dr. ojo: [inaudible] vice president garcia: if it is two years old, we may be looking at a very different woman. dr. ojo: commissioners, if i may, the picture is very representative of how she looks like, because the same was used in another case. last week when i was here, i had that picture, a full figure picture of the individual, but i could not presented because they requested a and i.d. -- requested an i.d. vice president garcia: so it is a very recent picture? dr. ojo: yes. president goh: dr. ojo, in cases where how the person appears as likely to come up, it might make sense to have the photo and a low as the closed session in order to see it. -- and allow us a closed session. >> i think it is an issue. he has admitted to the sale of cigarettes to a minor. however, to some degree, the factual elements of the cases what did the person actually look like, and that potion -- person in the photograph looks like a baby. it looks like a very young person. if we were in court, it would not be admissible in its current condition. i understand that that is not the objective here. but in fairness and the understand the facts and understand someone who had been traveling and had been suffering from jet lag, that is what i am asking to have considered. commissioner fung: when she turns 18. if we were to reduce this to 15 days, then we would be perpetuated in a performance --

dr. stearns, dr. ann kaiser stearns: thank you, thank you so much. diane bliss: thank you for being here with us. dr. ann kaiser stearns: thank you very much, my pleasure. diane bliss: dr. stearns we have the marvelous opportunity to be sharing this information with public television audiences, why after all these years of work have you come to public television? dr. ann kaiser stearns: well i've been a fan of public television for a really long time. if you came to my house in baltimore you would find the do-op tapes, you would find uh, macneil lehrer's briefcase you would find peter, paul and mary album and all the brain programs that i show to my college students. i believe a great deal in public television and for the pleasure of being a part of this i thank you so much. diane bliss: it is marvelous to have your insight, you have been a teacher, a researcher and a practitioner for over thirty years in this whole area of people going through crisis and so much of the wisdom that you put into the book is now being shared, all kinds of different crisis that this applies to. dr. ann kaiser stearns:

of serbia in two thousand and two dr dr bitch a specialist in alternative medicine settled here nobody knew where he was from or what is ok patient had been before. dr job which one instant popularity in the medical community he gave lectures i'm sure the people of diseases that we see him as someone who helps people and people love him. in one thousand nine hundred six run on carriage leader of the bosnian serbs was put on an international. charges of terror and exterminating people in his home country. a five million dollars reward was offered for information on his whereabouts. for forty four months. carriage to refuge a campaign of terror against a civilian population. rather than carrot it was arrested only in two thousand and eight when he was brought before the international tribunals behaved. during the thirteen year long manhunt for him nobody not even friends and close relatives knew the carriage undoctored of which were the same person. is the right of. the small town of cali twenty kilometers from boston is capital so are you able. to psychiatrist rather than carriage settle down here in the mid nineteenth sixties. he had received a thor

dr. gill. thprosecutor was suspend from practicing law for four years. the report went on to describe dr. gill as an "incompetent pathologist." but there was no suspension for drgill; he just kept on doing autopsies for the forensic medical group. the case of dr. gill is not unique. a nationwide investigation by frontline, propublica and n.p.r. found there is no federal oversight of death investigators or the offices where they work. we found that, in massachusetts, they've repeatedly lost body parts. in michigan, they discovered the body of a prominent banker and missed the bullet hole in his neck. in nebraska, murderers went free because of incompetent death investigations, while in mississippi, botched autopsies helped send innocent people to prison for life. >> the difference between competent death investigation and incompetent death investigation may be the difference between what side of a state border you're on. there may be areas where, on one side of the border, you have a statewide medical examiner and competent death investigation; the other side of the border may be a small county coroner with few resources and little training in death investigati

we had an economist testify, dr. dr. kovach, and she advises the financial world to invest in these companies. she's saying you can get to where the provider is not getting a return on it from those using it who, by the way, dramatically are increasing their usage. so at some point the demand on that is not connected up with a payment structure. and so you could do harm to the internet going forward if we don't get it right. so, i mean, these are issues that i think we immediate to continue to look at. -- need to continue to look at. >> host: joining us in our conversation with senator greg walden is mike zapper -- zapler, reporter with "the politico." >> host: you hear the likelihood of congress actually suck succeeding in overturning these rules is practically nil, the president would never sign it. why is the committee spending so much time on this when there are these other major issues like broadband deployment, looming spectrum crunch? it has the feel of kind of an ideological pursuit instead of dealing with the se

dr. ojo? dr. ojo: commissioners, apparently the appellant is not denying the sale of cigarettes to minors. the department has done a lot in terms of educating the operators, educating them about the law and sending them a lot of educational materials about tobacco products, and we have been running this program for about five or six years. i think by now, all of the licensed operators -- it is frustrating to our inspectors that we spend so much time on enforcement, but that is the nature of the profession that we are in. " they allow 90 days for the first offense. -- they allow 90 days. sometimes they listen to the testimony of all of the different operators, and they considered a hardship, but, again, not to watch a lot down vote -- to water the law down, and working with the board, the 25 days is the least we can go down for for the first offense. we think 25 days is reasonable. in this case, she sells other products other than cigarettes, so i would respectfully ask that the board denied the appeal and uphold the 25-day suspension -- that the board deny the appeal. deputy city attorney: thank you. i do not see any public comment. you have time for your rebuttal. >> i think 25 days is -- they also gave them 25 days, in this is our first defense. -- and this is our first defense -- offense. from now on, i tell the worker not to base this on how they look. he said when he looked at the lady, he did not see a girl. a lady. she looked like over 21. that is why i would like to see the picture of the lady or the girl, to see if she looked older or younger piccata -- or younger. deputy city attorney: dr. ojo, anything further? dr. ojo: i have seen the trend tonight. in fairness, if the board decides to reduce his from 25 to 20 days, dph would be happy to consider that. president goh: sums of offenders received 25 days, is that correct regent -- some second offenders receive 25 days, is that correct? -- received 25 days? commissioner fung: actually, if the appellant had seen the picture, there would be no way. vice president garcia: this is a different one. commissioner fung: oh, it is? then my comment relates to a previous case. i think it is up to you. president goh: if dph is willing to go to 20 days, then i will not argue with the. commissioner fung: i should have said this on the previous case, but just to inform thepublic ane only way this is overturned is if you get four boats. if you do not get four boats -- votes, so i am when to move that we grant the appeal and reduce the penalty to 20 days. commissioner garcia: all the signs indicate you would ask someone for an idea regar

dr. marshall? dr. marshall: what are we doing? commissioner kingsley: i would propose that we have that discussion as a commission as soon as possible, because we do not know when the mayor will make his announcement, so we ought to have a discussion on our expectation. it does not have to be complicated, but just so we are clear on what our our expectations, communicating better, and getting clear ourselves -- what are our expectations, and how we're going to measure the performance of the police chief. commissioner slaughter has expressed this. it is basically cry now. other commissioners may have got on this. in terms of getting clear on that, i think that is something we need to do when somebody comes on board, as a commission, as a whole unit, rather than waiting for somebody to come on board and an ad hoc p&e, with the various commissioners individually, and working with the commission -- come on board in having ad hoc meetings. i think it is better at the onset and that it would be better for the person and us as a body. vi

dr. seuss fans. arnie d. want to talk about your reading? >> they both have two children at home who are a little bit older than most of you guys. if we had a nickel for every dr. seuss book we read we would be rich. these are great great looks and the more you guys read for fun at home, turning those tvs off at night and leaving those video games alone and reading notches for homework but for pleasure, you become lifelong readers and you can do anything you want to do. i will tell you one quick story. my parents were little bit crazy. when i grow up guess how many tvs we had in our house? any guesses? eight? we had zero. i would say to my friends house to watch tv and said my parents read to me and my brother and sister every single night. we didn't always understand that but it in still the love of reading and we are actually thankful for that. the more you guys read for pleasure whatever it might be, stories, mysteries, adventure, comic looks, nonfiction whatever it might be just read for fun. if you do that you will do very well the rest of your lives. are you ready to hear a story? green eggs and ham. had ever heard that one before? i am sam. i am sam. sam i am. that is sam i am, sam i am i do not like that sam i am. do you like green eggs and ham? >> i do not like them, sam i am. i do not like green eggs and ham. >> would you like them here or there? >> i would not like them here or there. i would not like them anywhere. i do not like green eggs and ham. i do not like them, sam i am. >> would you like them in a house? would you like them with a mouse? >> i do not like them in a house. i do not like them with a mouse. i do not like them here or there. i do not like them anywhere. i do not like green eggs and ham. i do not like them, sam i am. >> would you eat them in a box? would you eat them with a fox? >> not in a box, not with a fox, not in a house, not with a mouse. i would not eat them here were there. i would not eat them anywhere. i would not eat green eggs and ham. i do not like them, sam i am. >> would you, could you in a car eat them, eat them, here they are. >> i would not in a car. >> you may like them, you will see. >> i would not could not in a tree. not in a car. you let me be. i did not like them in a box. i do not like them with a fox. i do not like them in a house. i do not like them with a mouse. i do not like them here or there. i do not like them anywhere. i do not like green eggs and ham. i do not like them, sam i am. >> a train, a trained come a train, a trained. could you, would you want to train? >> not in a train not in a treat not in a car. sam, let me be. i would not, could not with a fox. i will not eat them with a mouse. i will not eat them in a house. i will not eat them here or there. i will not eat them anywhere. i just do not like green eggs and ham. >> say in the dark, here in the dark? would you, could you in the dark? >> i would not, could not in the dark. >> would you, could you in the rain? >> i would not in the brain, not in the dark not in a train not in a tree. i do not like them sam you see. not in a house, not in a -- i do not like them sam i am. >> you do not like green eggs and ham? >> i do not like them, sam i am. >> could you would you with a goat? [laughter] >> i would not, could not with a goat. >> would you could you on a boat? >> i could not would not on a boat. i will not with a goat. i will not in the rain, i will not eat them on a train not in the dark not in a tree not in a part. you let me be. i do not like them in a box. i do not like them with a fox. i do not like them with a mouse. i will not eat them here were there. i did not like them anywhere. i do not like green eggs and ham. [laughter] i do not like them sam i am. >> you cannot like them so you say? [laughter] >> i tried to tell you that. >> try them. try them. try them and you maymade, i say. >> oh sam, if you will let me be, i will try them and you will see. >> are you trying them? >> i like green eggs and ham. i do, i like them sam i am and i would eat them in a boat and i with it eat them with a goat. and i will eat him in the rain. and in the dark and on a boat and in a car and it may tree. they are so good, so good you see. so i will eat them in a box and i will eat them with a fox and i will eat them in a house and i will eat them with a mouse and i will eat them here and there, and i will eat them anywhere. i do so like green eggs and ham. thank you, thank you sam i am. >> give her a round of applause. [applause] oh my. i love green eggs and ham. now i have some other special guests for you. who do you think that might be? president obama is not here but there is someone even taller than president obama. the cat in the hat. the cat in the hat. is he here? where is that cat in the hat? where? tell him to come out. , out, cat in the hat. oh my. and thing one and thing two. oh my. wow. look at that tail. all right. now, with the cat in the hat and thing one and thing two, all of us together and mrs. obama and secretary duncan and dr. dr. billington we want to do a reader's pledge with you. are you ready? you have to raise your right hand. your other right hand. [laughter] >> raise them high. >> when you hear me say something i want you to repeat it after me. nice and loud. are you ready? are you ready? i promise to read. >> i promise to read. >> each day and each night. >> each day and each night. >> i know it is the key. >> i know it's the key. >> to growing up right. >> keep growing up right. >> i will read to myself. i will read to a crowd. it makes no difference if silent or loud. i will read at my desk. at home and at school. on my beanbag or bed. by the fire or the pool. each book that i read, put smarts in my head. because brains grow more thoughts the more they are fed. so i take this oath. to make reading my way. a feeding my brain what it needs every day. alright, everybody clapped their hands. [applause] journalist lawyer and trade union leader steve hurley will be our guests on line with booktv.org on

dr. google, dr. cut-and-paste. chancellor merkel strode to the microphone and said she accepted his resignation. she says that she was surprised when he asked to speak to me by phone. i accepted his resignation with a heavy hearts. the german army is being radically restructured. his departure leaves a gap in government. but he was also kept for the very top job, so that throws politics into uncertainty. the chancellor had stood by her defense minister and now sees him forced out. stephen evans, a bbc news, berlin. >> leaders have called for an early election. protesters demanded the resignation of the president. opposition members also mark the anniversary of post-election riots in which 10 people were killed. >> voting with their feet. for these thousands of opponents, the current wave of the uprising is an inspiration. they wanted to force him from power. >> i am happy that thousands of people have found the courage to defend their homeland, their country. i am sure that they will win. >> this marks three years

dr. richard s. -- dr. richards? how are we going to turn this around for california and the nation? >> i am actually giving this paper in two weeks in finland at a conference, but just some of our ideas that come out of the convict criminology group. the first is and the war on drugs. just and it. -- just end it. it started in 1960 with richard nixon. it has been going on 50 years. nobody has even kept count of how many people have been arrested -- 10 million, 20 million, 30 million? it sounds like something out of stalin's russia. turn in your neighbors, turn in your friends. if you turn in 10 people, you get less time in prison. that is what it is, you know? this war on drugs is something out of stalin's russia. and let's stop this war on sex offenders before this gets way out of hand. it is already way out of hand. [applause] i know we are concerned about sexual assault and rape and people assaulting women and children -- i know that. most of the people in prison as sex offenders are not those people. i call them romeo and juliet's. he is 19 and she is 16 or she is 19 and he is 1

dr. hyman. >> rhea: there is so much, dr. hyman, that you've given us, so much information, and you've given it in many ways. and one of the best ways is the ultramind solution comprehensive coaching package, which is yours when you make a very generous pledge of $365. it includes the program dvd and hardcover book that joe told you about, the ultramind solution recipes, they're delicious recipes that were designed by dr. hyman's nutritionist and head chef, the ultramind solution jump-start assessment kit, and the six weeks to an ultramind home coaching program. this is dr. hyman's personal home coaching program, and it contains seven audio cds that include 12 sessions, and two dvds that have 15 video sessions. the set also comes with a companion workbook and quick start guide, and it will tell you everything that you need to do in order to start your six week plan and to get better health. and the set contains items that are only available through public television. now, i just want you to tell us a little bit more, dr. hyman, about the six week home coaching program. >> dr. hyman: well, i developed this to be like having an experience of working with a personal physician. to take you through all the things you need to know to create an ultramind. so, when i see patients, i go through a very specific process, i teach them how to learn about their body, i ask them specific questions, i personalize my

dr matthias rath of dr rath research. you have drawn parallels between what's going on here today in america in two thousand and eleven to what's happened what happened in germany in one thousand nine hundred thirty three we put together some bullet points of your argument and i want to lay them out and have you then explain them now you say there is a concrete strategy to turn democracy into a corporate dictatorship and evidence lies and things like corporate interest taking over the economic crisis that we saw rising unemployment financing of the takeover confusion preaching hatred deception and politics now you say these events are instigated by the oil and drug cartel who exactly is the oil and drug cartel. well currently we have. major areas of society. in any country being controlled by special interests the two main sectors. and she anything from cars to go. to in your living room. and house human body and these two areas are basically considered market places to make money and all this vacates special interest accumulating more and more power to dominate those areas and to basically exploiters markets this i'm not saying anything new and it's not a theory that public knowledge my approach to that is the following first of all i'm a gentleman didn't so i know very well what happened in ninety three in the how these things came to pass the time who was behind these when they came to power secondly i'm a medical doctor and researcher and together with our research team we have investigated nontaxable alternatives to pharmaceutical drugs that are frequently toxicants and mainly being marketed because of the pack in season growth of use that provide the return on investment so we have. experienced interest in our very own seal of what it is to be some of some of the cartel interest groups around the pharmaceutical drug makers that wish to maintain a monopoly on the human body with their merchandise and these are two models where i am coming in and saying wait a minute time to reflect so if you want to reflect and you say this time is the work of the time of the nazis then heard today is that our our health. well first of all i'm not saying that to anyone any politician today in the u.s. or any way out of the nazis i'm not saying that what i'm saying is. it isn't it's naive to think that the takeover of the nazis in germany was done by a bunch of crazies with nukes like the brownshirts there can be huge amounts of money behind them and their economic interests and their bedtime the largest chemical and pharmaceutical industry in the world was called foreign car charts. which means basically interest group of us by colors and it was made up of. groups and some other chemical companies they financed the rise of hitler they had to be interested to cover the cold congregate in which we actually did during world war two and. define the entire planet as the marketplace and that was dr matthias wrath of the dr rath research institutes are not going to do it for now for more on the stories we covered go to our to dot com slash usa and check out our you tube paid youtube dot com r.t. america i'm christine for the out thanks so much for watching we back here tomorrow in the meantime you have a great night.

dr requestor's home and the side of our building. that is generous, especially by san francisco standards. president olague: speakers in support of the project sponsor. seeing none. dr requestor respective -- dr requestors, you have two minutes each. >> commissioners, i am almost beside myself. the sponsors response to our complaints -- it is terribly upsetting. if mr. arcolini works for muni, he clearly does not take a bus. we will stand by our commitment. there is not a bus stop within three blocks of that property. there is not. if you do, you have to climb a mountain to get there. secondly, this irrelevant stuff that gets in there -- i don't know. the owner of the property owns three other properties, one of which is a six-unit apartment building not a half mile from where we are talking about. if he has a problem with renting income in retirement, there is something wrong with the other three buildings he owns. thank you. president olague: would you like the additional two minutes? project sponsor, you have two minutes. >> i wanted to talk a little bit about the sidewalk. i and the architect met with dpw and with the building department, and what they like about what we are doing is the

dr. steven richardson, a renowned author and professor of criminal justice at the university of wisconsin oshkosh. i have to say that dr. richards probably will not authorize this, but i am going to make a plug for the book he has written. i want to say he has written the book "convict criminology." another book called "behind bars." and "beyond bars." so check it out on amazon. we also have with us the policy co-director of the national employment law project. and eliza hirsch is the supervising attorney in the clean slate pride is at the east bay community law center. welcome, panelists. i want to tell the audience that while we are having this session, if you have questions, feel free to write them down, and the ushers will get them some you. at the end of the discussion, we will have a question and answer session. dr. richards, it is my understanding you have some personal experience in this area. i would ask you to share your experiences with us and tell us about the barriers that exist for people who have a criminal record. >> i'm a convicted felon. i'm an ex-con. and i'm a professor. i'm the leader of the convert criminology group. if you just go to google and google convict criminology, you will find our website. our group was actually started many years ago by professor john irwin, who was at a san francisco state university for 30 years. john recently passed away. john, even after he retired in 1995, for nearly 15 years helps me to organize the convicts criminology group. there is now 30 of us. we are all ex cons, ph.d., and professors at different universities. because i'm a convicted felon, i should say i went to federal prison for nine years. >> [inaudible] i came to a public forum, which included a lot of attorneys, to try to rectify these matters. >> [inaudible] >> i am here. i will be

dr. richard s. -- dr. richards. >> [inaudible] >> we love the excitement.his is all intentional. >> i'm happy to be in san francisco, and that kind of brings me to the point i want to say. this morning, we were in the courtroom, and we have lawyers, public defenders talking about legal cases, talking about the roles they play. what i think has been lost here, and maybe even this gentleman kind of raised it, is what happens to these defendants? what happens when they go back into the court, into the lock up after they have pled guilty? about 95% of them plead guilty. you know that they are being forced to plead guilty. you all know it. it is like there is a gun to their head. i call it the terror of arithmetic. they are being threatened with 100 years, 50 years, 20 years -- you know what that does to them. they go back to their jail cells. those numbers bounce around in there had. after a week or a month or six months or a year, a year-and-a- half, they plead guilty. and you know as public defenders, one of your main jobs is to make them plead guilty. and i

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dr dr. scholl's, which he'll need after this. more "world news now" coming up after this. ahh, fresh. feeling fresh enough to last through my parent's cocktail party? that's where we're going? ♪ [ female announcer ] feel fresh up to five times longer with scope outlast. still feeling fresh? oh yeah. [ female announcer ] what will you outlast? ♪ [ male announcer ] what are you gonna miss when you have anallergy attack? benadryl® is more effective than claritin® at relieving your worst symptoms and works when you need it most. benadryl®. .you can't pause life. >>> with the 2012 election, of course, coming up, iowa is the place to be for anyone thinking of making a run at the white house. just last night, five possible republican candidates appeared at a political forum there. >> that's right. sarah palin was not one of them. she's still mulling over her future at home in alaska, where bbc's jackie long caught up with her. >> the start of the 2011 iron dog. >> reporter: for once sarah palin is on the sidelines. she's at the iron dog, 2,000 mile snow machine race. today the woman who shot to political superstardom as john mccain's running mate in 2008, is backing her husband todd to win. i asked the former alaskan governor if she's made up her mind on a white house bid. >> you enter a race to win the race, so there's still a lot of considerations to be made. we haven't made up our mind or desired to make an announcement yet as to what it is we'll be doing. >> reporter: what are the considerations at the moment? what are the things you're weighing? >> well, understanding obama has already said, you know, he's going to rake in and spend $1 billion in this race. money is certainly a consideration. and then just the idea of will the american electorate be ready for someone a bit unconventional in terms of a candidate who will call it like she sees it and who will not be beholden to special interests or partisanship to let the political machine get in the way of what's right for the voters? >> reporter: a short drive away, at the home where palin grew up, her parents have very different concerns. >> she knows how i feel. that it's risky. it is risky. she knows that i am very concerned about that. >> reporter: and people have threatened her life. >> oh, yeah. oh, yeah. yeah, and her kids, too. >> reporter: in what way? what are they saying? i mean -- >> a good example is one guy from pennsylvania, he sent us and other people copies of a gun he bought -- copies of a receipt from a gun he bought, copies of a one-way ticket to anchorage. we kind of laughed it off. we got a restraining order on him. and lo and behold, last week he showed up in anchorage. >> reporter: sarah palin says she only ever plays to win. >> you're awesome, todd. >> reporter: her preferred tactic so far, the role of outsider. so with the political world watching her every move, she's enjoying making them wait. jackie long, bbc news, fairbanks, alaska. >> there she is. her name definitely being tossed around. also a couple of other folks, including donald trump. he sent a representative to assess things in iowa. >> it will be interesting. sarah is feuding with comedian kathy griffin. kathy has taken some potshots at -- >> kathy takes potshots at everyone. >> sarah palin fired back calling her a 50-year-old adult bully and a has-been comedian. >> she's a 50-year-old funny adult bully. that's for sure. you can definitely say that. the snow machine racing, good to see sarah palin there, snowmobiles. >> in her element. >>> coming up, why lindsay lohan is not laughing at "saturday night live". >> and how charlie sheen's production company told him, you're fired. get the scoop. old him, you're fired. get the scoop. m, you're fired. owowowowowowowowoww ♪ skinny so skinny >>> welcome back, everybody. the charlie sheen drama continues. and everyone saw this coming. he's officially been fired by warner bros. television. they wrote him a letter and said, hey, charlie, get out. peace out. we're done. it's crazy. >> some people are saying, it's about time. what took them so long? >> two weeks of all this madness. wrote him a letter and wrote, after careful consideration warner bros. television has terminated charlie sheen's services on "two and a half men" effective immediately. so, he is gone. it's done. it's over. one interesting part of the letter also read, your client has been engaged in dangerously self-destructive conduct and appears to be very ill. warner bros. would not, could not and should not attempt to continue business as usual as mr. sheen destroys himself as the world watches. very strong language there. charlie sheen didn't waste any time firing back. he's planning to sue warner bros. according to the letter his lawyer wrote, he said he felt basically charlie had been fired because he insulted the show's creator, chuck lorre. so, they're little -- that's the reason they're saying behind it and pointing out lorre has had problems with other big stars in the past, including roseanne barr and brett butler, saying they couldn't work with chuck lorre either. >> look at charlie sheen in this video. he does not look well. like many people are saying, he's seriously, seriously ill. >> not dad of the year candidate. and even more bizarre, he apparently climbed to the top of a building in beverly hills, after the news came out he had been fired. he pulled out a massive machete, drank a bottle of tiger blood at the top of the livenation office building. and when asked how he felt about being fired? shouted out, free at last, free at last. there he is in hollywood waving a machete. that says it all, folks. >> on top of a building. honestly, it's starting to get -- not even starting. it's sad to watch. >> more sad. >>> did you catch "snl" on saturday night? we're up all night anyway, we're up late enough. miley cyrus was the host and apparently she took on lindsay lohan in this stolen necklace debacle. lindsay lohan is upset "snl" would have let her do this parody. she considers lorne michaels, head of snl, to be a father figure. people are speculating she sent this e-mail to lorne michaels saying how upset she was that he allowed miley cyrus to take this dig at her. >> it was a charlie sheen and kind of a -- a charlie sheen and lindsay lohan there. >> hosting various train wrecks, including gadhafi. >> lindsay has bigger concerns other than snl, so get over it. >>> an update from the story yesterday. phil collins said he was retiring because in healthwise he wasn't in great shape. his publicist came out saying, don't believe the hype. phil collins is not retiring. has no intention of stepping out of the game. which is good news. phil collins was a big deal. they say we hope he gives his hands ample time to recover before he pursues music. so phil still in the game. >> we like it. hope you feel better. >>> talking about 18-year-old disney star, demi lovato. she went to an undisclosed rehabilitation center back in october. many people might remember that. the issues she was there for many people say were anorexia and cutting. take a listen to what she has to say. >> the journey i've been on has been very, very difficult over the past few months. without you guys i wouldn't be here today. >> she says she's doing a lot better now. >> don't be another lindsay. wouldn't be here today. >> she says she's doing a lot better now. >> don't be another lindsay. ♪ [ male announcer ] for the things you can't wash, freshen it with febreze. ♪ because febreze doesn't just cover up odors... it penetrates deep into fabrics to eliminate odors and leaves a light, fresh scent. febreze. it's a breath of fresh air. what's next? 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[ male announcer ] 2 in 1 swiffer sweeper gives cleaning a whole new meaning. >>> here are some stories to watch today on abc news. cindy mccain and ben affleck will talk about the suffering they saw in congo with lawmakers today on capitol hill. you'll see more from their exclusive interview today on "good morning america." >>> secretary of state hillary clinton and first lady michelle obama observe international women's day in washington. it's the 100th anniversary of that event. >>> also los angeles extends its smoking ban to restaurant patios today. violators may face fines up to $500. don't light up in l.a. >> that's expensive. >>> finally this morning, an update on a story we told about you a few weeks ago. the jig is up for one notorious california cat burglar. >> i'm a dog person but i like this cat. this thief, who was a cat, was caught on tape stealing from the neighbors and now giving it back. kgo reports. >> reporter: this is no ordinary rummage sale. >> these are from -- >> daddy, are these mine? are these all mine? >> reporter: everything here -- >> a towel company. >> reporter: -- was stolen. >> underwear. >> reporter: here is the culprit, dusty, also known as clepto the cat. >> dusty took all these things. >> reporter: dusty was featured on animal planet last month where his late night rendezvouses with his neighbor's towels and undergarments were caught on tape. he was even on the david letterman show. now animal planet is back to film dusty's giveback. >> dusty brought all these thing. what we're hoping for is the owners to come and claim it. >> i found my shoe. >> this is mine. i didn't even know it was gone. >> reporter: his cleptomania started three years ago. >> he had a full bath towel in his mouth. and, you know, the cat's got a little mouth. >> reporter: dusty's owners would return things piecemeal, but soon even they couldn't keep up. >> i think i've asked you guys if you were missing things. >> yeah, i think so. >> reporter: doing this just seemed easier. >> that's ours. >> oh, that is ours. our car washing -- >> we were burglarized and we didn't even know it. >> reporter: all along 8-year-old sadie somers knew all of her missing things -- >> this is my little bathing suit bottom. this is my other bathing suit bottom. this is my top. >> reporter: -- would wind up here. but after several hours, dusty still has a mountain of loot and his owners have some advice for their neighbors. >> don't leave anything outside that you don't want gone. and if you're missing something, come to our house. >> reporter: even after all of this, dusty will still be in the spotlight. it turns out the city of redwood city has asked him to be their grand marshal in this year's pet parade. abc 7 news. >> i love that cat. >> he's going to steal stuff from the parade. >> particularly fond of the undergarments. did you notice that? >>> this morning on "world news now" -- you're fired. harsh message from the production company to, you guessed, it charlie sheen. >> he's kicked off his sitcom. he's already fired off a response, charlie sheen style. it is tuesday, march 8th. >> announcer: from abc news, this is "world news now." >>> you're fired. >> you're fired. >> donald trump. >> you have to get the hand. >> you're fired. keep your hair straight. >>> good morning, everybody, i'm rob nelson. >> and i'm peggy bunker. >>> while charlie sheen's production company issued a long letter to dismiss him, sheen had a less formal response, as you can imagine. plus, an important legal matter to address in court. that's coming up. >> he's still winning. >>> also ahead, the real life everyday drama on the battle front in libya. see the dangers moment to moment for opposition forces there and their power struggle over moammar gadhafi's regime. >>> how about this story -- kate middleton's skimpy piece of clothing that caught prince william's eyes. there it is. and the rest is all history. that dress is actually -- there's a chance you can own it. >> really? >> i know you're going to be bidding on that, rob. >> and of course i have to say on this fat tuesday, happy mardi gras. i know my folks in new orleans are still out in the streets. on this fat tuesday morning. enjoy, guys. >>> before we get to that, we begin with the pink slip that pulled the rug out from under the highest paid star on tv. >> who didn't see this coming? charlie sheen received his walking papers after a series of high profile rants against studio bosses. >> and sheen shot back with another bizarre response. shocking. rob hayes reports from l.a. >> reporter: "two and a half men" is now down to one and a half. warner bros. television officially fired charlie sheen and it did is it with a simple one-sentence written statement. quote, after careful consideration, warner bros. television has terminated charlie sheen's services on "two and a half men" effective immediately. when asked for comment by the associated press, sheen responded, with the "f" word and "they lose" followed by the word "trolls." asked if he planned to sue, sheen texted back "big." when asked for his next move, sheen texted "a big one." >> everybody knows my side of it by now. >> reporter: that was sheen earlier before the firing on local radio station k-earth. when asked about negotiation concerning "two and a half men" sheen said he expected some movement this week and reiterated that his behavior, as bizarre as it may be, is not in violation of his contract with the show. >> there's no morals clause. i came back super uber prepared, like that, you know, anybody was surprised. duh. >> would you sign a morals clause in the new contract? would you? >> hell no. they should. they should. they have no morality. >> reporter: meantime, sheen is also caught up in a child custody battle with his estranged wife brooke mueller. last week mueller got a temporary restraining order and had their twin sons removed from his home, citing his increasingly erratic behavior and alleged threats against her. rob hayes reporting for abc news. >>> lawyers say joran van der sloot will plead guilty but temporarily insane after last year's murder of a peruvian student. his attorneys plan to argue van der sloot was overcome with violent emotion at the time. the 23-year-old is accused of first-degree murder. if convicted he could face a 15 to 35-year sentence. he's also the key suspect in the 2005 disappearance of natalee holloway in aruba. >>> military trials at guantanamo bay prison camp will resume now that president obama has reversed his earlier decision. the president had promised to close the prison in a year, but that's until he ran into strong opposition in congress. the first case to be heard at gitmo could be that of the accused mastermind of the "uss cole" bombing. >>> and now to libya where nato is now flying surveillance missions 24 hours a day. and rebel forces have come under attack from moammar gadhafi's air force. the opposition is demanding a no-fly zone. but an international effort to impose that is just getting started. in his latest interview, gadhafi accused foreign media of being part of the conspiracy against him. >>> we're getting an up close look at how those oppositions forces are fighting for their freedom. abc's lama hasan has been traveling with them. >> reporter: we head out for the front line of this war where the fight is raging between gadhafi and the rebels. a 220-mile journey by car across the desert, hugging the coast, mile after mile passing through towns now firmly in control of the rebels. passing checkpoints, rebels armed with guns. [ speaking foreign language ] >> air strikes after ras lanuf. >> reporter: so that is where we are going. we continue west. the battle getting closer. we pass pickup trucks packed with new rebel recruits, armed with machine guns and determination. >> good food, sleep. >> reporter: we see where they eat and sleep. i'll stay in the back of this car until gadhafi leaves, he told us. we all will. we edge closer to the key oil city of ras lanuf, now the tip of the spear in the fight to bring down gadhafi. the battle is close. the charred evidence of fresh fighting is everywhere as is the thud of artillery fire. this is where all the fighters are gathering right now. this is the furthest west that we're able to go. just 30 miles west from where we are standing right here, there's a big battle in a place called bin jawad. that is just up ahead where gadhafi's forces attacked using their advantage, fighter jets to pound the rebels, stopping their march toward gadhafi's stronghold in tripoli. for now. and for now it is as far as we can go too. lama hasan, abc news, ras lanuf, libya. >> unbelievable. >>> political uncertainty in libya and other oil-producing countries has sent fuel prices skyrocketing. the average price of a gallon of gas hit a new record for this time of year, $3.52. over the past four weeks, prices have jumped 39 cents per gallon and analysts say no immediate relief in sight. >>> even though gas prices are the highest they've been in two years, some analysts are questioning the president's plan to tap into the nation's federal oil reserves. t.j. winick reports that the pumped up prices could have a ripple effect on the economy. >> reporter: if you think the unrest in the middle east doesn't impact all of our lives, guess again. >> i think the price of gas is ridiculous. >> we were around $65 and now we're at $95. >> reporter: to fill up your suv? >> yeah. >> reporter: libya is the 17th largest oil producer in the world. as a result of the civil war there, gas in california shot up 50 cents in the past month. and now averages $3.89 per unleaded gallon. indiana and minnesota, up 40 cents. texas and nevada, 44 cents. >> all this extra fuel cost has to get passed on to the consumer. because it costs more to ship their goods to market. >> reporter: with americans nervous about these rising prices there has been mounting political pressure for the president to tap into the nation's oil reserves. it consists of 727 million barrels stored in underground salt domes along the gulf coast. but is this the right time to use it? >> it's a good idea to signal the readiness to use it, but the conditions for using it are not there yet. >> reporter: many experts fear the all-time high of $4.11 set back in 2008 might not be that far off. nelson knows he picked a heck of a time to start his own career business. >> i have to fill up the tank even twice every three days, that's going to be, you know, $40, $45 extra a week. >> reporter: the last time the oil reserves were utilized in 2005 during hurricane katrina, it only brought down gas prices about 3%, not considered enough to make a real difference. t.j. winick, abc news, new york. >>> this next story takes place at a gas station but it has nothing to do with prices. it has to do with staying alive. a filling station attendant in oregon was doing his job over the weekend. take a look at this. a car plowed right into the station there. >> oh, my lord. >> upon impact, he wound up between the counters, but get this, suffered only scrapes and bruises. police say the driver was having an argument with his girlfriend when he lost control of the car. do not argue in the car. >> just let the woman have her way. don't crash into the gas station. man. >> i like that. there you go. >> easier. happy wife, happy life, right? >> there you go. >>> here's a look at your weather. stormy from the plains to the gulf coast. expect gusty winds, downpours and threat of tornadoes in oklahoma city, little rock, new orleans and memphis. several inches of snow from omaha to minneapolis. snow in the northern rockies, cascades and rain in the pacific northwest. >> 50 degrees in seattle. 34 in billings. 54 in albuquerque. 30s in twin cities and omaha. mostly 40s in the northeast. 61 in atlanta. 72 in new orleans where they are having a big fat tuesday. >> mardi gras, woo! >> we need music or something. i know you have things planned for later on. >> yes. >> we have to wear things, put things on. >> i had 11 mardi gras. my favorite holiday. >>> a senator from tennessee is turning over a new leaf and encouraging some others to do the same. >> pretty smart politics. lamar alexander signed the lease on a new electric car, it happens to be a 2011 nissan leaf. the republican says he's doing his part in reducing the nation's need for foreign oil by choosing a car you can plug in rather than fill up. >> the senator is no stranger to efficient cars. for the past two years he's driven a toyota prius hybrid converted into an electric plug. i did a story a few months ago, i test drove both cars through manhattan, very smooth. >> i like it. thumbs up. we'll be right back with more "world news now." we'll be right back with more "world news now." 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work. a $50 donation to the united way allows them to take one day off. a $150 donation gets three additional days off work. donate $250 and you get an entire week. together, the general sessions employees donated more than $23,000 to the united way. their charity cost the taxpayers $63,000. that's because the employees are still being paid their county salaries during all this time they're taking off. we wanted to talk to clerk otis jackson about the bonus day deal, but he didn't respond to our request for an interview, so we went to his office. is otis in? >> he's in a meeting right now. offsite. so, all comments and everything need to go to william stovall. >> reporter: stovall is jackson's chief administrative officer. when i asked him about it -- >> maybe i need to look at it. make sure when i'm telling you. if you give me an hour or two, i'll look at it and make sure i'm giving you the proper information. and we can talk about it. >> reporter: i'm still waiting for the follow-up call and it's been five days. that's probably because stovall took advantage of the bonus day incentives, too. he got five bonus days for his $250 donation, but the county pays him more than $1800 in salary to give him the five days off. good for stovall and the united way, bad for the taxpayers of shelby county. clerk otis jackson donated and got five days off after he donated $500. good for otis jackson and the united way. unfortunately, his donation is costing the taxpayers more than $2,000. jackson's clerk michelle smith was generous and donated $500 to the charity. her kindness resulted in an extra five bonus days off work. good for her but bad for the county taxpayers, who will pick up the tab to the tune of almost $1200. what did you do with your five bonus days? >> i'm unable to comment on any of this. >> reporter: smith, not talking, but county commissioners are. >> county taxpayers shouldn't have to pay a dime for these people to make a contribution. if these people don't to want make a contribution, that's fine. but they shouldn't be -- elected officials should not be using the county's tax resources. >> i think this is excessive and i think this is exactly why people are skeptical about government's constant request for more money. >> reporter: together, jackson's employees collected a total of 296 days off for their donations to the united way. their charity is costing you, the taxpayer, $63,000 in lost work days. >> seems like an outrageous amount. that's a year of work. it's a year of work. it's almost a complete calendar year. >> the taxpayers pay $63,000. to these employees to give $23,000. it's all disgusting. it's all disgusting. we ought to be able to do better than that. >> i agree with that. do you have your calculator out? who didn't do the math on this? for 250 bucks you could have an entire week off. i'll do that. >> how do you calculate dumb? i mean, no good deed goes unpunished. that's crazy to me. >> pretty bad. >>> coming up next, a single piece of clothing that no doubt led to a royal romance. >> prince william could not put help but notice kate middleton modelling this dress. >>> all right. help but notice kate middleton modelling this dress. abababababb >>> all right. now to the dress that started it all for kate middleton and prince william. what are you doing? >> i'm inspired by this story. >> in 2002 william saw kate modeling a see-through dress for charity. wait for it. a little late. clearly he was hooked. let's try it one more time. and -- >> oh -- there we go. the dress that started this royal wedding nonsense is about to be auctioned off in london. here's bianna golodryga with how much it could bring in. >> reporter: this was kate middleton's first foray into fashion. nine years ago she strutted down the catwalk at a university runway show, modeling a sexy see-through dress by former design student charlotte todd, which wasn't meant to be a dress at all. you initially made it at a skirt. >> yes. this was initially -- well, still is the waistband. so this is made out of elastic to sit on the waist and hips. it was meant to be worn with, say, a satin or silk slip underneath. it wasn't the intention to show the underwear. >> reporter: so much more conservative in your mind. >> yes, exactly. >> reporter: charlotte knitted together gossamer fine black and gold silk threads to make this skirt-turned-dress for a design school project called the art of seduction. two years ago later is may have helped seduce a prince. william was in the front row for the fund-raiser fashion show. >> he was sitting with his friend fergus at the time. he turned to fergus and said, kate's a knockout. she's gorgeous. and i think that was really the turning point for them. >> whether kate knew what she was doing on that night, i will never know. but i think she did and i hope that she chose my dress to bag her prince. >> reporter: after the show, the fairytale frock was packed away by charlotte until now. it's going up for auction along with two dresses worn by princess diana. >> i'm sure all of us would just love to see what diana would think about not only kate but kate's wardrobe selection and style. starting with the dress that apparently wowed her son. >> yes, it was literally a bit of a showstopper, this one. yes, it's interesting to think that our future queen once wore this. >> reporter: but diana herself had a racy and revealing coming out. >> the dress she wore the first time she was seen in public with prince charles after the engagement was announced in 1981 caused a storm. it was cut so low. and when she came out of the car, well, i mean -- >> reporter: all eyes were not on her face? >> no. >> reporter: we may never see kate strike a pose like this again. charlotte these delicate designs for a job as a retail manager at an aquarium in bristol. >> it's not the best thing i made. it was luck. >> reporter: if you're the lucky bidder, this iconic slinky dress which cost about $45 to make could be yours for perhaps $16,000 on st. patrick's day. bianna golodryga, abc news. >> she's starting to regret that. >> that is the first royal wedding story we've done that kept my interest. >> i wonder why. you were paying very close attention. >> lovely and intriguing piece. i enjoyed that thoroughly. >> lovely and intriguing piece. i enjoyed that thoroughly. i enjoyed that thoroughly. inner beauty is important. but not nearly as important as outer beauty. ♪ that's why i use covergirl's simply ageless makeup with olay regenerist serum. a liquid makeup can glob up in lines and wrinkles and make you look older. simply ageless stays suspended over lines and makes you look amazing. simply ageless from olay. and easy, breezy, beautiful... covergirl. ♪ and to look really amazing, start with my serum primer. ♪ >> announcer: "world news now" delivers your "morning papers." >> look at your hat. >> yes, indeed. >> time for "morning papers." we're talking about fat tuesday, mardi gras. we'll get to that in a second. this is all for you. >> this is all me. brought a little new orleans to new york this morning. >> first we have to talk about first thing on papers, mark got a dog. this is them. it changes your whole image of this billionaire, like, you know, this incredible fluffy dog. >> lucky pooch. >> you don't care about the story. you're like, can we talk about mardi gras? >> no, that's a lucky dog. >> no, that's a lucky dog. >> mark and his girlfriend priscilla got a sheep dog named beast. >> beast, really? >> yes. but on to more important topics, such as fat tuesday. what is on your head? >> i'm embarrassed. but this is -- this is my king hat from mardi gras i bought in a blur on bourbon street one night. >> you paid for that? >> my whole paycheck went to this. i actually would get on the 5 a.m. news and anchor, obviously in new orleans when i worked there, it was a light news day on mardi gras. i would do the 5 a.m. news in this hat. >> it's ridiculous. >> fat tuesday, which is the last day of carnival season. all the parades the last three or four days was the killer part of the carnival season there. it all culminates today. two big parades and king of carnival. just a great tradition out there for the city of new orleans. just a fantastic time. bourbon street will be nuts all day today, all night. i'm sure the scene is going strong. >> everybody getting their beads. you don't have to do anything to get your beads, per se. >> that's right. >> check out willis. >> i couldn't be there this year so i brought a little back here. we got willis back there with the crown, king willis and -- there we go. look. bowing to the king. another great tradition -- >> all i heard was blah, blah, blah, cake. what's the deal? >> another new orleans mardi gras tradition. king cake. it's a sweet, gooey delight. >> everyone, have some cake. >> another cool tradition in new orleans is each cake -- i want to thank my friends at randazzo's. they bake a plastic baby into the cake. >> what? >> if you get the baby, that means have you to buy the next king cake -- >> you want to find the baby? >> no, because you have to buy the next one. first of all, don't check to death, that would be bad. if you find the plastic baby, that means you have to buy the next one. look carefully at your piece. >> i thought there were cocktails. >> we couldn't bring that on the air. there are hurricanes, hand grenades, eating jambalaya, crawfish, so a taste of new orleans on this fat tuesday. it's good? >> that's what i'm talking about. all the folks out there, all around the world, especially my beloved new orleans, happy fat tuesday and happy mardi gras and eat this cake. go catch those beads, baby! especially my beloved new >>> this morning on "world news now" -- setting the stage. the republicans who are testing the political waters before next year's presidential race. >>> it could be the unofficial launch to the 2012 campaign season. it is tuesday, march 8th. >> announcer: from abc news, this is "world news now." >>> and good morning, everybody. i'm rob nelson. >> i'm peggy bunker. thanks for joining us. >>> republicans are doing their best to appeal to conservative voters in iowa but are any of these politicians true standouts in the race for president? >> here we go again. >> are you ready? >> another round. >>> also ahead in this half hour, as the royal family gets ready for next month's big wedding, there is a scandal. here we go. find out why prince andrew is now under investigation. some interesting ties he has to some controversial folks. >> okay. can't wait to hear about that. >>> also later on, if you rely on a smartphone, who doesn't, beware because you could be the target of a new type of hacker. we'll show you how to protect yourself. >> very important to know. it would be remiss of me as a former new orleanian not to say happy mardi gras on this fat tuesday. wearing the black and gold. >> something we should yell out, throwing beads? >> there's a lot we can't do on camera. we'll talk about that later. >> okay. >>> we start now with the republicans who may want to battle for the white house and a handful of possible contenders converged on iowa well ahead of that state's very critical caucuses. >> they share the stage to make their case before hundreds of conservative activists. brad wheelis has the latest. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, rob and peggy. there are five very different republicans. from a pizza restaurant executive to two former governors. they spoke at a suburban des moines church last night, trying to set themselves apart. it's the first time potential republican presidential candidates appeared on the same stage in what is viewed as an unofficial kickoff for the 2012 iowa caucus season. tea party favorite herman cain of georgia led a litany of conservative values. >> we have to defend the life of the unborn. >> reporter: fellow georgian and former speaker of the house newt gingrich echoed that message. >> you had a great speaker last year in mike pence, and i strongly endorse his cutting out all funding for planned parenthood, which has become a major source of abortion in america. >> reporter: former minnesota governor tim pawlenty supported the defense of marriage act. >> we have people in washington, d.c. saying we'll define marriage however we feel like defining it. no, it won't. it should be defined as between a man and woman. >> reporter: other participants included buddy roemer and rick santorum. real estate tycoon donald trump did not attend but did send an aide to iowa to gauge interest in his candidacy. sarah palin is undecided. she told the bbc it depends on what the american people want. >> will the american electorate be ready for someone a bit unconventional in terms of a candidate who will call it like she sees it and who will not be beholden to special interests or such obsessive partisanship to let a political machine get in the way? >> reporter: the iowa faith and freedom coalition hosted that forum. while many conservatives in the audience heard about social issues, many wanted to hear more specifics about economic solutions. peggy and rob? >>> more political news this morning. another u.s. senate seat is up for grabs. this one in nevada. republican john ensign has announced he will not run again. insiders say he stood little chance of being re-elected after admitting two years ago he had an extra-martial affair. he's the eighth senator to decide against a re-election run. >>> turning to the deadly unrest in libya. nato is operating surveillance flights over the country 24 hours a day. rebel forces have been feeling the wrath of moammar gadhafi's air force. the opposition also continues to press for a no-fly zone to be imposed. but an international effort to do that is just getting under way. in his latest interview, gadhafi accused foreign media of intentionally twisting the facts about the fighting. >>> as most of you know by now, the mess in libya has oil prices through the roof and that is forcing the costs we're paying at the pump higher as well. the average price per gallon is now $3.52. that's a new record for this time of year. that is up 39 cents per gallon in the past four weeks. >>> and as the president considers tapping the national oil reserves, analysts question what can be done to lower our dependence on foreign oil. bianna golodryga looks for answers. >> reporter: every u.s. president for the last 40 years has issued the same ultimatum. >> we will finally end our dependence on oil from the middle east. >> end america's excessive dependence on foreign oil. >> reporter: so how much have we cut our dependence on foreign oil? it turns out we haven't. in fact, we rely even more on it. in 1973 the u.s. produced 64% of all the oil it consumed while importing the rest from foreign sources. half of that from opec. in 2010, 61% of the oil we consumed came from overseas while our piece of the pie shrank to less than 40%. almost ten years after 9/11 and a rededication to reducing oil imports, still no change. >> political will is the main thing that's keeping us from relying less on foreign oil. we can't change things overnight. we need to bring down the cost of alternatives and push them into the economy, but if we don't get started now we'll never get there. >> reporter: advancements in technology have increased american production but not nearly enough to reduce oil imports. >> the increase in u.s. domestic production is certainly a positive sign. it can't close the gap all by itself. >> reporter: and on the consumer side, hybrid and electric cars are a viable alternative to their gas guzzling counterparts, but they represent less than 3% of the car market. in order to make a significant dent in our demand for foreign oil and, therefore, reduce gas prices, those cars would have to make up 20% of the market. so for now the only quick fix to high prices at the gas pump is a lifestyle adjustment. back in 2008 the last time americans experienced high prices at the pump, they cut back driving by some 3.8 billion miles, eventually bringing down the price of gasoline some 44%. but that took one year. bianna golodryga, abc news, new york. >>> another major headline this morning. this one's sort of a shocker. charlie sheen is out of a job. and promises to take his now-former bosses to court. now, sheen who starred in "two and a half men" was canned by warner bros. the company dismissed him for dangerously self-destructive conduct. in classic sheen style he responded to his firing by calling the warner bros. executives trolls and also threatened to sue. what does he have against trolls? >> that's his favorite word. >>> more hollywood news this morning. lindsay lohan heads back to court this week to tell a judge in l.a. whether she's willing to cut a plea deal, but her case suddenly got a little more complicated after the sale of surveillance video from the store that is accusing the troubled actress of stealing a pretty pricey necklace. more from mike von fremd. >> reporter: this venice beach jewelry store knows how to give one of its most famous customers special treatment. it not only accused lindsay lohan of shoplifting a $2,500 necklace that the actress insists was simply borrowed, this once little known store is attempting to cash in big time, selling the surveillance video to "entertainment tonight" and other celebrity shows for a whopping $35,000, according to radaronline. >> if i'm the prosecutor handling the case in which a critical piece of evidence has been sold to the media, i am outraged. >> reporter: two weeks ago when all sides agreed to keep the videotape private, a no-nonsense judge publicly sent lohan an unmistakable message. >> this case does involve jail time, period. >> reporter: but legal experts say if the key piece of the prosecution's evidence is now tainted, it may be the judge who receives an unmistakable message. >> he seems to have boxed himself into a corner without giving the opportunity to even listen to whatever evidence may be coming. >> reporter: lohan's only public comments have been to the tv show "extra" saying she's embarrassed by the legal spectacle. >> i don't like the attention. i don't want that. i want my attention to come through in my films. for the work that i'm doing. >> reporter: on thursday the actress will be back in front of judge schwartz in what probably feels like a no-win situation. mike von fremd, abc news, los angeles. >> hollywood's an interesting place. >>> here's a look at your tuesday forecast. some severe storms from oklahoma city to little rock, new orleans and memphis. heavy rain in kansas city and st. louis. up to 6 inches of snow in the dakotas, omaha, des moines and minneapolis. showers, meanwhile, in the pacific northwest. snow in the cascades and northern rockies. >> 47 in boise. 50 in seattle. 65 in sacramento. just 22 degrees in fargo. 40 in detroit. 48 in new york. and 61 in atlanta. >>> well, a south florida grandmother is all smiles after receiving a call that was literally out of this world. >> gladys roscoe's grandson wanted to say hello during a break from his job but that job happens to be pilot of space shuttle "discovery." he brings "discovery" back to earth for the final time tomorrow. the 93-year-old plans to be there for the landing. >> proud grandma. boe also phoned from "endeavour," a few years ago, but she missed it because she was out square dancing. >> i can't be the only one that saw "discovery" and the space station orbiting last night. >> you saw it? >> clear night. saw it. >> i was asleep. back with more "world news now" after this. ou saw it? >> clear night. saw it. >> i was asleep. back with more "world news now" after this. it. >> i was asleep. back with more "world news now" after this. >>> welcome back, everybody. well, as kate middleton gets ready to marry prince william, she is no doubt getting lessons on how to live like a royal. let's hope she's not getting advice from her future uncle-in-law. >> prince andrew, charles' brother, has found himself in hot water. as the bbc reports, it's certainly not the first time. >> reporter: hardly the questions he's accustomed to when he's out promoting british business. this was andrew in london. but the issue of whether the prince has become an embarrassment was one being weighed by government. initially downing street was lukewarm. one more problem and he's out, was the suggestion. but for the moment, ministers are offering their support. >> he's done a good job. we're pleased with it. he's a volunteer. i certainly have no criticism of what he's been doing. >> reporter: the prince has been the uk's special envoy for trade for ten years. he's been most effective in places like the gulf where his royal status does open doors. supporters say he's been good for british business. >> i think his contacts and his ability to get little companies good introductions is very valuable. everyone knows who prince andrew is. >> reporter: some opposition mps say it's time for andrew to step down. >> i'm afraid he's now just an international embarrassment. my worry, sometimes when he goes on these trips, i'm not sure if he's helping us out or just helping himself. >> reporter: these are some areas for which he's attracted criticism. he sold his former marital home to a business associate from kazakhstan who strangely paid several million pounds more than the asking price. his links with prominent libyans, some like saif gadhafi, which he met at government's request. but has met with questionable figures there. five months ago he hosted a lunch at buckingham palace for el materi, son-in-law of tunisian president. british diplomats were said to be horrified. they regarded him as beyond the pale. it's his links to this man, american financier, jeffrey epstein, that have caused the latest problem, epstein is a convicted sex offender. last december andrew stayed with him for several days in new york. a photograph has emerged from ten years ago of andrew in another of epstein's homes with his arm around a 17-year-old girl described as epstein's personal masseuse. then, of course, there's andrew's former wife, the duchess of york, who was caught last year by "the news of the world" trying to sell access to andrew. >> open doors. >> reporter: it now appears epstein, the sex offender, was helping pay off some of the duchess's debts. buckingham palace insists there's been no impropriety by prince andrew. all of the insinuations are without foundation. downing street finally came through with full support for him. he remains the uk's special envoy for trade. nicholas wichell, bbc at buckingham palace. >> very interesting. as they said, you know, buckingham palace standing by him, for now. >> but the paper -- there's an editorial in the times of london newspaper on monday saying -- actually asking prince andrew to step down, accusing him of boorishness, arrogance, questionable standards, sloppy preparation and dubious friendships. intensifying criticism. >> he always stands by fergie, which i find impressive, especially after the last scandal. >>> coming up, if you rely on a smartphone, you could be a walking target. >> that's right. we'll check out how you can protect yourself from vicious cyber attacks from hackers. >>> some android cell phone owners woke up to a surprise ou can protect yourself from vicious cyber attacks from hackers. 6ñ6p >>> some android cell phone owners woke up to a surprise last week. google remotely deleted infected apps right off their phones. >> the internet giant said they did it to protect their smartphone users from having their personal data stolen. that is something that's easier than you might think. >> reporter: zach is demonstrating how easy it is to hack into somebody else's phone. >> i'm going to go ahead and start this game up. >> reporter: he created a game application called evil snake. it looks innocent, but behind the scenes it's actually lifting all of the personal contacts from your phone book and sending them straight to his computer. >> there's a lot of sample code out there to do this. people with very little experience can add this functionality into their apps. >> reporter: apps come in all shapes and sizes and users are downloading them at a fast clip. earlier this year apple announced it had surpassed 10 billion app downloads. that number is poised to explode, now that the company's popular iphone 4 is available to more consumers. but for all the fun and games that apps provide, they're potential as a real security threat is nothing to laugh at. malicious software found on cell phones jumped 46% in 2010. >> the first thing people need to do is really, number one, be aware of the fact there are fake applications and the potential for abusing the mobile platform exists. >> reporter: how can you be sure the app you're downloading is safe? >> what we recommend is for users to take a step back for a second and say, what's the intent, the purpose of this application? >> reporter: take a look again at this game. when the app is open, notice how the gps chip and 3g indicator are activated? it's one way to tell if an app could be accessing your personal data unnecessarily. they say pay attention to the permissions requested by an app. >> if it's a crossword puzzle, does it need access to my sms store or contact database? probably not. if it's requesting that, maybe you shouldn't be downloading that application. >> reporter: nathan takes it one step further by developing apps that safeguard your mobile interactions. orbot is one example. >> this tool allows you to privately browse the internet on your mobile device, android phone, so that no one can see which websites you're going to and identify your personal information. >> reporter: he adds that paying attention to user reviews can also help you avoid bad apps. in the end, being aware is key to keeping your smartphone safe from all those evil snakes out there. >> you and i are both addicted to -- >> who isn't? >> i mean, folks are. you can't download any apps or files from people you don't know or don't trust. >> the best thing to do is think of your smartphone as your laptop and treat it the same way. >> hackers are relentless. >> and also things can be in text messages. >> scary stuff. ♪ i may be bad but i'm perfectly good ♪ ♪ i don't care i love the smell of it ♪ ♪ stick and stones may break my bones ♪ ♪ but chains and whips excite >> hackers are relentless. >> and also things can be in text messages. >> scary stuff. are relentless. >> and also things can be in text messages. >> scary stuff. one four-star hotel. two identical rooms. so why does this one cost so much less on hotwire.com? when hotels have unsold rooms they use hotwire hot rates to fill them, so you get ridiculously low prices, backed by our low price guarantee. orbitz price 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>> hello. duh. >> reporter: imagine how much wealthier he would be after the outrageous month he's just been through. >> i -- i am on a drug. it's called charlie sheen. >> reporter: his twitter account opened only six days ago passed a million followers in record time. the guinness book verified that. and then it doubled. of course, it occurred to him, hey, i'll do commercials. and he puts up pictures of himself with juice and satellite tv and hot dogs and a rolex. perhaps in the hopes the makers of one of those products would pay for charlie sheen's endorsement. actually, one business is, internships.com paid sheen to send this tweet, seeking an intern and directing applicants to the internship.com website. they got more than 100,000 hits after that. the amount they paid sheen was not disclosed. but then along comes a clever column in "esquire" magazine proposing a formula for the value of a tweet on twitter. a company estimated to be worth $10 billion that may suggest sheen is close to a twitter fortune already. >> using my formula, if charlie sheen were a stock right now, i would buy. >> reporter: let's make it easy and put it in mathematical terms "esquire" invented. the dollar value of a single tweet by you equals followers over 27 times 51 dollars 28 cents divide by the number of tweets you've sent. while they say that makes a lady gaga tweet worth more than $25,000, sheen's tweets, who wasn't even tweeting when the piece came out, would be worth $51,000. maybe he has a way out because, of course, tweets are worth more than real stuff made in factories like cars or doughnuts or baseball bats, though those things obviously could be worth more if you could get charlie sheen's endorsement. >> winning! winning! >> reporter: i'm john donvan in washington. >> i think everybody's a little sick of the "winning" phrase. some people say charlie sheen's burn rate, how fast he goes through his own cash, will that make a dent? >> this country likes outrageous celebrities. make a dent? >>wowowowowowowowowowowowowowowt >>> this morning on "world news now" -- pumped up. gas prices that are rapidly rising and busting budgets. >> how prices can vary wildly from station to station even and also how you can get the best deal. it's tuesday, march 8th. >> announcer: from abc news, this is "world news now." >>> good morning, i'm peggy bunker. >> hi, everybody, i'm rob nelson. >>> the changing situation in libya and other oil-producing countries, of course as you know, is driving up prices out there. but if you have a smartphone, you could already be a step closer to finding the cheapest gas in town. >> we need it. anything you can do. >>> also ahead, as sarah palin keeps followers waiting for her decision about running for president, of course, we're hearing from her parents in a very rare interview. >> all right. >>> later in "the skinny," charlie sheen has been fired from his hit cbs sitcom. >> what? >> shocking. i'm stunned. hear how and why the production company dismissed him from "two and a half men," but he's not hurting for cash or publicity these days. >> isn't that the truth. >>> first, let's get you those increasing gas prices and the impact on the fragile economy. >> right now the average price per gallon is $3.52. that's a record for this time of year. that is up 39 cents per gallon in just the past four weeks. steve osunsami reports. on how drivers are now coping. >> reporter: outside chicago, autumn geis-lombardo says it's unreal. in the past two weeks she's watched gas jump up 45 cents a gallon, and she nearly fell over when it cost her $64 to fill up. we went with her as she and her children made all of their trips in one drive, spending as little time on the road as possible. >> i was really shocked when it didn't stop till $68.04. >> reporter: outside atlanta when they do go shopping, mark, and lisa mcintire told us they buy much more in bulk and they drive to the store slowly to help save on gas. >> you know, you got to drive a little slow too, sometimes. >> reporter: really? >> of course. you save. >> reporter: you do this? >> yeah, i do. >> reporter: the average cost of a gallon is now up to $3.52. here's who is getting paid. just $2.35 of that buys the oil and 39 cents goes to refining it. 31 cents pays for distribution and marketing, and 46 cents goes to uncle sam. we were surprised to see how wildly prices change from station to station. in west covina, california, this mobil station was selling gas at $4.89 a gallon, but across the street this shell station was nearly a dollar cheaper. >> i noticed right across the street it's about a dollar difference. i had to come over and take advantage of the dollar difference. >> reporter: we went in and asked the manager at the more expensive station why his gas was so special. and he wouldn't explain why. the experts say that now more than ever it pays to shop around. >> it certainly does. when prices are rising, some stations have already raised their prices and some stations are a little slower to raise their price. so, it certainly can pay off very much so. reporter: there's an app for that that leads you to the cheapest gas at gasbuddy.com and as you might imagine, traffic to the site is through the roof. they say to avoid gas stations near highways or in wealthy neighborhoods. they usually charge more. they also say it's usually better to buy gas at the beginning of the week and to buy at discount stores or locally owned stores where the gas is cheaper. steve osunsami, abc news, duluth, georgia. >> one of the reasons for the skyrocketing prices is the ongoing violence in libya. >> nato surveillance planes are keeping an eye on that situation 24 hours a day. john hendren is in washington with the very latest. hi, john. >> reporter: good morning. the budding civil war in libya is hitting home, driving the average price of a gallon of gas to $3.52. but u.s. officials are worried about far more than that. they're worried about a humanitarian crisis. as libyan warplanes bombard pro-democracy rebels, president obama is raising the prospect of military intervention. >> we've got nato, as we speak, consulting in brussels, around a wide range of potential options, including potential military options. >> reporter: no one's talking about an iraq-style ground invasion. >> no option has been removed from the table. but ground troops is not sort of top of the list at this point. >> reporter: one increasing likely option is a no-fly zone, grounding libyan planes by force, if necessary. >> this would send a signal to gadhafi that the president is serious when he says we need to gadhafi to go. >> reporter: a senior official says nato is increasing flights over libya as the alliance debates closing air space over libya, but that could require u.s. bombing inside libya to take out defense systems. embattled leader moammar gadhafi says the international community is misinformed by skewed media reports. he claims he's not fighting libyan rebels, he's fighting al qaeda with the support of his people. >> you listen -- you listen to the ovations. what are they saying? >> reporter: the pro reform forces say they're still holding the key oil port of ras lanuf and they're preparing an assault to take the capital, tripoli. this man says, we are coming for you. as nato considers a no-fly zone, libyan warplanes continue to pound opposition forces on the ground as they try to head toward the capital of tripoli. u.s. officials fear an impasse on the ground could lead to a long civil war. rob and peggy? >>> amnesty international is condemning president obama's decision to resume military trials for terror suspects at guantanamo bay, cuba. the president had promised to close the prison but he reversed course after strong opposition from lawmakers in congress. the first case to be tried will likely be the alleged mastermind of the "uss cole" bombing. >>> joran van der sloot plans to appear guilty but insane in connection with the death of a student in peru. he's accused of first-degree murder, carrying a 15 to 35 year sentence on conviction. he remains the key suspect in the disappearance of natalee holloway back in 2005. >>> a suspect in the sex assaults of women from rhode island to virginia has made his first court appearance. >> prosecutors say aaron thomas lived a jekyll and hyde lifestyle regarding women. t.j. winick has details. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. for years the most police had to go on were sketches, but now the man described as a bold, fearless predator is behind bars. 39-year-old aaron thomas was led from a courthouse in new haven, connecticut. he had just been arraigned for one of what police say was a string of 17 rapes from virginia to rhode island dating back to 1997. >> these assaults span more than 400 miles. it presented challenging obstacles for the investigators. >> reporter: in the courtroom the man dubbed the east coast rapist wore sunglasses and a baseball cap. according to a prosecutor, when thomas was finally arrested, he asked, why haven't you picked me up sooner? the unemployed truck driver alluded authorities in four states for over a decade. >> he wasn't talking to people about what he was doing. he let time lapse between them. and he left the community probably right after he committed the act. >> reporter: the arrest came less than a week after officials posted more than 100 billboards in eight states. an anonymous tip led police to thomas in new haven, where they set up surveillance. it was dna on a discarded cigarette that linked him to the crimes. >> we couldn't believe right here in our neighborhood. thank goodness he's finally caught. >> reporter: thomas actually tried to hang himself on saturday in his cell, but was returned to jail after a brief hospital stay. rob and peggy? >>> spectators at a bullfight in venezuela got a little closer to the action than they wanted. the audience screamed as this bull, take a look at this, jumped right into the stands. it kept running into a corridor separating the spectator seats from the ring. the powerful animal finally found his way back to where he belonged, according to the crowd. one worker there was hurt and had to leave the arena. you see things like that here and there. >> oh, man. >> bull decides he doesn't want to be there anymore, for obvious reasons. >> other places to be. >>> here's your tuesday forecast. showers from portland up to seattle. a half foot of snow in the cascades and northern rockies. sioux falls, omaha and des moines can expect 6 inches of snow. 70-mile-an-hour winds, isolated tornadoes and hail from oklahoma city to jackson, mississippi. >> 70s from dallas to new orleans. 81 in miami. 61 in atlanta and 41 in boston. kansas city, 42. 36 in the twin cities. 72 in phoenix. 46 in salt lake. >>> well, this one has to go under the heading, there's got to be an easier way to set a world record. >> that's right. take a look at this. this nonstop mexican water skier from setting a new world record for the fastest speed ever reached while barefoot water skiing. which is not easy. from a helicopter. this was the helicopter towing him along. he didn't want a boat. he went straight to the aircraft. >> that is a brave man with strong feet. are you ready for this? his top speed was 153 miles an hour. that's a full 18 miles per hour faster than the previous record. never knew you could go that fast on a set of water skis barefoot. >> have you ever fallen off a pair of water skis? >> no, i never water skied in my life. >> it's painful. i can't imagine from the helicopter. >> oh, man. that guy is a native of a acapulco, where the event took place. it was important to promote his hometown. >> i like that home spirit. >> good for him and dresh. feeling fresh enough to last through my parent's cocktail party? that's where we're going? ♪ [ female announcer ] feel fresh up to five times longer with scope outlast. still feeling fresh? oh yeah. [ female announcer ] what will you outlast? ♪ [ male announcer ] what are you gonna miss when you have anallergy attack? benadryl® is more effective than claritin® at relieving your worst symptoms and works when you need it most. benadryl®. .you can't pause life. >>> with the 2012 election, of >>> with the 2012 election, of course, coming up, iowa is the place to be for anyone thinking of making a run at the white house. just last night, five possible republican candidates appeared at a political forum there. >> that's right. sarah palin was not one of them. she's still mulling over her future at home in alaska, where bbc's jackie long caught up with her. >> the start of the 2011 iron dog. >> reporter: for once sarah palin is on the sidelines. she's at the iron dog, 2,000 mile snow mac

dr. debbye. dr. debbye turner will be here with some special friends and great advice for you pet owners out there. for some of you your local news is next. you are watching "the early show" on cbs. >>> we are looking at pets right now. who here has pets? >> i can barely keep a plant alive. so i think it's best that i don't. i had pets growing up. >> i had fish growing up. i loved my fish. >> i'm going to get like e-mails. does that really count as a pet? >> does it come when you call it? >> okay. it doesn't come when you call it, but i think that maybe explains a little bit my relative squeamishness around the zoo animals. >> oh, yeah. >> there we go. there we go. there's the lizard. >> that was a tough moment for me. >> that was the best part. >> the monkey was cute. >> but he lunged at you. >> that freaked me out a little bit. chris wragge earlier this week, he actually had a similar encounter with the animals. i mean, look at that. how much space is there -- >> oh, come on. >> between chris. >> he's not here to defend himself. >> we can be tough on him! it's fantastic. >> but the point in all of this is, we have another pet segment coming up. >> uh-oh. >> russ this time. >> i love the pet segments. i really do. a few weeks ago we had a bee wa constrictor out here. who ever it was from whatever zoo tried to put that thing around my neck. and i ran like jesse owens. get me out of here! >> a boa constrictor? those are lovely. ,,,,,,,, >>> going old school there. >> i like that, upbeat to start the day. welcome back to "the early show," i'm rebecca jarvis. >> and i'm russ mitchell. coming up ask dr has answers and advice. is that bird talking to you, debbye? >> he actually will talk. he says the name barbara. we don't know why. >> okay. >> he might during the segment. we'll see. >> all right. >> maybe he can learn russ. i'm waiting to see how close you're willing to get to that bird. >> i'll be in queens. but that's okay. >> coming up later we have chef restaurateur and cookbook author marco serving up a braised chicken as part of our three course meal that's affordable. it's delicious, and guess what, russ? so easy i could even make it. >> wow. >> it's all coming up. but first over to lonnie for our final check of the weather. >> hey, good morning. russell, i'm telling you, i want you to channel baretta. >> baretta? >> when you see the bird. >> keep your eyes on the sparrow, buddy. >> this is great. in terms of your forecast, you'll notice on the surface map a lot of green around the midsection of the country. and wouldn't you know, we have a front pushing through that area. th

dr. lucy jones is a seismologist with the u.s. geological survey. dr. jones, how surprised were scientists by the magnitude of this quake? >> well, a mixed bag. it is a plate boundary, we know these things happen, but this is the largest earthquake in the last 140 years japan, and some of the maps have said they thought that northern part would never have such a large earthquake. obviously that's not the case. >> couric: how does this tsunami compare to the one that struck thailand and indonesia back in 2004? >> this tsunami is a bit smaller than the indian ocean tsunami because the earthquake is a bit smaller. i mean, a tsunami happens because you have a massive earthquake on a huge fault that moves a large part of the sea floor up and the water that used to be there has to go somewhere else. >> couric: could this type of undersea earthquake happen along the united states coastline? >> there are two places in the united states where we have a similar type of fault that will also produce a big earthquake and a big tsunami. one is the aleutian arc around alaska and the other much more dangerously is the pacific northwest. there's one of these types of faults running all the way from cape mendocino in the south to the island of victoria in british columbia in the north. >> what can scientists in your view hope to learn from this event? >> this is going to be the best recorded earthquake ever. the japanese have spectacular instrumentation and i think we're going to learn a lot more about the fundamental nature of earthquakes. we're also going to be learning a lot about how buildings behave in these very largest events and especially cities of seattle and portland. i hope we're looking very, very carefully at how the japanese buildings behaved. >> couric: dr. lucy jones of the u.s. geological survey, dr. jones, thanks so much. those areas that dr. jones mentioned are all in the so- called ring of fire. coming up next, why it's the source of the world's deadliest disasters. and later, another dark day in history. >> shots fired, shots fired. >> reporter: newly released tapes from the day president reagan was shot. copd makes it hard to breathe so i wasn't playing much of a role in my own life. but with advair, i'm breathing better. so now, i've got the leading part.?ú advair is clinically proven to help significantly improve lung function. unlike most copd medications, advair contains both an anti-inflammatory and a long-acting bronchodilator, working together to help improve your lung function all day. advair won't replace fast-acting inhalers for sudden symptoms and should not be used more than twice a day. people with copd taking advair may have a higher chance of pneumonia. advair may increase your risk of osteoporosis and some eye pro

dr. richard s. -- dr. richards. >> [inaudible] >> we love the excitement. this is all intentional. >> i'm happy to be in san francisco, and that kind of brings me to the point i want to say. this morning, we were in the courtroom, and we have lawyers, public defenders talking about legal cases, talking about the roles they play. what i think has been lost here, and maybe even this gentleman kind of raised it, is what happens to these defendants? what happens when they go back into the court, into the lock up after they have pled guilty? about 95% of them plead guilty. you know that they are being forced to plead guilty. you all know it. it is like there is a gun to their head. i call it the terror of arithmetic. they are being threatened with 100 years, 50 years, 20 years -- you know what that does to them. they go back to their jail cells. those numbers bounce around in there had. after a week or a month or six months or a year, a year-and-a- half, they plead guilty. and you know as public defenders, one of your main jobs is to make them plead guilty. and i know you do not want to hear that, and i know that you think you're doing the right thing for your clients, and a lot of that is because you do not want to know the rest of the story, which is what happens to them later. for example, myself, i was a student at the university of wisconsin. i had no criminal record. i got arrested in a marijuana conspiracy case. no possession, no sale. i was threatened with 150 years. 150 years. i'm from madison, wisconsin, which is a town not unlike san francisco. they cannot put me on trial in madison in wisconsin, so they took me to the south of carolina, and they put me on trial in strom thurmond federal courthouse in charleston, south carolina. across the street was the confederate cemetery. from the courthouse, they flew two flags -- the u.s. flag and the confederate battle flag, which was the state flag of south carolina. from the court room, i could look out the window and seaport sumter in the distance -- see fort sumter. they put me on a case with no marijuana. they invented imaginary marijuana. they said i was charged with conspiring to contribute 10 tons of colombian marijuana. i pled not guilty. i had a jury trial. i was found guilty on one account, acquitted on nine. i had an appellate case and the supreme court case. i was then facing 15 years. since may to nine. when i went to federal prison, i did time in eight different states in nine different federal prisons, including four penitentiaries -- that is a maximum security. including the united states penitentiary at marion, the first super federal max. that is on a marijuana convention. -- conviction. i spent most of my time in solitary confinement. you do not know this, but if you plead not duty and you get a jury trial and then you have an appellate case, you go directly to solitary confinement. were you do not have access to the law library. you do not have access to your attorneys. i spent most of my time in federal prison in solitary confinement because i had an appellate case. if you do not know this. when i came out of federal prison, i went to graduate school, directly into graduate school. my first semester in grad school as a master student, i remember the chair of the department asked me if i could teach criminology. i said, "sure." [laughter] the first day i taught class at the university of wisconsin, i had 500 students and an entire front row were milwaukee police officers. i told them that i just got a federal prison. they looked at me, and i said, "we are going to have a good time." [laughter] hey, it is real. that is what i want to do for you today, make it real. what you see is only a piece of the story, what happens in that courtroom. what happens later is when they go to prison. >> could you tell us some of the barriers you faced from the transition from prison into the community? >> when you get a prison, now, there is no date money. they all walked out in many states in their prison uniforms, with a number across their chests. it is really a miracle they do not get shot as escapees. they are coming home to the community with no winter clothes, no eyeglasses. they have had no medical attention in years. they are usually silver and not on drugs. usually, not always. -- they are usually sold -- sober. the idea is in prison they dry out. in prison, they are just warehouses. there is no prison programming anymore. there's no college programs -- there is one in san clinton here, thanks to the people of your community, but that is one of the few in the country, the one you have at san quentin. so all they could get is a ged in general. they come out with no date money, no clothes. none of them have jobs when they get out. and they come home to what? when they have been locked up 5, 10, 20 years, they go home, and their families do not even want them home. >> what impact does somebody's criminal history have on this transition from the system into the community? >> in seven states, you can never vote again. most states, you cannot vote while you are on paper. because of the criminal background record checks that are now ubiquitous, incredibly, a, you have a hard time ending an apartment, getting a car loan, getting any kind of job. i'm a convicted felon, and it would not hire me and walmart. i could not work the cash register at burger king. most occupations and recessions are close to you because you are a convicted felon -- occupations and jobs. when you see homeless people outside, most of them have felony convictions, mostly bullshit felonies, the little felonies. that is why they cannot get jobs. that is why they are panhandling and sleeping in doorways. their numbers are just going to multiplied next year, the year after, 10 years from now. >> let me ask, would you agree there are significant areas for people who have criminal history records? >> i would agree. it is not just people who have felony convictions and going to prison, but i was struck this morning by the stories that amy told, and a gentleman who was a reporter in santa clara county about the people who have the misdemeanor convictions they got without representation. i thought i would take a second to talk about what happened, at least in alameda county, after throwing conditions for a misdemeanor. in alameda, they probably end up on court probation for three years, which means no fourth amendment rights and services and no supervision. it means they often get a warrant. while there are on probation, they are ineligible for the clean slate remedies that exist under the law. i do not call it expunge because there's no true excitement, but the dismissals, they are not eligible for that which makes it hard to get jobs because most job applications ask a question about criminal history and convictions. they cannot lawfully answer no convictions. then, they are subject to extensive criminal background checks from commercial companies, and i know quarries will talk about the impact of that. they cannot work. the zero court fines and fees often, and they cannot pay his back, which means they can i get dismissal even when they are off probation. you can see the cycle that goes on here. people do not know that they are not eligible for applying for fire services after many of these. we have had clients pick up new misdemeanors for applying to own a firearm. sometimes, what was really happen is people would pay a great deal of money to get into some of the technical schools, truck driving schools. they want to become a certified businesses and, these low-wage jobs. they pay money to go through the training programs and graduate and find out they are ineligible for those licenses because of their criminal record, or they have a great deal of work they have to do with their criminal records before they will be eligible, and they just spent a lot of money because the schools took their money. the horse -- horrors about what happened were discussed. i talked about the man riding a bicycle than the street and what that meant for his future. >> there are significant barriers for folks who have criminal history records. would you agree we need criminal record reform? if so, why? >> i think -- first, i just want to say a couple of words about what we do. many years ago, i was a legal aid attorney in new york. for the past 20 years, i have been an employment advocate. we practice employment law, mostly on behalf of low-wage workers, and we kind of got into this whole issue when it became clear that there are some legal handles available to protect the rights of people with criminal records who are seeking jobs, so i can talk more about our project in that area. anyway, i come out of it from the point of view as an employment advocate, so the problem which we have seen a lot -- we have this project called the second chance labor project -- where we are representing workers trying to navigate these criminal background checks that does permeate every occupation that you can think of. especially since september 11. you have seen way more requirements, both by private employers and requirements imposed by state and federal law. in california, for example, there are about 200 occupational licensing laws that regulate just about every occupation you can think of. private security guard, home health care worker -- and think up and down the line, there is a good chance there is a law that regulates your occupation. if you have a felony going back seven years, you cannot work at the port without going through a tsa background check. 1.5 million workers this past year had to go through that. those are everywhere, but there are some basic employment rights that people have, and here in california, we have some good laws on the books. we'll talk about reform of these losses some more. i will be happy to talk about that now, but i just want to mention there are some good laws that protect workers. for example, you have this issue -- you had multiple levels of access to all this criminal record information. first, you have the state criminal record system that is basically to upload all the local county records. of the federal criminal records system, which is considered the cadillac of the record systems out there. it is an accumulation of all the state records, and then you have private screening firms -- big corporations that are making a lot of money on criminal background checks, credit checks, and all that. in california, those laws are pretty heavily regulated. for example, the private screening firms cannot report of arrests -- or they are not supposed to -- and i cannot report convictions going back more than seven years. federal law does not even close, not nearly as good. that is consumer protection law. then, applicants are entitled not to report arrest on an application, so we are very familiar with lots of good laws on the books that are never enforced. the real challenge is to get about enforcing these laws. i do not know if you want to talk about it -- >> tell us about what is next. how can we be successful in taking -- you mentioned there are some good laws on the books. do we -- do they go far enough? how can we take it further? how can we essentially this reform? this seems to be critical. >> we had this huge proliferation of background checks. this huge proliferation of this industry that is collecting all these criminal records, and you have way more people walking around with a criminal record. one in five, as was mentioned. so there is huge potential for problems. the issue that the laws and procedures and protections and all that have not even close to caught up with this huge problem that we have now. so that is where i think we need to start. me to really check in and of the basic protections that apply and go about the business of reforming some of those basic laws. i'll just mention a few. first of all, title 7 of the civil rights act of 1964, the basic law that protects civil rights or the protection against discrimination. back in the 1980's, clarence thomas used to be the head of the equal employment opportunity commission. he signed off on a directive that said that title 7 applies to employment decisions that are made based on criminal background checks because those decisions had a disparate impact on people of color. there are great procedures in place that say that employers cannot discriminate on some based on a criminal record unless they can show that it is based directly on the job. basic common sense standards that are not in force because people mostly locked around -- employers mostly walk around saying that anybody with a criminal record of a felony or these blanket policies are illegal under title 7, so we need to strengthen title 7, up the title 7, and apply the standards to state law as well. and there is a good piece of legislation that would do some of that. then, san francisco was one of the first communities to adopt a policy called and the box -- ban the box. it is responsible for getting this whole thing going, but now, 21 local cities and counties around the country have adopted san francisco's policy, and three states now, two in the past year, when they remove the question about your criminal background from the job application, and a delay the process until the end of the hiring process. basically, they remove a lot of the stigma are under criminal background, and they are creating a more fair process of giving you a shock -- giving you a shot based on the merits of the position. but i said, there's a lot more interest in that. i have been talking a lot. i'm going to stop there because ensure other folks have something to say. and i talk to us about changes in the law and some of the efforts being made in california right now, and where are we falling short, and what needs to be expanded as it relates to prior criminal arrests and convictions? -- >> talk to us about changes in the law. >> forest talked about the issue of discrimination against people with criminal records -- maurice. that mean we would not need these other remedies, but we are a long way off from that being the national standard, unfortunately. what i work with people on every day as cleaning their records up to the extent allowable under california law, so cleaning your record up to the extent allowable under california state law is really different from saying "clean slate." i feel like we are at best raising expectations unfairly because there is no clean slate in california, but we are trying to improve the laws that there are and expand them. actually, this session and assembly -- my coworker who works on policy in my office has been successful in working with community partners and putting forward ab 2068, and it is really a technical fix, not sending terribly exciting, and if i say it, your eyeballs will fall out of your head, but it basically updates penal code section 1204a the expunge men or dismissal remedy, and brings it up to the same level as 120 3.4. the point is in some cases, people who can get that a remedy for cases when they did not go to prison, there will be eligible to legally say -- some people, certain jobs, they are able to answer "no convictions" for certain jobs, but again, is a far cry from now even having to answer those questions. the problem with the laws in california are that they are very piecemeal. they were written over a long stretch of time. they do not really interact with each other very well, and did not do as much -- i feel like i am being so negative, so i'm going to try to think of something positive. they do sell certain people. a major problem we have is that for people who have gone to prison in california, for this cases for which they were sentenced, the only remedy is something called a certificate of rehabilitation, which is so far from expunge meant -- it is a gold star on your criminal record that you get to take around and show people. that would be my dream to work on that. the other option is pardon, and i think governor schwarzenegger has printed six, and not to my clients. >> nor mine. i want to return to dr. richard s. i think a cut you off, and you were giving us a real perspective on the impact criminal history has on a person's life, and a one to give you back your time. >> i appreciate the legislation and the work that you do any work you are doing, but i think we have kind -- we do not realize how big a problem this has become. united states today, we are this global power. we are fighting wars that do not end. you all know this. and the war has come home. the war is in the streets. we have arrested millions of people for drugs. thank god i'm in california. show me some pot, you know? california is wonderful, but it is not that way in the rest of the country. they are still giving people felony convictions for possession of marijuana. you guys are really progressive. the rest of this country is not. the rest of this country is fighting a war that you cannot even protest. we are so far, even though barack is in the white house, isn't that great? the country is more right wing than yo

dr. richard weinstein. again, at the $200 level, you're going to really receive the entire collection, the dvd of the program with additional material, the companion workbook, dr. weinstein's book "the stress effect," plus, a wonderful cd. in fact, you're going to meet the farmer's market string band later in the show. we discovered them when we were on location in drtown in california, just an added thank you, an added incentive for you to go to the phone. but you know the true incentive is all of the great programming that you receive on public television. so go to the phone, go to the website, make a contribution at any level that works for you and your family, but because you're watching, we know that you are learning something from this information, so don't wait another minute. people are waiting by the phone right now to take your call. understanding the real cause of stress is so important to you, your children, your parents, and to the health of our nation. my program will give you the insight and tools you need to regain and maintain vibrant health. the symptoms that i had, diabetic, and as a result, i would have problems with being lethargic, heart problems, sometimes heart would go into atrial fibrillation and, you know, various things because of the diabetes, as well as having a lot of problems with the tips of my fingers, there would

dr. james cherry of ucla: >> the main reason is increased awareness. >> reporter: and dr. frits mooi of the netherland's center for infectious diseases control. >> we found really a new mutation in the bug. >> reporter: drporter: the bacteria that causes whooping cough was first isolated in belgium in 1906. at the time, the illness was one of the leading causes of infant death. the discovery lead to the first attempts at a vaccine. but it wasn't until the late 1940s scientists developed a vaccine effective enough to prevent whooping cough. >> unlike the disease however, a vaccine does not endanger life. >> reporter: by 1946, mass immunization programs began in the u.s. and the number of cases dropped dramatically. prior to the vaccine the rate of disease was 157 cases per 100,000. by the 1970s, with large scale immunizations, fewer than one in 100,000 people got whooping cough. but the vaccine was not without controversy. the early versions were associated with side effects such as prolonged crying spells and seizures in babies. by 1996, the fda approved a new whooping cough vaccine. it was called an acellular version. that means the vaccine uses only purified components of the disease-causing organism.

dr. wachter is the author of over 150 publications and is frequently called upon to testify before the u.s. congress on mortgage markets and financial crisis. our next witness is dr. marcus calabria, who is in addition to being the director of financial regulation studies at the cato institute is also a former staffer for this very committee. dr. calabria has also served as the deputy assistant secretary for regulatory affairs at the u.s. department of housing and urban development prior to his work on capitol hill. we welcome you back to the committee. chief economist and senior vice president at the national association of home builders. director speed is responsible for the nehb economic trends, research and the home-building industry and consumer preferences as well as economic analysis of government policies that affect housing. welcome, dr. crowe peery our next witness is mr. ronald phips the president of the national association of realtors representing 1.1 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries. phipps has previously served in senior leadership positions within. welcome to the committee. >> jeffrey lubell has been executive director of the center for housing policy since 2006 and has been the recognized expert in housing and community development policy. he has

dr. uncle frank. >> dr. uncle frank here happy to keep you healthy. we have questions. the first question of the day is from philip in wichita, kansas. what food is the best and which is the worst? for me, sweets. strawberry shortcake, my, god. the worst is vegetables. i can't digest vegetables. too many colors. sweets help me. i'm 77 like a 42-year-old ex-soldier. [ applause ] >> jimmy: 42-year-old. and one more thing, all this going on, i wouldn't feel right without at least briefly updating you on the charlie sheen situation. you know, you might think that with all the stories about the drugs and the porn stars and god knows what else that his show would suffer. you could not be more wrong. "two and a half men" was the most watched show on television last night. and it was a rerun. i don't know if people thought he might bring the porn stars to the set. i'll say this, the negative ratings brought people to cbs. and other networks are trying to get their own piece of the action. >> he's got family a job and one bad habit. >> daddy's home. >> andy dick is -- crack dad. >> get off of me! get him off of me! >> crack dad tuesdays on fox. >> party time. >> jimmy: yeah, followed by a new heroin town. we have a great show, sarah shahi is here and we will be right back with jamie foxx, to stick around. itself more aerodynamic... by automatically closing its grille vents... leaving you... breathless the all-new ford focus with active grille shutters ♪ [ female announcer ] mini, meet berries. introducing new kellogg's frosted mini-wheats with a touch of fruit in the middle. helloooooo fruit in the middle. before i started taking abilify, i was taking an antidepressant alone. most days i could put on a brave face and muddle through. but other days i still struggled with my depression. i was managing, but it always had a way of creeping up on me. i felt stuck. i just couldn't shake my depression. so i talked to my doctor. he said adding abilify to my antidepressant could help with my depression, and that some people had symptom improvement as early as 1 to 2 weeks. he also told me about a free trial offer from abilify! now i feel more in control of my depression. 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[ male announcer ] if you're still struggling with depression talk to your doctor to see if the option of adding abilify is right for you. and be sure to ask about the free trial offer. if the option of adding abilify is right for you. accelerating through a corner, can a car simultaneously adjust the speed of each front wheel? this one... just did. the all-new ford focus with torque vectoring control. >> jimmy: welcome back. tonight on the show, from "fairly legal" on usa network -- a former dallas cowboy cheerleader. turned star. so make sure everyone is smiling really hard when she comes out. sarah shahi is here with us. tomorrow night, josh brolin will be here. camille grammer from "the real housewives of beverly hills," and music from tinie tempah. on thursday, kim kardashian, along with alex trebek. and music from one eskimo. is it one eskimo? our first guest is a platinum-selling recording artist by night, and an oscar winning actor by day. his newest record is called "best night of my life." it looks just like this. please say hello to the shy but likeable jamie foxx. [ cheers and applause ] [ cheers and applause ] >> jimmy: how you are you? >> so pumped. i see you. now, it's a plethora of people in here. a lot of caucasians. did you foe know that that was a soul clap you were doing? give me a soul clap. [ applause ] all right, right. it's black history month. you right on time. y'all always do that. we don't do that anymore. i got it, jamie. i got it, jamie. we do this now. we do this now. hey. hey. >> jimmy: that is one of those things you see a guy will have learned that and he continues doing it at every wedding. >> won't let it go. >> jimmy: they should let it go though. >> especially at the basketball games, like, the dance cam. >> jimmy: do you celebrate black history month? >> even if i eat sushi, i fry it. >> jimmy: nice. [ laughter ] >> all black. i'm all black. everything. everything is fried. i eat chicken just out in public. just -- get all of that. and too, a lot of white girls, they like to go out with me and i said, listen, for 28 days i can't. no white girls for 28 days. >> jimmy: that is quite a sacrifice. >> i gotta sacrifice. i have to schedule them in march, which is st. patrick's day, so cool. >> jimmy: drng is smiling on you now. >> i have a dream that one day, little black boys will get together with little white girls and have a baby. i'm kidding. i'm kidding. you foe that is going to be on youtube. jamie foxx defiles dr. martin luther king. >> jimmy: it's a dream. sometimes you dream weird things. you won an academy award across the street from here. [ applause ] where do you keep it? >> i don't keep the oscar with me. i have a lot of friends that don't have a social security number. then in the back, they're like, man, that's why he don't keep that around. i'm not saying their criminals. even when i won the oscar, i didn't go to the "vanity fair" joint. everybody was like, with you going to "vanity fair "? i was like, no, i'm going to kick it with the homeys. i went to the party and they took the trophy out of my hands and i lost the trophy for 45 minutes. >> jimmy: no way. >> and over in the corner, i think people were smoking medicinal. and he was like, man, i got contact. and yo

dr. mark calabria. he is the director of financial regulation studies at the cato institute and is a former staffer for this very committee. dr. calabria has served as deputy assistant secretary of the u.s. department of housing and urban development prior to his work on capitol hill. we welcome you back to the committee. david crowe is the senior vice president at the national association of home builders. dr. crowe is responsibile for the nahb's economic trend research and analysis of the homebuilding industry and consumer preferences as well as macroeconomic analysis of policies that affect housing. welcome, dr.. our next witness is ron phipps. he represents 1.1 million members involved in all aspects of the residential land commercial real-estate industries. he has served in many leadership positions within the national association of realtors. welcome to the committee. jeffrey lubell has been the executive director for the center of housing policy since 2006 and is a recognized expert in development policy. he has previously served as director of the policy development division in the hud office of policy development and development. thank you for being here, mr. lubell. dr wachter, will you proceed? >> chairman johnson, ranking member shall become and other distinguished members of the committee, think for the invitation to testify today. it is my honor to be here to discuss the curre

dr cornel west is among america's most provocative intellectuals a princeton professor and lifelong pioneer of working class rights and racial justice. at this year's left forum conference in new york city dr west's appearance drew thousands of activists aiming to revitalize the american left i want to be a solidarity with. once a vocal supporter of u.s. president barack obama dr west tells r t why his opinion has drastically changed dr west thank you very much for taking the time to speak with r.t. less to play here dr west you are one of twelve hundred speakers from around the world who have come here to new york to take part in the left forum this year's theme it's called toll words the politics of solidarity why do you think and event like this is so important one of the i just want to pay tribute to the visionary figures behind the live form would play such an important role in sustaining it we are now experiencing a were radical democratic awakening in the american empire in the united states people are affected by what's going on in northern africa people think about what's going on in the middle east and more and more now shaped by what is happening in madison wisconsin and columbus ohio and other capitals so that i think we've had so much sleep walking in the united states where of course. wall street oligarchs and corporate elites have been not just

technology strategy policy group at microsoft corporation, and finally, cleaning up the panel will be dr. -- dr. mark cooper who you all know and love from the cfa. lee? >> thank you. i love the image of marrec. [inaudible] i like that relationship and it's an honor to be here and be part of this wonderful panel. i thought i would really quickly run through the three revolutions that have taken place on our watch as the pew internet project we started doing survey work in march of 2000. since then we have seen three things happen in the technology space and we are about to see the fourth revolution occurring and to talk about the consumer environment of that. to talk about the broadband revolution the survey in march, 2000, showed 46% of americans from the internet at that point and 70% of adults. it grew from 73% of teenagers 2000 to 93% as teenagers now. broadband is part of that story coming and we watched the switch from the dalia lab environment to the broadband environment and so people became very different kind of internet users as they transitioned to that higher speed experience. they