nine wants you to know about an interesting perspective on the gun control debate. every house is required to own a gun and the ammunition to use it. >> andrea mccarren takes us to a community that put itself on the map in a most unusual way. >> we don't have shootouts. it's not wild west. >> sunrise over georgia reveals a sleepy town of 30,000. and a landscape dotted with flags. american and confederate. >> i can kill somebody with this. i can really do some damage and hurt somebody. >> karen sharyl is a long-time resident. >> if i hear someone breaking in, they will get shot. >> she's a big supporter of the town's law that requires every household to own a gun. >> why are you going to break into someone's house if they

have guns in there and they could kill you? >> i was born and raised with them. >> meyers is a feisty 82-year- old shop owner with a pair of pistols holstered to his hips. he is a defender of the right to own firearms. >> i have the right to eat oatmeal cookies if i want to. i have a right to chocolate. if you don't like chocolate, don't eat it. but don't tell me that i can't. >> our random survey of kennesaw residents found unanimous support for them. kennesaw's 1982 gunman 1982 gun mandate was in morton grove, illinois. that was later deemed unconstitutional. but kennesaw's law is still on the books. >> it was not meant to be an enforceable law. the police department never serge searched homes.

it was a political statement to support citizen second amendment rights to own firearms. >> after the law went into effect in 1982, city leaders witnessed a 29% drop in crime. in the 30 years since, the crime rate has remained low. including just four gun related homicides. >> our crime rate is generally less than half the national average. >> over the years, kennesaw has grown and today, amist the sprawling subdivisions and strip malls, gun control is still a sensitive issue. >> there's a lot of people that are very, very passionate about their right to own a firearm. any kind of a firearm. >> including an assault weapon. >> yes. >> as the sunsets on kennesaw, its residents are keeping an eye on the second amendment and how washington interprets it. >> if they change it, they are killing the constitution. >> there's no men anymore. we have no leaders. we are a wishy washy nation and

nobody is afraid of us anymore. >> and just to be clear, homeowners in kennesaw, who don't buy a gun are not punished. in fact, there are several exceptions, including religious objections, if someone has a mental illness or simply can't afford a weapon. >> interesting town, andrea. did you come across anybody who did not have a gun? >> great question, only two people, and both of them were mothers of toddlers who said their kids get into everything, but they also acknowledged that if they didn't have those small children, they would own a gun. >> and kids grow up, so you think sooner or later, they will have a gun. >> andrea mccarren, thank you so much. you can weigh in on when you think of kennesaw's law and whether you would like a similar ordinance in your neighborhood. vote in our poll. it's on our website. lesli. >> let's take off, because every year consumer reports put new car models through all sorts of tests. the data is crunched and the best of the best are named in

ten categories so the consumer groups top picks. here are the vehicles that earn the distinction for 2013. >> consumer reports top pick title doesn't come easy. how well does a car handle in an emergency situation. accelerated and breaking. just some of the dozens of tests in which vehicles have to excel, but that's not all. a car has to be reliable. owners help by telling consumer reports about their experiences with 1.2 million vehicles. >> the european vehicles don't have very good reliability and that held them off the top pick list. >> this year, two did, including the audi a6. >> very comfortable car. it has an amazing interior. nice ride and agile handling. >> and the bmw 328i is the top

pick sport sedan. >> it's very efficient. >> honda makes a comeback. its newly redesigned accord is the top pick mid sized sedan. the crv tops in the small suv class and the honda odyssey regained the top pick minivan distinction. but if sports cars are more your speed, the subaru lead the pack. they are nearly identical. codeveloped by toyota and subaru, they are exhilarating to drive and the sticker prices are tough to beat. now these are just a few of the 2013 models made the top pick list. you can check out the complete list on our website, wusa9.com. mark the day, march 14. that's when samsung will unveil the next generation of the galexy smart phone. even though the features are scared, analysts expect it will

have a higher resolution screen and the release is the latest installed in what is quickly becoming a two-phone race to dominate the mobile phone landscape. but again, pundents do not expect it to slay apple's iphone. a homeless man's decision to return an engagement ring is about to pay big dividends. >> in america, you have a right to be stupid. >> but up next, what secretary of state, john kerry, meant by that comment to a group of german youth. and don't forget, we're always on at wusa9.com and the wusa9 app. stay with us, we will be back.

right now, secretary of state, john kerry, is on his first overseas trip at the united states top diplomat. a group of german youth in berlin. the secretary had provocative things to say about religious tolerance here in the u.s. >> in america, you have a right to be stupid if you want to be. and you have a right to be disconnected to somebody else if you want to be.

and we tolerate it. we somehow make it through that. i think that's a virtue. i think that's something worth fighting for. >> right to be stupid. secretary kerry's comments came before a meeting. he told reporters a free trade agreement between the united states and europe is a priority for president oh bomb obama's second term. students this week are voting on a referendum to the century old honor system on the campus. the current code prohibits students from lying, cheating, and stealing. critics say the system encourages lying because a confession can lead to your expulsion. the accused student an opportunity to confess and exchange for a one-year suspension. it requires 60% of the vote to pass. in kansas city, a homeless man's honesty could mean the chance to turn a life around. getting $145,000 reward after returning a woman's engagement ring. she accidentally dropped it in

harris' cup of spare change. when she realized where it was, she went back to harris and he gave the ring back. the woman's fiance set up a website seeking donations for harris and people from all urned around the world responded. a walking whistler decided to change his ways. he has been ticketed twice for this, and businesses complained about his loud whistling. robert smith pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct charges, but now he reached a dole with the city. he can keep on whistling as long as he is moving. smith says i'm just trying to make people happy. coming up, we take a look inside the cages at our national zoo and see how those budget cuts may impact vital research. and right after the break, we'll explain how you can sing the national anthem at a washington nationals game. we'll talk about it.

congratulations to jc hayward. now you may recognize one of the others, it's from wusa9 who

are there to join the excitement. radio one acknowledges local news makers who exemplified outstanding journalism and excellence in community service. here's your chance to let your inner rihanna shine bright like a diamond, on the baseball diamond. the washington nationals began accepting applications from you folks who may think you can sing and do your national anthem thing this season. the first 50 applicants will be invited to audition one week from saturday and find out more information about it at the team's website. nationals.com. and once apparently was more than enough for seth macfarlane. the academy awards drew more than 40 million viewers. you have to give part of that credit to the big increase in young male viewers who just happen to be fans of macfarlane's animated shows. from the animated shows to the real animals.

very little is safe in washington with $85 billion in federal budget cuts set to begin on friday. and that includes vital research at the national zoo. >> a rare tiger and now one of the most closely watched animals at the smithsonian national zoo. >> line up. >> where everyone has one question, is she or isn't she? >> we are hopeful. fingers crossed that she is pregnant. >> the only way to tell for sure is through an ultrasound. what does that have to do with the sequester? it turns out, getting deni ready for her ultrasound takes daily training. >> training, research, things like this would be the first things on my list. >> and research is what the zoo is known for across the world. it was the first to identify a fungus that could make as many as a third of the world's frogs extinct. it also discovered a virus that was killing baby elephants. >> if the sequester remains

permanent, we'll have to reduce our emissions. we'll have to reduce our research and the number of animals we put on exhibits. >> the zoo would have to look at shutting down major exhibits. >> major exhibits here include lions and tigers. it includes reptile house, where we do a lot of great research. it includes our great ape exhibit. >> also at risk, u.s. national parks, from washington to the blue ridge parkway to yellow stone facing reduced hours and services. how would you characterize the impact? >> very painful to americans and to job creation and the military, because our national parks are economic engines. >> interior secretary says visitors should expect a reduced experience. >> the quality of experience to the american people from other parts of the world really are part of an american heritage and so much of that is

at risk if we aren't able to provide the quality that we now experience. >> and that was jan crawford reporting. coming up at the top of the hour, we'll talk about how sequestration could impact other federal workers and tourism here in the d.c. area. in hawaii, they know all about tourism. they do not know a lot about snow. but check this out. snow in hawaii. these photos taken near a volcano on hawaii's big island. the snow won't last long. warmer weather is on the way. what a sight, though. >> i think top would settle for not long lasting snow about right now. >> absolutely. yesterday we were watching live streaming on our application. >> you gave yourself a kiss. >> i did, as far as you know. now, it wasn't derek, i'll tell you now. now you can also get the weather application inside the news and track the rain fall. you can track this rain right along with this. this is powerful application. good news, we have the flood watch cancel. the bad news is, don't let your

guard down. heavy to steady rain through the evening hours. let's start with a live look outside. it's our weather cam. and it's gloomy out, no doubt. temperature 44. that's as high as it's been so far today. look at the winds, they are gusting to 30. the dew point is still in the upper 30s and relative humidity way up there in the 80% range. so we're looking at essentially steady or rising temperatures tonight and the steady rain is going to be around for a while. pretty big storm. there's two storms. this is the tomorrow in the midwest that will kind of weaken as it goes into the great lakes. second storm will develop and go north of us into southern new england. but pretty big area of precipitation from the east coast all the way back to iowa and the mississippi river. snowing pretty good in chicago. was raining there earlier. we just had rain. we showed you a pocket of ice out in the west and garrett county and also grant county, west virginia. but this is going to be a rainstorm for us. this is heavy rain. see the yellow? that's pockets of heavy rain

about to cross over 66. heavy rain to the west of fairfax. we have a little bit of a break from alany down to silver spring. and east, west highway. that's going to cover up soon. we have more rain coming. 41 germantown. 41 in rockville. temperatures primarily arlington, college park, bowie, maybe 43 right now down toward waldorf. so we're looking at some good news. windy and wet commute home, but the rain ends before midnight and there's no flood advisory. we stay above freezing tonight. and we are rewarded tomorrow, a touch of spring on wednesday. so, tonight mostly cloudy, breezy, chilly. rain goes to showers around midnight. winds eventually become southwest 10 to 15. lows 38 to 44. tomorrow morning, great. becoming partly sunny, breezy. just chilly. 30s and 40s and by afternoon, we're in great shape. partly sunny, breezy, milder. highs 55 to 60 and winds out of the southwest at 10 to 15.

that will pump up warmer air. so the next three days, nice tomorrow, 57. breezy and chilly on thursday, 49. rain or snow shower possible and breezy and colder on friday. temperatures go back into the mid 40s. as we go through the seven-day, temperatures fall. we are mid 40s on saturday. maybe a flurry saturday night. only 40 on sunday. maybe 39 or 40 on monday and back near 50 next tuesday. >> now, here's dave owens at the wusa9 cadillac sports desk. >> hey, welcome to the verison center, everybody. it's a big one here tonight. caps versus carolina. first place versus last place and you are probably saying to yourself about now, how is that a big game? a couple of reasons, the caps have to get moving here. only 48 games and also it's a big batch of games this week. philadelphia is here and also, of course, carolina tonight. so they have to get moving if they are going to make some noise in this race this year.

good news, defenseman, mike green, expects to play. green missed the last three with a groin injury. not often you hear the words big game, 18 games into the docket, but in this case, it most certainly is. >> you know, we need the points. you know, we talk every game, obviously very important, and you know, tomorrow, we had a good game and hopefully come right back out and have another one and keep the ball rolling. >> all right, much more on the nuts and bolts of that game coming up in a second. i thought we would do something different. the first thing you notice, 200 feet by 85, but do you have any idea what it takes to maintain the slick stuff? i didn't, i now know and trust me, it involves me getting on a zambonie. you'll have a lot of fun. take a look at this. >> i'm here with assistant

director of operations. you tell me, this place, the ice rink is like one big refrigeration unit, right? >> it's like a big refrigerator, yes. >> it cools down and pumps through the floor and that's what makes the concrete floor cold. so we can build the ice on top of it. >> today it is humid, what are you dealing with today? >> today we'll cut harder and try to lay less water because we are drawing the humidity out of the air. so it's just judgment. it's years of experience to judge what you need to do. >> you are on the zambonie. >> olympia. >> we have an olympia. is there a difference? >> brand. >> okay, so it's the olympia, not the zambonie, what are you doing? getting the ice ready if. >> cutting it smooth and putting another layer on it. >> how hard are you working on game day? >> i get in around 3:00. we have a guy that handles the days and from 3:00 on, we are pretty much trying to figure out what the game is going to

be. >> if there's a problem with the ice tonight, you know why. i got it ready. back to you guys in the studio. much more coming up in a second. >> good to know there's backup around, just in case. >> who knew there was more than one kind of ice machine. still ahead, three days remain until those massive budget cuts kick in. we'll tell you if any last minute deals are on the table. this is bruce johnson. we're at the air and space museum. easily the most popular with 8 million visitors every year. we'll tell you how they are dealing with the sequester. and right after the break, we introduce you to a couple of high school seniors already on the fast track to advance degrees.

two high school seniors are getting national recognition for an amazing accomplishment. these perfect scoring seniors are already well on their way to success in college. >> you could argue that two of the smartest high schoolers in the entire state of virginia both go to school right here at thomas jefferson high in alexandria. >> katherine are seniors here at thomas jefferson high, but they might as well be sophomores in college. they have taken advanced placement or ap classes and taken rigorous comprehensive exams. a perfect five out of five will earn them college credit at many universities. a perfect score on ten of these classes. katherine got a perfect score on nine of them.

these scores make them top achievers nationwide and the best of the very best here in virginia. they each won a $2,000 prize for this amazing accomplishment. >> it kind of validates all the hard work you put in during the year and i guess it's really rewarding to have that validation. >> the ap course lineup reads like the transcript for an engineering major. >> there's biology, chemistry, physics, calculus, spanish, history, environmental science and statistics. >> that's not by chance. both of these kids know they want to pursue kids in the stem field. that is science technology engineering and math. going to thomas jefferson high, which has a stem focused curriculum has given them a big head start in their career path. >> the atmosphere is very encouraging and everyone is very driven and that sort of gives you a push when you need it. >> i'm hoping to carry that passion and interest into

college and pursue harder classes that interest me and i won't back down from the challenges. >> in alexandria, wusa9. you are looking live outside right now. this is wisconsin avenue in northwest d.c. and the rain is coming down just a little bit. but it depends on where you are in the metro area. topper is going to give us the full picture from the weather center. top, when do you expect the rain to let up? >> probably not until midnight. steadier, heavier rain through the evening commute, which is no treat. we have reports of wires down in st. mary's county with a big gust of wind. let's start with temperatures. silver lining, if you will, we aren't looking at freezing temperatures, 44 downtown. 41 in leesburg. gaithersburg is stuck at