destruction. former u.n. secretary kofi annan is trying to prevent a full-blown civil war. he's meeting in damascus to halt government shell iing and attac that killed thousands of people. he's expected to press the president to step down. the meeting comes as 12 people were killed in syria today. thousands of antigovernment demonstrators took to the streets in moscow. it's the first since vladimir putin's victory sunday. they are trying to keep up their momentum despite his victory and the arrest of hundreds of protesters. washington is pushing the reset button. president obama phoned putin to congratulate him. they discussed how the u.s. and russia can cooperate on trade. they touched on syria and missile defense. the last group of parolees pardoned by hailey barbour could leave prison today. they have upheld the pardons. it rejected a challenge by mississippi's general. >> i feel for them having had a first cousin murdered in 1976, having gone to a trial. i think they have been victimized twice. the criminal justice system let them down. >> actor michael madison is in trouble with the law. the star of the movie, "kill bill" was arrested after a scuffle with his teenage son. he's held on $100,000 bail. the next battleground in the republican race for the white house, kansas. 40 delegates are at stake as the state holds their caucuses today. paul steinhauser is in kansas with more. paul? >> good morning, randy. caucuses in kansas kick off l e later this morning. at stake, 40 delegates. only registered republicans can take part. rick santorum made two swings through kansas. he could do well with the state's conservative republican voters. ron paul is there today. the second straight day he's campaigned in kansas. neither romney or gingrich stumped in the state. they are spending their time in alabama and mississippi which hold primaries on tuesday. romney is trying to go with southern voters. >> cheesy biscuits, i have to tell you, delicious. >> reporter: he's lowering expectations. >> i think we are going to pick up support in the states that remain this month. >> reporter: santorum is hoping wins in both states could knock gingrich out of the race. >> if you go out and deliver a conservative victory for us on tuesday, this race will become a two-person race. >> reporter: gingrich doesn't sound like a man about to give up. >> i believe i will become the nominee with your help. >> reporter: doing well in alabama and mississippi is crucial for gingrich. randi? >> thank you. he could add a few more delegates. he won the support of all nine delegates in graum. the current count is 438 compared to 170 for santorum, 118 firefighter gingrich and 67 for ron paul. what would you do if your flight attendant told you your plane was going to crash. the woman got on the intercom screaming about the bankruptcy saying she wouldn't be responsible if the plane crashed and referred to the 9/11 attacks. >> she said i'm not responsible for this plane crashing. everyone started freaking out. >> can you imagine that? passengers and cabin crew restrain the flight attendant who is being treated at a local hospital. joining me is a woman from grand rapids. thank you for joining us by phone this morning. i know it's early for you. what was it like? was there any ind kagication shs troubled before you boarded the airplane? >> no. i didn't really notice when i boarded the airplane. >> tell us about that moment. what was the reaction from the passengers? >> at first, it seemed she was confused and mistakenly turned on the p.a. just made some comments, then shut it off. came back on a couple times, the last time, she stated she was not going to be responsible if the plane crashed. everyone perked up like what's going on here. meanwhile, the plane was taxiing down the runway. >> how concerned were you? >> caller: i was very concerned. all that was going through my mind was please, do not let this plane get in the air. >> other flight attendants and passengers helped restrain her. could you see that? >> caller: yes, i was just behind first class. i think the flight attendants were confused. they were upset about what was going on. >> what do we not see on the video? is there anything else that was taking place on board? >> caller: not really other than the passengers were confused as to what was going on and conc n concerned about getting in the air. we didn't hear from the captain, which i don't think they can hear what's going on in the back. we had no assurance things were going to be okay, not until the police came and escorted us back. >> what did the pilot say or the other flight attendants say to you and the other passengers? >> i did speak to a flight attendance going by. she looked fareful and said she didn't know. she was trying to talk to the woman. then came back again. at the time, somebody went up there and they started an altercation with her and the other two passengers came up and helped restrain her. >> amazing. certainly not what you want to see happening with your flight attendance. thank you very much. appreciate you waking up with us. hopefully, you are waking up refreshed this morning. you are about to lose an hour of sleep. it's time to roll the clocks forward for daylight savings time. reynolds wolf is joining me. >> it seems wrong. >> i agree. >> for those who have to get up early in the morning and go to work saturday or sunday morning, it can be tough. we wouldn't know about that, would we? it's something to remember tonight. spring forward, not come back. it is daylight saving where all state except for our friends in arizona nestled in the four corners. it begins at 2:00 a.m. in the morning. move your clock forward. no need what so ever. that is the latest. we have so much more coming up, including your forecast. it's moments away. randi? >> thank you very much. here is a rundown of what's ahead. joseph koni is becoming a household name. now the focus is on the u.s. troops sent to uganda. plus, if you are paying too much for gasoline, well, we are going to show you a new way to hitch a ride to work. julian moore stars as sarah palin in "game change." what did she have to say about the politician? later, where's the beef? it could be just some pink slime. we'll explain. delicious gourmet gravy. and she agrees. with fancy feast gravy lovers, your cat can enjoy the delicious, satisfying taste of gourmet gravy every day. fancy feast. the best ingredient is love. your doctor will say get smart about your weight. that's why there's new glucerna hunger smart shakes. they have carb steady, with carbs that digest slowly to help minimize blood sugar spikes. [ male announcer ] new glucerna hunger smart. a smart way to help manage hunger and diabetes. welcome back. it is a viral video that racked up more than 70 million views. >> we are going make joseph koni a household name. not to celebrate him, but bring his crimes to the light. >> the star of the documentary is joseph kony. they hope to spark awareness to the 26 years of brutality. he's wanted for crimes against humanity. last fall, president obama deployed 100 armed military advisers to the nation. their mission, to help local forces in their fight against kony. the decision was in the interest of national security and foreign policy. the forces will provide assistance to select partner nation forces. elements will deploy into uganda, south sudan, the democratic republic of the congo. the support will enhance regional efforts against the rla. the renewed focus is raising questions about future u.s. involvement. just ahead, this bus isn't a ride to school. it's a get away vehicle. coming up next, what happens when police chase it down in new mexico. man, i'm glad aflac pays cash. aflac! ha! isn't major medical enough? huh! no! who's gonna help cover the holes in their plans? aflac! quack! like medical bills they don't pay for? aflac! or help pay the mortgage? quack! or child care? quack! aflaaac! and everyday expenses? huh?! blurlbrlblrlbr!!! 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[ female announcer ] yoplait original. 25 flavors for you to love. good morning. washington, d.c., wow. isn't that a lovely picture of the capital there? the sun just peeking through back there. very, very nice. we are glad you are watching. let's take a look at a few stories making news across the country. we start in albuquerque, new mexico. >> reporter: it's not every day you see a low speed bus chase barrelling down the interstate. police are not sure why the 28-year-old suspect decided to take a school bus for a joyride. it was the second bus. he allegedly stole another bus near the ditch of the original lot. he ran over several spike strips before the tires blew out. police had to shoot the suspect to bring him down. he's expected to live. a 5-year-old girl in houston, texas won't forget this birthday. an abandoned child was left in the restaurant. the girl's mother reported her missing, but not until the next morning. >> the mother called 911 when she realized the child was missing. >> reporter: the mother of ten was upset. meanwhile, the child is placed in custody of child protection services. former president jimmy carter and his wife cruising down the board walk on a couple three-wheeled scooters called a tryke. they invited the president of the company to join them. >> when the president asks you to go for a ride, don't you say yes? >> they are in town raising money for a non-profit organization helping to fight health care problems. we have new video to show you from west liberty, kentucky. it captures the impact from last weekend's deadly tornado. these images captured ef-3 tornado. you can see it there ripping through this town, transforming west liberty into what they call the war zone. it packed winds of 140 miles per hour. at least 21 people were killed in kentucky alone. amid the devastation of west liberty, a cnn hero was hard at work offering help to strangers. >> reporter: as severe storms twor through the midwest and southwest taking 40 lives, emergency recovery teams scramble across ten states. among the relief workers heading into the destruction zone was tatagodia. >> let's get this debris cleared enough to get the claw in her. we got here a few hours after the tornado hit. we cleared the road. we powered up the grocery store and the gas station to provide the essentials that this community needs. >> reporter: since 2007, his team crisscrossed the country providing recovery assistance to 40,000 people for free. this week, they worked tirelessly for days restoring services and clearing tons of debris. >> see if you can grab the claw, actually cut the roof in half. it's hard with traditional equipment without the claw to grab the debris. you need specialty equipment. >> where do you put it? >> we remove it from the community. time is of the essence. people are looking for anything they can salvage. >> why did you do this, choose this road? >> when i watch the super cells go over these communities, i want to be there to help. thank you. you can nominate a cnn hero. go to cnn.com to nominate someone making a difference in your community. let me ask you this. would you wake up every morning and get into a car with a stranger for a free ride to work? you'll be surprised how many people actually do that. much more after the break. weight loss programs can be expensive. so to save some money, i just got the popular girls from the local middle school to follow me around. ew. seriously? so gross. ew. seriously? that is so gross. ew. seriously? dude that is so totally gross. so gross...i know. there's an easier way to save. geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more. i like yoplait. it is yoplait. but you said it was greek. mmhmm. so is it greek or is it yoplait? exactly. okay... [ female announcer ] yoplait. it is so greek. delicious gourmet gravy. and she agrees. with fancy feast gravy lovers, your cat can enjoy the delicious, satisfying taste of gourmet gravy every day. fancy feast. the best ingredient is love. gas prices are on their way back up. not a big sur prize after hikes for nearly 40 straight days. gas prices went up two cents overnight. the national average is now $3.78. this time last year, we were paying 24 cents less. the average price was $3.54 a gallon. do you need a ride to work? do you enjoy the company of strangers? you could be a slug. in northern virginia, long lines of people looking for a cost effective ride line up every morning. it's called slugging your way to work. sandra endogave it a try. >> reporter: long lines to hop in a car with strangers. with gas prices -- >> ridiculous. >> outrageous. >> disappointing. >> reporter: more people are resorting to blind car pooling called slugging. commuters from northern virginia going to washington catch a free ride with drivers. >> these are all slugs waiting to hop in cars. >> reporter: it started 30 years ago. a website helped organize this pseudosecret society listing where to line up for a ride. for the drivers, especially with gas prices so high. it's not benefiting them or saving them money to pick up slugs, right? >> it's not saving them money, but it is saving them a lot of time. >> it saves me 20 to 30 minutes on the commute. >> reporter: virginia law requires drivers to have at least three people in the car pool lanes to breeze by the stop and go traffic. >> we have added more and more slug lines as prices increase. those that never considered slugging consider it an option. >> reporter: a passenger hitching a ride from virginia to the pentagon. why did you decide to slug? >> it gets me where i need to go. gas is really expensive now days. >> reporter: otherwise, what options do you have to go to work? >> drive, catch a cab or commuter bus. >> reporter: how much would that cost? >> with gas, anywhere between $50 and $70 to fill up my tank. the computer bus, $14 for a day. >> reporter: the slug lines form for the evening commuters heading back to northern virginia to d.c. it's catching on in dallas and san francisco. a commuting partnership to save time and money. this is a free ride. >> i know. can't beat it. >> reporter: sandra endo cnn, washington. >> what do you think about the idea of slugging with the rising gas prices. what extreme measures are you taking to save money? i can't wait to read your ideas and suggestions. i might try some of them myself. tweet me or send me a message on facebook. i'll read your thoughts and ideas coming up. sarah palin is back in the headlines as the focus of the movie, game change. >> i lived this. from everything i have read and heard, it doesn't resemble what took place. go to disneyland for fiction. >> trying to separate fact from fiction, straight ahead. about viagra. k to yor ask if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take viagra if you take nitrates for chest pain; it may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. side effects include headache, flushing, upset stomach, and abnormal vision. to avoid long-term injury, seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than four hours. stop taking viagra and call your doctor right away if you experience a sudden decrease or loss in vision or hearing. this is the age of taking action. viagra. talk to your doctor. welcome back. it's 27 minutes past the hour. i'm randi kaye. thanks for starting your day with us. kofi annan has a message, stop the shelling killing thousands of your own people and allow access to humanitarian aid immediately. nic robertson is watching it from beirut, lebanon. they are calling it positive. >> reporter: they are. they are trying to put the best face on it. it's the most senior diplomat to come to damascus so far. it the comments have been made very, very public for an immediate cease-fire and engage in a -- they are trying to put the best spin on it possible. they are put under direction national pressure for the first time face-to-face. the reality is bashiral assad has his tanks shelling overnight in homs. more than 12 people killed so far today alone, according to activists. >> how likely is it, really, given that the syrian regime will end this crackdown or that assad would step down after this meeting? >> reporter: you know, the assessment seems to be and certainly when you stand back and look at what assad is doing, he's not giving any indication that he is in any way about to back down. by his own assessment, the crackdown on the activists in homs was a success for him and he's trying to replicate that in many parts of the country. people continue to be killed. civilians continue to be killed. he doesn't seem to be backing down or getting ready to back down in any way. more, just trying to move ahead and put down more elements of the uprising around the country. >> nic robertson, appreciate the update, thank you very much. the city of homs is one of the most dangerous places right now. we get an eye-opening event. the 72 hours under fire here on cnn at 8:00 p.m. eastern. here is a check of other top stories we are following this morning. at least 12 palestinians are dead, 16 others injured after a series of israeli strikes. the air strikes targeted suspected militants across gaza. among those kills, a hamas military leader. it was a response on attacks on southern iz rally communities. washington state officers are hunting for a man who shot a deputy, stole her gun and stabbed a judge in a courthouse. the judge talked to our affiliate, kmo. >> when i went to assist the deputy, she had a weapon that was hid. a knife or something. he was stabbing at her. it went pop, pop and turned and looked at me and went out the front door. >> the judge will be okay. police do not have a clear motive for the attacks. republicans in guam pledged their nine delegates to mitt romney earlier today. republicans are voting today in kansas where rick santorum is favored. the next set of primaries is tuesday when alabama, mississippi and hawaii go to the polls. the u.s. job market continues to show signs of strength. 227,000 jobs created in february. the third straight month of gains above the mark. it's holding steady at 8.3%. it's encouraging. president obama is touting growth in the private sector. >> new jobs over the last two years. more companies are choosing to bring jobs back and invest in america. manufacturing is adding jobs for the first time since the 1990s and we're building more things to sell to the rest of the world stamped with three proud words, made in america. it's not just that we are building stuff, we are building better stuff. the engine parts manufactured here in petersburg will go to plane that is are lighter, faster and more fuel efficient. the last part is important. whether you are paying for a plane ticket or filling up your gas tank, technology that helps us get more miles to the gallon is one of the easiest ways to save money and reduce our independence on foreign oil. >> some republicans are countering saying it will take more than jobs to turn the u.s. economy around. >> as a nation, what progress has been made to balance our annual budget deficit? have any real spending reductions been proposed by the democratic majority in the senate? has president obama made any real attempts to reduce spending? all we see are budgeting games. the american people are growing tired of the constant pleas for tax increases from this administration long before any real proposals appear for spending reductions. >> more than 8 million jobs were lost during the recession. less than half of those have been recovered so far. tonight, police cal junkies and those just curious will tune in to see "game change." it takes a look at the 2008 election and how a governor from alaska made her way ton the ticket and the national stage. >> you can actually see russia from land here in alaska. >> my god, what have we done. >> it wasn't my fault, i wasn't properly prepped. >> julian moore says the movie gave her new perspective on the u.s. political process. >> it really is about our system, the way we choose our candidates or our leaders, actually. this campaign is no toreious for being a difficult one and one that was disorganized. anyone will tell you that was involved in the campaign. i was surprised. it's like working on a movie with no budget and 30 days to shoot it. they weren't always prepared for what happened. it was an eye-opener for me. >> not everyone is thrilled. in an interview with piers morgan, cindy mccain, had this to say. >> sarah palin is a remarkable individual. whether you agree or disagree with sarah, she served our country loyally. she's been good for many, many years. i think any depiction of a woman is unfair in that way. it's wrong. it's wrong. i lived this. from everything i have read and heard, it doesn't resemble what took place so, i go to disneyland for fiction. >> palin says she is not going to watch the film calls it a false narrative. the former governor isn't ruling out a future run for the white house. >> sarah palin for president 2016, is it possible? >> anything in this life, in this world is possible. anything is possible for an american. i don't discount any idea or a plan that at this point isn't in my control. anything is possible. >> yes, anything is possible. we'll talk about the political phenomenon inspired by sarah palin later on in the show. a controversial bill that requires an abstinence only allows teachers to give instruction on contraception. parents must give permission for their children to take the classes. it could deprive students of information that could reduce teen pregnancy and the spread of sexually transmitted infections. the governor has not said if he plans on signing the bill. when i say hawaii you think sunshine and a walk on the beach. not this. details of the hail and damage hitting hawaii. coming up. the way i always made it for you. one more thing.... those pj's you like, i bought you five new pairs. love you. did you see the hockey game last night? 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[ whirring and beeping ] [ ding! ] and we give you a discount on both. sort of like two in one. how did you guys think of that? it just came to us. what? bundling and saving made easy. now, that's progressive. call or click today. welcome back. coming up on just about 6:40 on the east coast. let's get you caught up on news that may have been on your radar. remember joe the plumber? >> i'm getting ready to buy a company. your tax plan is going to tax me more, isn't it? >> that's him grilling president obama in 2008 about the man. now he's won the republican primary for ohio's ninth congressional district. joe the plumber could become joe the representative. he's got to face-off in november. wells fargo is doing away with free checking program in six states. the banking giant announced plans to expand the checking fees to customers in new york, pennsylvania, connecticut, delaware, new jersey and georgia. you can avoid the fee by having a direct deposit of at least $500 a month or keeping a $1500 minimum daily balance. changes take effect may 4th. the new orleans saints admit to paying $1500 under coach greg williams for knocking an opponent out of the game and $1,000 if they had to be carried out on a cart. they take full responsibility for what happened under their watch. nfl commissioner roger ga dell is still deciding how to discipline the team. reynolds wolf is keeping an eye on the weekend weather for all of us. he's in the weather center. you have amazing video of northern lights and everything. >> let's go to the northern lights. a line of video. i don't have a lot of time to share with you. the video we have was taken up in st. cloud, minnesota. we have the solar storms. when you have the flairs and their interaction with the magnetic field, the result can be beautiful. beautiful sight there and should be able to see them in the northern plains and the gulf into the great lakes for a couple days before it dissipates. the next story is not as pretty to watch. this is a family's home security video. the winds came through from the tornadoes just a week or so ago sheering the rooftops off structures. thankfully the family who lived in this building happened to get into the basement. they were fine. it's a terrifying thing. tornadoes can occur anywhere on the planet, including hawaii. take a look at this video we have from hawaii. large hail that was picked up in the area. amazing to see. the storm came through, caused damage. thankfully no fatalities. let's go back to the weather computer and show the best chance of severe weather today. dallas southward on i-35, south by southwest is dealing with the scattered showers, maybe a boom of thunder. in parts of the northeast, scattered snow showers in boston, new york along 81 and 90 through the midday and afternoon hours. now, we are going to see the precipitation in the extreme northeast for the ohio valley and the plains, it's going to be beautiful. southern plains you run into the issue of rain. the rocky mountains to the west. plenty of sunshine in the four corners. rain is a tremendous issue that may last through a good part of the day. the area of low pressure marks the northeast. saturday afternoon to the evening moving to the north. the rain is going to be around for a good part of the weekend for the central plains. back to you. >> thank you very much. see you in a bit. some days are marked in our memories like march 11, 2011, the day a deadly earthquake shook japan. how the country is doing one year later, next. the map shows you where we go... but not how we get there. because in this business... there are no straight lines. only the twists and turns of an unpredictable industry. the passengers change... the gates change. government regulations change... oil peaks and plummets. and let's not even get started on the weather. the fact is: no two flights are ever the same. no matter how many times we've accomplished them in the past. the eighty-thousand employees at delta... must predict the unpredictable. anticipate the unexpected. and never let the rules... overrule common sense. this is how we tame the unwieldiness of air travel. pull it taut... and wrap it around the globe... until it's not just lines you see... it's the world. but i have this new smartphone. and now i can see everything more clearly. ♪ i can organize the analysis. sort through all the data. maybe even rattle some cages. i predict that i'm going to like the future. because the future is where i'll be serving up humble pie. a la mode. 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>> yes. isn't it fascinating out of a devastation or crisis can come innovation in i have to take you to china. >> i want to hear about this. this is a hotel that was built in a matter of days, really a month or so. >> 30 stories in 30 days. as you said, about 360 hours. it is a five-star hotel. >> look at this time lapse. great. >> the video you are watching went viral in the u.s. because it was so extraordinary that a building could take place and manage to be built so quickly. the reason is, 93% of the components were actually premade. >> so they were -- they got a jump on it, i guess. >> they did. it's got a swimming pool, a gym, it even had a helicopter pad. >> amazing. those are great features. how much did it cost? they didn't have much overtime because they got it done so quickly. >> never mind made in china cheaper, it's made in china faster. it's around $17 million. relatively inexpensive. we are not looking at a huge hotel. it's not the size of a las vegas hotel, it's more like a best western or days inn in terms of width. 30 stories, 30 days from broad sustainable building. apparently earthquake resistant and ecofriendly. >> good stuff. interesting. >> another reason to go to china. >> when do we go? you get the tickets, i'll pack. it's called pink slime. beef scraps, connective tissue and ammonia hydroxide. we'll talk about this with the doctor, next. according to the daily.com, the u.s. department of agriculture signed a deal to buy 7 million pounds of this stuff for school lunch programs. take a look. it's like pink slime. just like in the documentary "food inc." it's scrapped treated with ammonium hydroxide. it looks gross. it's oozing into the news. just to be clear here, both the food and drug administration and the food safety service say ammonium hydroxide is generally recognized as safe. that doesn't sound convincing to me. >> actually, it should be. to be in that category requires a lot of scientific research, numerous expert opinions. there are several chemicals in that category. it's treated with ammonia gas so it's not a large quantity. it's a really good recommendation. >> isn't it a compound used to make homemade bombs? >> yes, it's the fertilizer in the oklahoma city bomb. it's in a lot of different things. i don't think it's anything specifically to worry about. >> what about labeling? the usda doesn't require labeling on the product to tell us what's in it or if this stuff is in it? what do you think about that? >> you are not going to know if it's in it. a way to avoid getting your beef to have this filler or by product is to go and buy a piece of steak and have that ground. odds are any ground product has this pink slime or processed beef in it. ammonia is in there to treat this. >> would you eat it? >> i'm vegetarian and have been for years. prior to that, i'm sure i did eat it, prior to becoming a vegetarian. you don't know if you are eating this. >> from strange stuff in meat to dangerous stuff in skin products. fda warning to stop using certain skin creams. they are made overseas and sold in the u.s. as skin lighteners found in latino, black and middle eastern neighborhoods. seven states reported elevated mercury. it's texas, virginia, maryland, illinois and new york. have you heard of this happening? >> there are several reports of it. i have heard of it. one thing is these products are not made in the u.s. people have to be individual lent with what they are using on their skin. they are brought from foreign countries. be careful and read the label. mercury can be inhaled. it can come through your skin as a lotion. you could be getting serious levels of mercury through a cream. >> what can mercury do. we hear about it in your fillings. what kind of effect does it have on your body? >> broad reaching affects. it can affect the nervous system, brain development, the gi or stomach or digestive track. >> are there signs to know if you have been poisoned by mercury? >> if you have skin products, read the labels. if it doesn't have ingredients listed, don't use it. if it's not listed in english, don't use it. signs of mercury are memory problems, tremors, shaking, problems with vision. you can get diarrhea, problems with your stomach. anything like that, stop using the cream, package it up and see a health care provider. >> what can you do? do to your doctor, but what can they do? >> there are treatments to get rid of it. some of the damage can be permanent. >> appreciate that. hopefully we'll have another interesting topic for you next week as well. thank you. >> thank you. coming up, growing trend to track what you buy online and paying more for those things you like most. how to avoid it. plus -- i'm dr. sanjay gupta. this morning we are going to look at how to keep your memory sharp. there are simple things you can do that are proven to work. i'll share them with you. that and more at the bottom of the hour. glucerna hunger smar. they have carb steady, with carbs that digest slowly to help minimize blood sugar spikes. 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[ female announcer ] are you still sleeping? just wanted to check and make sure that we were on schedule. the first technology of its kind... mom and dad, i have great news. is now providing answers families need. siemens. answers. at meineke i have options... like oil changes starting at $19.95. my money. my choice. my meineke. gas prices are on their way back up. not a big sur prize after hikes for nearly 40 straight days. prices went up two cents overnight. the national average is now $3.78. this time last year, we were paying 24 cents less. the average price was $3.54 a gallon. what steps are you taking. with the rising gas prices and bad economy, what extreme measures are you taking? tweet me@randi kaye cnn. we'll read your thoughts later on in the show. this is "cnn saturday morning." 7:00 a.m. in the east, 4:00 a.m. in the west. syria's president gets a visit from the united nations to end the violence. we'll have a preview of the gop primary race. retailers could be tracking online and what you buy. guess what they do next? adjust their prices accordingly. announcer: from cnns world head quarters bringing news and analysis from around the globe. live from studio 7, this is "cnn saturday morning." syrian state television is calling today's damascus meeting between kofi annan positive. he was going to push assad to stop the bloodshed and allow access to aid. the meeting has been overshadowed by more shelling and more bombing. syrian activist joins us by phone from the city of idlib. tell me what's happening where you are right now. >> caller: the last few days around the city sporadic shelling in and around the city. this morning, the syrian army start started from all directions of the city. a shell every two minutes with heavy machine gunfire. many buildings were targeted and demolished. so far three people killed, tens injured and many still under the ruins of the building. demolished and communications center. now ground forces are looting houses and arresting people. house-to-house search for activists. as for, you know, soldiers can just do nothing because the number of the tanks in the city and around is much greater than the number of -- the weapons are never enough for such a battle. okay? this is, you know, this scenario is very similar to what happened in homs. they wanted to start in homs and they started other places in the country. you know, because of some political reasons. i don't know. >> tell me about the protests and the demonstrations taking place right now as well. >> caller: yes, demonstrations are everywhere. now, nobody can get out of their house because of heavy machines on fire. nobody can just even take, you know, anyone from the street especially those injured and killed. they are, you know, just in the street. nobody can open a window. >> is this the worst violence you have seen there in idlib? you are saying it's spreading from homs? >> caller: sorry. >> is this the worst shelling you have seen? >> caller: yes. i'm very close to it. some people, you know, the shelling and they are telling me now and then what's going on inside. we can just make phone calls to people inside and fortunately, the creation is still on. >> what about access to food and water? do you have any supplies that you need there? >> caller: sorry? >> do you have the supplies like food and water that you need there? >> caller: yes. so far nothing can be spotted. because nobody can get in here to -- in the city, so it's difficult. >> thank you for talking with us and please be careful. the next battleground in the republican race for the white house, kansas. 40 delegates are at stake as the state holds their caucuses today. paul steinhauser is in kansas with more. paul? >> good morning, randi. caucuses kick off this morning. 40 delegates at stake. only registered republicans can take part in the gop republican contest. santorum made three swings. he could do well there with the conservative republican voters. ron paul is there, today for the second day. neither gingrich or romney stumped in the state. they are spending their time in alabama and mississippi which hold primaries on tuesday. romney is trying to appeal to southern voters. >> i got started with a business cut and cheesy grits. delicious. >> reporter: he's lowering expectation. >> it's a bit of an away game. i think we are going to pick up support in these states that remain this month. >> reporter: santorum is hoping wins in both states could knock gingrich out of the race. >> if you go out and deliver a conservative victory for us on tuesday, this race will become a two-person race. >> reporter: gingrich doesn't sound like a man about to give up. >> i believe i will become the nominee with your help. >> reporter: doing well in alabama and mississippi is crucial for gingrich. randi? >> thank you, paul. the last group of parolees pardoned by hailey barbour. they upheld the decision. they rejected a challenge by mississippi's attorney general. >> i feel for them having had a first cousin murdered in 1976 and gone through a trial and understanding how victims feel. you know, i think they have been victimized twice. the criminal justice system let them down. >> former governor hailey barbour defended the pardons saying they have been rehabilita rehabilitated. the los angeles county sheriff's department says the star of "kill bill" has been arrested. he's held on $100,000 bail. it's a concern of the fda. inside the growing problem of drug shortages in the u.s. it's making it tough for first responders to do their job. we'll explain. both are used to treat men with low testosterone. androgel 1.62% is from the makers of the number one prescribed testosterone replacement therapy. it raises your testosterone levels, and... is concentrated, so you could use less gel. and with androgel 1.62%, you can save on your monthly prescription. 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[ male announcer ] help your family stay afloat at aflac.com. plegh! welcome back. a drug shortage is affecting people. it could mean the difference between life and death. susan candiotti tells us about a family that worries about it every day. >> reporter: their daughter suffers daily seizures. without drugs, mary would not survive. >> she would die and that's the bottom line. mary has already gone into cardiac arrest once. i just don't want to think about it, what would happen if we didn't have those medications that would save her life. >> reporter: the new jersey family may have to think about it. the very same ambulance company they call for help is running short of the drugs that could save mary's life. >> as we are almost out of one drug, we are using another drug to take its place. pretty soon, that drug will be out. >> reporter: nationwide, intravenous antiseizure drugs are among the drugs including cancer treatments in short supply. this ambulance service tells cnn they had to order a temporary replacement drug to avoid running out this weekend. mary's parents are beside themselves. >> it's a terrifying situation. just knowing that -- that the lack of equipment or lack of medications that would take our daughter's life. it's a very, very scary thing. >> it's very difficult to think that help wouldn't be there. >> reporter: the fda says it tracked at least 220 shortages last year and claims it prevented 114. they admit the problem is far from solved. >> there's no question we have our work cut out for us. this is a public health crisis and we are responding. >> reporter: drug makers testified overregulation is to blame for drug shortages, not greed. >> manufactures do not and would never deliberately reduce the supply of medicines to push prices up. >> reporter: for this family and others like them, political finger pointing will do little good the next time she needs an ambulance. >> we wouldn't be the same without her. >> reporter: president obama supports bipartisanship legislation requiring companies to report drug shortages to the fda. so far, congress failed to act. randi? >> thank you so much. if you shop online, tweet or update your facebook status, you are going to want to listen to this. companies may be tracking your shopping habits and your comments and using that information to charge you more. i'll explain. stick around for that, next. 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[ female announcer ] yoplait. it is so greek. so every month, i go to the same website to buy my vitamins. when i heard the next story, i was concerned. there's a growing trend online called behavioral pricing. companies track what you shop for online and what you buy. then they adjust their prices according accordingly. they could hike up the price because i'm a loyal customer. let's bring in clyde anderson in atlanta and allen in washington. welcome to you both. i'm going to start with you on this one. we call it behavioral pricing. how does it work? >> they discriminate, basically on what you are buying online. they track you to determine what you are buying. your behavior online tracks how much they charge for goods and services. >> it's been going on for some time? >> for some time. they are looking at what they are charging to make sure you are beating their prices. now, they are tracking you more. it's developing and 2012 is becoming huge. >> it's very big brotherish. allen, let's bring you in here. you believe this pricing is in its infant stage and where do you see it going? >> over the last few years we have seen two trends emerge. one hand, all this data is stored about you, who you are, your demographics, what you do online. it's repackaged and sold to advertisers. at the same time, like clyde said, companies are getting really, really smart about how to optimize our prices online. all this data we have about you in data banks, use it to better price your products. say you have been tweeting about how excited you are to go to miami and soak up the sun. you are going to be willing to pay more money for a trip to miami. >> are you telling me i shouldn't like anything or anything on facebook as well? is that an example of how they could be tracking you? >> sure. it's definitely a possible way it could happen. we are not your house to develop. last week, we saw an example of this. clout, a start up that analyzes how influential you are. it cuts both ways. >> so, clyde, should we question every price we see? >> i think you should. just because you are in the store looking at prices, one price may be different logging on from one computer to another. that's what we have to look at. data is so key right now. he who holds the gold makes the rule. they are setting the prices. >> i find this creepy, actually. is this similar to or the same thing when you say i serve for, i do an internet search for a couch. then my next page, i'm looking at something else and there's an ad for a furniture store, is that the same type of tracking going on? >> absolutely. it's cookie based. looking at how you interact online. now we are going to see that being used for pricing. if you are looking at couches a lot and go to a competitors site, they are going to take this in and decide how to price you based on that. >> is there a way to know you are being tracked? h. >> yes. the there's a lot of resources that can show you what cookies are tracking you right now. if people want to check it out, there's one by mozilla fire fox that show what is tracking your behavior and where they are sending that information. >> thank you. clyde, this affects a lot of people. >> a lot of people. be conscious of what you are doing online. your online identity is growing every day. we have to protect that. >> too many people looking at that. clyde, stick around. allen, thank you p very much. it's not all doom and gloom. there are simple steps to take to protect yourself and your security online. we'll get good advice when we come back. the way i always made it for you. one more thing.... those pj's you like, i bought you five new pairs. love you. did you see the hockey game last night? [ male announcer ] progresso. you gotta taste this soup. make that new stouffer's steam meal so tasty. actually, the milk from my farm makes it so creamy, right dad. ah, but my carrots have that crunch. it's my milk in the rich sauce coating the chicken and the pasta. boys! don't you think stouffer's steam perfect bag should get some credit? my carrots. my milk. my carrots. my milk. [ female announcer ] new from stouffer's. farmers' harvest steam meals for one in the steam perfect bag seal in all the goodness. they taste so good, we'll bet the farm on it. nestle. good food, good life. carrots! creamy! you know what's exciting, graduation. when i look up into my student's faces, i see pride. you know, i have done something worthwhile. when i earned my doctorate through university of phoenix, that pride, that was on my face. i am jocelyn taylor, i am committed to making a difference in peoples lives and i am a phoenix. before the break, we were talking about behavioral pricing where companies and retailers track where you shop online, what you buy and adjust their prices accordingly and charge you more. clyde anderson is back with us. what can we do to protect ourselves? >> they are tracking your ip address. this computer goes to this website all the time. now we know what to charge them. and the cookies. disable the cookies where they don't track you. we leave bread crumbs. if you want to remove those, you can do that. that's another way to protect it. >> now we are getting into another thing. the cookie removal. all i know about cookies are the ones i eat. >> they are big. >> shop on somebody else's computer. >> try one computer and another and see if it's different. >> what about maybe not signing in. >> don't sign in all the time. we get this thing that membership is big. we like belonging. sign into special sites to see what special privileges we are getting. go in and search around before you sign in and make the purchase. do comparative shopping. shop different websites and see how competitive they are before you commit to making the purchase. >> the companies aren't going to stop trying to track us. >> it's going to grow. think about it again. these are big businesses. we spent $160 billion online last year. companies want a piece of that. they want to tap into it. what are you going to do next and what are you willing to pay for it. >> this really is price discrimination. >> yeah. yeah. it definitely is. we talked about the idea, it's been going on outside of online. a museum charges a different price to a student versus someone who is a student. now it's online. >> if you can afford more, they are going to charge you more? >> it's the way of the world. capitalism. best and worst of capitalism. >> there you go. appreciate it. good advise. join us every saturday at this time as clyde anderson gives the latest money saving tips. sanjay g "sanjay gupta, m.d." is just minutes away. here is a preview. >> this morning, i'm looking at things to do to prevent memory loss and keep your brain sharp. everyone can be helped with basic advice. also, a story i found scary, yet remarkable. soldiers coerced into experimental things. it was upsetting. i'll tell you what i found. that and more coming up at 7:30. randi? >> looking forward to it. thank you. police chases are nothing new. this man led officers on a chase naked. yes, you heard me right, naked. the details, next. owe you? that'll be $973.42. ya know, your rates and fees aren't exactly competitive. who do you think i am, quicken loans? 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[ female announcer ] yoplait original. 25 flavors for you to love. ♪ good morning, atlanta. hope you got some good sleep last night because we are losing an hour in the morning. yes, it's nearly time to roll the clocks forward for daylight saving time. roll them one hour forward. here is a check of other top stories we are following. 13 palestinians dead, 16 injured after a series of israeli air strikes overnight. they targeted militants across gaza. a hamas military leader was killed. the air strikes were a response to attacks on southern israeli communities. republicans in guam pledged their nine delegates to romney earlier today. republicans are voting today in kansas where santorum is favored. the next set of primaries is tuesday when voters in alabama, mississippi and hawaii all go to the polls. in washington state, officers are hunting for a man who shot a deputy, stole her gun and stabbed a judge in a courthouse. the suspect is michael thomas. the judge who was stabbed talked to our affiliate, kamo. >> when i went to assist the deputy, she had a weapon in her hand, a knife or something and he was stabbing at her. >> we got him away from the deputy and pop, pop. turned and looked at me then went out. >> the judge will be okay. police still do not have the clear motive for those attacks. police in georgia arrested a florida fugitive after this case. the 21-year-old suspect was wanted on felony charges. they found the man sleeping inside his van naked. the suspect led police on a car chase, still naked, before trying to escape on foot. oh, yeah. well, we'll have more top stories at the top of the hour. first, slowing down the progression of alzheimers