terror alert. the state department advises americans traveling and living in europe to be ware of possible attacks. back in session. the supreme court begins a new term today with the first three female justices. and caught on tape, screams from a circus crowd as lions attack their handlers.ñi this is the "cbs morning news" for monday, october 4th, 2010 ñi good morning, everybody. thanks for joining us.ñi i'm betty nguyen. there is no specific threat or target but americans traveling or living in europe

have been told to be on guard. the state department issued a travel alert about an al qaeda plot to attack several cities. u.s. officials say americans do not need to alter travel plans but should be vigilant. as elizabeth palmer reports, the british government is as equally concerned. >> this reinforces the need for vigilance against a continuing terrorist threat. the threat level against the united kingdom continues to be assessed as severe, which is not a change but, of course, is very serious. >> reporter: also this week, osama bin laden released two new statements. they will be examined by intelligence agencies in case they contain coded orders to militants. u.s. counter-terrorism officials believe senior al qaeda leaders may have been planning to attack several european cities similar to the terrorist assault in mumbai several years ago, when men fanned out in the crowded downtown killing and wounding almost 500 people. pakistan's border region with

afghanistan is still a haven for al qaeda training camps in spite of stepped-up attacks from u.s. drones and pressure by the pakistan army. this summer western intelligence agencies were told militants trained in this area were going to carry out the european attacks. so, while the travel warning is based on serious fears, it's vague, leaving many of the hundreds of thousands of americans in europe for business or for pleasure wondering what to make of it. >> yeah, just got to be aware, you know, and take caution as you can because you've got to go on with your life. >> you know, i think we have to be vigilant everywhere andwe's been here for three weeksñi now and really haven't seen any proplgms. haven't felt unsafe in any way. >> reporter: the alert specifically directs american travelers to be careful on public transportation systems, of course prime targets in previous terrorist attacks. elizabeth palmer, cbs news, london. >> now, to be a clear, a travel alert like the one just issued

by the state department advises americans overseas to be cautious. it is a step below a travel warning, which tells u.s. citizens to avoid travel to a particular area. now to pakistan, where for the third day in a row militants attacked oil tankers en route to supply u.s. troops in afghanistan. the gunmen struck early this morning firing on at least 20 trucks parked near islamabad. three people were killed. the trucks were part of a supply line that's been stalled because the pakistani government closed a border crossing. that crossing was closed to protest nato helicopter attacks inside pakistan. the muslim leader planning to build an islamic community center near ground zero in manhattan now faces death threats. new york police confirm that faisal abdul-rauf and his wife received threatening phone calls. preliminary sketches of the 16-story center were released last week. its location, two blocks from the world trade center site that has triggered a contentious debate. also here in new york, this week for the first time, a prisoner held at the guantanamo bay prison will go on trial in a

civilian court. khalfan ga lanny is chargedñi i the bombings of two u.s. embassy in east of a ka in 1998 accused of building the truck bombs which killed 224, including at least a dozen americans. >> in 1998 when these attacks occurred, the enemy was at war i with us but we just didn't realize it and we didn't have the tools and the authorities to go after them using military means. all that changed after 9/11. >> he is also accused of being an aid to osama bin laden. opening statements are expected wednesday. the supreme court begins a new term today with a new justice, elena kagan.ñr several important free speech appeals are on the docket but because kagan is a former solicitor general she's been forced to remove herself from two dozen cases. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, betty. kagan will be in court but not for long, she is expected to

quietly slip out before the court begins hearing arguments later this morning. the nation's newest supreme court justice won't be sitting on the bench for much of her first day. >> because of her past work as solicitor general, justice kagan will have to step down from a number of cases she was involvei in. >> reporter: justice kagan will hear the first case argued before the court today before stepping out. in all, she's recused herself from 21 of the 55 cases set out so far, including some of the most high- file cases from illegal immigration to employment discrimination. >> that means potentially a problem the court, if they are closely divided would split 4-4 and she would not be there for cast the key vote. >> reporter: in a tie, the lower court's decision would be automatically upheld. when kagan is sitting on the bench, she'll be making history. for the first time there will be three female justices on the supreme court. first amendment cases top the docket this term. wednesday, kagan and the other

justices are expected to look at one involving anti-gay protests at military funerals. another big case looks at a california law that bans the sale of violent video games to children. change the balance of the court, some believe she could change the dynamics. >> we could see her starting to build coalitions and try to bring over some of those more conservative justices, especially that key swing vote that, man in the middle, justice kennedy. >> reporter: the court will ñixd likely add another 20 to 30 cases to its workload before the term wraps up in june. many will be watching closely to see how kagan votes in her first term but it could be more difficult in this situation because she has ecused herself from nearly f the cases the court will hear xd this year. betty, back to you. >> all right. thank you. rahm emanuel the former white house chief of staff made it official, he is running for mayor of chicago. in a video posted on his website yesterday he called chicago a

world-class city facing tremendous challenges. >> i'm going to spend the next few weeks visiting our ñi neighborhoods at grocery stores, el stops, bowling alleys and hot dog stands. i'm calling this the tell it like it is tour because i want to hear from you, in blunt chicago terms, what you think about our city. >> emanuel said crime and budget deficit are the major issues facing the next mayor. just ahead on the morning news why millions of verizon customers will be getting refunds. plus a heart-stopping rampage by circus lions all caught on video. this is the "cbs morning news." [ water ] hey, it's me water. check this out. boo-yah!

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while warnings tell visitors to keep their distance he wanted to thrill, venturing inside theñr volcano. some have suggested the video is a fake but the head of the team insists it's the real deal. a circus lion tamer hospitalized this morning after being attacked by one of his animals. the incident was captured on amateur video by a member of the audience. at the scircusñi performance ine ukraine, the lion mauled the trainer several times in the show even as several people tried to pin back the animal. the performance was stopped and spectators evacuated. the lion tamer needed surgery but is expected to recover. frightening there. in other news a hearing will be held in san francisco today on a bill that would ban toys in happy meals. the proposed city ordinance ñi would require mcdonald's to stop putting toys in happy meals for kids unless the fast food chain adds fruit and vegetable portions and limits the number of calories.

supporters say it is intended to improve the health of children. mcdonald's opposes it and the mayor says he will veto it. a new study out, a survey of sex in america. it found teens aged 14 to 17 çó report a 79% rate of condom use. the lowest condom usage rates for men over 50. for black and hispanic men, the rate of condom use was higher than for whites. analysts say that suggests that hiv/aids awareness programs are making progress.ñi on the "cbs moneywatch" stocks in asia were mostly higher today, ashley morrison has a look with all of that. good morning, ashley. >> good morning to you, betty. a mixed day for asian markets. japan's nikkei edged down and hong kong's hang seng traded mostly higher. today, wall street gets the latest on the housing market. friday, after the best september for stocks in 71 years, the market opened october on an up note. the dow gained 41 points, while the nasdaq closed up just a couple. 15 million verizon wireless customers are due a refund.

the company announced sunday it will pay out to $90 million in refunds for overcharging cell phone customers for data plans. the announcement follows an fcc investigation. most affected customers will receive credits of two to six dollars on their october or november bills. customers no longer with verizon will get checks mailed to them. the federal bank and auto bailout known as t.a.r.p. is now history. sunday marked the official toned the $700 billion program many economists credit avoiding a second depression. taxpayers should get most of the money back. the government puts the final tab around $105 billion. other experts predict it'll be less than $50 billion. wells fargo the latest major lender to admit problems with foreclosure process.çó an official acknowledged verifying only the dates on up ó to 150 filings he signed every day but the bank has not stopped the foreclosures. three other lenders, gmac, bank

of america and jpmorgan chase have halted tens of thousands of seizures after similar practices became public. and "the social network" found plenty of friends at the box office this weekend. the film about the founding of facebook was, as expected, the top draw at the movies this weekend taking in $23 million in its opening weekend. landing at two, "legend of the guardian" just shy of $11 million in sales followed closely by last week's number one, "wall street 2 money neverr sleeps. '' betty, i think all threeñr of those movies are something i would like to see. one for my 5-year-old and the other for me. i just haven't had time. i guess i need to rely on "the r social network" and friends on facebook and twitter to let me know if it's worth seeing. >> there you go. sounds like it is. >> all right. friend me! see you ashley. thank you for that. straight ahead, your monday morning weather. and in sports, tough defense,

back from a big upset on "sunday night football." upset on "sunday night football." and that's a number one rating. it's a paint and primer in one -- so it goes on bold, and looks even better. it means getting more done -- in half the time. and it means the shade you see on that swatch -- ends up on that wall... and is as durable as it is colorful. you know where to find it. more saving. more doing. that's the power of the home depot. try it for yourself. get your own 8-ounce sample of the number one-rated behr paint. now, just $2.94. of the number one-rated behr paint. words alone aren't enough. my job is to listen to the needs and frustrations of the shrimpers and fishermen, hotel or restaurant workers who lost their jobs to the spill. i'm iris cross. bp has taken full responsibility for the clean up in the gulf and that includes keeping you informed. our job is to listen and find ways to help. that means working with communities. restoring the jobs, tourist beaches,

and businesses impacted by the spill. we've paid over $400 million in claims and set up a $20 billion independently-run claims fund to cover lost income until people impacted can get back to work. and our efforts aren't coming at tax-payer expense. i know people are wondering-- now that the well is capped, is bp gonna meet its commitments? i was born in new orleans. my family still lives here. i'm gonna be here until we make this right. a look at the wther a look at the weather in some cities around the country, new york, showers, 58. miami, sunny, 87. chicago, sunny there, too. 60 degrees. denver, it's going to be sunny. 86. l.a., mostly cloudy. 67. time now for a check of the national forecast. the latest satellite picture

shows cloudy areas in the northeast and a weather system over the atlantic off the eastern seaboard. cloudy weather is, also, moving into the northwest but the midwest has a beautiful cloud-free sky. later today, folks in the plain states will enjoy mild temperatures with generally sunny skies while the northeast will be cool and brisk with scattered showers throughout the day. a few thunderstorms could pop up along the west coast bringing heavy downpours to some locations. in sports, some surprises in the nfl. in the sunday night game the new york giants defense had ten sacks and knocked chicago quarterback jay cutler out of the game with a concussion. the giants beat the previously undefeated bears 17-3. jacksonville, it was tied in the last seconds but the jaguars hit a 59-yard field goal to beat indianapolis, the longest field goal in jaguars history giving jacksonville a 31-28 upset win.r in his first game back in philadelphia since being traded, donovan mcnabb led the redskins

on a three-scoring drive against the eagles. philadelphia quarterback michael philadelphia quarterback michael and rib injuries, as washington beat the eagles 17-12. in baseball, tampa bay won the american league eastern division. with the score tied, the rays scoredñi in the 12th inning against kansas city for a 3-2 victory. the playoffs begin wednesday with the rays facing texas and the yankees playing the twins. san francisco won the national league western division with a 3-0 win over san diego. the giants will play the braves thursday night and it's the reds at philadelphia on wednesday. when we return, another look a this morning's top stories and the problem of privacy in the internet era. in the internet era. [ female announcer ] finally there's a new choice in high performance detergent. introducing wisk with stain spectrum technology. try new wisk. we upgraded the formula, but not the price. ♪

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more bold flavor. more variety. more value. more of what you want. not what you don't. blue diamond almonds. [ man ] it's up, and it is good! [ male announcer ] more than a snack. on the "cbs morning news" on the "cbs morning news" a look at today's weather. scattered thunderstorms likely to range along the west coast this afternoon with some bringing locally heavy downpours.

the northeast will have showers throughout the day along with cool october temperatures. warm air is rising along the northern rockies and western plains.ñi here's another look at this morning's top stories. the state department has issuedi a travel alert for americans visiting or living in europe.ñi there is no specific threat but security officials say al qaeda is plotting to attack several european cities. the supreme court begins its new term today, new justice elena kagan will be one of three female justices on the bench, a first for the nation's highest court. a silent vigil was held last night for tyler clementi, the student who killed himself after a sexual encounter was posted on the internet. several hundred gathered on the rut gers university campus. prosecutors say a roommate and friend used a webcam to video of him having a sexual encounter another man. clementi took his own life jumping off a bridge three days later.

the sad death of tyler clementi adds to concern some circles over social conventions protecting privacy. as jim ax legal rod reports, this goes hand in hand with the growth of social networking on the internet. >> reporter: the tragedy of clementi's suicide from the live streaming of his encounter with another man to his suicide note unfolded as so much of our lives do now online. >> there's no boundary, you know. it's the whole world. >> reporter: emily murphy is a 26-year-old high school english teacher. this was her four and a half years ago, when cbs news did a story about what was then an addictive new web venture called facebook. >> they try to mark themselves at quirky or witty or, um, fun in ways that i would know just looking at them face to face. >> reporter: since we first met emily murphy, facebook has exploded in growth. this past summer, facebook reached 500 million users. that's one out of every 14

people on earth who now have a facebook profile. some projections estimate the number of facebook users will be a billion by next year. which is exactly why murphy uses facebook much less now. >> that's great and i know the communication factor is there but i also feel like part of myi life i want to retain as çó private. >> reporter: you never thought that way four years ago? >> i just -- no. >> reporter: a new movie "the social network," number one at the box office this weekend examines larger questions raised by the rise of facebook and other websites. do you see this with the kids you teach? >> absolutely. they are so concerned with their digital or online image and a little bit disheartening to think that they put so much stock in how they present themselves, which clearly can never be a full picture who they are. >> reporter: which might be an important limit in the social networking revolution many think

jim ax legal rod, cbs news, new york. . this morning on "the early show," circus lions attack their trainer. you'll meet a man who was there. i'm betty nguyen. this is the "cbs morning news. . guaranteed. or, we'll buy you 2 boxes of your old color. for details, go to naturalinstincts.com.

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hello again, it's four minutes before 5:00. marty's in the first warning weather center. we're seeing continued, steady rain. it will be a sloppy day. there's no question about it. what we'll see is showers throughout the morning and midday and afternoon. and it's about 50 now. we'll be essentially throughout the midday and afternoon in the mid-60s. there was a police involved shooting. he was grabbing a bite to eat and a school police officer opened fire in a dollar store. and helen holden may be

willing to admit to some campaign finance violations. >> the ravens pull after a last minute win last night and highlights, just ahead. more news, and first warning weather and the first traffic report of the morning in a few minutes. ♪ ♪ i like your messy hair ♪ i like the clothes you wear ♪ i like the way you sing ♪ and when you dance with me ♪ you always make me smile ♪ don't know why i love you [ male announcer ] we believe you're at your best when you can relax and be yourself. and at thousands of newly refreshed holiday inn hotels, you always can.

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hello, in 25 seconds, it will be 5:00. it's a monday morning and it's a rainy one at the moment, for sure. sharon will have the traffic and marty's in the first warning weather. we'll look at