natalie? >> atia, i know you can't see that clearly exactly the area where this explosion occurred. can you see whether there's a fire that has broken out around the smoke? when you say a huge explosion, very large, give us an idea what kind of area it encompasses? >> reporter: well, as for a fire, i can't see that from where i am at the moment. we do see smoke rising from that vicinity. that area, it is an area that has international organizations as well as companies, such as isaf headquarters that incorporates 41 different nations. of u.s. forces as well. it's also close to the -- near the u.s. embassy. i can't say the bomb infiltrated near the u.s. embassy. there is large security in all these areas. we're trying to pinpoint exactly where this explosion occurred and how they were able to actually get through. there's a lot of security in the afghan capital at the moment. you have afghan security as well as ana, the afghan national army, the afghan national police. they're being backed up b

we have natalie on the plaza, hoda. first up to natalie with a skype question. natalie?ancy clark from mesa, arizona, on skype with us. go on, nancy. what's your question for our panel? >> yes, i will be laid off at the end of this month. i've been with a company for 25 years, and i'd like to reduce my monthly expense. i was wondering, should i take out a 401(k) loan now while i'm still employed to pay off some of this debt? >> and we're sorry to hear that you're going to be laid off, but how do you know that you are, that that's for sure? >> oh, it's been in the plan. they've been very straight forward. it's a gat company, just difficult times. >> all right. well, let's turn it over to our panel. jean, do you have an answer for her about taking a loan on her 401(k)? >> yeah. >> i know what you normally advise here. >> absolutely, and the advice is going to be the same. you don't want to do it, but for a very specific reason. if you take a loan from your 401(k) and you leave the company, they can actually ask you for that money back inside of 60 days. and if you don't ha

natalie? >> norah o'donnell, thank you.i ludwig is a psychotherapist and contributing editor at "cookie" magazine. good morning. >> good morning. >> as we saw there, jenny sanford, she is not standing by her man, as we have seen with other political spouses caught in these infidelity scandals. she's handled this differently. but at the same time, governor sanford says in his mistress, he found his soul mate. did she have a choice in what she could do? >> this is a very different situation. i mean, when other politicians have been caught, they did not say, listen, i was having an affair with my soul mate. >> mm-hmm. i'm in love with this other woman. >> i'm in love with this other woman. either it was a mistake. they recommitted to their wives on some level. so, this is very different. i mean, what's a woman to do when your husband says he's found his soul mate and it's not with you? >> she likens, you know, her husband's obsession with the mistress to an addiction to alcohol or pornography, in saying that he is basically ob

we've got natalie again back outside. hey, natalie. >> hey. we have mary here from minnesota.r fear is actually your husband's fear. >> correct. yes. >> can you tell us what it is that your husband fears or has an anxiety about? >> my husband david is very accident prone. so he has many injuries, and he might have to have worn a neck brace and a cast and a wrap for like a sprain. and he's very anxious about events like the wedding of our daughters, and at what point should he be on medication? >> oh, boy. >> well, this is an interesting question. it may be phobia. it may be anxiety. he may be hypochondriac. so, he really needs to sit down -- >> is he a hypochondriac, mary? >> i don't know. >> and so when guys become hypochondriacs when they end up doing is self-medicating with braces, sometimes a swig of alcohol. what they don't do, usually, is go see the doctor where they can really sit and talk with somebody. men enter the medical system after a crisis, and after there's really something there. the problem is as the wife, by the time he does hurt himself you won't care anymo

but first, natalie morales has the story. natalie? >> that's right, matt.out as a typical trip to the beach for 17-year-old james boyden and his family, but it quickly turned into a frightening situation when the hole james was digging in became so big, it actually caved in around him. it's a classic way to pass the time at the beach, digging in the sand. but as 17-year-old james boyden discovered, the bigger the hole, the bigger the danger. the connecticut native found himself in deep trouble when the five-foot hole he dug on a rhode island beach collapsed around him, burying him above the neck. family members tried desperately to rescue him. >> my dad was furiously digging from the front to uncover his face, and finally, he did get his nose and mouth exposed. >> reporter: with the weight of the sand slowly crushing james, rescuers provided an oxygen mask and used supports and ladders to stabilize the uneven ground, working quickly to uncover the teen. it took rescue workers over an hour to free james from the hole, who was then air-lifted to a rhode islan

natalie?thank you, jeff rossen in los angeles. >>> the fda is investigating 30 reports of liver damage in some people taking the weight loss drug alli or prescription zen cal. the fda has it has not established a link between the weight loss drugs and liver problems and advises patients to continue using them as directed by their doctors. >>> thunderstorms forced nasa to postpone this morning's launch of the space shuttle "discovery." nasa will try again early tomorrow. >>> you're up to date right now. five minutes past the hour. back outside again to matt and ann. >> thanks, natalie. >> mr. roker a right behind you. >> got a couple of young ladies who want to let some folks know back home something? >> hi. >> we're pretty good. >> both of you. >> yeah. >> your husbands are -- >> chris. >> how far apart? >> two weeks. >> man! you guys really believe in double dating. >>> let's check your weather, see what's going on. eye on the tropics, got a tropical wave interacting with an upper-level low e

natalie fernstrom is here today. good morning, natalie. they and are they necessary? >> first thing is our bodies are filled with bacteria. >> healthy. >> healthy bacteria and bad bacteria. and the idea of probiotics, they're healthy bacteria. they're good bacteria. and when you think of how the body works it's a balance of good and bad bacteria. and when you have probiotics, these healthy bacteria, either in foods or supplements, you help to support good health by keeping that balance even. and it's helpful for digestion, for absorption of nutrients. >> are there any cons to probiotics? >> there really aren't a lot of problems. if you're going to get them in foods or a supplement you want the good bacteria. but you don't want to overdo that at all. if you do have a compromised immune system or a lot of digestive problems and take medicine for that you'll want to talk to your doctor first. but for the vast majority of people, adults and children over 3, probiotics can be a good addition to your diet. >> how do they work in the system? >> y

ann is standing here so natalie's at the news desk with all the headlines. >>> hello. the season's first named storm to hit the mainland u.s. made landfall this morning in florida, then weakened. what's left of tropical storm claudette is expected to dump as much as ten inches of rain on parts of the florida panhandle and alabama. forecasters are also watching two other storms. bill which became a hurricane this morning in the atlantic, and ana a tropical depression. >>> fire is the problem out west

natalie, good morning to you. >>> good morning. firefighters are trying to control almost a dozen big wildfires burning in california. in some places, hot, dry, windy conditions are making it difficult. firefighters made progress sunday in santa cruz county allowing some evacuated residents to return home there. >>> the war in afghanistan will be a big topic today when president obama speaks at the vfw's annual convention in phoenix. u.s. troops are trying to ensure safe elections this week in afghanistan. >>> overseas markets are down sharply this morning after what seemed like good news from the world's second biggest economy. cnbc's erin burnett is at the new york stock exchange. erin, what's going on exactly? >> good morning, natalie. we're talking about japan. it was good news. i mean the economy there in the second quarter grew. the problem was, expectations have just gotten incredibly high, natalie, for an economic recovery. some european economies have emerged from recession and investors were hoping we'd see even more than

natalie? >> al, thank you. if you're about to head out the door with the mall as your mission, stand by. before you purchase that designer dress there are six questions you need to ask yourself to make sure it all looks good on you, and on your bottom line. adam glassman is the creative director for oprah magazine, which breaks it all down for us. >> good morning. >> these six questions. i know "o" magazine created this list, this go-to list before you go out and purchase. before you run that credit card again. what are you hoping that people think of, and they ask themselves? >> well, i'm hoping that people really think about great buys. and shopping, with some smarts, really. you don't want to -- you want to avoid impulse shopping, ultimately. >> tough economic times. tough market right now. >> very tough. and i think it's also very important to shop with a debit card or cash, not just a credit card. >> you're not telling women not to shop? >> oh, no, no, no. shopping is really fun and enjoyable. >> it's reta

al roker and natalie morales join us, as well.ets a lot of people steamed. >> that's right. we're talking about when parents tell other parents how to parent. you don't like that. you get -- you get crazy. >> shut up. >> so what do we do? and -- and sometimes maybe we should pay attention. maybe sometimes they might have -- it does take a village. >> more open-minded. >> anyway, we're going to find out how to handle the situation if you've been through -- actually i had a situation once people actually thought i was the nanny. because my son was blond and they were telling me what to do. i was calm. i didn't get angry. anyway, let's move on. anyway, what else? >> we're also going to head over to the grill with giada de laurentiis. we're going to cook up great summer vegetables and make a salad out of it. >> anything that she makes is not -- i have never been disappointed by what she makes, ever. >> she wouldn't be here if you were disappointed. >> earlier on we showed you michael jackson's famous sequinned glove. well, we're going

natalie is standg by at the news desk. good morning, natalie. morning inouthern california, as many as 2,000 people a out of their homes because of fast-moving wildfires. a fire burning in rancho palos verdes has damaged some upscale seaside homes and buildings and is threatening dozens more. firefighters are expecting another day of triple-digit temperatures and record highs. at least six fires are now burning throughout the state. >>> thousands more people are filing past the casket of senator ted kennedy today. his body is lying in repose for a second d at the john f. kennedy library and museum in boston ahead of h funeral tomorrow. some 25,000 people paid their respects thursday. >>> meantime attention is turning toward a potential successor to kennedy in the u.s. senate. nbc's kelly o'donnell is in boston with more on that. kelly, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, natalie. remembering a time when a kennedy was not in the u.s. senate is hard to do. it's been half a century. and even as ted is being honored here, talk about a next sena

>> natalie, thanks. new york state police captain arthur boyko is a member of the team investigating the crash. good morning. >> good morning. >> based on the facts, vodka in the van, a blood alcohol content of 0.19%, was diane schuler drinking while driving or was it possible she was intoxicated from the night before? >> no, we don't believe she was intoxicated from the night before. we have no indication that she started drinking until she started her trip back home. >> do you have any evidence that she has had a problem with drinking while driving before? that she had any problems with alcohol and drug use in past experiences? >> there's no history whatsoever that we've learned of any alcohol and/or drug abuse. from what we understand, as i said, she began drinking shortly after leaving the camp ground, headed back home. >> as you mentioned, she actually was with family at that campground, and that is going to make it even more difficult, the findings that we're reporting this morning, are going to ma

natalie? >> on this. thank you, ati. you were just a few blocks away when you heard it. give us more details about what you and the folks in our bureau there experienced? >> reporter: we were in various rooms of the house. it was 8:30 in the morning. some people were sleeping, some people were at the skrim. some people were having breakfast. suddenly we felt a strong blast. windows started rattling. some parts of the house shaking. everyone was in that house as well as everyone in kabul ran up to their roofs to see where the smoke would rise from. we did see it rising from the vicinity of isaf and the u.s. embassy. it whaks you up, remind you you are in the afghan capital, in a war zone, though you're living in the capital city which doesn't see much violence compared to the rest of afghanistan. there are ideologies out there strong enough to come infiltrate -- to come kill afghans, themselves, because whatever their intended targets are, usually foreigners, which usually are coalition forces

natalie? >>> al, thank you. this morning on "today's daily dose," medical issues you may never outgrow. binge drinking and anorexia doesn't just affect teens and college students. many adults actually suffer from these illnesses as well. dr. nancy snyderman's nbc's chief medical editor. nancy, good morning. the first issue we're going to talk about is one that's been in the news a lot this week, substance abuse in older adults. this study in particular over binge drinking which is causing a lot of controversy. it's more prevalent in adults than we actually thought. >> truly defined as five drinks at a time. lots of people have to remember that that five drinks can just be one sitting in a month but that five's binge drinking. >> an e-mail question from jim in dallas, writes i'm an alcoholic. 56 years old. but i haven't had a drink in 16 years. but have had anxiety and depression an still do. even though i have quit for 16 years, are there any long term brain effects i should be aware of for the future? >> there

that means natalie aat the news desk. natalie, good morning. >>> good morning, everyone. we begin with the cia and word of a secret program that used outside security contractors to help locate and assassinate top al qaeda figures. the spy agency spent millions to hire executives from blackwater usa in 2004 to help with planning, training and surveillance. no terrorists were captured or killed under the program which has since been canceled. >>> at least two people were killed when a blackhawk helicopter from ft. campbell crashed into colorado's mount massive on wednesday. one person was hospitalized and another is missing. >>> the irs says its pursuit of tax evaders will not stop at swiss banking giant ubs. on wednesday ubs agreed to turn over the names of more than 4,000 american account holde ee suspected by the u.s. of tax evasion. >>> bill richardson says he's encouraged by his meeting with north korean diplomats. it offers a sign of diplomatic relations with pyongyang. >>> the arrest of a black harvard professor sparking a national debate on race, the officer is now

let's go back outside to matt and ann. >> thanks a lot, natalie.ou know, i think you look pretty good, considering that we're sopping wet. >> i don't feel so good, actually. down my neck and all on my back. anyway. >> al, what's going on with this? how long's this going to last? >> it's going to last really until saturday, but one of our viewers actually gave me this rose. i think it was for miley, but i'll accept it in her stead. did you all have a good time? yeah. wow. all right, let's check your weather, see what's happening, and we'll show you the latest on danny. 355 miles south of cape hatteras, 40-mile-per-hour winds, moving north-northwest at 9. track of the storm brings it right up along the coast. stays offshore, but the cone of uncertainty does bring it right near atlantic city, long island, martha's vineyard. got to worry about rip currents from the carolinas all the way up into new england through tomorrow. and then out west, we've got to worry about those wildfires. northeast winds 15 to 25 miles per hour in the passes in the canyons.

let's go back outside to natalie, matt and al. happy birthday. >> thank you very much. nothing but net. we love it here. you're from schwenkville. >> yes. >> are you the schwenks? what's your name? >> jason. >> he can't even remember which one is which. >> and marissa. >> and stacy >> all right. nice to see all you folks. i'll say hi to you, too. what's your name? >> morgan. >> let's check your weather, see what's going on. for today, we've got some strong storms working their way, severe weather possible from kansas city up to cincinnati, on into columbus, ohio. down to nashville. you see those storms are starting to fire up now. some pretty good ones now in central ohio, as well. s aalso in to northern missouri. rainfall amounts in some parts of central indiana on into >> > mercury will rise to a high of about 91 degrees today. a mix of sunshine and clouds. on the shores of ocean city, of late day sea breeze. a good beach d and that's your latest weather. ann? >> all right, al, thank you. this morning on "today's" woman, signs you may need to change your gynecologist.

natalie is standing by at the news desk with those. natalie, good morning. >>> good morning.oday officials say somali pirates opened fire wednesday on a u.s. navy helicopter. it happened off the coast of somalia when the helicopter was flying over a hijacked vessel that had been used as a mother ship to launch other pirate attacks, including the one on the maersk alabama. it was the first attack on a u.s. military aircraft. no one was injured. >>> dominic dunn died wednesday from bladder cancer. he was 83. >>> toyota's recalling about 96,000 vehicles because of a >> we will be scared of the brunt of the hurricane. partly cloudy skies for the rest of the day. that said, we have a front and that two-ton. >>> i heard the women crying. others were alive in the water but i couldn't see them. i was too far away. >> the voices soon faded. eight hours later a small fishing boat spotted the little girl, stunningly, her only injuries were a few bruises and a broken collarbone. the children moved back to paris to be reunited with their father. they heard the terrible news. a psychologis

natalie is standing by at the news desk with those. natali good morning. >>> good morning.oday officials say somali pirates opened fire wednesday on a u.s. navy helicopter. it happened off the coast of somalia when the helicopter was flying over a hijacked vessel that had been used as a mother ship to launchther pirate attacks, including the one on the maersk abama. it was the first attack on a u.s. military aircraft. no one was injured. >>>ominic dunn dd wednesday from bladder cancer. he was 83. >>> toyota's recalling about 96,000 vehicles because of a . ófóf go >>> good morng.>> we have a milky blue sky, live picture from our sky watcher camera, the golden haze, the sun's up. the haze, higher humidity. temperatures around the region in the 60s and 70s. now 73 in washington. we'll have highs today in the 80s with increasing clouds. tomorrow cloudy, a morning shower, a likely afternoon shower, highs in the upper 70s. steamy through the weekend. smaller chance of passing showers saturday and sunday. two-ton. >>> i heard the women crying. others were alive in the water but i

natalie, good morning to you. >> good morning to you, matt. yes, ruth madoff's life has gone through a lot of changes in recent weeks. the latest, a new order that freezes her assets and requires her to be on an extremely tight financial leash. it has been more than a month since bernie madoff was sentenced to 150 years in prison for masterminding a $65 billion ponzi scheme. the biggest in u.s. history. with his sentence, madoff traded in his fancy new york city penthouse for a north carolina jailhouse. life has also changed for madoff's wife ruth. she lost nearly all of her assets, but did get to keep $2.5 million as part of the government settlement. living in the lap of luxury was recently seen riding the new york city subway, modestly dressed amid reports that she's been apartment hunting for a much smaller home in manhattan. now, another change for ruth madoff. under a new order, signed by a manhattan bankruptcy judge, madoff must submit a monthly report of expenses that individually exceed $100 to a trustee. >> ruth madoff's legal positi

but it was too late to save natalie. how did that affect you personally? >> it was just awful. >> he said to me, alex, i'm not very proud of what i'm doing. >> reporter: soon after, potter quit cigna. he was 56 years old and didn't have another job lined up. potter's wife worried about how they would get by. >> she was nervous. she supports my dad. but, she was worried. yeah. >> reporter: for a year, he said nothing publicly that was critical of the health care industry until the obama health care reform plan. last month, he testified before congress. >> and i saw how they confused their customers and dumped the sick. so, also, they can satisfy their wall street investors. >> reporter: potter says his friends have stood by him. but he's paid a price. loss of income, status, position and colleagues. >> the price is high. it's hard to do this. i'm glad i did it. i have no regrets at all. >> and we asked cigna for a response. we got a written reply from an insurance industry trade group. it supports health care reform not a government plan that it says it wou

>> natalie, that's a great question you asked, because that's a great question. if your job is not to be president of the united states and lead the people with great speeches and all that and command the world like barack obama has to do, your job is to get along with other senators, and to find out what they care about, what makes them tick. what makes orrin hatch tick? okay, ease he's a mormon from utah, how do i appeal to his values? you have to deal with chris dodd, how do i get him? he has a situation in connecticut. >> and had to cross the party lines. >> he would find the person and compassion comes in as a very interesting political advantage. if you're truly compassionate and figure out what the other person's problems are, you know how to work with them. if you're just oblivious and think only about yourself, you don't know how to be a legislator. so ironically, maybe a guy seeming selfish and almost out of hand at times in his private life really was really good at knowing other people's situation and caring about them. and therefore, able to cut deal

. >> reporter: nutritionist natalie webb says most people think they know more about alcohol than theyctually do. question number 1. which contains the most alcohol? a standard drink of beer, wine, or distilled spirits. >> i think wine probably does. >> they actually have the same. each of these is a standard serving of alcohol. it provides about a half an ounce of ethanol. >> reporter: question number 2. how many is considered moderate alcohol consumption? >> i would think it would probably be two? >> i have no clue. >> drinking in moderation is defined as up to one drink for women. and no more than two drinks for men. >> is it the same for spirits, beer and wine? >> wine is better for you. has better health benefits. >> actually, they're all the same because they all provide ethmol. >> when natalie is not doing tv interviews, she teaches. she says most of the people she encounters have a very low alcohol iq. >> which leads me to the final question. which drink has the most? >> shot of whiskey. >> this is actually the least. the distilled spirits only has about 95 calories. glass of w

natalie, over to you. >> thank you, stephanie. my happy birthday to dad as well. >>> this morning on "today's health." diet myths busted. you can't believe everything you hear. dr. nancy snyderman is here to help us separate fact from fiction. let's talk about burning fat. our bodies burn fat no matter what generally in the same way through body functions or by exercising. why is it that we're looking for the quick fix? >> there's a reason. controversial covers that we have talked about. it has people talking about whether exercise matters or not. i would argue that exercise does matter. what exercise does is fuels up the furnace in your body and allows you to burn more calories and it allows you to put down more muscle and more muscle is more efficient than fat. i think the premise here -- i think you and i come from the same school of belief here that when you exercise you then make a different food choice afterwards. if you're going to exercise for an hour and i offer you a bag of potato chips, you'll probably say no. i'm a big

since natalie's on vacation, we have lx tv's sara gore. thanks for being here. >> i'm so glad to be here. >> this team does not go out together very often. >> cool. >> thank you. >> coming up, more on this terrible story that happened on the taconic parkway here in new york, a mother driving the wrong way in her minivan down that road, apparently after drinking and smoking pot. her daughter was killed in the crash, she was killed in the crash, her three young nieces were killed when she then hit an suv, a father and son were killed in that car along with a family friend. members of the bastardi family will join us this morning, find out how they heard about the crash and some of the developments they're going to talk about since they got that terrible news. >>> then we'll switch gears. you ever say i put on some weight, i have a slow metabolism, or i'm okay, i have a quick metabolism? there are some myths and truths. jillian michaels will be here to answer some of our questions about metabolism. >>> and they arary saying that middle age is

. >>> natalie's got news headlines of the day. >>> good morning. thousands of people are expected to flock to the john f. kennedy memorial library and museum in boston today to pay respects to senator ted kennedy. kennedy who died tuesday night will lie in repose in a closed casket for public viewing. last night in the nation's capitol, a candlelight vigil was held to honor the long-time senator and at boston's fenway park, thousands of red sox fans paid tribute with a moment of silence and a show of gratitude for kennedy's lifetime of loyalty to his team and state. >>> earlier on "today," more tributes. long-time kennedy friend senator john mccain and vice president joe biden both spoke about the kennedy legacy. >> everything was about possibilities. i never, ever, ever, in 36 years of being with him, ever saw him down in terms of "we can't get this done," "things aren't going to get any better," "the deficit's too big" "we can't get this passed." never, ever, ever. >> he really did put his country first and serve a cause greater than his self-int

i'm matt lauer, along with al roker and natalie morales. >>> more news now on the octomom. back in the headlines. >> she is back. apparently now she is openly saying that having another eight children was a big mistake. she feels guilty about it, about what's missing from their lives and the impact that will all have as they grow up. we'll get more on that and talk to a psychologist about some things she should be doing to try to better their lives. >> those comments are going to make a lot of people very angry. >> absolutely. a lot of people are already very angry. this adds fuel to the fire. >> not to mention the eight kids when they read this later on. >>> here's a startling statistic. 80% of all auto crashes happen when the driver looks away from the road a few seconds before that happens. and of course, texting comes to mind with that. we are going to get some tips now that people are hitting the road in greater numbers during the summer how to stay safe and focused especially on longer drives. >>> all right. and also coming up, what's that say? >> it says how to firm

. >>> we're going to check in with natalie at the news desk in just a couple of minutes. coming up, this is a really troubling story, a 13-year-old boy saw something on youtube, tried to copy the stunt. ended up setting himself on fire. co-have easily died. we're going to have -- it has a cautionary tale. we'll have some advice on how you can block your kids from viewing certain internet sets. >> it is so hard to keep an eye on all the things they are finding access to. >>> talking about white lies. everyone will have to admit they've probably told a white lie once or twice or maybe even more in your life. the question is how do you stop it from eroding your relationships with people and basically you don't want to hurt feelings but you don't want to erode trust. we'll get to the bottom of how to get our spouses to basically tell us the truth. >>> speaking of getting to the bottom of something, will paula abdul be a judge on "american idol"? will she not be? apparently it is still not decided. we're going to try to figure out the latest on that. >>> but before we go any f

meanwhile, inside studio 1a i'm natalie morales. busy updating the first hour of our show. matt is off today and al is in los angeles. so who's on first? we're going to catch up with everybody in just a moment. still to come -- >> denuclearization. today we had an exclusive interview with secretary clinton this morning, as you know, for the "today" show, and what she said in that interview was that north korea now has a choice. they can choose to become more engaged in the world. she doesn't know whether this will be a breakthrough, but it's up to them, she said. interestingly, as you know, ann and meredith, recently there has been a very rough exchange of undiplomatic language between north korea and secretary clinton. but despite that, along the back channels, in the secret talks they were working closely to having bill clinton go. and all along it was only bill clinton that the north koreans wanted. they clearly wanted someone with his prestige, a former president, to give the respect and the attention that they were demanding, and the trick now for the administration is

natalie is sitting in for ann. >> welcome back, meredith and welcome to you, karl. another disturbing case to tell you about. a deepening murder mystery in brunswick, georgia. an 8th person die friday wounds suffered over the weekend in an attack in a mobile home. the victims range from teenagers to adults. police still do not know if the killer is on the loose. they are offering a reward. >>> former vice president dick cheney is lashing out at eric holder's decision to see if they abused terror suspects. cheney calls it an outrageuous act that will do great damage. overseas markets are down especially in china where stocks fell by almost 7%. erin burnett is there. >> obviously what started in china is spreading around the world. could be pressure and september starts tomorrow. why is that significant? it's among the worst month for stocks. they are in the mode to prove whether these are something even more or not. they are not going to buy stocks on hope anymore. there a lot of things to watch. some are over for the market when you look at the data. retailers, how

block alongside natalie.rother house. what are you feeling right now? >> you're a little bitter after you get out of there. >> that's honest. are you bitter now? >> no, because it was, again, a smart move on jeff's behalf. >> as jeff stood up, what were you thinking? >> i was already taking my mike off. i was like here we go. >> i know you're upset, but you guys run this house, haven't had a chance to feel the block. i got a power, and now i've got the power, and you guys have got to feel the pain a little bit. >> i said every single time this dude's got the wizard mystery wielding wizard wand. he's going to come riding in on a unicorn. i thought the unicorn was going to talk to me and say you've been evicted. >> you don't sound mad at jeff. is he a good guy? >> i wouldn't go that far. >> if someone said to you, what's jeff like? what would you say? >> because america loves him, he's a great guy, america. >> well, jessie, thank you for being a fierce competitor. >> sports entertainment. >> there you go. good

an e-mail from natalie in utah -- jean?t cancel the card, because canceling the card is going to affect your credit rating. we talk about that all the time, and it will reduce your credit score. what i would do is just try to pay off that $8,000 as quickly as you possibly can, and then, if you need to carry a balance, make sure you're carrying a balance on the least expensive card in your wallet. but this is happening every day. there's so many people who have done nothing wrong. >> okay. well, we'll see what happens with that. all right let's head back across the street to sarah. >> hi, al. i'm standing here with joan and she has a question about paying for college. joan, what's your question? >> well, i just started college in the fall and i'd like to know if there's a cap on student loans. >> all right. >> all right. so jean, you want to take this one? >> sharon. >> congratulations to your son on starting his freshman year, and there is a cap when you look at the stafford loan. you can pay $5500, $6500, $7500, depending

meantime today we've got sarah gore in for natalie, as well as mr. al.o be talking about a subject you know a lot about. >> yes, i'll be partnering up, teaming up with my tv partner in crime, george oliphant. she's going to show us cost effective ways to update the room of any room in your home from splashes of color to how to add some light and a sense of space. and you don't have to spend a lot to make a big impact. so he's going to be here showing us how to do that. >> oh, and also ahead, they say in oklahoma the corn is as high as an elephant's eye. if you've been in our newsroom you know what that means. we're talking corn this morning. our hot chef john shenk is here to show you how to pick it, strip it, and cream it. >> mm-mmm. >> all coming up in the next half hour or the next hour, hoda and kathie lee are going to be talking to a bunch of kids. a panel of kids exploring the challenging world of step families. before all that a check of the weather. >> absolutely. for today, we're looking at sunshine here in the east. going to be a little on the

. >> nfl hall of famer and michael irvin, natalie coughlin and ultimate fighting champion chuck lavelle. -- ludell. >> you want to be nice to him every time he dances. >> it also includes actor ashley hamilton, melissa joan hart, and debbie mazar. kelly osborn will give ago this round as well as mark dicasts coast. -- decascos. a couple of models will show off their moves and finally, former house majority leader, tom deleverage is dance moves follow his political persuasion, he is not likely to show up with two left feet. -- tom delay. >> i was shocked by that one. the olympians always do well. we will have to see what happens. we love that show. >> it is fun. >> you love it. don't play it down. there is a lot going on in the tropics. it is high gear but down there -- but >> we will hope -- focus on the hav crao onge air od c code orange today. take a look at our networket and look at bsdetrkhea, it e atlofd and the and we go to partly and mostly sunny skies where it is hot and muggy out there, 85 degrees right now. 90 degrees in martinsburg, right now. it is continuing to be a warm af

sony released its first netbook and natalie tells us how it stacks up against the competition. >> reporter a nice netbook. i like that there's so much room on the keyboard because netbook keys get really cramped. so you're not going to feel like you're typing on something small and for a child when you take this out. also, it does not have a great battery life. we're expecting five hours for netbooks these days, the newer ones are performing at that rate. this doesn't get five hours. this gets around three. >> reporter: the sony viow sells for about $500. >>> red box now offering video games for some customers. kiosks in reno, nevada are renting games for $2 a night. the company will offer games for all the major systems including the wii, x box and playstation. >>> most of us keep our remote controls on the coffee table but what if your coffee table was your remote control? researchers from around the world developed this table that serves as a universal remote. you can control everything from the tv and stereo to the dvd player, even the lights in the room. it could still be years before

natalie's at at news desk in for ann. good morning. >>> good morning, everyone. in other news this morning, the taliban is denying responsibility for a deadly attack in afghanistan during the night. at least 43 people were killed and 65 wounded, all of them civilians when a truck packed with explosives blew up in kandahar. rescue workers are still looking for victims this morning. the attack was the worst of its kind in more than a year. >>> more than 5 million window shades and blinds are being recalled this morning. three children have died after getting caught in the product's cords. the recall involves blinds and shades sold under various names, ikea, pottery barn kids, target, expo design center and vertical land stores. >>> overseas markets are mostly higher this morning following better than expected housing numbers in the u.s. >>> nasa is trying to fix a valve problem on the shuttle "discovery." it forced a scrub of this morning's planned launch. >>> and the economy just got a little bit better for a retired south carolina worker. on tuesday solomon jacks

cnet's natalie delconte tested it. >> this panasonic is the world's first portable blu ray player, tow to you watch them on the go. it's a little bulky because it comes with this stand. it also is very expensive. this is $800. which is debatable on whether or not you even need it because most of the laptops we're seeing nowadays come with whether -- blu ray players already installed. >> you can also use the blu ray player to log on to youtube and photo sharing web sites. >>> facebook and twitter and sites like it have tens of millions of fans but not everyone is sold on them. a new survey of 1,000 adults found 87% prefer dealing with other people in person instead of over the computer. in fact half the respondents said they don't even use social networks. >>> finally, it appears net flex can see the future. the movie rental service can now tell you which movies you might like before they are even made. the sixth harry potter just hit theaters but you can already add the next two installments to your netflix cue. pretty helpful for planning the rainy friday night at home with the famil

olympic champion swimmer, natalie coughlin.t to be nice to him every time he dances. >> ryan: the biggest dancing cast ever includes actors ashley hamilton, melissa joan hart, and debi mazar. a few of the stars aren't strangers to celebrity tv. kelly osbourne, and mk decascos. models joe anna cube pa, and kathy ireland, will have a chance. and finally, former house majority leader, tom delay. if his dance moves follow his political persuasion, he's unlikely to show two left feet. >>> stay with us for "good morning america," when tom delay will join us live from texas. does the hammer have what it takes to make it on "dancing with the stars"? we'll ask him. >> can't wait to hear what h

. >> reporter: let alone tuition for daughter natalie and son matthew. a new study shows states borrowing money to keep their unemployment checks from bouncing. it's estimated another fran states could need a bailout by next year. typically, the unemployed could count on just 26 weeks of benefits. congress approved money for an additional 53 weeks, which now extends benefits up to a year and a half, the longest stretch in the program's history. >> this is the biggest test of the unemployment system since it was started 75 years ago. >> reporter: but even with extended benefits which only amount to half his pay, joe thurman worries he will not be able to keep his family afloat much longer. >> we'll probably lose the house. the american dream's dead. it's over. >> reporter: now, at age 51, he tries to start over. competing with more people for fewer jobs. july's unemployment figures out tomorrow are expected to hit 9.6%. that's a 26-year high. cynthia bowers, cbs news, chicago. >> couric: back to the senate now. it's expected to vote tonight to pump anothe

i fortunate natalie was taken in by kurdish officials. the kurds are very pro-american. i was let go after just a few hours. the iranians would not have been nearly that forgiving. >> richard engel in istanbul for us tonight. >>> back in this country now, the obama administration is feeling increasingly bullish about the future of the american economy. but he's also now beginning to speak candidly about what all this is costing the country and now we're going to pay the bills. mike viqueira joins me from the white house. hi, mike. >> good evening, lester. the theed administration continues tout the good news. this morning a top administration official refused to rule out a tax hike to help to cover it. the president today returning to washington from an overnight at camp david. after sending his top aides out across the air waves this morning, touting the latest economic numbers. >> we're certainly starting to see a turnaround. >> reporter: and crediting the stimulus package. >> we're only five months into the program. we absolutely do feel it is working. >> reporter: ev