good morning. on the house, the u.s. house of representatives set to vote on the tax cut deal today after it was overwhelmingly passed by the senate. will it pass as is or will representatives on both sides of the aisle get the changes they want in the latest from the hill. why did he snap? new details on the flori man who opened fire during a school board meeting before taking his own life. this morning, his wife speaks out for the first time. and snow job? the popular television weathercastor suspended after charges of filing a false police report. she claims she was attacked by a

would-be rapist in central park but investigators say the whole thing was made up "today," but investigators say the whole thing was made up "today," thursday, december 16, 2010. captions paid for by nbc-universal television and welcome to "today" on this thursday morning, i'm meredith vieira. >> i'm matt lauer.the house of representatives set to vote on this tax compromise today, expected to be closer in the senate, where it was 81-19. >> despite a new call from president obama to pass the bill without changes, house democrats say to expect a heated debate over at what point estates should be taxed and how much. going to get the latest from capitol hill straight ahead. also ahead, new details in the brutal murder of yeardley love, a lacrosse player at the he university of virginia. attorneys for her ex-boyfriend who also played lacrosse for uva and are charged in the case are

casting doubts on how love died and they want her medical records to allegedly prove their case. we are going to have more on that coming up. plus, important news for parents. the government outlaws drop-side cribs that can be found in millions of homes, hotels and day care centers. so, what if you already have one? we will tell you what you should do coming up. let start this morning in washington where the tax cut bill heads to the house after passing a senate vote. nbc's capitol hill correspondent, kelly o'donnell, has the latest. kelly, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, matt. there is a complication to this that can only happen one time a year and it is here, the politics of christmas. with pressure to get some important things done there is really a lot of fighting going on and democrats and republicans are not spreading holiday cheer. twas the fight before christmas. >> this is a terrible way to run the federal government's business. >> reporter: the senate to-do list is long. >> the senate will come to order. >> reporter: republicans say there is only time left to fund

the government before the money runs out this saturday. >> we ought to pass the tax legislation and keep the lights on. everything else, mr. president, can wait. >> reporter: democrats say they are not leaving town. >> yet, some of my republican colleagues have the nerve to whine about having to stay in action, do the work of the american people. >> reporter: republicans' message to harry reid, don't mess with christmas. >> the democrat leadership somehow thinks that by being here christmas week, that that's an act of courage, that they are being courageous by having congress here because we are doing all these important things. >> reporter: but reid blames republicans for stalling bills all year. >> so, it says to me and millions of working americans and me across this country, any senator suggest working through the christmas holidays is somehow sackry limp joyce or disrespectful. >> reporter: today, the senate will debate the new s.t.a.r.t. treaty with russia. >> we are ready to be here all weekend. we are ready to work and vote. >> reporter: the nuclear arms reduction treat city a top

priority for the white house. vice president biden says the senate must get it done before heading home. >> i hope i don't get in the way of your christmas shopping, you about this is the nation's business. this is a national security at stake. act. act. >> reporter: both democrats and republicans in the senate did pass the president's tax cut compromise wednesday. >> the yeas are 81. the nays are 19. >> reporter: today it goes to the not-so-happen had i pow where liberal democrats are upset the president refuses to reduce tax breaks for the wealthy. >> it appears our leadership is attempting to avoid our wishes and bring this bill forward without major changes. it will be a disaster for the american people. >> reporter: and the president has showed some calm but impatient pushing toward the house, saying don't make any changes. and on the senate side, they are saying don't make any changes but today, they will still try to peel back some of the benefits on the estate tax, but it is expected to be much tighter and there is still a lot

of hope that this tax cut compromise can get done today. matt? >> kelly o'donnell on capitol hill for us. thank you very much. indiana congressman mike pence announced he will not vote for the tax cut deal. congressman people, good morning to you. >> good morning, matt. >> you said this is a tough call. how do you think it will go in the rest of the house? do you think it will pass? >> i think it is a tough call no house republican wants to see taxes go up on any american. and most of us have been fighting to make sure that no american sees a tax increase in january, but for my part, i just believe that this tax deal will do little to create jobs. it adds to the national debt. i think we can do better. i think we can take time to do better and congress should do just that. >> even as you make this decision, one of your fellow republicans, paul ryan is criticizing it, saying this is purely a political decision. as a matter of fact, i think he goes further to say i think it is a personal, political decision, someone being considered or perhaps

considering running for president in 2012, you can't be seen as too cooperative with the democrats or president obama. how do you respond to that? >> well, i would respond, look, we -- my decision is based exclusively on what i think is the right thing to do for the american people and that is -- you got to recognize a couple of things. first, uncertainty is the enemy of our prosperity. a two-year extension oefgts tax code is not going to encourage the kind of investment that's going to begin to create jobs in this economy. and i really believe that this -- this congress ought to take a breath. we ought to roll our sleeves up and we ought to do what we can, like john f kennedy did like ronald reagan did and embrace permanent extensions of all the tax rates. i'm arguing, you know, let's not do this take it or leave it deal from the senate. if the liberals want to have an amendment today on raising taxes, let every house republican vote on what we know would help this economy -- >> not a take it or leave it --. permanent extension of the deal.

>> not a take it or leave it deal, there is compromise in this deal there are things in this package that neither side likes but that's the basis of compromise and suspect that what's better for the country at this particular moment? >> well, i think, yeah i hear about the compromise.i know that this deal was largely negotiated by leaders in the senate and the white house, despite the fact that the constitution clearly says the bills relating to taxes should begin in the house of representatives. but, look, bottom line is this is not about whether or not there was compromise involved. it is what is it going to take to get this economy moving again? and a two-year tax extension that simply takes tax increases scheduled for january and says they are going to come two years from january is not going to encourage the kind of investment are that will put americans back to work. i was in money circumstance indiana, just the other day matt, and i had a banker walk up to me and say, look, nobody is going to come in and sign a five-year note and borrow money and create jobs on a two-year

tax code. that is the reality. what we are asking for is an up or down vote on making all the current tax rates permanent. i think most americans know that's what we should be doing to get this economy moving again. >> congressman mike pence from indiana. congressman, thanks for your time this morning much i appreciate it. >> thank you. >> it is 7:07, here is meredith. >> matt, thank you. so what do americans think about what is going on in washington? chuck todd, nbc's political director and chief white house correspondent has the results of the latest nbc news/"wall street journal" poll. chuck, good morning to you. what does the poll show us about how americans feel about the tax deal? >> good morning, meredith. well, let's start with that tax deal. 59% approve of the overall deal that includes 54% of democrats, 68% of republicans. in fact, even self-described liberal democrats, 50% of them support this deal, 47% disapprove of it. so, there is broad support here and i think that's you why saw it fly through the senate and it will probably only hit little speed bump notice house but probably get through.

>> obviously, the white house hopes this bipartisan bill is passed because as the president put it he took a real shellacking in those midterm elections. he needs a victory here. the poll these 54% of the people believe that the president got the message after midterms. how are his approval ratings? >> well, they dip, but only about half of that group believe he is making necessary adjustments. now, his approval rating is actually -- took a bit of a hit compared to last month. he is sitting at 45% approve, 48% disapprove. part of that has to do with the fact that more people tell us the country is headed on the wrong track than at any time during this obama presidency. now, one remarkable thing about the president's approval rating it is actually kind of static over the last year and our pollsters say considering everything he went through, including that shellacking in the elections, the fact that still is at 45% is actually quite remarkable. >> a good sign. let's look ahead to 2010. you started to match president obama up against potential gop candidates. how does he fare? >> against an unknown republican, he is in a bit of

trouble. he only gets 42% of folks saying that they would support him for re-election, 39% would pick the republican candidate. now, put some faces with those names and he actually gets a bill bit stronger. matched up against mitt romney, the quasifront runner, very early, of course, 47% for the president, 40% for mitt romney. against john thune, one of the unknown candidates, mike pence and national name recognition, the president sits at 47. you kind of see a pattern here, thune at 27%. then match him up against sarah palin and you see some problems here for sarah palin because the president gets 55, palin gets 33. that is more about sarah palin than it is president obama, because look at these negative ratings, meredith. >> yeah. >> she is sitting at 50% negative. >> palin, for all the exposure she has had this year does not do well the voters? >> not at all n fact there is a real divide. dig inside the numbers. sitting at that 50% negative rating. makes her the most unpopular

politician we tested in our poll this month and tied for the most unpopular we have tested all year. only nancy pelosi scores an equal rating. women are more negative toward her. really, the only positive group of voters sitting out there, meredith are fox news viewers, one of the only group of voters she has a positive rating. >> on that note, chuck todd, thank you very much. >> you got t. >> is 7:11 once again, here is matt. >> thank you. we are learning more about the gunman who opened fire at a school board meeting this week before he turned that gun on himself. his wife spoke out on wednesday. nbc's mark potter is in panama city, florida with the latest on this story. mark, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning to you, matt. the more we look at the shooter here, the more we see a man with a criminal past who was mentally troubled and believed in conspiracies, he was also well armed. >> you may leave. you may leave. >> reporter: 56-year-old clay handgun threatened the bay county school board and then

opened fire, a terrified witness called 911. [ gunshots ] >> oh, my gosh, he is firing. he is firing. he is firing. i don't know -- >> are you secure where you are? >> yes. need an ambulance. >> reporter: in confronting the school superintendent, four board members and their attorney, duke said he was angry his wife had been fired from her teacher's job. rebecca duke, who is separated from him, says he suffered from economic and emotional pressures. >> the economy and the world just got the better of him had. and along with his bipolar, it just set him up for this horrible event. >> reporter: while police confirm rebecca was fired from her teaching job, they say she was unaware of duke's plans to lash out at the school board. even his former lawyer agreed the gunman had mental problems and wasn't shocked he was involved in the shooting. >> please don't. please don't. >> he was the guy who everybody you hear about on the news that believes in the end of the world

and conspiracy theories and things of that nature. he was that type of guy. >> reporter: in the year 2000, duke was convicted of aggravated stalking and shooting into a vehicle in a case involving his ex-wife. he was sentenced to five years in prison. >> he was dressed in full camouflage, had an assault weapon and basically, was planning on killing her the day that he was gonna meet her at her house. >> reporter: despite what happens at the school board, rebecca duke insists he was trying to turn his life around. >> he wanted a second chance. he lived in a very quiet community in out -- out in the woods so that he could -- wouldn't have to deal with the stress. >> reporter: police say they believe duke planned the school board attack for some time and arrived there tuesday with lots of ammunition. >> he had an extra magazine that was fully loaded in his back pocket at the time of the shooting. and then he had another box of ammo. >> reporter: neighbors describe duke as quiet and a loner, much different from the aggressive gunman who opened fire on school officials then took his own life

after being wounded in a gun fight. now, later this morning, school board security chief mike jones who confronted clay duke and ended the shooting, will tell his side of the story at a news conference and he is being hailed here by many people as a hero. matt? >> mark potter in panama city for us this morning. mark, as always, thanks very much. it is 13 minutes after the hour. once again, here's meredith. >> thank you. now the latest on the arrest of julian assange, the wikileaks founder back in a london court this morning. nbc's peter alexander is there for us. good morning, peter. >> reporter: meredith, good morning to you. just a short time ago, julian assange's lawyers say they have collected the $315,000 cash bail needed for assange's release that means at the end of today's hearing, if the appeal is denied by a british judge, julian assange will walk out of this courthouse a free man. followed by a crowd of cameras, this morning's ride to court may be julian assange's final trip in police custody.

the enigmatic founder of wikileaks, seen here through the police van's heavily tinted windows, could be preparing for an extraordinary change of scenery from solitary confine n a prison to this 600-acre estate outside london so big, it straddles two counties. assange's own lawyer jokily reversion to it as mansion arrest. the ten-bedroom english manor volunteered by owner vaughan smith, the owner of a british club for journalists where assange has appeared in the past. >> i let him stay there i believe supporting the underdog. i think's friend of mine. i trust him. >> reporter: smith acknowledge it had will likely be one of the most unusual christmases i have ever experienced. for the man who has made freedom of information his life's work, the price of his own freedom is $315,000 cash bail. with several prominent celebrities off attorney general help cover the cost, including documentary filmmaker michael moore and mick jagger's ex-wife, bianca jagger. bail comes with strict

conditions. the former computer hacker would be under curfew, wearing an electronic monitor and required to check in with authorities each night. assange still faces possible extradition to swede.for questions over allegations of sexual misconduct by two women assange met at this wikileaks seminar this summer, allegations he denies. asan only's mother who flew in from us a trail to support her son, described had his attitude toward his time behind bars. >> of course anger was actually the term that he used. >> reporter: the "new york times" is today reporting that federal prosecutors trying to seek a case against asan only in the u.s. are trying to find any evidence of possible coalition between asan only and the army intelligence analyst, bradley manning, the man who is suspected of leaking those classified documents. so for now, we stand outside and wait. meredith, back to you. >> peter alexander, thank you very much. let's get a check of the rest of the morning's top stories. natalie is over it news desk while ann is a little under the weather today. i hope she feels better. good morning, natly. >> wishing app well.

good morning to you guys and good morning everyone. a hotly anticipated white house review of the war in afghanistan has just been released this morning. nbc's jim miklaszewski is at the pentagon for us. good morning, mick and what does the report say? >> reporter: good morning, natalie. the president's review says the afghanistan strategy is pretty much on course, that in many parts of the country, taliban momentum has either been stopped or even reverse bud it also warns that any progress is still fragile and reversible. still, big concerns about receipt liability of the afghanistan government and those taliban safe havens across the board terror in pakistan. but when i was in afghanistan last week with secretary of state gates, i never have seen him or the u.s. military commanders there more optimistic about that mission. they do warn, however, that it still remains a long, hard fight and that american troops are going to be on the ground there for years. natalie? >> jim miklaszewski at the pentagon for us. thank you, jim. freezing temperatures and icy roads in the southeast are to blame for five deaths in mississippi and alabama,

including three high schoolers. several school district notice area canceled classes due to dangerous road conditions. federal government has now banned drop-side cribs that are a tape is until millions of americans homes. nbc's pete williams has the story. >> reporter: cribs with one side that can be dropped down can make picking up the baby easier but an edge can come loose and a child can get caught in the gap. the government says 32 infants have died that way. that's what happened to 10-month-old tyler witt of new york. >> i rocked him, i put him to bed at 1:00 in the morning aft his 1 a.m. feeding and i never imagined that would happen. >> reporter: 11 million of the cribs have been recalled and some retailers have stopped selling them. now, the consumer product safety commission has voted unanimously to ban drop-side cribs a topped toughen federal crib testing. >> i believe these new standards will markedly reduce crib-related hazards and ensure young children sleep more safely in their cribs. >> reporter: under the new rules

taking effect in june it will be illegal to make or sell drop side cribs that includes reselling them, too, on websites like ebay, craigslist or second hand stores. child care centers and hotels will have two years to phase them out and he replace them with cribs with stationary sides. drop-side cribs still in home cbs safely used if the sides are locked into place so they cannot move. pete williams, nbc news, washington. australian officials are launching a criminal investigation into wednesday's shipwreck that killed at least 28 asylum seekers, including 11 children on the shore of christmas island. november foreclosures dropped to their lowest rate in 18 months, according to realtytrac, but the dip is a result of freensz repossessions imposed for improp letter handled evictions and foreclosures. now 7:19, you are up to date. to become meredith, matt and al. >> natalie, thank you very much. >> sure thing. >> a first check of the weather from al roker. ker. >> i have amazing video for you

here. this is the power of wind and cold. this is a lighthouse in the harbor on -- lake erie there, cleveland, ohio. it is encased -- the house and lighthouse encased in ice. >> looks like santa's workshop. >> amazing stuff. it s. >> there is a guy inside that can't get out. that is right. the good news is his frozen dinners are fine. and we have right now winter storm warnings and winter weather advisories stretching from fargo all the way to washington, d.c., down to asheville. we have lake effect be snow advisories up through lake ontario. this part of the system pushing its way causing icy conditions from southern indiana all the way to the carolinas. look at this we are talking about anywhere from three to six inches of snow, stretching from cincinnati to norfolk. six to nine inches of snow in central west virginia. an amazing amount of snow coming down and icy

>> you can clearly see that the snow is incoming, one to three inches expected. the bulk of the snow will start around noon time. you can see that there is more you can see that there is more behind >> and that's your latest weather. meredith? >> al, thank you. and just ahead, a new twist in the murder of university of virginia lacrosse player yeardley lovement her ex-boyfriend is charged with beating her to death but now her attorneys are questioning how love actually died. we will have the latest, but first this is "today" on nbc.

still ahead, three things you can do if you want to retire in the next decade. >> plus, a popular weathercaster

suspended after allegedly lying about being attacked by a would-be rapist, after your local news and weather.

>> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am sarah caldwell. let's start with the morning commute with kim dacey. >> one of the water main breaks we're seeing is all cleared up. south highland street is open between bank and pratt street.

there are icy conditions there. still dealing with a water main break on north avenue, blocking one lane in each direction. accident at 152 and pulaski highway. that my neck and cleared in the last few minutes -- that might have been cleared in the last few minutes. in elkridge, report of an accident at washington boulevard and emmorton drive. southbound traffic coming towards us on the left side of your screen. in the butt of the sluggish traffic -- a little bit of sluggish traffic. you might see a delay from 705 to edmondson ave. -- 795 to edmondson ave. >> already a little late flurry activity about gaithersburg and frederick. the bulk of the system is to our

south and west. we're going to be on the fringe of this. one of the three inches distinctly possible. it is a fast mover. winter weather advisory in effect through the evening. tomorrow, high of 37 and plenty of sunshine. >> check the bottom of your screen for updated news and traffic information. we will have another update at 7:55.

7 kfr -- 7:30 on a thursday morning, the 16th day of 2010. another frosty morning in the big apple. the sun is shining, you can't see it there, it s take our word for it. it should warm up a little bit today. thank the people for stopping by. inside studio 1a, i'm matt lauer and meredith vieira this half hour, a strange case involving a local television personality here in new york city. >> a weathercast we are a career on the rise suspended after authorities say she filed a fake

police report about astalked and attacked by a would-be rapist. with and if you want to retire in the next ten years, will you have enough money and what should do you if the answer is no? what can you do to turn the answer no to yes? financial expert susie orman will offer her advice. race to no wrarks documentary made by another seen enough, casting the spotlight on the tremendous pressure and stress placed on today's students. we begin this half hour with new details in the murder other of yeardley love, a popular lacrosse player at the university of virginia. her ex-boyfriend is charged in that crime but now his defense team is he questioning love's cause of death. nbc's jeff rossen is on the campus in charlottesville, virginia. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning to you. let me read to you from the autopsy report. the official cause of death for yeardley love is blunt force trauma to the head. police say her ex-boyfriend beat her, now he is charged in her murder but his defense lawyer

says not so fast. yeardley love was also on prescription drugs like alteril and maybe others and that may have cause herd death. now they want her medical records to prove it. on the pristine campus of uva where george hughley brutally beat and killed yeardley love, prosecutors say this new twist. lawyers want to develop into yeardley love's personal files, her medical records, saying she was on alteril, the medication prescribed for adhd and overusing. the new defense theory, blaming the victim, the trucks may have cause herd death, stopping her heart, not the beating. >> i think that that's pretty transparent. i think the fact that they can't rest their case on anything more substan sex telling. >> i think it is kind of disrespectful to her memory, personally. >> reporter: hughley friends say had had a tur by lent romantic relationship with love and sometimes got physical with her. police sources say he may have been angry over their breakup

and sent her death threats over text message. inside his apartment, court documents say, investigators found the lacrosse shirt with a red stain on it. then, there's his confession the night of the murder, admitting to police he kicked his right foot through the door that leads to love's bedroom. they got into a fight and he shook love and her head repeatedly hit the wall, leaving her to die, police say, face down on her pillow in a pool of blood. hughley's lawyers wouldn't comment on their new theory, just that this was a tragic accident, a theory some experts don't buy. >> the extent of these injuries to the head are severe and could be explained only by somebody pushing her head forcefully against the wall. it just doesn't fit any other way. >> reporter: but in court, where reasonable doubt is all the jury needs, ghley's defense team is pulling out all the stops, not only requesting yeardley love's medical record bus also pointing out she was drunk the night of her murder. according to the autopsy, love had a blood alcohol level of .14. >> this is actually decent

strategy by the defense, creating an alternate theory of the cause of death and they are doing their job and if they can get their expert to say that there may be another cause of death, they are creating reasonable doubt. >> reporter: how longly is sitting in jail, awaiting trial next month. as the family of yeardley love, still grieving the loss of their rising star, gets ready to face him in court. need tolls say, prosecutors here in virginia are fighting the release of these medical records and love's own family, her mother specifically, sent a letter to the court saying you shouldn't release it, you shouldn't unseal these medical records because they are private it may have worked, matt. the judge has said he is not going to allow the defense to go on some kind of fishing expedition here and release all of the records built judge is reviewing them right now and may unseal some of them. we will find out soon. >> jeff rossen down in charlottesville this morning, thanks very much. it is 34 after the hour.

let's get a check of the weather from al. a. >> announcer: today's weather is brought to you by kay jewelers, the number one jewelry store in america. and the cold air all across the country is going to start to moderate just a little bit. these are afternoon temperatures, teens and 20s in the plains, 40s in the southeast, teens even up into new england. the departures from normal right now look -- warmer through the gulf coast and on into texas but chillier in the mid-atlantic states. then as we move on into friday, you can see this cold air starting to seep its way all the way down to the south, back to the central rockies, 21 degrees below normal. by saturday, though, the cold air starts to retreat up to the plains, on into the upper midwest, temperatures anywhere from 10 to almost 21 degrees >> snow showers today, one to 3 in. generally. beginning like at about noon

until the early evening hours. and to make sure you keep track of this wild weather all day long, go to the weather channel on cable and weather.com online. meredith? >> al, thank you. a meteorologist on the local abc station here in new york has now been suspended after police say that she made up claims that she was stalked and nearly assaulted by a would-be rapist in central park. nbc's mike taibbi has details. mike, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, meredith. how flu is at 37, heidi jones' career as a tv meteorologist and much more was on the rides. she was also an avid fitness buff and distance run zaerpd a lot of run hearing in central park. this is also where she claims someone tried to rain her.

>> northwestern corner of new york state. >> reporter: heidi jones had made it to the big-time, going all the way from an indiana girlhood to forecasting the weather on abc's huge new york tv station. >> we get into late september. >> reporter: reporting countless stories from the field. >> perfect day for this. it is called beach 10 t is not just for hackers slackers like myself. one of the best tune-up races yesterday. >> reporter: often filling in on abc's nationally broadcast morning show, "good morning, america." >> heidi jones is here. >> good morning, everyone. >> reporter: on her facebook page and run with heidi website she writes about her flourishing tv career and prowess as a long distance runner. no where does she tell her fans what police say she recently told them that a hispanic man had twice confronted her, first back in september when he grabbed her as she joggeded and tried to rape her and three weeks ago near her apartment when she says he harassed her again. but police say they weren't so sure. after all, two days after the

alleged rape attempt in september, heidi wrote on her facebook page, "good day, how was yours?" after the man supposedly threatened her in november, she wrote, "here's your turkey day forecast, gobble, gobble." now police sources confirm for nbc news that when jones was confronted with inconsistencies on her story and waited two months to tell it that she basically made it all up. the local wabc-tv newscast reported that jones is now off the air. >> heidi jones, a wabc-tv meteorologist faces misdemeanor charges for filing a false police report. jones faces types and jail time if convicted. wabc has suspended jones pending the outcome of an internal investigation. >> reporter: jones' critics have already taken to her facebook wall. this is inexcusable. you are a disgrace. fire her and put her in jail. jones reportedly made up her story to win with sympathy because of personal problems. >> oftentimes, people do dramatic things when they are going through personal issues.

people leverage are the support in a variety of different ways. >> front moving through. >> reporter: what's likely to happen now to a career that was clearly on the rise? >> if it's all true, there's no question that heidi jones' career is in serious trouble. >> reporter: her lawyer, paul callen, urges folks not to jump to conclusions and says she will plead not guilty to any criminal charges against hership. he could face a year in jail on each charge of falsifying a police report. meredith? >> mike taibbi, thank you very much. ricky clyman is a criminal defense attorney. gail salt sanchez a "today" contributor. good morning to you both. >> good morning. >> gail, start with you, heidi jones admitted to police she made the whole thing up, a court date january 5th charged with filing a false police report. you have talked to her attorney. what is her next step? >> her attorney, paul callen is really the perfect lawyer here. he is a mixture of compassion and competence and if i were paul callen what i would be doing is calling up the d.a.'s

office immediately to try to work out something. >> this is a woman who does not need to go to jail, however this is a case that's not going away. she needs to be a candidate for probation. >> her lawyer saying she is going to plead not guilty how can she do that if she already admitted guilt? >> everyone who goes into court will enter a plea or their attorney enter a plea for them always a not guilty plea until something can be worked out. and i'm sure in this kind of case with a progressive and thoughtful d.a., a good lawyer like paul it will cry out for someone to help her and it will cry out for an example to be made so that we don't have other people making false accusations. >> this is a young, attractive woman, obviously doing well professionally what would motivate someone like this? >> you would be surprised. many, many people have the fantasy or thought, gee, if this happened to me, someone else

would feel badly for me or someone else would rush to my aid. we all actually have thoughts like that but to act on it is a different story. so then the question becomes, you know, is -- was the stress such or is the personality character such that a reaction to anxiety or depression would cause them to, if you will, break their own moral code? 'cause that's really the question here, right? why would you do something that could destroy your life and that would be a lie, essentially that would hurt other people, that takes the police away from their job and so on? sometimes it is real mental illness. looking at someone beautiful and successful does not mean that they are not suffering inside that they don't potentially have a mental illness, something really bizarre didn't going on in their life as we see over and over again in cases. >> and why cry rape? >> right. well, you know it is about being attacked. you know, this is -- one fantasy sometimes people claim i'm horribly sick. i have seen the cases of i've

got cancer so i need people around me. this is about being attacked and it is strange to say but actually many, many women do have thoughts about rape. again, they don't want to be raped, but they have thoughts about it. it is not an uncommon fantasy. and the idea that someone would rescue you or rush to your aid because you have been violated and violated in a sexual manner so it makes you think about being a personal other to her, a boyfriend or somebody that she wanted to arouse or concern. >> you sit on a board for a rape treatment center, correct? >> yes, i do. >> in california. >> seven years. >> i'm sure there are people on that board who, you know what she cried rape, that presents a chilling effect to people who have been raped, she deserves to go to jail. >> she may deer is to have go to jail but the reality is it is not going to do her or anybody else any good. the trouble here, meredith, does have a chilling affect? are women afraid to go forward because when you have someone of this celebrity it, even if it's because of a mental illness and

it's not malicious, the reality is that it does make them say, well, maybe the police won't believe me. i have to say i have got to applaud these pleas for nipping it in the bud because, what if it went one more step? what if there was a lineup? what if there was a show up -- a picture and she picked that hispanic that she had never seen? >> such things have happened so i think we have to think about the moral greater good here and today, i would say a lot of people are comfortable with, frankly, untruths. we see a lot of things going on today that are, you know, not about following the rules and it's emboldening, i think, others to break them. >> gail saltz, ricky kleman, thank you both for your perspective this morning. we appreciate it. up next on a much different note, three things to do if you hope to retire in the next decade, critical advice from susie orman, after this.

ab ann today. >> announcer: today's money is brought to you by bank of america. >> we are back at 7:46. this morning on today's money you what, really need to retire if you were ten years from retirement and your nest egg has take an hit recently, what should you do? that question was asked in a recent wall street journal article. here with advice is susze orman the host of the suze orman show on cnbc. good to he see you. >> hi, matt. >> a decade away from retirement, may have take an hit in the recession, you start to lock at what you need. this is the time to plan. you got to get busy. >> actually, you should be planning all the way up until now. all right. we have ten years left. you don't know what to do so let's start right into t listen, your major, page ex-er spence in life is your mortgage payment. if you own a home, my advice to you would be, after the point of maturing the retirement account get rid of the mortgage. you need more money in the retirement account to pay the mortgage than if you just paid

the mortgage off. >> make sure people heard what you said, don't stop contributing to your 401(k) plan, get up to the match point and then take the excess money and pay off the mortgage. >> only if you plan to stay in the house for the rest of your life. you get rid of the mortgage payment by the time you retire, you're sitting pretty. >> second thing now this some ways takes a piece of conventional wisdom and turns this on the ear. usually you say, okay, you are ten years away from retirement, you start to get out of the stock market and into bonds. you say today's economy has changed that equation. >> you bet he be very careful. we are at very version low interest rates when interest rates go down, the price of bonds go up. when interest rates go up, the prices of bonds go down. most people go into bond funds. this he don't have a maturity date that says you are going to get your money back. if you go into bond funds now and interest rates go up, which they will eventually, you are going to lose money -- >> just when you need to be building more of it. >> i'm here to tell you, this is not the time on any level go

into bond funds, especially if they are long-term maturity bond funds, big, big red flag. >> you have got a lot of people thought still nervous about the stock market. so if you're telling them not to buy bonds, what should they buy? >> so i'd like them to start to get a little calmer about the stock market in doing this. stocks group and down but if you were to buy a stock or an exchange-traded fund that has a dividend on it, a 5, 4, 6% dividend, at least you have some cushion if the stock or the exchange-traded fund goes down, you still are getting paid some, retirees today really should start thinking about looking into exchange-traded funds or stocks. >> quickly, exchange-traded fund is what? >> like a mutual fund that trades on the stock market. it's far better than actually a mutual fund because of its liquidity but it's a really viable alternative today, especially since interest rates are so low. >> recap, pay off your mortgage, be careful of your buying of bond it is you're ten years away from retirement. >> especially a bond fund.

>> look at these dividend -- >> paying stocks and exchange traded funds. >> three important tips for people who are ten years and probably sooner from retirement. suze orman, thank you very much. for more financial advice, catch the "suze orman show" saturday nights at 9 p.m. eastern and pacific time. that's on cnbc. still ahead, speaking of we will talk about that but first, these messages.

still ahead, are we pushing our kids too hard and too fast. >> and does that hurt them in the end? we will talk about that after your local news. the end? we will talk about that after your local news. >> and does th the end? we will talk about that after your local news.

>> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am sarah caldwell. let's get another check on the morning commute with kim dacey. >> we have a crash in dundalk that is shot down solid point road between short wave and mornington road. and a water main break here with one lane in each direction getting by. this is cleaned up, the road is back open between bank and pratt

street, but icy conditions because of the water on the roadway. report a fund accident on washington boulevard and amber 10. we will give you a live look outside at a bad situation at the harrisburg expressway. one right lane is closed because of an accident approaching timonium wrote. switch to a live view of the west side, you might see fish a bit of a slowdown on the outer loop from 795 it the edmonson bearde -- to edmondson. >> we are looking at this enter western maryland and the shot up the first band could be a in a new and in west baltimore. it is down to our south and west. it will be moving along the virginia-north carolina border. we're on the fringe of this.

two to four inches possible around ocean city. winter weather advisory as far as the forecast for the next seven days. >> thank you for joining us. we will see you in 25 minutes.

8:00 now on this tuesday morning, thursday -- i'm sorry about that december 16, 2010. matt, these folks are waving to loved ones back home or flapping their arms to keep warm. either way it works for us. outside on this chilly plaza, i'm meredith vieira, along with matt lauer and al roker is somewhere. there he is. >> there he is. >> just ahead, this is something that i'm actually -- the pressure-packed lives of today's students, they have schools and they have club, afterschool activities, home works the list goes on and on and on. some stay is causing our kids to

lose their grip, literally. we will talk about that coming up. >> also, we are going to talk to actor matt damon, starring in the movie "true grit," talk about his role in that time on the horse and role as his father of four little girls. wow. four, count them. >> my goodness. brave man. and one with of the stresses around the holiday season who do you tip and how much? tipping is really a tough topic. you don't want to offend people, we are going to get into that. >> especially tough economic times, too. but first, let's see who is stopping by it is oscar win dustin hoffman. in the neighborhood. so good to see you. >> yeah. >> i just saw you up on the big screen as the big focker in "little fockers." >> no one has ever called me the big focker. we will take that.

>> was it as much fun the second time around? >> it always is. >> i just throw them, you hit them. >> think of the cast here, barbra streisand, robert deni o niro, you, jessica alba, own wilson this is the big time? >> yes, we are all crazy. >> you know, your characters go through a bid of midlife crisis in this. actually, you are in spain taking flamenco lessons. did you know -- >> yes. >> mr. hoffman, that meredith was the eastern rhode island flam mepg co-champion 1954. can you give us a little flamenco? here, i will hold this ready? >> can we get a mike? >> i think he is lying to you. >> all right. all right. all right. hold this. pretty good. >> i can do that. >> go ahead. go ahead.

>> like a penguin. >> whoa, what is in there? >> well what are you doing for the holidays, by the way? >> well, my son, jake, is going to australia and i know you want a short answer. and untrained dog with us so i plan to stop him from popping in the house. >> wow. nothing says holidays. >> like a little doggy do. >> a little doggy do for christmas. >> you don't need it but good luck with "little fockers." one of our favorite guest ever. >> say hello to the crew? >> of course. [ cheers and applause ] >> the crew loves dustin hoffman. >> yes they do. >> what do you want for breakfast? >> that's why the crew loves dustin hoffman. government inside. natalie is standing by a check of the headlines. natalie? >> all right, good morning. the baked goods will be arising tomorrow. as always, dustin hoffman

delivers. good morning once again. in the news, an $850 billion extensions of tax cuts and jobless benefits is headed for a vote in the house today. it won senate approval wednesday. president obama wants quick passage to prevent a tax like in january. the don't ask, don't tell for gay service members moves to the senate but it may be too late to act before congress adjourns. 14 members of the same extended family were killed when their minivan collided with another vehicle carrying explosives in afghanistan. in a public public comment since her husband's suicide saturday, the widow of bernie madoff's son, mark, says she is devastated and asked for privacy as she raises her two young children alone. now, let's head over to wall street. cnbc's trish regan is at the new york stock exchange for us. trish what are investors watch withing this morning? >> good morning, natalie. they are anxiously awaiting with the extension of the tax cuts.

while you have wall street with enthused, analysts wonder what it will mean for long-term deficits. in europe, european officials are having a meeting today a summit in brussels. they are trying to deal with and find ways to prevent a future crisis, such as what we are seeing right now. there are a number of economic data points out today to be watching for, including numbers on the housing market and on the jobs market, keep busy. >> trish regan at the knock stock exchange, thank you. philadelphia eagles quarterback, michael vick who served 18 months in prison for dogfighting, says he would like to have a pet dog again. vick was banned from dog ownership for at least three years. he says dog would be good for his daughters and for his own rehabilitation. it is 8:05 right now you are up to date. let's go to al with a check of the weather. mr. roquer. >> thank you very much, natalie. my girlfriend dragged me here in the zmold you know she can see this sign. okay. very nice. good luck, my friend with that and here's -- these nice folks

brought toys for our toy drive. here is great gift you might want to bring for any adults in this. al roker, i just signed it for this nice lady. wow. thank you so much. shameless plug. let's take a look, show you what is happening as far as your weather is concerned. pittsburgh, p.a. yay, nbc 11. 26 degrees and as we look at the rest of the country, you can see we have got an icy mix making its way through the ohio valley toward the mid-atlantic states, a real mess. stretching from minnesota all the way to the virginias today. wet weather in the pacific northwest. snow in the central rockies. sunny down in florida. still cool but nowhere near as cold as it has >> are expecting us know today. -- expecting snow today.

>> this is why we love dustin hoffman, hucking and kissing and being dustin hoffman. al, we do love him. when we come back, a powerful documentary revealing the dangerous toll that stress and pressure can take on students. we will talk to the mother who made it right after these messages. impressive resume. thank you. you know what, tell me, what makes peter, peter ? well, i'm an avid catamaran sailor. i can my own homemade jam, apricot. and i really love my bank's raise your rate cd. i'm sorry, did you say you'd love a pay raise asap ? uh, actually, i said i love my bank's raise your rate cd. you spent 8 days lost at sea ? no, uh... you love watching your neighbors watch tv ?

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this morning on education nation today, the hectic lives of students. are we pushing them too hard and too fast? today, national correspondent amy robach found one mother of two who said absolutely. amy, good morning. >> meredith, good morning to you. vicki ables did more than talk about it, she picked up a video camera and started asking questions of educators, students and parents and the result, a documentary that has people across the country taking notice. >> i would spend six hours a night, at least, on my homework. >> high school is about learning,pass tests. >> you try to stuff as much information into your brain as possible. >> reporter: these students give voice to a number of the overwhelming concerns faced by teens and their parents. >> i didn't think when i had kids that the only time i would with see them is for 20 minutes at dipper. >> reporter: mother of two, vicki ables saw the strain on her own family and set out to take the pulse of what was happening across the nation in her new documentary, "race to

nowhere". >> we are all afraid that our children won't be able to be as successful as we are. >> reporter: it is a pressure that can exact a costly toll. >> i took at ter rill, hard to be the vice president of your class and do homework. >> i would be sitting there trying to catch my breath. i couldn't fall asleep at night. >> reporter: two people interviewed in the film are today college juniors. how did you hand that will pressure? >> some time in 11th grade, i guess, something cracked under the pressure. i cheated on a test. >> reporter: what do you think about the level of competition where we are at as a country? >> i think it has gotten progressively worse and i think what this film does is gives us a -- sparks a nationwide conversation. >> reporter: film has been screened in 600 communities and making an impact. >> my reaction was, whoa this is so powerful. >> reporter: tara krantz is a

mother of two and works as a middle school counselor in louisville, colorado. >> made me think as a parent, okay, i think i need to reprioritize our routine it feels like a rat race for my kids. >> reporter: "race to nowhere" is primarily screened in school auditoriums and churches and that allows people to stick around after the film and really get into it, discuss its message. meredith? >> amy robach, thank you very much. vicki ables is with us now along with high school student phillip grossman, the co-founder of term, the educational reform movement. dr. janet taylor is psychologist, good friend of the show. nice to see you all. vicki, let me start with you. you have two daughters. one of them in particular was the inspiration behind this film. tell me what happened to your daughter, jamie. >> when my daughter was 12th and in seventh grade, she became physically sick from the pressure she was feeling and from the schedule she was keeping and as i started talking to parents in my community and different communities across the

country way, found was an epidemic of kids who were facing hours of homework at night who were becoming anxious, depressed, sleep deprived and i decided there was an important story to tell and set out to give students, parents and educators a voice and in this important conversation. >> i can understand what students said about it, but what did parents and educators tell you? >> i feel that everyone feels that there are tremendous pressures coming from many different places right now and everyone feels alone and if they don't have power to take it. that is what is so unique about this film, it is bringing people together to find ways that work for them and to look around the room for alliances with one another, become advocates. teens better served by young people today and teachers. >> janet, so it is not just the students that feel the pressure? >> it is not, absolutely. what student does with their parents, own parents are stressed and we have this lack of balance. i have a 17-year-old senior awaiting college acceptances and has migraines, stomach aches, i mean, she is stressed.

>> our psychiatrist. how do you help her? >> you can't put her on the couch. i think tough create some billion and create meaning and perspective. you will get in somewhere but these kids, relentless, relentless demand and we don't create enough balance we don't create enough down time to say it is going to be all right as parents, because in our own world, we are just going 24/7. >> our junior right now in high school. how would you describe the pressure that you are under? >> it comes from the tests. everyone is trying to get a good grade and what worries me, we are really not focusing on learning anymore it is all about -- be it is like a competition. as americans, we have a competition culture, obviously going to seep into the educational system. but the pressure that we have is just unneeded. we are not even learning as much as we could all because of this pressure. you know, it's pretty troubling. >> how does it manifest itself with you though? >> i try and, you know, make sure i pace myself. i don't take too many aps, not going to things just to get into college, i want to learnt stuff but there are a lot of people

who get really caught up in this. they take everything they can, taking five aps -- >> because they believe without them they won't get into college? >> yeah, they think that they can't get into college or they have to go to the best college. there is a right college for everyone. you know it is not -- everyone doesn't have to go to harvard, everyone doesn't have to go to princeton. all the colleges are good and anyone can find their -- the right place. >> seems like you have your headhead screwed on right. you want to start a mom. and seems you want to, inspired by this film, where do you start? >> for me, i think it is from bringing communities together, listening to one another and know we don't need to wit for poll cities to change or legislators or college admissions to change. better served young people and their teachers today. i think we have an education crisis here. >> we have compelling statement notice film, one of the students and then what? our kids are pushing, pushing, pushing but they don't see what

the purpose is. how do we talk about that as families what happened our values are a and why our kids -- we want our kids to be like philip and motivated. >> we have to but i wanted to let the audience know while you were making the film, very sobering event happened, a 13-year-old girl committed suicide because she didn't get an a on a math test. this is what we are up against. vicki, thank you for the film, philip as well, janet, always a pleasure to have you here. good luck with your daughter with the college process. up next, oscar winner matt damon. that's right after this. mom.

♪ wake up, it's christmas! ♪ come see the tree ♪ there's presents underneath it ♪ ♪ and i know there's some for me ♪ ♪ get moving mom and dad ♪ wake up already please! ♪ how can you still be sleeping ♪ ♪ when it's six a.m. at least? ♪ come with me downstairs, and make it fast... ♪ ♪ i've waited weeks ♪ i've waited months ♪ now christmas morning's here at last! ♪ [ kid ] wake up. it's christmas. ♪

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people with stomach ulcers or conditions that cause bleeding should not use plavix. taking plavix alone or with some other medicines including aspirin may increase bleeding risk, so tell your doctor when planning surgery. tell your doctor all medicines you take including aspirin especially if you've had a stroke. if fever, unexplained weakness or confusion develops, tell your doctor promptly. these may be signs of ttp, a rare but potentially life-threatening condition, reported sometimes less than two weeks after starting plavix. other rare but serious side effects may occur. [ female announcer ] talk to your doctor about plavix. "true grit" the story of a stubborn young woman's search for her father's killer was a signature for john wayne, in fact, earned him his own oscar. now the cohen brothers have remade "true grit" starring jeff bridges and matt damon. >> that's right. i'm a texas ranger.

>> why have you been pursuing jane? >> he shot and killed a state senator make iner in waco texas >> matt damon. good to sigh. they were not interested if you had seen the original from 1969, they want to knowed if you read the book. >> yy why was the book more important than the original movie? >> i am thank's what they found and what john wayne found 40 years ago that it is just a phenomenal book, just wonderful. and the adaptation that joel and ethan did really uses so much of the dialogue that charles portis, the author of the novel, came one with. that was really there listen, not looking that the as a remake, looking a this the going back to the original source

material and making our own movie out of it. >> glen campbell played the character you played it this the texas ranger. looking at the footage here, people aren't familiar with the story it is a western and yes, that means horses. i've always thought that the only thing worse than a baseball movie where the actor looked like he couldn't throw a pitch would be a we were if the actor looks like he is not comfortable on a horse. you are very comfortable. >> this is the same group that wrangled the movie that i did 11 years ago, so i knew all those guys. >> so, thisment is from riding in the wilds of boston? >> right. >> childhood. >> i grew up wrangling in boston, we cowboy a lot up there. no it -- well, a few things. one, i mean, aid a lot of experience with movies riding horses and had had the chance to go kind of months early on movies in the past and really work -- work a lot with the horses but also these horses that were on are just so well trained. you really actually -- they are dummy-proof, you can put pretty much -- >> not saying they drugged these

horse? >> the horses think better than the actors. the horses will see a mark, they will run up and stop and actually get them to lean a little bit. >> what better way to get character of a, we sit in the saddle of a who can't feel like a cowboy then, or a jockey, but that wouldn't work. that would be bad. >> definitely no the saddles more comfortable than the director's chairs. a lot of times you stay through. >> you chose to do the movie odd flexible schedule, allowed to live your life, a new baby at home and three other children at home and this gave the flexibility you were looking for? >> look, it was a role -- it was a great chance to work with the directors that i have been dying to work with and with jeff and with josh brolin and then this incredible actor, 13-year-old girl named haley steinfeld, the center of the movie, so she was this incredible discovery really for all of us in this experience. when they came in with the project the one thing i said was, look, i'm here in new york

and my kids are in school. is theremy way you could help with the schedule and make it so i'm not away for long stretches and so they were really nice and accommodating. >> really nice but that is one of the great perks for your level of success, they are willing to work with you, where other actors might not have that opportunity? >> if the role is the right size. you are the lead in the movie, can i have three days off a week? >> you mentioned off new baby. >> four girls. >> four kwoung girls at home with you and luciana. you group up with a brother? >> right. >> which means one thing, girls have you completely wrapped around their finger. >> really pathetic. >> take some getting used to the girls? >> no, just a total love affair. it is interesting, the way they look at the world and interact with the world is so different from the way boys do like, my brother's boys come over, if we have other friends, they have a play date and a boy comes over, they will just do things to the toys that never would occur to me. just try to kill them, smash

them. >> wait. wait. >> just a very different experience having these four little girls. >> i can only imagine what you are like as a dad. in hollywood, off reputation, somewhat stellar. i mean, anyone who has worked with you over the years says you are one of the nicest guys, one of the warmest and most caring people they have ever met. i have had the chance to interview you probably a dozen times. i don't see it i really -- [ laughter ] >> you have enough layers of publicists and -- >> actually, you didn't want to speak to me today. no, no this suspect me. this is a doppleganger. >> call you the mayor? >> i think he calls me a lot of things. >> because you are so even keel all the time. i think what he says about you. >> he sees me as a politician. i don't know how to take that. >> well, your honor, this movie is "true grit" and you are great in everything you to you. and congratulationses on the arrival of the new little girl

with. >> thank you very much. "true grit" opens december 22nd. we are back in a moment with more "today" on nbc. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. mdc and traffic pulse 11. -- but get a final check of the money to meet with kim dacey and traffic pulse 11. >> water main break in the city of north avenue and collington ave. one lane of traffic getting by in each direction. this is back open. water on the road is causing i sing.

in glen burnie, report of an accident. live drive times, slowing down a bit on the inner loop. going to take to 17 minutes on the topside. on the outer loop west side, a bit of a slowdown at 14 minutes. we will give you a live look outside of what is causing the delays on the inner loop topside. this the harrisburg expressway north of the beltway. the right lane as shut down approaching timonium road. heavy delays. acting on to the inner loop of the beltway. south of the button and the northeast corner, you can see on the top part of your screen, traffic from white marsh to 895. >> good morning. cloudy this morning. storm's coming in. some of this is not making to the ground. we will be on the north edge.

lighter snow around baltimore. let's look at the current conditions. humidity is down for the time being. barometer showing up falling tendency. at mount snow, a heavier south and west of us. in little more to the south, high of 27 to 30. >> for itchy dry skin. try cortizone 10 intensive healing. the strongest itch reli medicine now has three vitamins and seven moisturizers. feel the heal.

we are back now 8:30 on a thursday morning, the 16th day of december, 2010. our toy drive rolls on. man, we have got an impression sive elf with us now, it that is

liam neeson, the actor, collecting toys for needy children all across the country. remember, if you can't get down here, still donate online by heading to amazon.com/today. we are going to talk to liam neeson in just a couple of minutes. meanwhile on this thursday morning, i'm matt lauer along with meredith vieira, al roker and natalie morales. speaking of people doing good things a great story. >> lucy and mike brian dedicated their lives helping u.s. veterans. today, we have a few surprises waiting for them make their work a little bit easier. great. also coming up, the issue of holiday tink, how much do you give, who do you give to how much i do owe you guys? >> a lot. >> talk about that coming up in a little bit. a little later on, dr. nancy snyderman will be here, talking about a topic we are all too sensitive about, sleep. how much do you need to really get a good night? what do you do -- >> always depressing. >> if you've got a spouse that snores? all that and a lot more, everything you need to know about sleep.

>> all right. first, bring in liam neeson. good morning. great to see you, liam. happy holidays. big opening weekend? >> it is not happy holidays it is happy christmas. >> odd good christmas or good holiday weekend at the box office, man. >> did well. >> $25 million. when you signed on to this a couple years ago, did you realize it would be this big? talk to you. >> i had a feeling. i knew the books are sort of classics. certainly the money and expertise. okay, this is very, very rich are. >> and there is a reason you have this attached to your chest, other than you like him, obviously. you are donating -- i know you are donating a lot to the toys to our toy drive, based on the

narnia character. >> the smithsonian national zoo, three cubs december 22nd and name one of the cubs aslan. >> lovely. >> become an ambassador to the conservation of big cats. >> wonderful. >> we are very honored. very honored. >> again, movies are doing super well. more books ahead. sign on for the other movies? >> yeah. >> four more. so hopefully, you know? >> i can't wait to see it. >> most importantly, thanks for taking part in the toy drive. always nice. merry christmas. exactly right. mr. roker? see what is going on as far as your forecast is concerned. for today, we have got icy conditions moving into the mid-atlantic states after coming out of the mid-ohio river valley. snow in the central rockies, wet weather in the pacific northwest, snow showers in the great lakes, still lake-effect snow, syracuse pick up another half foot of snow before it is

all over today. >> snow showers today, one to 3 in. generally. beginning like at about noon until the early evening hours. >> a lot of crazy weather out there check in with the weather channel two three, four times a day or go online to weather.com. head down to willard scott and willard.com. >> nicest gifts in the world, the metropolitan museum of art. they are classy and they are priced right, something for everyone. metmuseum.org. please. you are doing yourself a favor.

any way, happy birthday, how sweet it is. check it out and see for yourself. this is dorothy haines from harmon, missouri, 101. taught bible studies for years. we love her. good old darryl, he is from cherokee river, arkansas. still drives his own car to his favorite restaurant and never gotten a driving ticket. beulah sinclair, knoxville, tennessee, 101. attributes her long jeffity to making scrapbooks for her friends. people love to look at pictures, i don't care, television, video, good old pictures. marjorie of kansas city, missouri, 102. and unbelievable lady, did so many wonderful things, goes to church every single week and helps neighbors. lawrence smith, 100 years old, world war ii vet, retired businessman and still plays

golf. maybe that is the secret. or it is the hokey pokey. clara of katie, texas, lives independently and makes the best lemon meringue pie in town, which is my favorite. that's it. that's all. lemon meringue pie and a cup of coffee. now back to you. >> willie, thank you very much. coming up, the dos and don'ts when it comes to holiday tipping, but first, this is "today" on nbc.

we are back now at 8:38 with questions asked a lot this time of year, how much should you tip and for what? best-selling author steve deblanaca describes it as in your clutches. steve, good morning, nice to see

you. >> nice to see you again. >> you were here for a your last book, after about nine years waiting tables and after that book came out, for some reason, people said, wait a second, he is a waiter, must know everything about tipping. they thought you were an expert. >> and that wasn't true. you know, i found out that casino dealers get tipped and i have been to atlantic city a dozen times and never tipped them. so i was like, oh oh, i don't know everything. i went on the road to find out. >> you started asking people in the service industry about tipping, did you find it was an emotional subject for them? >> it was this is how they make their living. waiters and busboys and bathroom attendants and shoe shine guys this is how they make their livelihood. >> we will go through some of the jobs that you think people should or shouldn't tip for. can we talk about reality for a second? >> sure had. >> we are in a recession, people are cutting back, should they be cutting back on their tipping as well or is that something that should be an island? >> one of the first people that get affected in a recession like we have today are tip workers.

they are feeling the brunt. so ask people to tip as much as they can. and i always say if you can't give what you gave last year, give something. and if you can't give money, maybe a gift to show appreciation toward you. >> you say it is not just about money, equally about relationships. let's talk about waiters right now. >> sure. >> so what is common what is average what is exceptional and is it okay to cut back a little bit? >> when i was a waiter, what i valued the most was having customers who were nice to me and good tippers all year. if they didn't give me a christmas tip, it didn't matter so much. but then again, nothing says merry christmas like cold, hard cash. >> what about the guy who delivers our mail or the woman who delivers the mail? are they actually allowed to accept a gratuity or is it only up to a certain amount? >> postmen can't take cash and they can only accept a gift that has a value of $20 or less. a gift certificate. >> having said that -- >> johnny walker is good. >> think people should go right

up to that 20 or above it if they can get away with it? >> i would do the best you can. >> hairstylists and barbers. why would you want to, you know, shortchange your barber? >> i know. >> look at me. this is a problem, right? so, be generous with those people. >> always be generous and very tough for -- easy for me 'cause you just tip on the price of the cut but when some people have $200 haircuts -- >> what do you give? what percentage? >> should give the price of the cut. so, my barber -- my haircut costs $25, i give as 25 tip. >> are you kidding me? 100% tip? >> yep. for christmas, once a year. >> okay. wow, you are a good customer. babysitters and nannies? >> well, live-in nannies should get a month's pay, au pairs a week's pay. babysitters are hard to get, i would give them consideration at the end of the year. >> what about your garbagemen? a lot of people who forget the garba garbageman, stiff the garbageman?

>> my rule, give them 20 bucks but if you have them hauling illegal stuff away from your house all the time -- >> i don't would you think? >> people doing construction. i had a relative of mine remain unnamehood to throw out a fridge, couldn't take, slipped them $20 bucks, they took it away with doing that kind of stuff, i would tip them. >> seems to me the garbagemen are the people you want to keep happy, don't want 11 days of garbage building up outside your house. dog groomers, walking services? >> dog walkers a week's pay and dog groomers the same thing as going to a barber, the price of the cut. >> you learned about tipping at an early age, like me, you were a paper boy? >> that's right. >> how many papers did you have? >> i had a very small route when i was little, 25, 25, 30 customers. >> did you find that you got stiffed a lot? were people generous with you? >> no they were terrible and that was my first taste of being on the receiving end of bad tips. and little did i know 20 years later, going to get even more bad tips as a wear the. >> anyone we have left out, someone that generally doesn't

get thought of at this time of year that you honestly think we should spread a little christmas cheer with? >> you know, the person who does my laundry. i do go to the wash and fold service and i drop it off, she does a tremendous job doing my laundry. you are getting a tip for christmas. >> steve, thank you very much. the book is called "keep the change." up next, a big surprise for a family doing really great things for our country's veterans but first this is "today" on nbc.

this morning on getting to the heart of christmas, serving those who served our country. on any given night, more than 100,000 u.s. veterans can be found sleeping on the streets. one young couple from oregon decided to do something about it and they have really made an impact. a world away from battles fought

in vietnam, iraq and afghanistan sits lacy's house of dreamses, a home for the once homeless veterans of u.s. wars. started by lacy and mike bryant, a young couple who has never seen combat. growing up, lacy was touched by her own father's service in vietnam. >> my dad is like we need a police for homeless veterans and so i was like, okay, well, look and the mike and like, okay, well, let's do it. >> the reason lacy's in on the bad things that came back, ptsd was the big, big thing. >> reporter: compassionate toward veterans, lace sand mike poured their savings into a home to help american vets living on the street. >> we haven't sacrificed anythingere with the men and women sacrificed for us that go over and serve. >> reporter: couple considers the veterans they helped family. >> they are not alone. military is a family. being at lacy's house, that's what i try to bring back to have them remember that they are still family. >> reporter: and they help meet their needs, driving them to

appointments. >> you have everything you need? >> reporter: spending time together and working to pay for the home. >> you guys each find a fir tree. >> reporter: lacy and mike make a daily trip with some of the vets to cut down donated christmas trees, which they will sell to make money for lacy's house but despite their efforts, the home was recently forced to downsize from 30 beds to ten. >> when someone comes to the door and they need another -- a police to stay it is really hard to turn someone away when i don't have any room left for them. >> reporter: because very often lacy's house of dream sass last resort. >> i would be homeless. i would be living on the street. >> lacy's house saved my life. >> reporter: ed neurman also found comfort. >> the hardest part for me was coming home to my family because of all the stuff i have seen and done. >> reporter: homeless, jobless and hungry, he turned to lacy's house for help and is now reuniting with his daughter.

>> people that live here are your brothers, your sisters, your moms, your dads, your grandpas that is who are your veterans. >> we extend hope to the veterans and then when they go from there the next thing would be dreams. ♪ jingle bells, jingle bells >> some christmas morning, the veterans willville some dreams to fill, they found a family and a place to call home. >> merry christmas. >> lacy and mike bryant are with us along with the vets helped by lacy's house, including brian york. good morning to you all. >> good morning. >> mike, lacy's house is such a very special place, why do you feel it is important to help the veterans? why have you made this such a mission? >> i couldn't imagine living my life any other way with at this point. these soldiers have sacrificed their lives for us and when they do come home, i feel a deep need to make sure that our family

members that are serving for us are treated the same way that our moms and dads and brothers and sisters are wanting to be treated in our families. >> lacy, at times, we saw it on your face, it can be very overwhelming, the responsibility. what keeps you doing? >> just being the turnout some of these guys and gals get leaving the homes, knowing that i'm helping them every day through their battles that they are going through is enough to keep me going each day and through every up and down we get. >> brian, our vet. we thank you for your service. how has this house helped your home -- i'm sorry, helped you redirect your life? >> lacy's house has meant the world to me. it's given me a leg up, to so to speak, to where i can get back into the game of life when i was looking at having nothing and it's also given me a chance to work on my comedy act.

electrician by day and bill hilly by night. that's not a verbal typo, that's actually bill hilly is the -- >> we are thrilled by that listen, lacy, mike and brian, you thought that we had gathered you there to talk about what every american can do to help vets and that's partially true, but we have also teamed one walmart. they want to make sure this is a very special christmas for you, i want you to head into the other room right now, a way to say thank you. [ applause ] these are all the presents, gifts from walmart. they include ham, turkeys, vegetables and fruit. a house of furniture, games together. everything from basketball to bocce ball. >> thank you, guys, so much. >> everything. stockings filled with personal goods for all of the vets, games for the house. and that's just some of the

stuff. and lacy, i hope you're hearing me, as a big thank you, walmart is also giving you a $25,000 gift to lacy's house. lacy, what does that money mean to you? >> oh, my gosh, $25,000. >> what? >> lacy, what does that money mean to you? >> really no words to explain this. it's amazing and it's going to help so much to keep going further and to help more veterans each and every day that we can help them. >> thank you. >> and it is overwhelming. i can't even say. >> i'm sure it s mike, you know, we have one more surprise from the university of oregon, alumni association, let's cue the duck, please, a thank you for helping these men and women. airfare to the national championship bcs football game. >> mike is so happy!

>> and mike, as if that isn't enough, we want to thank you everyone who helped out with the surprise. mike, they have helped a lot. hey, mike, one final question. what does community support mean to you and to lacy? >> it means our family can support the families. thank you. thank you, meredith. >> we thank you, mike and lacy, for all you do all the work do you at lacy's house. big thank you to walmart and the university of oregon alumni association and biggest thank you to the veterans for what they have done. >> thank you, meredith. >> thank you so much. we are back in a moment. this is "today" on nbc.

>> you know what tomorrow is? >> what? friday? >> not only friday, tomorrow, we look back at the year that was here on the show. >> oh -- >> exactly right. >> oh. yeah. that was a frightening moment. >> yeah. >> yeah. >> a lot of dancing to on the show. who knew? >> think we did nothing but frivolity. it was bad.

always bad. >> actually, i can't even believe this, this was the year of the olympics. >> brian will.i.am. >> said that is going to be the new dance craze. >> yeah, okay. >> apocalypse. >> you want to see a lot more -- tune in tomorrow. coming up, lots more ahead.

>> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. new details emerging in the investigation of the five-alarm fire that shut down. the fire has been classified as incendiary, meaning it was set by a person but it fell short of aldrson. investigators are offering a $5,000 reward for resolution.

>> let's look at the forecast with john collins. >> is cloudy and temperatures are in the 20's. as it moves in, we will be on the north edge. we will be on the edge of the storm. snow total accumulations, maybe an inch or a hair more than that. ches thisore, 3 in out. . s of sha -- periods of snow showers this morning or afternoon. 27 to 30 by temperature. >> we will have another weather update at 9:25.