.a.r.p. money just in december, but the ceo was back in maug last week lobbying for more aid. but the treasury department said you're not going to get t i want to bring up the statement to you from the treasury department talking about how it deemed that

c.i.t. was not going to get another bailout. even furg periods of financial stress, we believe there is a very high threshold for exceptional government assistance to individual companies. exceptional assistance such as the t.a.r.p. program, such as aig's multiple bailouts, such as citigroup and bank of america. the bottom line here, christi, the failure of cit was not deemed by regulators to suppose that systemic risk we've heard so much about to the financial system. so what it really looks like we're seeing is a new face of bailouts. washington stepping back and taking the training wheels off, betting on the private sector to come in and prop up this company. multiple reports that cit will get that $3 billion emergency loan. check out cnnmoney.com for continuing coverage. we'll bring you the latest. >> because you have to feel for the small businesses. thank you so much, poppy. we appreciate it. you can get much more of today's business news all, of course, on cnnmoney.com. well, paula abdul, she's hurt, she's angry about her

future on "american idol." what set off the "idol" judge and will she be safe for the upcoming season?

well, michael vick is a free man. an attorney for the disgraced nfl star says he was released from federal custody today after spending two months on house arrest. vick served 23 months for a federal dogfighting conviction, but his future is very much in

doubt here because nfl commissioner roger goodall says he's reviewing the quarterback's status, but we know vick will not return to his old team in atlanta. the falcons released him last month. speaking of being released, paula abdul none too happy. she could be missing when the show resumes. a.j. hammer is in new york. so, a.j., didn't she just sign or recently announce she was all set to come back? >> what she said was she was invited by "american idol" to stay with the show as long as the show remains on the air contingent on the success of her current contract negotiations, and according to her manager there is no deal on the table right now for paula abdul. he says he's not happy about it. she's not happy about it. here is what her manager told the "l.a. times" about what's been going on. he said i find it under these circumstances particularly unusual. i think it unnecessarily hurtful.

i find it kind of unconscionable and rude and disrespectful that they haven't stepped eped up ad what they want to do. i at this at this point we're going to be considering everything, including some kind of a competition show. she has a tremendous idea for a whole variety of shows. he's kind of setting the plate saying if we have to move this thing onto something else, paula is prepared to do it. meanwhile, ryan seacrest has just signed another three-year deal to host the show for a reported $45 million. there are strt stratospherist ns attached to simon cowell's contract. they are about to get back into the audition phase here. >> i have to wonder if this is a ploy to try to get more -- to try to garner some more attention because aren't these kinds of threats typical when it comes to tv contracts? >> yeah, posturing is very typical. posturing in the media specifically when celebrities and big successful television

shows are involved. it's not uncommon at all. i would find it really hard to imagine that one of the most successful shows in television history couldn't come up with a couple million more for paula abdul. unless her demands are being unreasonable here. it's just hard to know what to make of this situation. so obviously we're going to have to wait and watch it play out. the blogospheres go nuts. people on twitter are outraged. paula abdul fans are saying this can't happen. it's not possible. the question is can the show go on without paula abdul? sure it can. can it remain a success? absolutely, i think it can still be a successful show. will it be the same show without paula abdul? absolutely not. i think she's an important component and hopefully will be there with the show for many years to come. i have a feeling that's what we'll see happen. tonight we'll be talking about this, of course. plus, we have brand new michael jackson mysteries to tell you about. why was a custody hearing over his kids canceled today? is janet jackson getting the kids? we have new revelations about

michael's infamous pajamas in court moment. you remember that. we got it for you tonight. we'll see you at 11:00 p.m. eastern and pacific right here. >> always watching. a.j., thank you so much. >> you got it. well, a florida man lost two of his fingers trying to save his dog from an alligator. he let his dog out unleashed on his waterfront property. the man says when the gator grabbed his dog, he jumped in. >> i remember thinking she's loose, but now you have an alligator by the mouth. how do you let him go, you know? when he grabbed my hand and started spinning, he was so powerful. i mean, you know, i'd have been a goner if he'd have got my arm or my legs. >> once you got it by the mouth, then what do you do? the dog isn't seriously hurt. the seven-foot gator, however, has been euthanized, we understand. look at this adorable chihuahua puppy we're going to show you. got a little something extra. her name is precious.

born a few weeks ago with a fifth leg which makes it difficult to walk. rook at ta. here is the thing. her owner agreed to sell her to a freak show, people. a lot of folks obviously very upset about that. so those plans were scrapped because the owner was offered $4,000 for this puppy minus a life on display. the new owner has since renamed precious cinco even though her fifth leg won't be around for much longer. once cinco is strong enough, her extra limb will be surgically removed. isn't she a beauty there? bless his heart. a baby sea lion is back at sea. the 1-year-old pup was released into a protective cove near san francisco on saturday. fruit vale made headlines on june when he was fund wound wad on the interstate.

officers got him to a wildlife rescue center for treatment. as we celebrate landing on the moon 40 years ago, many are looking ahead for what's next for the u.s. sprays program, or should we scrap it? your views in a moment.

a u.s. soldier who vanished in afghanistan is shown here being held captive on a taliban video posted online. defense secretary robert gates says the military is doing everything it can to try to find private first class bowe bergdahl. >> our commanders are sparing no effort to find this young soldier, and i also would say my personal reaction was one of disgust at the exploitation of this young man. >> now 23-year-old bergdahl was stationed at a base along the pakistan/afghanistan border when he was missing in action late last month. two u.s. officials explained that he just walked off with three afghans after his shift. a few days later the taliban claimed he'd been captured. in a 28-minute video bergdahl

says he fears he will never see his family or his girlfriend again. >> my girlfriend, who i was hoping to marry. i have my grandma and grandpas. i have a very, very good family that i love back home in america. and i miss them every day that i'm gone. i miss them, and i'm afraid that i might never see them again and that i'll never be able to tell them that i love them again. i'll never be able to hug them. you feel for this family as you watch this. bergdahl is on his first deployment to afghanistan. arrived there five months ago. he's an only son. you grew up in a small town in idaho. when word of his capture started to leak, the tight-knit community kept it quiet for his

safety and out of respect for his family. a short time ago the sheriff read a statement from the family. >> we have been overwhelmed with the outpouring of support and concern toward bowe and our family. as you know, the situation is extremely difficult for everyone involved. we'd like to remind all of you that our sole focus is seeing our beloved son, bowe, safely home. please continue to keep bowe in your thoughts and prayers, and we'd ask for your continued respect of our need for privacy in this difficult situation. thank you, the bergdahl family. >> the family is described as deeply private. also saying that they're really relying on their prayers right now. in fact, the family posted a cardboard sign on their front gate that reads, no visitors. u.s. marines blew up a

stockpile of chemicals that are used to make heroin. they found a room stacked waist high with bags of the stuff during a nighttime market raid in afghanistan. there were also apparently chemicals used to make ieds. afghanistan accounts for 90% of the world's heroin supply, and the profits are often used to fund the insurgency. 40 years ago today the eagle lunar module landed on the surface of the moon. neil armstrong taking one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind. earthlings accomplishing a celestial trip generations of humans had only dreamed of to that point. today members of the apollo program gathered to celebrate the moon landing. they made a pitch for the u.s. space program to achieve a new goal. nasa's focused on returning crew to the moon by 2020 and building a temporary base there by 2025, but the second man to walk on it, buzz aldrin, says that we've been there, done that, and nasa should be focused on taking a

trip to the nearest planet. >> no life on the moon, okay? we don't know about mars. >> right. >> there may be life on mars. if there is, it's for damn sure we ought to go there and look at it. >> right on. >> okay? when we get there and if we don't find any life on mars, from that point on, there will be life on mars, because we'll bring it there, whether it's germs and leftover urine bags or whatever it is. >> he'd probably go. this hour the first astronauts are getting a chance to push for a mission to mars in person. members of the apollo 11 crew meeting now with president obama. a lot of people believe the whole moon mission was just a hoax. later this half hour we're going to tell you what television's famous myth busters are doing to prove them wrong. if you happen to be one of them. astronauts at the international space station are marking the moon landing with their own space walk here. that's david wolf and thomas marshburn who are hooking spare

parts to the station. 40 years to the day, of course, that armstrong and aldrin walked on the surface of the moon. inside the station crew members have made an important repair we've learned, too. they've fixed a broken toilet. for the past day the 13-member crew had to use the station's other toilet and the one on the shuttle "endeavour" as well. but that space walk we've been watching it live on cnn.com, but there's some more of the pictures from it. we do want to know what you think of this whole thing though. should the u.s. fund a manned mission to mars? or do you believe there are better things to spend your taxpayer dollars on right now? call us at 1-877-tell-hln. or e-mail us cnn.com/hln. you can text us, too, the word "views", your comments and name to hlntv. standard text rates do apply here. just want to forewarn you about that, but we'd love to hear from you, so thank you for letting us know. six dead in two states and police have charged that man with killing all of them. jacob shaffer, he was arrested

in fayetteville, tennessee, on saturday suspected of killing his wife, her son, her fare and brother, a teenage neighbor. the medical examiner says all were stabbed to death, but they did not know what kind of weapon was used. that's new information we're just getting down here. we also have learned another man in huntsville, alabama, was among those killed, and he died of blunt trauma now. a family friend says the couple had their fights certainly, but he never imagined it would come to this. >> i have known him for 10, 11 years. as far as seeing something like this, you can't pick him out of a crowd, you know. i have known him. we've had our ups and downs, of course, like friends do. we hadn't been friends probably for the last year and a half. >> investigators say the victims died either friday or saturday, possibly because of a domestic dispute. investigators say another

motive could be revealed this week in the home invasion killings of byrd and melanie billings. remember that surveillance video that captured the masked intruders breaking in the florida couple's home? officials said the primary motive was robbery. that a safe was taken, though it didn't have any valuables in it. officials are trying to figure out who, if anyone, was supposed to disable this home security system and just didn't do so. they say they're searching for three people they'd like to question. the video led to the arrest of eight suspects, including a woman and a 16-year-old. the woman, pam wiggins, was charged with being an accessory after the fact. she's now free on bond. investigators say she owned the van used as a getaway car. the billings had 13 adopted children, many with special needs. a lot of people have said, well, what is going to happen to them? now we know the billings' daughter said she will care for her adopted siblings. ashley markham saying she and her husband will move into her

parents' home and raise the children. she says, you know, that was her mother's wish. byrd and melanie billings were killed on july 9th. a private funeral for walter cronkite will be head thursday at st. bartholomew's church in new york. cronkite will be buried next to his late wife in kansas city, missouri. the journalist often referred to as the most trusted man in america died on friday. a separate memorial for cronkite will be held in the next few weeks at the lincoln center. frank mccourt has died of cancer. he was 78. he was best known for "angela's ashes" which became an international best-seller. it was a memoir of his childhood in ireland. he taught english in new york city high schools for 30 years before launching his literary career. what a second career it was. hanging out in your man cave

to watch tv, take a nap. you think that's a good way to relax. well, two guys are accused of doing much more than that, and their cave wasn't even at their house.

well, today marks the 40th anniversary of the first apollo moon landing. you probably didn't know that at one point the mission's success rested on the shoulders of a 10-year-old boy. i-reporter greg forest of greenville, south carolina, was living in guam with his family during the apollo 11 moon mission. his father was the director of the tracking station that was critical for communication in those days before satellites. so when a baring on the antenna broke, greg's dad sent for him because his hands were small

enough to reach in and grease a bearing. that allowed the nasa team to make the last communication with the astronauts before splashdown. he says it wasn't a life and death situation, but he's proud to have been even a small part of the mission. greg got a chance to meet neil armstrong who visited the station to say thanks and our thanks certainly to greg. kudos to you. thanks for the memory and the great story. we appreciate it so much. great stuff from the past on the u.s. space program, but another story is generating an ausm lot of clicks on cnn.com which indicates the future of space exploration may belong to china. cnn.com live's reggie aqui has more than that. they have some real he is pir rati -- as pir rations. >> they certainly do. here is what china wants to do. they want two space stations in orbit. one of them is going to be

relatively small, the other one larger. but that smaller one is going to happen pretty soon. if you go over to cnn.com and click on the story about this, you will see that the small lab is supposed to be launching next year. there is a larger space station which is planned for orbit in 2020. now, we should mention as often happens with space projects, this one looks to be behind schedule, but if it does actually make its target, the spacelabs will be going up in space just as the u.s. is kind of coming down from space because, as you know, we are about to retire our shuttle fleet. there are only a few missions left, and when that happens, there's going to be at least a five-year gap until we bring back another vehicle to go in space. now, we talked to an author and engineer whose name is robert zubrin about china's ambitions and he said it do a lot for that country's sense of self-pride. >> a space program like this will say to every young person in china what our space program once said to our young people,

which is learn your science and you can become part of exploring and pioneering new worlds. what could be more exciting than that? >> interesting to get the perspective from the people who were there 40 years ago. buzz aldrin, of course, one of them. the second man to step on the lunar surface. he questions china's motives and you can find it all live by heading to the story on cnn.com. i'll leave you on that cliff-hanger. >> you know how to tease us and make us check it out. reggie, thank you so much. >> you're welcome. president obama spoke at the children's national medical center in washington, d.c., just a short time ago here, and he took part in a round table discussion on what's become a huge priority for his administration, reforming health care. the president says he wants to make sure health insurance is available to the 48 million americans currently uninsured. >> just the other day one republican senator said, and i'm quoting him now, if we're able to stop obama on this, it will

be his wooter loo. it will break him. think about that. this isn't about me. this isn't about politics. this about a health care system that is breaking america's families, breaking america's businesses, and breaking america's economy. >> republican national committee chairman michael steele calls the president's plan a risky multitrillion dollar experiment that will undermine the country's economic future. it is a new lease on life for a new york pooch born with a little something extra. did puppy love really save her from a life on display in a freak show?

look at these pictures. forest fires coming obviously dangerously close to homes in british columbia. 11,000 residents have been evacuated from about -- this is about 170 miles east of vancouver. three homes have been destroyed, more being threatened obviously. low humidity, high temperatures, strong winds all making this a really tough job, particularly for firefighters. officials haven't said what caused the fire, but they say

they doubt lightning was a factor. two new york state workers in some trouble after allegedly making a state parking garage into their own personal man cave. listen to this. inspectors say the two men used it to sleep, watch tv, and do drugs while they were on the clock. the accused workers were supposed to be cleaning the garage. >> there was a television. there were couches to sleep on. there were, you know, games, playing cards, you know, kind of like a break room except the break room was where you could, you know, bag your pot and get high. >> one of the workers is facing drug charges, and the other has been suspended without pay. well, michael vick is a free man and an attorney for the disgraced nfl star says he was released from federal custody today after spending two months under house arrest. he served 23 months for a federal dogfighting conviction. his future is very much in doubt here. nfl commissioner roger goodall who banned vick from the league says he's reviewing the

quarterback's status. vick will not return to his old team in atlanta. the falcons released him last month. how does this sound? a bit of relief from the recession perhaps. it could be on the horizon. a private sector forecast of u.s. economic activity rose for the third straight month. the conference board issues the index of leading economic indicators. it's a forecast of economic activity over the next three to six months, and the board says several things are on the rise, including building permits and stock prices. one thing that's on a favorable down swing is first-time unemployment claims. clearly, we'll keep you posted here. here is some good news. an 11-year-old boy, a sweet story anyway, he's too young to work, but he did the only thing he could to help get his family some money. he sold his toys. zach mcguire recently held a yard sale to help his out of work dad. you can imagine how his father feels about this. >> i prayed to god let me win

the lottery as i'm sure a lot of people do. this is better than the lottery. >> bless his heart. >> it's so hard. some people who actually heard this story have sent in cash do nations. seems like a great kid there. want to bring you pictures that we're getting in now live from our affiliate ktxa, in the dallas-ft. worth area. you can see the train derailment. a freight train got off the track. look at the scattered boxcars and container carrying across a large rail yard. you can see crews are already on the scene assessing the situation. as soon as we get more information i will pass it along to you. a florida man lost two of his fingers trying to save his dog from an alligator. he let his dog out, unleashed on his water front property in west palm beach.

when the gator grabbed his dog he jumped in. >> i remember the thought okay, she's loose. now you got an alligator by the mouth. how go you let him go? he started spinning. he was so powerful. i would have been a goner if he got my arm or my legs. >> that dog not seriously hurt, as you can see there, the seven-foot gator will be euthanized. look at this adorable puppy. precious was born a few weeks ago with a fifth leg. look how tiny she is. it made it difficult for her to walk. her owner agreed to sell her to a freak show. that lot a lot of people upset. the owner was offered $4,000 for this puppy. minus life on display. the new owner renamed prerks

cinco. once ci in, co is strong enough her extra limb will be surgely removed. mythbusters trying to convince skeptics the moon landing really happened. @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

a chilling statement from a u.s. soldier captured by the taliban. what private first class bowe bergdahl says is his biggest fear and a message from his friends and family back home. word of a possible new motive in the killing of a florida couple who had adopted 13 special needs children. who is stepping in to care for the kids and make sure they stay together? also, as we celebrate landing on the moon 40 years ago today, many are looking ahead to what is next for the u.s. space program. a return to the moon? a mission to mars maybe? or skipping the heavens all together to focus on more earthly matters. your views on what nasa should be doing. good monday to you. this is hln news and views. i'm susan hendricks in on this

monday for chuck roberts. we start with a u.s. soldier who vanished in afghanistan. he's been shown here being held captive on a taliban video being posted online. defense secretary robert good faiths says the military is doing everything it can to try to find private first class bowe bergdahl. >> we are sparing no effort to find this young soldier. i would say my personal reaction was one of disgust at the exploitation of this young man. >> 23-year-old bergdahl was stationed along the afghanistan/pakistan border when he went missing in action. two u.s. officials explained he just walked off with three afghans after a shift. a few days later the taliban claimed he was captured. in the 28-minute video bergdahl says he fears he will never see his family or his girlfriend again. >> my girlfriend, who i was hoping to marry, have my grandma

and grandpas. i have a very, very good family that i love back home in america. and i miss them every day. that i'm gone. i miss them. i'm afraid that i might never see them again. never be able to tell them that i love them again. never be able to hug them. >> bergdahl is on his first deployment to afghanistan. he arrived there five months ago. he's an only child, an only son, who grew up in small town idaho. when word of his capture started to leak a few weeks ago the tight-knit community kept it quiet out of respect for his family. a short time ago the county sheriff read a statement from the family. here it is. >> we have been overwhelmed with the outpouring of support and concern towards bowe and our family. as you know, the situation is extremely difficult for everyone involved.

we would like to remind all of you that our sole focus is seeing our beloved son bowe safely home. please continue to keep bowe in your thoughts and prayers, and we would ask for your continued respect of our need for privacy in this difficult situation. thank you, the bergdahl family. >> now the family is described as deeply private. in fact, the family posted a cardboard sign on their front gate that said no visitors. u.s. marines did this. they blew up a stockpile of chemicals used to make heroin. that's the aftermath of the explosion. they found a room packed waist high during a raid in afghanistan. also chemicals used to make i.e.d.s. afghanistan accounts for 90% of the world's heroin supply.

looks like the u.s. army is about to get bigger. defense secretary robert gates announced plans to add an additional 20,000 troops to the military. the expansion is needed to help meet needs around the world and it will help ease the strain of deployment, which has forced many service members to serve lengthy and repeated rotations in afghanistan or iraq. right now the army has a total tool strength of 547,000. to florida now where investigators are looking forward to another motive. surveillance video captured mass intrude irs breaking into the couple's home in florida. officials have said the primary motive was robbery and a safe was taken from the home. it didn't have any valuables inside of it, though. officials are trying to figure out who if anyone was trying to disable the home security system. and they're serging for three people they would like to

question. the video led to the arrest of eight people, including a woman and a 16-year-old. the woman was charged with being an accessory after the fact. the billings had 13 adopted children, many with special needs. take a look at this here. this just in to hln recently. these pictures are from ktxa taken a short time ago in texas. that's a train derailment there. the station said the freight train got off track in ft. worth, scattering boxcars and container carriers across the large rail yard in the south western part of the city. you see it there. a train derailment. we'll keep you posted as we get more information in to hln. today is the day. 40 years ago the eagle lunar module landed on the surface of the moon.

earthlings had accomplished a trip that generations of humans had only dreamed of. today as members gathered to celebrate the moon landing. they made a plan for a new goal. returning to the moon and building a temporary base by 2025. the second man to walk on it says we've been there, done that, and nasa should be focused on taking a trip to the nearest planet. the first astronauts got a chance to push for a mission to mars in person. so what's your view on this? should the u.s. fund mission to mars? do you think there are better things to spend your taxpayer dollars on? give us a call. you can shoot us an e-mail, cnn.com/hln. you can also text your views. there it is. text hlntv. standard text rates apply. astronauts are making the

moon landing with a space walk. great live pictures. they're hooking spare parts right now to the station. 40 years to the day armstrong and aldrin walked on the surface of the moon. inside the station crew members have successfully repaired a broken toilet. it is repaired. the crew members were using the other working toilet. the space walk seen there streaming live on our website. if you would like to watch more go to cnn.com/live. this just in to hln. we want to bring it to you. police in florida say the man believed to organize the slaying of byrd and melanie billings knew the victims. according to court documents that were just released, leonard patrick gonzalez jr. told police the couple gave them money for martial arts studio. the couple apparently knew the suspects. that's just in to hln. president obama's plan to revamp the nation's health care

system is hitting big obstacles on capitol hill. it looks like the controversial overhaul is going to take longer than the administration had hoped. the president had wanted to have the new health care plan pushed through congress by next month. that seems unlikely now. the legislation will be ready before the august recess. the president says it's vital to move quickly to get this done. >> over the past decade premiums have doubled. in america. out of pocket costs have shot up by a third. deductibles have continued to climb. yet even as america's families have been battered by spiraling health care costs, health insurance companies and their executives have reaped windfall profits from a broken system. we've talked this problem to death year after year. but unless we act and act now, none of this will change. >> top republicans are not waiting to see the final product before offering their criticisms on this.

they say president obama's proposals would hurt small businesses. they predict employers will dump their own plans, leaving many workers without any coverage at all. the head of the republican party says the health care changes would be a form of socialism and party chairman michael steele says the president is taking big risks by trying to do this too fast. >> the president is rushing the experiment through congress so fast, so soon, that we haven't had a moment to think if it would work, or worse, to think about the consequences to our nation, our economy, and our families if it doesn't work. the barack obama experiment with america is a risk our country can't afford. it's too much. too fast. too soon. >> and it seems time may be on the side of the critics. a "washington post" abc news poll shows approval for the president's handling of health care reform has dropped below 50% for the first time. so what do you think of

michael vick? he's paid his debt to society for his federal dogfighting conviction. now vick is a free man. is it a return to the nfl next?

a private funeral for walter kro cronkite will be held on thursday. he will be rur buries next to h life wit in kansas city. he was 92 when he died on friday. he took over the anchor chair in 1991 after cronkite retired. >> i would say more than any other person he invented television views as we know it today. you know people born after 1981, who are you talking about here in television news came of age with this fascination of president kennedy in 1963. before that newspapers were

domina dominant. after that television news became dominant. >> a separate memorial for cronkite will be held in the next few weeks at the lincoln center. pulitzer prize winning author frank mccourt has died of cancer. he was best known for his 1996 book "angela's ashes." it was made into a movie. it was a memoir of his childhood in ireland spent in deep poverty and neglect. >> it seems that african-american men tend to die earlier of preventionable causes, heart disease, hiv, and violence. cnn explores the problem and possible solutions in "black in america ii" which appears on wednesday and thursday. today soledad o'brien has a preview with a clinic that is trying to turn things around. >> hi, i'm dr. thomas. what's going on? >> good, good. >> deep breath in and out for me.

>> reporter: dr. thomas is a pioneer. >> i refilled these inhalers for you. >> reporter: on a mission to save if lives of black men. men whose life expectancy is eight years less than the national average. and he's found an innovative strategy to do it. >> we're going to show you how to really work with your diet. what's going on with your leg? stop smoking. >> reporter: it's called project brotherhood. the goal, to treat the whole man. in not by advertising free colonoscopies. hiv is preventible. >> you got to exercise. >> project brotherhood begins here in this and many other chicago barbershops. why barbershops? why are they so critical to you?

>> well, this is a staple in our community. sol men feel comfortable coming into the shop and more importantly they feel comfortable talking about whatever health issue they may have. >> this is a great thing to be able to share with people. >> whether it's a fear of being exploited, going back to the experiment, the economics of it all, including a lack of health insurance or the fact that most doctors don't look like them. black men are nortoriously reluctant to go to the doctor. every thursday men come to chicago's south side for free haircuts, classes, meditation and free doctor visits. >> how you doing? >> we take a public health approach. health to us is mental, physical, social, economical and

spiritual. if one aspect is off in a man's life, he's not completely healthy. >> reporter: everything is free of charge. a much sneeded lifeline during these tough economic times. >> keep up the good work. here's your return visit. >> our thanks to soledad o'brien reporting there. we are just days away from cnn's examination of what it really means to be black in america. watch stories of people stepping up, taking charge, and creating solutions. the documentary "black in america ii" appears wednesday and thursday on cnn.

the flip of a switch could have made all the difference it seems in a transit train crash over the weekend. 48 people were hurt when one train plowed into another. here's the video. parked at a san francisco station. the ntsb says if the driver hasn't turned off the autopilot the train would have slowed down before the collision. investigators also say the driver did not apply the emergency brake. well, michael vick is a free man, and attorney for the disgraced nfl star says he was

released from federal custody after spending two months under house arrest. vick served the 23 months for a federal dogfighting conviction, as you know. his future is very much in doubt now. nfl commissioner robert goodell who banned vick from the league is now reviewing the quarterback's status. he won't return to atlanta. the falcons released him last month. while congress makes headway on health care reform personal finance editor gerri willis is here with tips on how to cut your health care costs right now. hi, gerri. >> early detection can save you a ton of money in the long ru and maybe your life for a free personalized health evaluation go to cancer.org. aarp and walgreens have launched a wellness center to launch free screenings. you pay what you can afford based on your income.

to find a health center near you go to find a health center hrsa.gov. >> we always hear how expensive it is to go to the e.r. how about a doctor's visit? that can be expensive. >> crazy. you can negotiate. in you recently lost a job or face a deductible that will devastate your budget let your doctor know. call your insurer and ask a customer service rep how much the company will cover for the type of service you need. then pass that information along to your doctor. if your doctor isn't willing to come down in price, may want to shop around for one who will. make sure to pay close attention to your bills. experts say there are errors in eight out of ten medical bills. keep records of everything you take. check it against your medical file. you can find it at the hospital's billing office. if you see a mistake send a certified letter requesting a new bill and a copy to all.

>> that's shocking to hear there's so many mistakes. also, what about medication? especially for folk who is have to take it on a daily basis? >> compare the prices of medicines online to find cheaper options available to you. consumer reports has a website that lists the best value drugs. that is consumerreports.com/health. if you have a prescription drug plan through your job you may be able to score a cheaper price by getting your medications delivered by mail. talk to your doctor or pharmacist. you may get a heads up when a certain medicine will go generic. >> as always, great advice. thanks, gerri. >> my pleasure. as we celebrate landing on the moon 40 years ago, many are looking ahead to what's next for the space program. a return to the moon, a mission to mars. we'll hear your views on what nasa should be doing with your tax dollars. not long ago, this man had limited mobility.

last month, this woman wasn't even able to get around inside of her own home. they chose mobility. and they chose the scooter store! if you or a loved one live with limited mobility call the scooter store! no other company will work harder to make you mobile or do more to guarantee your complete satisfaction. if we pre-qualify you for a new power chair or scooter and your claim isn't approved, the scooter store will give you your power chair or scooter free. that's our guarantee. they were so helpful and nice. they filed all the paperwork, and medicare and my insurance covered the cost. we can work directly with medicare or with your insurance company. we can even help with financing. if there's a way, we'll find it! so don't wait any longer, call the scooter store today.

this just in to hln. police in florida say the man believed to have organized the killings of byrd and melanie billings knew the victims. according to court documents that were just released, leonard patrick gonzalez jr. told police the couple gave him money for a martial arts studio. the affidavit also says gonzalez told police he owns a red dodge cargo van similar to the one seen on surveillance video leaving the billings home on the day of the slayings. he says it was not running. surveillance video captured mass intruders breaking into the couple's home. there's the video. investigators say the primary motive was robbery and a safe was taken. the safe didn't have valuables

inside. police are trying to figure out who if anyone was supposed to disable the home security system. they're searching for three more people. this video led to the arrest of eight suspects including a woman and a 16-year-old. president barack obama's campaign style health care push couldn't come at a better time. the there's signs that the overall support is slipping. paul steinhauser joins us from washington. pretty controversial health care plan. >> big fight ongoing in washington and across the country, susan, over health care. remember the president is going prime time on wednesday. holding a news conference. he didn't wait until wednesday. he spoke just an hour or two ago. he says he thinks he can get a bill on the desk to sign into law by the end of the year. he pushed back against republican critics of his proposals for health care reform. take a listen. >> one republican senator said, and i'm quoting him now, if

we're able to stop obama on this it will be his waterloop. it will break him. think about that. this isn't about me. this isn't about politics. this is about a health care system that is breaking america's families. breaking america's businesses and breaking america's economy. and we can't afford the politics of delay and defeat when it comes to health care. not this time. not now. zbloo earlier today michael steele, the chairman of the republican and national committee he called the president's proposed overhaul on health care reform socialism and risky. take a listen. >> the president's plan prescribed short term pain relief instead of trying to fix the source of the pain. if he was a doctor that would be malpractice. >> hear more about health care all week and the rest of the summer as well, susan. >> we've heard from republican

critics. now democrats speaking out against it. and the public is stepping back and saying will this work? >> the public overall realizes and agrees that something needs to be done. health care reform is needed. the devil is in the details. the president's approval rating on health care. this is a new poll from abc news in the "washington post." this is now the third national poll that has the president below 50% when it comes to how he's handling health care reform. in this poll it drops eight points from april. that's the bad news in the poll. the same poll from abc's "washington post" shows overall more americans trust the president rather than republicans in congress on who can do a better job. >> wednesday night should be telling. appreciate it. >> thank you. take a look at this taliban video posted online. it shows a u.s. soldier who vanished in afghanistan is now a hostage. 23-year-old private first class bowe bergdahl was stationed at a

base along the afghanistan/pakistan border. he went missing in action last month. two u.s. officials explained he walked off with three afghans after his shift. a few days later the taliban claimed he had been captured. in this 28 minute video bergdahl says he fears he will never see his family or his girlfriend again. bergdahl is on his first deployment to afghanistan. he arrived there five months ago, we're hearing. he's an only son who grew up in small town idaho. when word of his capture started to leak a few weeks ago the tight-knit community kept it quiet out of respect for the family. a short time ago the county sheriff read a statement from the family. >> we have been overwhelmed with the outpouring of support and concern toward bowe and our family. as you know the situation is extremely difficult for everyone involved. we would like to remind all of you that our sole focus is seeing our beloved son, bowe, safely home. please continue to keep bowe in

your thoughts and prayers, we would ask for your continued respect of our need for privacy in this difficult situation. thank you, the bergdahl family. >> now bergdahl's family is described as deeply private. in fact, the family posted a cardboard sign on their front gate that reads no visitors. u.s. marines in afghanistan blew up a stockpile of chemicals used to make heroin. they found a room stacked waist high with bags of the stuff during a nighttime raid. also chemicals used to make roadside bombs there. afghanistan accounts for 90% of the world's heroin supply. the profits are often used to fund the insurgeon sif. 40 years ago today the eagle lunar module landed on the surface of the moon.

one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind. today as members of the apoolo program gathered to celebrate the moon landing, they focused on achieving a new goal. returning a crew to the moon by 2020 and building a base there by 2025. the second man to walk on it, buzz aldrin says we've been there, we've done that. >> there's no life on the moon. okay. we don't know about mars. >> right. >> there may be life on mars. if there is. it's for damn sure we ought to go there and look at it. >> right on. >> when we get there and we don't find life on mars, from that point on there will be life on mars. we'll bring it there. whether it's germs and leftover urine bags or whatever it is. >> big laugh there. the apollo 11 astronauts got a chance to push for a launch in

person at a meeting with @ obama in the white house just a short time ago. we've been getting all kinds of great i-reports about "apollo 11." one in particular stands out. i-reporter greg was just 10 years old when astro naughts first walked on the moon. he helped seven part of the mission. greg is on the phone now with us from washington. greg, so great to have you on. thanks for joining us. >> caller: thank you, susan. >> take us through how your arm became such a crucial part in helping the mission? >> caller: well, it wasn't a lot to do with me. it was more my dad. they had a problem with the antenna. they had a bearing they were going to have to take the antenna apart to replace. he decided the only way they could really patch it through would be to grease it. my arm happened to be small enough to go through the two and

a half inch access hole to be able to do that. he called me at 10:00 at night and sent somebody out to bring me to the station. >> did you know how vital it is at the time? and do you remember it vividly? grazing up your arm and doing that? >> i don't remember that much about it. i remember going out there and i did know somewhat how important it was. i was following the moon program closely and was just fascinated by it. wasn't until later that i realized how important it was. >> well, we are looking at shots of you. such a cute little boy. i understand you wanted to be a part of the space program but your eyesight got in the way, is that right? >> yeah at the time to get into the astronaut program you had to be an armed forces pilot. i was too color blind to pass the vision test to do that. at that time it was something that stopped me from doing it. now they're sending physicists

and everybody else. if they want a gymnastic coach up i'm ready to go. >> i know you followed it closely. what was it like being a young kid to have neil armstrong talk to you after what you did? >> caller: it's hard to even remember. i think i was real honored to be standing there with the first man to walk on the moon. he signed a news clipping for me. it was a really neat day. >> greg, what is today like for you? we have a couple of days left. is today a special day for you, of course? >> caller: it's special. it's dad because my dad passed away two years ago and i'm in d.c. to celebrate apollo in honor of him with my mom. it's a little sad. but at the same time it's really need neat to know i've been a part of it. >> bittersweet. greg force we appreciate you calling us. thank you for your insight. >> caller: thank you. if you help save one of nasa's space missions or have

pictures of breaking news from your part of the world, we would love to see them. go to ireport.com and click on the upload now link. astronauts are making the moon landing anniversary with a space walk. david wolf and thomas marshburn are hooking up repairs to the station 40 years to the day after neil armstrong walked on the moon. inside the station crew members have successfully repair ad broken toilet. it's fixed. the 1-member crew was using the station's other working toilet. the other is now working again. if you would like to continue to watch it go to cnn.com/live. hanging out in your man cave to watch tv and take a nap. it's a good thing. it's a good way to relax. two guys are accused of doing much more than that and their cave wasn't at their own house.

six dead in two states. police have charged this man with killing off of them. jacob schaffer was arrested in tennessee. he is expected of kaling his wife, her son, his father and brother. also a teenage neighbor. the medical examiner says all were stabbed to death. the type of weapon has not been identified. but we understand -- we assume it's a knife of some sort. another manage in huntsville, alabama, was among those killed. a family friend said the couple had their fights but he never imagined it would come to this. >> i've known him for 10, 11 years. as far as seeing something like this, you can't pick them out of the crowd. i've known him. we've had our ups and downs, of

course, like friends do. we hadn't been friends for the last probably year and a half. >> investigators say the victims died on either friday or saturday, possibly because of a domestic dispute. we're talking about your money. reports that cit group, a major main street lender will get a bailout. we're not talking about from uncle sam. poppy harlow joins us with more on the story. >> one of the largest lenders to small and medium-sized businesses in the country. here's the issue. a lot of folks talking about it last week because the company is facing a major cash flow problem. out late sunday night reports, one from the "wall street journal," that cit struck a tentative deal with bondholders for an emergency $3 billion loan. this would save off bankruptcy in the near term, at least, for this company.

why this matters for you -- well, this is a 101-year-old lender. focusing on the main street businesses. what it does is basically gives cash advances to these businesses. not only start up money, but continuing operational money. it obviously is the biggest small business lender in the country. about a million customers use cit. it operates in 30 different industries. and it's also the top lender to both women and minorities. the reason that cit got into a lot of problems, with same with a number of lenders. the credit market is freezing up. this company is focused on less credit worthy borrowers. rising defaults in student loans has hurt the company in who this matters for. it matters for all sorts of small business owners that rely on cit for more than just start-up money. also for money for lending to keep businesses up and running so they can pay their bills, conduct their day-to-day operations. they depend on cit to lend them

the money to do that. the failure of cit, if we do see that, that will come at a time when the small businesses are struggling and we're seeing more and more layoffs. especially of the small and medium-sized businesses. >> you can get much more about this if you want to read more. go to cnnmoney.com. if you're an "american idol" fan, you may be upset to hear paula abdul may not return to the show. she's hurt and angry she hasn't been offered a new contract. auditions for the ninth season of the talent competition start next month. representatives of the show have not commented yet. fans have launched a keep paula campaign on twitter. a new lease on life for a new york pooch born with a little something extra. look at that little guy. did puppy love really save her from a life in a freak show? we'll let you know.

a private funeral for legendary news man walter cronkite will be held this thursday in new york. cronkite will be buried next to

his late wife in kansas city, missouri. often referred to as the most trusted man in america, he died on friday. he was 92. a separate memorial for cronkite will be held in the next few weeks at the lincoln center. pulitzer prize winner frank mccourt died at the age of 68. he was best known for "angela's ashes." he taught english in new york city high schools for 30 years before launching his literary career. it looks like the flip of a switch could have made all the difference in a transit train crash over the weekend. 48 people were hurt when one train plowed into another parked at the san francisco station there. the ntsb says if the driver hadn't tauurned off the autopil the train would have slowed down before the crash. also the driver did not apply

the emergency brake. these are forest fires coming dangerous lly close to homes in british columbia. vancouver. three homes have been destroyed and more are threatened. low humidity, high temperatures, and strong winds are making it tough for firefighters to control the flames. officials don't know what caused it yet. two new york state employees are in big trouble after allegedly turning a government parking garage into their own personal man cave. inspectors say the men used the garage to sleep, watch tv, do drugs while on the clock. one worker may have even used state vehicles to deliver marijuana. >> there was a television. there were couches to sleep on. there were games, playing cards. kind of like a break room except the break room was where you could bag your pot and get high. >> one of the workers who's facing drug charges and the other is suspended without pay. love this story.

she's an adorable chihuahua puppy with a little something extra. precious is her name. she was born a few weeks ago with a fifth leg. it makes it difficult to walk, of course, and when her owner agreed to sell her to a freak show a lot of people got upset. the plans were scrapped when the owner was offered $4,000 for the puppy minus a life on display. the new owner has since renamed precious cinco though her fifth leg won't be around much longer. she says once she's strong enough the extra leg will be surgically removed. the week on wall street is off to a solid start. stocks got a boost when small lender cit reported it secured financing to keep it out of bankruptcy. check out the bigboard. the dow is up 108 points. television myth busters are trying to convince skeptics of the moon landing it didn't happen just like the history books say it did. the show's host explain were the lunar conspiracy theories have proven so durable for the past 40 years. ;?;?;?;?;?;?;?;?;?;?;??

a chilling statement from a u.s. soldier captured by the taliban. what private first class bowe bergdahl says is his biggest fear and a message from his friends and family back home. we celebrate landing on the moon 40 years ago. the president welcomed three american heroes to the white house to ponder a return to the moon, mission to mars, and your views on what nasa should be doing. plus, he paid a debt to society for his federal dog fighting conviction. now michael vick is a free man. is a return to the nfl next? here's the latest from hln "news and views." i'm richelle carey. thank you for your time.

hope you're having a good day. police in florida say the man believed to have organized the killings of byrd and melanie billings knew the victims. according to court documents that were just released this afternoon leonard patrick gonzalez jr. told the couple gave him money for a martial arts studio. the affidavit also says gonzalez told police he owns a red dodge cargo van similar to the one seen on that surveillance video leaving the billings home on the day of the murder. he said it wasn't running. surveillance video captured mass intruders breaking into the home on july 9th and investigators say the primary motive was robbery. a safe was taken. it didn't have any valuables in it. police are trying to figure out who, if anyone, was supposed to disable the home security system. they're searching for three people they'd like to question. that video, though, led to the arrest of eight suspects, including a woman and a 16-year-old. the billings had 13 adopted children with special needs.

the u.s. soldier who vanished in afghanistan is shown being held captive on a taliban video posted online. defense secretary robert gates says the military is doing everything it can to try and find private first class bowe bergdahl. >> our commanders are sparing no effort to find this young soldier, and i also would say my personal reaction was one of disgust at the exploitation of this young man. >> 23-year-old bergdahl was stationed at a base along the afghanistan-pakistan border when he went missing action late last month. u.s. officials explained he just walked off with three afghans right after his shift. a few days later the taliban claimed he had been captured. in this 28-minute video bergdahl says he fears he'll never see his family or his girlfriend again. >> my girlfriend, who i was hoping to marry, i have my

grandma and grandpas. i have a very, very good family that i love back home in america. and i miss them every day that i'm gone. i miss them and i'm afraid that i might never see them again and that i'll never be able to tell them that i love them again. i'll never be able to hug them. >> this is bergdahl's first deployment to afghanistan. he got there just five months ago. he's an only son and grew up in a small town in idaho. when word of his capture started to leak a few weeks ago the tight-knit community kept it quiet for the sake of bergdahl's safety and out of respect for his family. a short time ago the county sheriff read a statement from his family. >> we have been overwhelmed with

the outpouring of support and concern toward bowe and our family. as you know, the situation is extremely difficult for everyone involved. we'd like to remind all of you that your ole focus is seeing our beloved son, bowe, safely home. please continue to keep bowe in your thoughts and prayers and we'd ask for your continued respect of our need for privacy in this difficult situation. thank you, the bergdahl family. >> the bergdahl family is described as deeply private. in fact, the family posted a cardboard sign on their front gate that reads "no visitors." u.s. marines blew up a stockpile of chemicals used to make heroin. they found a room stacked waist high with bags of the stuff during a night-time market raid in afghanistan. there were also chemicals used to make ieds.

the exclusive video was shot by cnn's ivan watson embedded with marines in afghanistan. afghanistan accounts for 90% of the world's heroin supply and the profits are often used to fund the insurgency. the u.s. army is about to get a bit bigger. defense secretary robert gates just announced plans to add an additional 20,000 troops to the military. gates says the expansion is needed to help meet needs around the world and he says it'll help meet the strain of deployment which has forced many service members to serve lengthy and repeated rotations in afghanistan or iraq. right now the army has a total troop strength of 547,000. 40 years ago today the eagle lunar module landed on the surface of the moon. neil armstrong took one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind, and accomplished something americans had only dreamed of. president obama met with the apollo 11 astronauts this

afterno afternoon. he called them american heroes. >> i think on this 40th anniversary we are -- all of us are i think grateful to all of you for what you've done and we expect that there is, as we speak, another generation of kids out there who are looking to be the next armstrong, collins, and aldrin. we want to be sure to be there for them when they want to take their journey. >> earlier, members of the apollo program talked about achieving a new goal, a mission to mars. also trourng the moon by 2020, building a base there by 2025. buzz aldrin says been there done that and nasa should focus on

taking a trip to the nearest planet. what do you think? should the u.s. fund a manned mission to mars? or these days there are better things to spend your tax dollars on? call us at 1-877-tell-hln. e-mail us at cnn.com/hln. text the word views, place your comments. standard text rates apply. a young boy held a yard sale to help get money for his out of work dad. see how the 11-year-old inspired people around the state of ohio.

astronauts of the international space station are marking the moon landing with a space walk. they're hooking spare parts to the station 40 years to the day armstrong and aldrin walked on the surface of the moon.

inside the station crew members had to fix a broken toilet kind of like back on earth. early indications are it's good to go. the 13-member crew had been using the station's other working toilet and the one on the shuttle "endeavour." so do you think we need to continue space missions like this? do you think we need to explore the new frontier of mars with a manned mission? that is our question today. a lot of responses to this topic. let's take calls right now. julia is calling us from ohio. what do you think about spending money to get to mars? >> reporter: well, i'm calling from california. >> sorry about that. >> caller: yeah. and i think that the real giant leap for mankind would be to improve our quality of life here on this planet. i think to look anywhere -- we can't run away from what's happening here on earth and with all the brilliant minds and so much money put into that, you know, they could study global warming.

they could improve our solar power rather than these primitive solar panels and the little wind fans we're trying to use. >> okay. >> caller: and deflect meteor, could predict and control hurricanes, figure out how to put out forest fires quicker. there's just so many things they could do right here. it's not the right time. >> julia, thank you for your phone call. julia has a pretty good list right there. muhammad is calling. what's on your mind? what do you think about us spending money here or up there? >> caller: well, i think we need to keep pushing the boundaries of space exploration in the hopes that we capture the hard work and dedication that our apollo space program brought about. we need to get our kids off the sofa again and teach them to blaze the trail so as to recapture our place in the world in terms of math and science.

as mr. buzz aldrin said, and i quote, inspiration has to be the greatest benefit, end of quote. so we must have our students inspired again and nasa is a great conduit for that, to inspire generations to continue doing better and opening up avenues of investment in work. so i am definitely for that. >> mohammed, thank you for your phone call. there is still something to be said for enlarging our horizons. one of our i-reporters gave his views. >> the space program may cost a lot of money but what it also does is it provides thousands and thousands of jobs for this country and for countries around the world helping to stimulate the economy. that's one aspect we fail to talk about in talking about space exploration. it's the impact it has on the technology sector, on the impact it has on aerospace, the impact on the overall economy.

jobs right now are very scarce as we know and i think investing in space exploration and that technology can only help stimulate our very poor economy right now. >> our i-reporter, marc. connie sent us an e-mail from kentucky and this is what she wrote. it seems wrong to be able to fund a space ship that can orbit the earth and zoom down and see children, women, and men dying of hunger and homelessness. let's take care of our own before we tackle those issues out in space. one launch would feed many starving children. absolutely stop the bleeding of money into these frivolous programs and put it into necessities. he says i'd love to see money put into a mission in mars among other places in the universe. however, we are in far too much debt to be able to spare money for this project. one more facebook comment, from marty. i think we should worry about earth first and when we can afford it worry about mars. it's not like it's going

anywhere. nice, marty. thanks to everyone who e-mailed, sent us texts, called, and our i-reporters as well. you got fired up about this. we'll do it again tomorrow with another topic. an 11-year-old boy in ohio did the only thing he could to help his family get some money. he sold his toys. zach mcguire recently held a garage sale to help his out of work dad and that father said he is overwhelmed. >> i pray to god, let me win the lottery as i'm sure a lot of people do. this is better than the lottery. >> some people who have heard zach's story, yeah, they've been sending in cash donations. hanging out in your man cave to watch tv and take a nap is a good way to relax. two guys were accused of taking it a little far and their cave wasn't even at their house.

president obama's plan to revamp the nation's health care system is hitting big obstacles on capitol hill. it looks like the controversial overhaul is going to take longer than the administration was hoping for. the president wanted to have the new health care plan pushed through congress by next month. it seemed unlikely this legislation will be ready before the august recess. the president says it's vital to move quickly to get this done. >> over the past decade, premiums have doubled in america. out of pocket costs have shot up

by a third. deduct ibls have continued to climb. and yet even as america's families have been battered by spiraling health care costs, health insurance companies and executives have wreaked windfall profits from the broken system. we've talked this problem to death, year after year. but unless we act and act now, none of this will change. >> well, here's change. this just into hln. an aide to house speaker nancy pelosi is confirming to cnn that she is considering changing the house democrats' health care bill so that it taxes families making a million dollars or more and individuals making $500,000 or more. this is the change. the current version has a lower threshold for a surcharge, $pooh,000 for families and $280,000 for individuals. so it's still kind of in flux. top republicans are not waiting to see the final product before offering their criticism.

they say president obama's proposals would hurt small businesses. they predict employers will drop their own plans leaving many workers without any coverage. the head of the republican party says the health care changes would be a form of socialism and party chairman michael steele says the president is taking big risks by trying to do this too fast. >> the president is rushing this experiment through congress so fast, so soon, that we haven't had a moment to think if it would work or, worse, to think about the consequences to our nation, our economy, and our families if it doesn't work. the barack obama experiment with america is a risk our country can't afford. it's too much, too fast, too soon. >> time may be on the side of the critics. a "the washington post"/abc news poll shows approval for the president's handling of health care reform has dropped below 50% for the first time. take a look at these

pictures. forest fires were coming close to homes in british columbia. 11,000 residents have left the area. this is 170 miles east of vancouver. three homes have been destroyed. more are being threatened. low humidity, high temperatures, and strong winds are making a tough job even tougher for the firefighters. officials have not said what triggered the fire but they say they doubt lightning was a factor. michael vick is a free man. an attorney for the former nfl star says he was released from federal custody after serving two months of house arrest. he served 23 months for dog fighting. his future is very much in doubt with the nfl. vick won't return to his old team in atlanta because the falcons released him last month. two new york state employees are in trouble. this is why after allegedly turning a government parking garage into their own personal

man cave. investigators say the men used the garage to sleep, watch tv, and do drugs while on the clock. one worker may even have used state vehicles to deliver marijuana. >> there was a television. there were couches to sleep on. there were games, playing cards. you know, kind of like a break room except the break room was where you could, you know, bag your pot and get high. >> wow. one of the workers is facing drug charges and the other is suspended without pay. wall street kicks off the week with solid gains, so what was the driving force? let's go over to the business desk in new york for all of the trading details. hi, allison. happy monday. >> hi, richelle. happy monday to you. another round of corporate earnings drove the market higher. halliburton posted a big drop in profits but still managed to beat analysts' estimates.

toymaker hasbro said its profit rose 5%. also reports that small business lender cit group was near agreement on securing financing it needs to stay out of bankruptcy. and goldman sachs raised its forecast for where the s&p 500 will end the year saying an improvement in earnings will drive a sharp second half rally. it all adds up to a nice rally today. the dow industrials rose 104 points to close at 8848. the nasdaq composite and s&p 500 both rose more than 1%. earnings will pick up as the week goes on with caterpillar, coca-cola, ford, american express, microsoft, and many others due to report. did you get all that? it's a long list. >> i did but i'll check back with you because i know you keep the list. thank you, alison. >> sure. all right. why would someone murder a loving florida couple with over a dozen adopted children? what detectives are saying about possibly a new motive and what jane velez-mitchell says about

who is moving into the house to care for all of those children. i'll clean the pool if you clean the windows.

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you're done? she pulled a fast one! ( laughs ) new windex outdoor all-in-one. a streak-free shine in half the time. s.c. johnson, a family company. we'll start with dramatic new video just in. take a look at this. >> there's a baby in there! >> all right. this is a mother and her two young children being frantically pulled from this suv. you can see it is engulfed in flames. witnesses had to kick in the windshield to get out the woman and her 2-year-old daughter to safety. the woman's 4-year-old son was trapped inside by car restraints. the car restraints had to be cut free to get that child out. that child is in the hospital right now in critical condition with burns over 30% of his body.

wow. >> but everybody got out. my goodness. okay. police in florida say the man believed to have organized the killings of byrd and melanie billings knew the victims. this is according to court documents just released this afternoon. leonard patrick gonzalez jr. told police the couple actually gave him money for a martial arts studio. you've actually seen video from that studio. the affidavit also says that gonzalez told police he owns a red dodge cargo van similar to the one seen on the surveillance video leaving the billings home the day of the murders but, he said, it's not running. surveillance video captured mass intruders breaking into the couple's home on july 9th. investigators say the primary motive was robbery. the safe was taken but there wasn't anything valuable in it. police are trying to figure out who if anyone was supposed to disable the home security system. they're searching for three people they would like to

question. well, the video led to the arrests of eight suspects including a woman and a 16-year-old. the victims have 13 adopted children, many with special needs. to another horrible case now. six dead in two states and police have charged this man with killing all of them. jacob shaffer was arrested in fayetteville, tennessee saturday. he was suspected of killing his wife, her son, brother, father, and a teenage neighbor. all were stabbed to death. the type of weapon has not been identified. another man in huntsville, alabama was also among those killed. he was beaten to death. a family friend says the family did have their fights but he never imagined it would come to this. >> i've known him for ten, 11 years. as far as seeing something like this, you can't pick him out of the crowd. i've known him. we've had our ups and downs of

course like friends do. we haven't been friends probably for the last year and a half. >> investigators say the victims died either friday or saturday, possibly because of some sort of domestic dispute. michael vick is a free man. an attorney for the former nfl star says he was released from federal custody today after spending two months under house arrest. vick served 23 months for a federal dog fighting conviction. his future very much in doubt. nfl commissioner roger goodell who banned vick from the league says he is reviewing the quarterback's status. vick won't return to his old team in atlanta because the falcons released him last month. a u.s. soldier who vanished in afghanistan is shown being held captive on a taliban video posted online. defense secretary robert gates says the military is doing everything it can to try to find him. this is private first class bowe bergdahl.

>> our commanders are sparing no effort to find this young soldier and i also would say my personal reaction was one of disgust at the exploitation of this young man. >> 23-year-old bergdahl was stationed at a base along the afghanistan/pakistan border when he went missing action late last month. u.s. officials explained he just walked off with three afghans after his shift and a few days later the taliban claimed he had been captured. this is a 28-minute video. he says in the video he fears he'll never see his family or girlfriend again. >> my girlfriend, who i was hoping to marry, i have my grandma and grandpas. i have a very, very good family that i love back home in america. and i miss them every day that i'm gone. i miss them and i'm afraid that

i might not ever see them again and that i'll never be able to tell them that i love them again. i'll never be able to hug them. >> this is bergdahl's first deployment to afghanistan. he'd only been there five months. he is an only son who grew up in a small town in idaho. when word of his capture started to leak a few weeks ago this tight-knit community kept it quiet for the sake of bergdahl's safety and out of respect for his family. earlier today the county sheriff read a statement from the family. >> we have been overwhelmed with the outpouring of support and concern toward bowe and our family. as you know, the situation is extremely difficult for everyone involved. we'd like to remind all of you that our sole focus is seeing our beloved son, bowe, safely home. please continue to keep bowe in your thoughts and prayers and we'd ask for your continued

respect of our need for privacy in this difficult situation. thank you, the bergdahl family. >> the family is described as deeply private. in fact, the family posted a cardboard sign on their front gate that reads "no visitors." this is u.s. marines blowing up a stockpile of chemicals that are used to make heroin. they found a room stacked waist high with bags of the stuff during a night-time market raid in afghanistan. there were also chemicals used to make ieds. the exclusive video was shot by cnn's ivan watson who was embedded with marines in afghanistan. that country accounts for 90% of the world's heroin and the profits are often used to fund the insurgency. the u.s. army is about to get bigger. defense secretary robert gates has announced plans to add an additional 20,000 troops to the military. gates says the expansion is needed to help meet needs around

the world and he said they'll help ease the strain of deployment, which has forced many service members to serve lengthy and repeated rotations in afghanistan or iraq. right now the army has a total troop strength of 547,000. a private funeral for legendary newsman walter cronkite will be held thursday at st. bartholomew's church in new york. cronkite will be buried next to his late wife in kansas city, missouri. the veteran cbs journalist often referred to as the most trusted man in america died friday. he was 92. a separate memorial for cronkite will be held in the next few weeks at the lincoln center. we celebrate the landing on the moon, 40 years ago. the president welcomed three american heroes to the white house but some people still believe, still believe the apollo astronauts were in a giant conspiracy. find out what some myth busters are doing to change their minds.

40 years ago today the eagle lunar module landed on the surface of the moon. neil armstrong took one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind. they accomplished a trip generations of humans never dreamed of. president obama met with the apollo 11 astronauts this afternoon. he called armstrong, buzz aldrin, who was the second man to walk on the moon, and command module pilot michael collins american heroes. >> i think on this 40th anniversary we are -- all of us

are grateful to all of you for what you've done and we expect that there's, as we speak, another generation of kids out there who are looking up to the sky and will be the next armstrong, collins, and aldrin. we want to make sure that nasa is going to be there for them when they want to take their journey. >> well, earlier members of the apollo program made a pitch for the u.s. space program to achieve a new goal -- a mission to mars. nasa's focused on returning the crew to the moon by 2020 and building a temporary base there by 2025. buzz aldrin says been there done that and nasa should focus on taking a trip to the nearest planet. well, there are people who insist the apollo 11 moon landing never happened. the "myth busters" team has devoted several episodes to proving those nay sayers wrong. they've staged experiments that counter various claims. some say the images were faked and the astronauts weren't

really running in no gravity so the host put on a spacesuit showing you can't replicate that movement just by hanging a man on a string and slowing down the film. they also took on claims the american flag landed by apollo's crew couldn't have been on the surface of the moon because it was moving and there is no wind in the vacuum of space. >> without drag or friction from the air, the momentum of grant's planting action lasts for a surprising amount of time. could be mistaken for a breeze. >> yeah. >> but it's lower air resistance. >> comparing it to the control in regular atmospheric pressure illustrates that theory beautifully and if there was still any doubt, it looks almost identical to the nasa footage. >> so in a vacuum the flag moves not just a little bit. it actually moved quite a bit. so that proves you don't need wind in order to move the flag in a vacuum. >> the hosts of "myth busters" appeared on our sister network

cnn this morning to discuss all these conspiracy theories. they say some skeptics will never be satisfied. >> it was far and away more advanced than anything we have done before, you know, you just wouldn't expect we could pull that off but we did. you know, people naturally are going to suspect that there was something kind of dodgy going on. >> the human desire to believe in a conspiracy theory is the dark side of the same reason that urban legend propagate around the population. people want to believe in some cohesive whole that even if it's what they consider an evil whole that holds everything together. but, no. i don't think i've had a moon landing denier e-mail us that they've seen the light. >> you can see more from the "mythbusters" team on our website. go to cnn.com/video. a lot of players from the

major players in the moon mission but one you may not have heard involved a then 10-year-old boy in guam and how his small arm played a big role in the crew's safe return. it's getting a lot of attention right now at cnn.com. >> there was so much ground breaking technology used in the mission. let's give some recognition to a 10-year-old boy's skinny arm. yes, 10-year-old greg saved the day. his father was in guam when an antenna basically went out. it failed just as the apollo was making its descent. there was no time, richelle, to disassemble the antenna but the bearing that had failed would work if it just had a little bit of grease on it. so in comes this little man. his dad sent him up there to the

station because his arm was the only thing small enough to apply the grease. he did so and the next day apollo splashed down safely. he actually received a letter of thanks. can you imagine being ten years old and getting a letter of thanks from neil armstrong? he helped so armstrong around the base in guam when he later visited his father. greg says he had no idea he played such a big deal, richelle, at the time for this mission but really nasa wouldn't have been able to make its final communications with the pod before splashdown if it wasn't for this little 10-year-old guy's arm. and that little bit of grease. so there you go, richelle. kind of a story we don't hear a lot about but it's kind of miraculous to see it 40 years later. >> it is. i hope people go to see it at cnn.com to read that story. thanks, nicole. all right.

is the pen mightier than the crown? former miss california carrie prejean is working on a book. did puppy love really save this pup from a life on display at a freak show? úxxñ

"prime news" is coming up. let's check in with mike galanos for a preview. >> announcer . >> a lot to get to. we'll start with the tragic murder of byrd and melanie billings, the couple murdered in florida. new developments, possibly a new motive could be coming out. they're also talking about a new connection between the alleged mastermind, leonard gonzalez jr., and melanie and byrd billings, that they helped finance his martial arts company. so does that have anything to do with the new motive? we'll get to all of that and also take your calls, 1-877-tell-hln. michael vick is now a free man. how long should he wait before returning to football? you have to believe he'll have a

chance to play sometime. should the nfl suspend him on top of the time he has already spent in leavenworth and also under house arrest? call in. 1-877-tell-hln is the number. this one is just for fooig, the story we brought you last week. a husband accused of murdering his wife on a cruise ship. it sounded like this great story. they had reunited. they're high school sweethearts. they're celebrating on this cruise, both turning 55. the quote is that he killed her with his bare hands. so we'll get to that for you. also this. this is new coming in. chris brown again beat his girlfriend rihanna. he's already admitted to that. well, now he is coming with an apology. richelle, i had a chance to see it. about a two-minute apology. >> apparently it's on his my space page and spread to other websites as well. >> you know it's going to spread like wildfire. it's about two minutes. he says the right things. it is the right tone. i'm a little -- what do you say? he's reading it. you can clearly see he's looking down and looking at cue cards or

something like that. i guess you want to get it right. obviously you'd prefer something off the cuff. and if he botches a couple words okay. but that's what we're dealing with here. play it for you coming up on "prime news" and want to hear your thoughts on it. you can call us at 1-877-tell-hln. e-mail us or text us at 45688. richelle and i coming your way in about ten minutes. >> people saying they wanted an apology. thank you, mike. former miss california usa carrie prejean gained a bool deal. you knew that was coming. the publishing company says it will release a book called "still standing" in november that will tell her side of the miss usa controversy, specifically what happened behind the scenes of the pan gent. why she answer the same-sex marriage quell the way she did and what she says really caused her to lose the crown. two new york state employees

are in trouble after allegedly turning a government parking garage into their own personal man cave. inspect serious say the men used the garage to sleep, watch tv and do drugs while on the clock. one worker may have used a state vehicle to deliver marijuana. so one of the workers is facing drug charges and the other is suspended without pay. she is an adorable chihuahua puppy. precious was born a few weeks ago with a fifth leg which makes it difficult to walk. when her owner agreed to sell her to a freak show, a lot of folks got upset. those plans were scrapped when the owner was offered $4,000 for a puppy minus life on display. the owner has renamed precious cinco. alison siegel says once she is strong enough, the limb will be surgically removed. paula abdul is hurt and angry about her future on "american idol." what has set off the "idol"

judge and will she be safe for the upcoming season?

cnn, headlines news, or msnbc are locked on your favorites? if they are i've got the gift for you. i'm gonna richardson and my next guest is ken pullson. a pleasure to have you here. >> good to be with you >> what is the museum. most people know. >> sometimes there you an a museum in articling ton, virginia called the museum. it was an effort to remind americans of the value of news

gathering in america and a nod to the first amendment. we did so well there so we decided to take it where the action is. we have a brand new museum called a the museum on pennsylvania avenue. it's a -- it's a 45 word sign out front with the words of the first amendment 'em blazed there. we think it's healthy for them to read that says congress shall make no law. we're attempting to put it in neon. >> it is flashing? >> it's not a tribute to journalists. we had a blogger say i'm not going to set foot in that museum until they do an extra special to copy editors. it is not about you. it is a museum of history but a different kind that reports what happened over the last several

centuries through the eyes of journalists. so you get contemporary coverage of the assassination of kennedy and arrival of the beatles and the civil war and fascinating >> exactly. what have the visitors reactions been for the first year? exciting. we see the full range of course. tremendous amount of school groups and a lot of tourists visiting washingt washingto was. we bill ourselves as the world's most interactive museum. young people can play the part of a reporter or an editor or a journalist. we can even stand up in front of what you and your business called blue screen, to tape a broadcast announcement for their friends and family and then send it out to friends at home. amazing exhibits there. i well tell you, i can say this with some degree of humility.

i just joined the museum in february, i've been the editor of u.s. a. today for the last five years. we have the largest piece of the berlin wall in north america. you can go there and see that and the guard tower in collaboration and partnership with the f.b. i.we celebrate their 100th anniversary and we have phenomenal artifacts. we have the unibomber's cabin believe it or not. and depending on your age, some of your viewers probably remember patty hurst and her tenure with the liberation army. we have the gun she used in the bank robbery and the leather jacket she wore. we have can coverage including

dillinger's death mask and the bullet pruf vest he zn wear on that night >> with you have so many different exhibits. what do you have planned for us your second year? >> one of the great things about working for a museum where news is in the title we're updating and reflect the headlines in the museum. not long ago when there was an uproar in iran we covered the social network and the twittering. when newspapers have collapsed and some markets we quickly reported that. upcoming exhibits include: throughout the next year you'll be able to see manhunt exhibit about the assassination of abraham lincoln and barack ob a obama. >> i'm so sorry. we've run out of time but everyone has got and go and see the museum. >> thank you very much

>> my guest has been ken pullson president of