it's important to say they are not saying there is a specific threat, but what they are saying is there is a continued threat. certainly from al qaeda and affiliate organizations, and it notes that briefly al qaeda and the terrorists groups have linked their attacks to significant dates, and of course 9/11, there couldn't be anymore specific or significant dates than that. you know, i was just talking with a friend that said is this something that we should really, really be worried about. the state department issues these, randy, on a regular basis. in fact, this supplements another caution that was issued. it's the responsibility of the state department to warn americans who are abroad about this. that said, it is, of course, 9/11, very significant and the state department is saying there's a continuing threat out there. >> but it's not a travel alert for those here at home, it's for those who are traveling abroad or residing abroad? >> yes, that's what the state department does for u.s. citizens abroad. >> jill doherty, thank you so much for that. nobody wants a storm on a holiday weekend and we don't want to think about a tropical storm in new orleans, but all of the mississippi and texas coast are under a tropical storm warning as tropical depression 13 is going in that direction. with ten or more inches of rain expected on land, louisiana's governor has declared a state of emergency. he briefed reporters just moments ago. >> it's a slow-moving storm and will bring a lot of rain, and the primary risks will be a combination of the rising tides and the saturation of as much as 10 to 15 inches of rain, and as much as 20 inches in some areas, will lead to flash floods. >> we are sure this fire in new orleans' march will not be burning much longer. earlier in the week there was declared an emergency over that. karen, where is it right now and exactly where is it going? >> it's stalled sitting out in the north central gulf of mexico, but now as tropical depression 13, they are saying the water temperatures here in the mid to upper 80s closing in on 90 degrees, and perfect conditions for the tropical depression to turn into a tropical storm and could make hurricane intensity by the time it makes landfall. by saturday morning as the tropical storm moves towards lick charles, then at least according to one of the computer models makes its way towards the east and then we think will it lose strength and push towards central alabama as we go later on into the weekend. not a good weekend to travel towards the gulf coast region as this tropical depression may become rapidly a tropical storm with the next advisory coming up in the next hour from the national hurricane center. but this is what we are looking at. heavy bands of rainfall. in the short term, good news. it does put out the fire in new orleans east with heavy bands of rainfall, but we anticipate ten and 20 inches of rain. this is low-lying areas, but look at the spaghetti models. they go all over the place. it's too difficult to tell right now where this is headed. back to you. >> looking at the model it certainly seems that way. karen, thank you. in just a few minutes i will speak with a man that knows the gulf coast and natural disasters like nobody else. the retired lieutenant general joins us. we can't get irene, the big storm from last weekend, is still causing misery, but things are looking up on hatteras island. the people that fled their hat russ homes were told they could return on sunday and amtrak expect to have the east coast rail service fully restored by sunday. as for vermont, president obama signed a disaster declaration. he has done the same for north carolina, new jersey, and new york. if you are counting, roughly 1 million homes and businesses that lost electricity five or six days ago still don't have it. the power companies say they are working as hard as they can but have not heard the last of angry customers or lawmakers. we will speak with both next hour. and the untold numbers of trees fell by hurricane. this is the arlington oak. a tree estimated at 220 years old on the grounds of what is now arlington national cemetery. in the spring of 1963 president kennedy so admired the view from this spot he was buried nearby. the tree's demise was called, quote, truly unfortunate. the u.s. added no new jobs in august as the unemployment rate held steady at 9.1%. the news sent markets plunging more than 200 points during morning trading. president obama set to unveil a new jobs plan in a speech before congress next week, but republicans say the poor jobs report is further indication of the president's failed economic policies. ali velshi digs deeper into the numbers and explains just how pad they are coming up in ten minutes. firefighters are gaining ground in northern texas, and residents force to flee the blaze could return sometime today. it scorched more than 62 acres. 40 homes and nine rvs have been destroyed, but authorities say the fire is 50% contained. and meanwhile in neighboring oklahoma, firefighters are battling hot spots from a massive wildfire. the blaze was one of two brush fires that covered more than 16 miles in and around oklahoma city this week. news developing overseas right now, turkey is expelling an ambassador. it's the latest in the growing dispute. nine people were killed when israeli commandos clashed with the turks. according to the new york times the report credit sizes israel's actions but says the block aid was a security measure. the sped and threat of flooding this bring are mayor concerns. up next we talk to the man that led the military op rations during katrina. at usaa, we believe honor is not exclusive to the military. and commitment is not limited to one's military oath. the same set of values that drive our nation's military are the ones we used to build usaa bank. from free checking to credit cards to loans, our commitment to the military, veterans, and their families is without 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on surge water constantly and is taking on higher tides now in the lower part of planmen parish. those are the areas that we're concerned about the most. >> the storm's path is so unpredictable. we were shown the math by karen and there is a whole spaghetti of all kinds of different ways this thing can go. what kind of preparations can you make when it looks like that? we're looking at it right there. look at that. if you don't know where it's going, how do you prepare with sandbags and any other preparations? >> just the prediction of rains there are certain gates on the flood system in new orleans that have already been closed and there's preparations on grand isle to close portions of highway 1 because we know it get ov overtopped. in those cases evacuation centers are being opened to deal with the people on grand isle. the water system has been reengineered since katrina. is the speed of the storm a concern at all for you? >> the rate of the rainfall. the pumps have been designed to be able to pump out one inch of water in the first hour, and then a half inch of rainfall every subsequent hour. so if you get more rainfall than that in a given part of the city that could be a challenge for the pumps. we have flood gates to keep the water from coming into the city, randi. >> what about the levees? are you confident the levees could hold a storm like this one? >> don't see the levees as being an issue in this one. the issues will be the title surge, and how much of a surge we get in the low-lying areas, and if the water can push its way in, the difference is opposed to katrina, we have gates now that can close the canals that come into the city, and we have brand-new bumps that can pump the water out of the city. >> this is labor day weekend and a lot of folks probably headed to new orleans to enjoy the holiday. they may not be familiar with what it means to evacuate and those measure, so what would you tell those folks headed to new orleans this weekend? >> watch the news closely and stay informed. the governments are doing periodic news updates, and stay informed because things could change quickly if we get a large amount of rain in a short amount of time and it could cause some streets in new orleans to flood. >> general russell, we appreciate your insight and advice there. thank you very much. up next, why an economic recovery is slipping even further out of reach. two of the most important are energy security and economic growth. north america actually has one of the largest oil reserves in the world. a large part of that is oil sands. this resource has the ability to create hundreds of thousands of jobs. at our kearl project in canada, we'll be able to produce these oil sands with the same emissions as many other oils and that's a huge breakthrough. that's good for our country's energy security and our economy. but it's our job to make them say something interesting. so how about this weekend we learn some new tricks of the trade... then 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how president obama is handling unemployment or the employment situation. on thursday night the president gives his jobs speech. politically what can he possibly say that will convince americans that his administration at least has some idea or answer to fixing this chronic and dire unemployment situation? >> well, he has to go out there and tell the american people that he has proposals to try and fix this unemployment problem. so you are probably going to hear some things from him, ali, that people will like, such as payroll tax cut extension, and for employees and for employers, tax credits for employers that hire new employees, and those kinds of things that he believes that republicans will sign on to. the question is, how big is this package going to be, because if it's too big, you know republicans will not go for it. so he has got a decision that he has got to make, and he's got to get something passed, but he also has an election coming up, right? >> yep. >> so he has to say i tried to get us in the right direction, and if they didn't follow me, they're pushing us in the wrong direction. >> that's the political prescription. and you predict these economic cycles, and sometimes you say it's not about what government does. are we in a recession? >> no, the recession did end. it ended in the summer of '09. since then, we have had cycles in the growth rate. so we have been growing. the economy has been growing, but we had speedups and slowdowns, and we had a speedup coming out, and then a slowdown in 2010. we're in a new slowdown now. every time you slow down, the risk of a new recession goes up by definition, because you're going in the wrong direction. right now i think we are skating on very thin ice. >> for much more on this story and all the latest financial news you need be sure and join ali velshi for "your money" on saturday at 1:00 and sunday at 3:00. and stocks tumbled, all three fell more than 2% this morning. the dow sits down about 211 points. a slow-moving tropical system to bring 20 inches of rain and flooding to parts of the gulf coast continues to drift northward toward land. it has not yet been declared a tropical storm. and louisiana has already declared a state of emergency. we'll keep you posted as we get additional updates. aaa says fewer americans will be hitting the road this labor day weekend. they expect the number of people traveling at least 50 miles from home will be down 2.4% from last year to 31.5 million. experts are blaming general nervousness about the economy and finding seats on crowded airlines and expensive gasoline. a gallon of gas cost about a dollar more than last year. if you stay home i highly recommend watching cnn all day. and tomorrow the university of alabama football team plays its first game since the devastating tornado hit the city of tuscaloosa. can the new season help the city heal? we're cracking down on medicare fraud. the healthcare law gives us powerful tools to fight it... to 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unfathomable and touched almost ever in the community. four months later the community continues to rebuild. >> it's like taking the stadium and filling up the debris from the football build to the top of the lights three times, and we still have probably another stadium full left to go before we're clear from what happened on april 27th. >> reporter: that afternoon, carson was in his house with his girlfriend, ashley harrison. the house was in the direct line of the tornado. when the tornado hit the house, both ashley and carson were thrown 50 yards into a field across the street. that field happened to be one of the carson's places in tuscaloosa, and hours later he was hitting golf balls. carson survived with minor injuries, and she did not. >> being in his presence, it gets you through tough times. you could experience tough things, and he did and he's an example of coming back and being strong and having a positive attitude every day. >> reporter: since april 27th, the football players have been on the front lines in helping rebuild the community, and rebuilding houses and picking up debris, and they have been there to tell people listen their stories of loss and tragedy. it has had an up lifting psychological impact on tuscaloosa. >> we have to be a team not just in the best of times when we're playing games and there are 100,000 people supporting us, but in the worst of time when people need our help. i was really pleased with the way our players responded to that and continued to respond to it. >> reporter: the images don't do justice to the breath and scope that the damage and destruction of the tornado left behind in its wake. so when people come for the first time for the home opener, nick sabin is going more resources will help poor in to help the city. >> by being a part of the community, they are looking for us to give more back to the town of tuscaloosa. i can't wait. it's a long time coming. >> we're coming back. that's very exciting and very up lifting for those who come, and, you know, they look at this town and in the forest lake community on 14th street, i mean, there's nothing there and there are banners that say we're coming back. we're coming back. for me -- i just got chill bumps just talking about it. >> and reynolds wolf joins us from tuscaloosa on the alabama campus. you covered this story in spring. what is the mood there now four months later or so? >> reporter: they are ready to get it started. bits and pieces helped to reconstruct the community. the campus for the most part was spared but there's a footprint from the massive tornado that ripped away parts of the community, and especially the main thorough fair that people would take to make their way to the stadium that you see behind me on game days. you have things asteticily worn in terms of the tornado, but some things have been rebuild. one thing as a crowning piece was to bring back the games and the game atmosphere. it's like rocket fuel for the space shuttle. you have to have the game-time atmosphere to restore much of the spirit of the people here in tuscaloosa, and they are ready for it. >> they play ken state, and ken state has a connection to the storm? >> reporter: they do. the amazing thing about ken state, on paper doesn't look like it's a match-up, and we're talking about the powerhouse of alabama, and we're talking about a team that is just helping start the season in ken state, but their players have been here to this community and this community and town to help things out. they worked on a product to help restore parts of the community. it's funny they will be combatants on the field, but certainly they were linking warm and warm to do what they can to help the cause. >> i know us you are not wearing your auburn colors on the alabama campus there? >> reporter: there are things we do for safety. that's what you have to do in a situation like this. to be honest with you, we had alabama fans that came by and stopped by for pictures, and i told them i was an auburn fan, but, yes, there's the tremendous rooif rivalry, but there's also a tremendous amount of respect. the significant of football to the university of alabama, we're talking about a tradition that has been here for ages, and you have to have spring games that will in many colleges will only have a small matter of people in the stadium, and they fill this thing to capacity with a spring scrimma scrimmage. they cover football during spring and during recruiting. it never ends. it's a 365-day obsession, no question about it, and a healthy one, i think. >> still, smart man not wearing the colors there. thank you very much. and hurricane katrina showed us what could happen to new orleans during a big storm. it looks like another one is on the way. what is the city doing to get ready? we'll check in with the new orleans mayor in just 90 seconds. as states along the east coast recover from irene, the gulf coast is getting ready for -- take a look. this storm. 190 miles south of the mississippi river. you're looking at the storm's projected path. it's a tropical depression but could strengthen into a tropical storm at any moment. states from mississippi to texas are under a tropical storm warning and that includes louisiana which is already under a state of emergency. as lieutenant general russell pointed out, new orleans and the surrounding river perishes are the most vulnerable to flooding. the mayor, mitch landrieu, joins us on the phone. you could be looking up to 20 inches of rain in some areas. what are you most concerned? >> anytime we have a potential heavy rainfall over a short period of time and that turns into a potential water event for us. there could potentially be flooding. one of the things of most concern is that this particular depression is for the most part unformed, but it's very close to us. so the governor and the parrish presidents, they are prepared, of course, and you talked earlier to the corp. of engineers, and when it gets wet in a short period of time the water events can become significant. >> with the governor there declaring a state of emergency, what specific preparations can you do right now? what is under way? >> well, first of all, of course, we have been through this many times and we learned a lot from katrina and ike and we have very specific protocols that we follow, and storm gates are being closed and sandbags are being filled, and we're making sure we're in full communication of each other. citizens are being advised so they can prepare themselves in the event that this turns into something else. you saw with some of the storms in the northeast that in some instances it was a water event and some a flooding event and some an electrical event and we're in the process of preparing for every event right now. >> do you have any concerns about the levees this time around? >> well, the core of engineers has done a good job of preparing, and we have 100-year flood protection, and the indications are that levees are strong and robust, and the they are now being closed where we think the appropriate points are, and weather is very unpredictable. again, you always want to lean very forward and prepare for the worst, and hope for the best i think that's a good motto that we have been following for sometime. we're all on it, 24/7, and the nine surrounding parrishs are all working in concert. and the governor's team has been working very closely with all of us which we are very thankful. it's all about preparation and making sure we stay coordinated. at the end of the day, it's about citizens taking responsibility and making sure that you have a plan. it's not too soon just to get ready. we have been through it before. everybody knows where the low-lying areas are and what precautions we have to take and we'll hope for the best. >> all right. we appreciate your time and certainly we will be keeping an eye on your city as this storm approached. thank you very much. >> we appreciate the attention. thank you so much. we also should tell our viewers that governor barber declared a state of emergency in southern mississippi. haley barbour declared a state of emergency to several counties that could be impacted by severe tropical weather in the gulf of mexico, and that's just coming in to cnn. up next, maggi gets picked on and maggie doesn't have friend. why? because maggie is fat. what does maggie need to do? go on a diet. that's the message of a controversial children's book. the author joins us live to explain. this four-letter word is constantly stirring up controversy, and we're talking about the word "diet." and a book called "maggie goes on a diet" is being called, quote, dangerous. and some say reading the book will cause kids to have eating disorders and low self-esteem, and one person wrote it's an abomination. the author of the book joins us from maui to defend his case. if the book promotes a healthy lifestyle and not dieting, why use the diet in the title? why not call it maggie gets healthy or something like that? >> i have been asked this question before, and maggie did go on a exercise and healthy eating program, and i will say that maggie did not have to go on a diet, maggie chose to go on a diet in this book, and maggie -- maggie's purpose of going on a diet as reported earlier was not so she could get more friends, she really wanted to go on a diet so she could run easily, run faster, bend easily, and mainly so she could play sports. she loved to play sports. and she just wasn't fit and she was determined to be lean and fit, which is what i write in the book. >> in the book, though, when she does get thin, she's instantly popular and wants to get thin for a fancy pair of jeans. what do you say to the critics that say maybe that is sending the wrong message? >> i say to them read the book. you can't judge a book by its cover, and that's what all of these critics who have given me negative feedback have done. if you read the book, you will see that maggie is a very modest person who is not looking for any kind of fame, and she does become happy about what she accomplished. she should become happy. she accomplished a lot. she lost a lot of weight. she became fit. she loved to play sports and she was able to do it well. she would be rewarded. >> let me ask you, do you have kids? >> i do. >> and have they looked at this book and what do they think of it? are they young enough -- >> they think it's great. >> they think it's great. >> everybody who reads the book -- >> what age does it target? >> may i say this? >> sure. it's 6 to 12. that's the audience that i believe the book was appropriate for. but that does not say i am advocating in any way that a 6-year-old actually go on a diet. but maggie is a good role model for a young girl for the future if this young girl or boy -- znts have to be a girl, decides mentally when they are ready to pursue changing their lifestyle. maggie is a great role model. maggie was supposed to be a role model. so i was going to say before that i will challenge anybody to get a group of kids together and -- or not together, but just a group of kids and different ages and let them read the book and i will guarantee that most of the reactions would be extremely positive, and the book would be enjoyed by probably every one of them, and i think they would understand the message, and i am sure they wouldn't see any of the controversy that most of the critics have said is controversial. >> you are not concerned at all it would lead kids to stop eating and get skinny and have a possible eating disorder? >> absolutely not. i don't advocate that kids stop eating and i don't advocate they go on a diet and have x amount of calories. in the book it actually promotes not only healthy eating, but it promotes eating as much as you want, but only of healthy foods. and it also promotes exercise. so together, that is as good as it can get. and it's up to a child to make this decision. if a parent tries to push a child to do something, they are probably going to do the opposite. so when the child is ready, the role model, which is maggie, i think would be a wonderful thing for them to inspire to achieve as well. it doesn't mean that they have to be starved. >> i think at age 6 to 12 the parents are still in control there of what the children are taking in. but paul kramer, appreciate your time, and the book is certainly interesting. thank you. >> my pleasure. lining up for fuel and desperate for water. the struggle to survive in war-torn tripoli next. nce card,. medicare is one of the great things about turning 65, but it doesn't cover everything. in fact, it only pays up to 80% of your part b expenses. if you're already on or eligible for medicare, call now to find out how an aarp... medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company, helps cover some of the medical expenses... not paid by 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struggling to form an interim government while the people there are struggling for fuel and water. a half million liters of bottled water arrived yesterday and with more to come, and people are lining up for miles to gas up their cars. dan rivers shows where the lines begin and end in tripoli. >> reporter: well the fuel situation in tripoli is still pretty bad. there are still incredibly long cues. better than it used to be, but check it out. this is the back of the line for gas. i want to show you just how long it is. this just goes on and on and on. it's ironic because libya has the nineth largest amount of oil, and experts say it has 23 years of oil reserves. before a war, it used to pump about 1.3 million barrels a day. but now all the people in line care about is when the lines will subside. some of them say they have been waiting in the scorching heat for hours. finally this is the front of the cue. the coastal road is open so it means some supplies are coming in. you get the idea of just what an agonizing wait it is simply to fill up your car. dan rivers, cnn, tripoli. >> it's about ten minutes before the hour. let's check other top stories. turkey is expelling israel's ambassador, and it's the latest in the growing dispute over a deadly raid last year. nine people were killed when israeli commandoes clashed with turks on one of the vessels in may of 2010. this comes as the u.n. is set to release a report today about the raid. and then imposed a ban on the importation of syrian oil. this comes as syrian forces open up fire yet again on demonstrators. unrest in syria has been going on for months. meanwhile in the united kingdom, the phone hacking scandal surrounding "news of the world" continues. a parliament is set to examine another. this comes as a 34-year-old man is being held on conspiring to interceptone, you may have illegal contraband. we'll explain why, next. that's why we offer accident forgiveness, man: good job. where your price won't increase 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gibson. like them, if you're a guitar enthusiast and you have a gibson, you may be the proud owner of illegal contraband. the memphis plant was raided by federal authorities last week. that's right, raided. it's not even the first time. a law to curb black market trade is at the heart of the matter. cnn's david mattingly has morement. >> reporter: he makes guitars that make america sound cool. but gibson's ceo is being ordered to change his tune. >> sounds ironic playing the blues right now. >> reporter: i got the blues. in late august, his factories were raided for the second time in two years alleging the illegal importation of rare protected wood. in this case, ebony and rosewood from india. an affidavit filed by the u.s. fish and wildlife service alleges gibson falsely labeled the wood shipment to make it sound legal and suspiciously omitted the company's name as the recipient. but so far, no charges have been filed. >> it almost sound like this company was engaged in smuggling these raw materials into the country. >> well, we were not engaged in smuggling. we have been buying finger board stock on a regular basis from india for 17 years. >> on the next of a guitar the tropical hardwood is prized for look and durability. but it's subject to a law called the lacey act aimed to protect animal parts and plants. and anything made from them. >>. >> reporter: but the material came in a box and it looks like this? >> looks very similar. >> he says the finger boards gibson imported from india were confiscated as illegal wood by the federal government. >> the law says that if a guitar or an instrument of any kind, crosses a border, you have to know the specie of wood that every component is made of and where it came from. >> if this is true, could hundreds of international stars like paul mccartney and b.b. king rising seeing their gibsons confiscated at the border. >> michelle obama gave a guitar to the prime minister of france. just a year ago. >> reporter: the first lady may have broken the law? >> yes. >> reporter: the lace iy act gives agent broad authority to pursue smugglers. if you own a gibson, don't worry. when we asked the u.s. fish and wildlife service for clarification, it released this brief statement. we target corporations and individuals who are removing protected species from the wild and making a profit by trafficking in them. right now, in spite of his strong claim of innocence, gibson is a target. >> nightmare. it's a nightmare. >> reporter: it took almost a week before gibson got back into full operation. but the damage had already been done. just the shutdown of that one day with the materials that were taken, it cost the company over a million dollars. and now, the maker of the guitars that have commanded the spotlight for over a hundred years has no choice but to play on and wait for its day in court. ♪ david mattingly, cnn, nashville. coming up, an ugly august jobs report and republicans were quick to respond. all the details, next. take advil now and maybe up to four in a day. or choose aleve and two pills for a day free of pain. way to go, coach. ♪ dangerous plaque that can build up in arteries over time... high cholesterol is a major factor. but these other health factors can also contribute to plaque buildup. so if you have high cholesterol and any of these other health factors... it's even more important to get your cholesterol where your doctor wants. talk to your doctor about crestor. when diet and exercise alone aren't enough... adding crestor can lower bad cholesterol by up to 52%. and crestor is proven to slow plaque buildup in arteries. crestor is not right for everyone, like people with liver disease... or women who are nursing, pregnant, or may become pregnant. simple blood tests will check for liver problems. tell your doctor about other medicines you're taking... or if you have muscle pain or weakness. that could be a sign of serious side effects. ask your doctor about high cholesterol... plaque buildup... and if crestor is right for you. if you can't afford your medication, astrazeneca may be able to help. time to check in and say hello to our friend paul steinhauser in washington today. i guess the republicans didn't need more ammunition when it comes to the economy. but with this august jobs report, i guess they got a little bit more. >> they sure do. they didn't waste much time at all. it came out at 8:30 eastern from the labor department. a few minutes later john boehner put out statement. it didn't take long to put out statements to criticize the president and what he's doing on jobs pegged off that report. the presidential candidates jumped in as well. most of them put out statements. the first to come in my e-mail was mitt romney. and he also spoke about that at an event in florida. take a listen. >> obama is not working. and he is disappointing the american people and this morning, very bad news. did you see the numbers that came out on job growth? look, there is zero faith in barack obama because he's created zero jobs last month. >> you're going to hear a lot more about jobs next week. romney has a big jobs speech in nevada and two days later, the president goes before congress to give an address on jobs. randi? >> paul steinhauser, thank you very much. a new hour starts with a name for that slow motion menace, moving through the gulf of mexico. meet tropical storm lee upgraded minutes ago from a tropical depression. it is drifting toward the north and what it lacks in wind and speed, it makes up for in rain. 10, 15, 20 inches are expected on land and tropical storm warnings are posted for the entire louisiana coastline and parts of the texas and mississippi coast as well. the louisiana and mississippi governors declared states of emergency already. i spoke with mitch lan drew. he said his people know what to do. >> we've been through this many times. we've learned a lot from ike, gustav, katrina. the first thij thing is to get up and operating. we have very specific protocols that we follow. storm gates are being closed. sandbags filled. we're making sure we're in full communication with each other. citizens are being advised of the -- so that they can prepare themselves in the event that this turns into something else. you saw with the storms in the northeast, in some instances it was a water event, some a flood event. for some it was an electrical event. we have to prepare for all of those. we're in the process of doing that. >> oil workers are leaving gulf rigs if they can fly out safely. if it's any consolation, we're pretty sure this fire in a new orleans marsh will not be burning much longer. earlier in the week, mayor land rue -- we're watching it from the cnn weather center. >> it's approximately 200 miles to the south of the mouth of the mississippi river. slow and erratic would describe lee right now. because it is so near the coast, it doesn't really right now have a clearly defined eye. but it is going to produce a deluge of rainfall. primarily, along coastal sections of louisiana and mississippi. but that could change. it could change fairly quickly. that's the coastline right now. already heavy band of rain into new orleans and lake charles. from pascagoula, in texas, that's where we do have tropical storm, rather, watches. all right, the spaghetti models. according to the national hurricane center, they plug in different data, they look at different observations. you can see but it really agrees. but right now, the trend is more towards the coastal regions of louisiana and perhaps towards mobile. this looks to be where we'll see the concentration of hurricane-force, maybe tropical storm force, but we're not really concerned about that right now. we're concerned that a lot of people are going to be headed towards the florida beaches or the louisiana beaches or alabama beaches, mississippi beaches for this last blowout for the summer before we get into the fall season. but now we're going to see a very heavy surf, a storm surge of two to four feet. we could see between 10 and 20 inches of rainfall. what is that going to do? we'll so low land flooding. look at this bull's-eye towards lake charles, that's where the computer models are suggesting we could see the heaviest precipitation in this white shaded area, 10-plus inches of rain. what happens after this point in time? we think it will start to curb more towards the northeast. but right now, randi, it is just meandering around this north central gulf of mexico where the water temperatures are approaching 90 degrees. >> that does not sound good. all right, karen mcginnis, appreciate that. thank you. we can't forget irene, the big storm from last weekend is still causing misery in the northeast and the mid-atlantic coast. things are looking up on hatteras island on north carolina's outer banks. the people who obeyed evacuation orders are being told they can go back home starting sunday. we're also getting word that amtrak expects to have the east coast rail service fully up and running by sunday. president obama signed a federal disaster declaration for -- for temporary housing and repairs. he's done the same in south carolina, new jersey and new york. get this. roughly a million homes and businesses that lost electricity five or six days ago, still do not have it. the power companies are working as hard as they can, but they haven't heard the last of angry customers or lawmakers. i'll speak both in our next segment. finally, trees fall in bad storms all the time. one tree lost to irene deserves special attention. this is what's left of the famous arlington oak, estimated at 220 years old on the grounds of what's now arlington national cemetery. in the spring of 1963, president kennedy so admired the view from this spot that he was buried nearby. the cemetery's forester calls the demise truly unfortunate. there are more ominous signs today of the stagnant economy. the u.s. added no new jobs in august as the unemployment rate held steady at 9.1%. and the news sent markets plunging. the dow has been down about 200 points much of the day. president obama set to unveil a new jobs program. republicans say it's a further indication of the president's failed economic policies. firefighters are gaining ground on a wildfire near a resort in northern texas and residents forced to flee the blaze could return home sometime today. the fire at palo pinto county store chd more than 62 acres in the drought stricken area. some 40 homes and nine rv's have been destroyed. they say the fire is 50% contained. meanwhile in oklahoma, firefighters are battling hotspots from a massive wildfire. the blaze was one of two large brush fires that covered more than 16 square miles in and around oklahoma city this week. just ten days before the anniversary of 9/11, the u.s. state department is issuing a worldwide travel alert. in a statement today, the state department said "while we have not identified any specific threats from al qaeda, a fill dwrats and allies to at that tack the united states or our interests on the 9/11 anniversary, u.s. citizens should be aware that they have demonstrated the intent and capability to carry out attacks against the united states and our interests around the wormed." hundreds of thousands of people without power for nearly a week. how one town is dealing with the outrage over the power outage. that story is next. my cream is what makes stouffer's fettuccini alfredo so delicious. my peppers and broccoli... they really make the dish. cream is really what makes it. i think you'll find it's the vegetables. the crunch... the texture. deliciously rich. delicious. fantastic! flavorful. 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[ bell dings ] [ car door closes ] ♪ are you okay? yeah, i'm okay. and the truck? i got good news for you, kid. you're getting a new truck. what do you mean? i mean it's gonna cost more to fix than it's worth. besides, the truck's older than you. grab your stuff out of the truck and meet me up front. ♪ ♪ just fix it. ♪ it has been nearly a week since irene tore the east coast. hundreds of thousands of people still have no power in the region. that is six days in the dark. we're being told power could be restored this weekend, next week or in some areas in a couple of weeks. as many desperate residents demanding answers about the delays. this is the scene in ridge field, connecticut. these pictures were sent by a resident who we will speak with in a moment. 44% of the town still without power. in fact, the situation angered so many residents in the state, a local lawmaker is calling for an investigation into the connecticut light and power's response. residents are being told it could take until next wednesday, if not longer before power is fully restored. it's much worse even in other towns. joyce jaffey is one of the frustrated residents. she joins us with a couple of her kids there, as well as the rudy marconi from ridgefield, connecticut. joyce, let me start with you. you're only able to skype with us because you got power restored early this morning. congratulations. tell us what the past few days have been like. >> really hard. we've had to bring buckets of water up from the pond to flush the toilet, to do dishes, to do laundry go into town for showers. thank goodness the shelters are there and we really appreciate all the volunteers that have helped out. they've allowed snacksment some businesses allowed us to get water and fill our jugs from them and charge cell phones. it's really hard work. it takes up a lot of time. certainly, drains energy. of course, the kids were a bit bored and had to make do. it was a different kind of life. that's for sure. >> as we look at the pictures you sent us, i guess it was a family bonding experience. from what i understand, you lived on your deck for about a week? >> as much as we could. the house is very, very dark. we wanted to take advantage of the better weather and the daylight as long as possible. because we were living primarily with candles and they're kind of dangerous between the pets and the kids. so we kind of stayed out, went inside when it was time to go to bed. >> let me bring in rudy marconi. rudy, why did it take so long to get the power back on there? >> that's the question. one reason why state representative john fry called for an investigation. we went dark on sunday evening and a 100% power loss. here we are on the fifth day, just now today we have 32 crews in town. it has taken five days for the power company here to ramp up to get enough crews to connecticut. to our particular town. i think one of the reasons for this is the severity of the storm in the large geographical area that was covered. we need to keep in mind that the storm hit land in north carolina, came entirely up the east coast wreaking damage throughout its path. and as it left, each individual area, those towns, those states began calling in outside resources. by the time it left connecticut, most of our normal resource -- outside resources were already gone. now we had cast a much larger net out into the west even as far away as british columbia. >> do you think, though, this wait is okay? i mean, is this understandable and expected in i mean, you had crews from denver coming in to help. >> denver, right. we had trucks that arrived yet afternoon from denver, colorado. >> is that okay? >> absolutely not. you know, interestingly enough, there was a press release today that said that the power company that we have here, connecticut light and power, was thinking of asking for a rate increase to cover for the damages caused by the storm to their infrastructure. this is at a time when people haven't even had power restored. that is really not right. it fully infuriates everyone. to the rest of the country, it may look as though the damage here is minimal. okay, we lost our power, poor connecticut. believe me, we're thankful for that. the amount of money that's been lost with business interruption, the economics, you know we're in a recession or some people think we're out of it. this is as tough as it is. when people lose three, a week's worth of work, that's not good. >> rudy, let me -- >> go ahead. >> let me stop you there. i want to get joyce's reaction to the delay of the power company trying to get that power back on. >> yes. i agree with rudy. i think we really saw a big surge just yesterday. maybe a little bit on wednesday. you know, it's hard. i want to be certainly appreciative. there have been so many members of our community that have come together, done the best they could. but specific to restoring power, it did seem as though where were the trucks, what's kind of going on? and it did seem like quite the delay. >> all right. we're going to have to leave it there, i'm sorry. i want to share with our viewers, we got a statement from connecticut light and pour. they told us that the storm damage was unprecedented. irene affected every one of the 149 towns and cities in connecticut that we serve. we continue to move additional resources into the ridgefield area. the eastern part of the state and along the shoreline. the three hardest hit areas of the state. there's still plenty of work to be done and we know customers are frustrated. but we're committed to getting everything completed as quickly and safely as possible. that's from connecticut power and light. we want to thank joyce jaffe and rudy marconi for their time as well. thank you both. good luck. dr. maya angelou isn't happy with the new mlk monument. she'll join us live, next to explain exactly why. martin luther king, jr. memorial in washington, d.c. all started with a dream and a mission to honor the civil rights leader and to inspire a nation to continue his mission. now 27 years after the idea formed, a massive 30-foot granite statue stands tall over the national mall. it took more than 15 years and $10 million to create the -- dr. maya angelou, a friend of the king's, was consulted during the construction. as much as she's happy the statue is in place, she's disappointed about one specific aspect of the memorial and that is the inscription. it reads" i was a drum major for justice, peace and righteousness. but dr. angelou says it was taken out of context. here is the actual statement martin luther king, jr. made on february 4th, 1968, two months before he was assassinated. if you want to say that i was a drum major, say that i was a drum major for justice. say that i was a drum major for peace. i was a drum major for righteousness and all of the other shallow things will not matter. dr. maya angelou joins us now to talk about the inscription. dr. angelou, thank you so much for joining us today. i want to make sure you had the chance to explain what bothers you most about the quote on the monument. >> thank you, ms. kaye. the first -- i don't want to be a whipping boy for the architect and the sculptor who have done wonderful work. i just think, however, as a men tea, and a friend that his statement, when taken out of context, loses the intrinsic nature of the man. you see, a man's speech is the mirror of his soul. and what dr. king said was you want to say this. you would never say i was a drum major for justice. he was much more humble a man than that. he was much more a -- he had no modesty -- modesty is a learn application. it's like decals stuck on. dr. king was truly humble. he was a man of god. he stood in god's hands and said the best he could say about the human being. and so i think that when a people have been denigrated and historically made less than human by the powers that obtained, it is important for them to have a hero who is not tarnished by ego tichl or self-gran diesment. he really was who he said he was, which was a man of god. and a man of peace. everything he said, every speech, every action, whether it was going to jail, whether it was being bombed -- having his home firebombed. everything he said was having peace, not just for blacks but for white and asians and spanish speaking. it is important that we know the man. >> so from what i understand, this is because it was originally supposed to be on the other side of the monument where they had more room and then they wanted to move the inscription so they shortened it in order to fit it. do you think that it should be recarved or possibly moved or do you think it's too late? >> if it could be, that would be wonderful. i know, however, that the trying to find civil rights, human rights for everybody that that is a work in process. so it's not -- it wouldn't, i don't expect that the artist would go back and go to work with machinery and recast the statement. it would be wonderful if they could because the true man would be seen. but if they can't, i can say what i have to say what i miss about the statement and the work. and the artists have their rights, too. i don't want to make this a tempest in a teapot. it was much more important to have the words there than to have everything exactly as we would like it to be. >> do you think then that the monument truly honors him? >> it certainly does honor him. it certainly does. not to the degree that he should be honored. we should have the statement so that young men and women who come in this week and next week and in 20 years and see the monument and read the statement and say, a-ha that's who he was. we don't do that exactly. not with the statement as it now obtains. >> we'll continue to follow it and see if any changes are made. dr. maya angelou, we certainly thank you for your time on the telephone with us today. we appreciate that. tomorrow, the university of alabama football team plays its first game since that devastating tornado hit the city of tuscaloosa. can the new season help the community heal? we'll go live to the university of alabama campus, next. one a day men's 50+ advantage. it's the only complete multivitamin with ginkgo to support memory and concentration. plus it supports heart health. [ bat cracks ] that's a hit. one a day men's. whether it can be done safely and responsibly. at exxonmobil we know the answer is yes. when we design any well, the groundwater's protected by multiple layers of steel and cement. most wells are over a mile and a half deep so there's a tremendous amount of protective rock between the fracking operation and the groundwater. natural gas is critical to our future. at exxonmobil we recognize the challenges and how important it is to do this right. alabama in april, the university of alabama campus was mostly spared, but much of the community surrounding the university was devastated since the storm university students have helped with recovery efforts. many believe that when the alabama football team gets back on to the field on saturday, it will go a long way in helping people get back to normal, to help take the pulse of the city. reynolds wolf joining us from tuscaloosa on the alabama campus. reynolds, you covered this story for cnn in the spring. how much progress do you think has been made in the recovery effort? >> reporter: oh, a lot. quite a bit. certainly, you've had a lot of people in the area, the region that have come together to help put the city back together. the thing is, although the campus was spared much of the damage from the tornado that went through. there is no doubt a part of that path of the tornado, the twister pushed through tuscaloosa and other part of the state is still left there. certainly a emptiness and there's been an emptiness in the spirit of some of the people and the students an the players here at the university of alabama. this is much needed. you have to have salt with pepper. you have to have peanut butter with jelly. in alabama, you have to have football with your yufrmt plain and simple, a lot of the students came through for everyone to tee it up. >> it means a lot to everybody on campus. it shows everything, we're coming back together. everybody in one place. rooting on our team. it's important to everybody here. >> i think that it means a return to just normal and -- because this whole community has been so upset over this tornado. you're getting back to plain old, let's get back to normal. lets take our mind off rebuilding for a second and let's get back to rooting on the football. >> reporter: to be honest with you, this contest. randi, won't be much of a contest. the crimson tide are favored. they're playing kent state, not known as a major powerhouse, but should be a decent game all the same. although it kent state is working very hard to play the game, it seems as though the coaches and players are also working hard at being good people. good americans. they've been out actually helping in the people, helping the crimson tide here in tuscaloosa rebuild parts of the community. although they'll be in the stadium tomorrow, they're reaching out hand in hand to try to help everyone in the community. >> all right. reynolds wolf there in alabama. reynolds, thank you very much. he was shot in class allegedly for being openly gay. now a jury tries to sort through the shocking murder case. details, next. 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[ female announcer ] phillips' colon health. try capzasin-hp. it penetrates deep to block pain signals for hours of relief. capzasin-hp. take the pain out of arthritis. it's time to catch up on news you may have missed. look at the dow. it's down about 255 points. it's been down real by 200 all day. mainly in reaction to the august jobs report. turns out the economy did not add a sing is will new job, not a single new job create north dakota august. tropical storm lee could bring 10 to 20 inches of rain to part of the gulf coast. tropical storm warnings in effect from pascagoula, mississippi to texas. because lee is moving so quickly, so slowly, actually and the waters in the gulf are so warm, it could become a hurricane before it hits land. america's employers added no new jobs. the unemployment rate remains at 9.1%. it sent stocks plunging in europe. the president is expected to give a speech. the report is further indication of failed economic policies. grammy winning rapper, t.i., clifford harris, was released from federal prison in arkansas on wednesday. he was expected to spend last weeks of his remaining 11-month sentence at a halfway house in atlanta which is one day after being released. prison officials removed the rapper from the pa silt. apparently over his choice of transportation. t.i. agreed to provide his own transportation to the halfway house but decided to use his personal tour bus to get there. officials are viewing if riding in the tour bus violated his furlough agreement. as of now, harris is back in prison and they're probing the transportation issue. a california judge declares a mistrial thursday after jurors were deadlocked in the murder trial of a teenager accused of gunning down a gay classmate. lawrence king, 15, was shot in the back of his head in english class back in 2008. friends said king was proud of being openly gay and liked wearing jewelry and makeup to school. his classmate, now 17, but was 14 at the time of the shooting, allegedly shot king twice while both were typing papers in a computer lab. mcnorthwestern i was tried as an adult. ktla reported that he taunted and flirted with him ultimately sparking that fatal confrontation. look at this. an alter indication on a high school football field and a fully padded student charges the referee, knocks him to the ground there and you see the coaches join in and attack the referee. you see it here. they're kicking the man while he's down. onlookers, rushed in to help the ref. it continues for several minutes. the ref was able to runoff the field. the sheriff's office is investigating. charges, no doubt, are expected. famine in somalia. david mckenzie will join me in studio. he's covering the crisis in somalia and the threat from al shah bab. we'll be right back. al shabaa . the head of the u.n. agency for refugees has a dire prediction about somalia. he says the famine will only get worse. the u.n. has declared famine in five zones in southern somalia where the al qaeda affiliate al shabaab will not be allowed to deliver aid there. we went outside the wire where he found the crisis is in full swing amid the threat of this al shabaab. he joins us now. they're not letting the aid, right, this group is not letting the aid get delivered? >> in a large part, they aren't, randi. basically what's happening is this sort of zone around the famine areas where aid agencies are trying to assist people getting food, getting shelter, the basic stuff to survive. but inside some of the al shabaab controlled areas in the countryside, they're not allowing in big assistance, there's a lot of american food aid sitting in mogadishu to get out into the zones. al shabaab is not letting them. we went to the area and into mogadishu free from al shabaab. we saw that this crisis is not at all over. moving outside the wire in the safety of the peacekeeping base to battle scarred mogadishu. african union soldiers pushed al shabaab out of the capital. >> that now is broken. but alongside that, we have tactics -- terrorism. because these are civilians dressed like you are, and they -- when human beings decide to turn themselves into -- >> attacks like ied explosions are on the rise. so peacekeepers are trying to plug the security holes and protect civilians who have fled to the city by the thousands. >> two weeks ago, there was absolutely nothing on the sand dune. now it's crowded with hundreds of people. they were escaping but drought and fighting and the conditions are terrible. what they left was worst. for years, these men put up with al shabaab's strict law. >> they give them the right. >> despite the extreme conditions in al shabaab, at least they are livelihood. >> when the drought hit, shabaab started taking livestock and food to survive. now all they can hope for is handouts. private tragedies happen here every day. >> i walked for 15 days to escape drought and fighting, says sara. she was nine months pregnant with twins that escaped bandits as they walked. the twins were born last night, she says. one died before dawn. the other died just before we met her. she doesn't have the money to bury her. >> those are such awful conditions there. what, if anything, can the u.n. or the u.s. or anybody do to try and get the aid to those people? >> they can bring aid to mogadishu which is free from al shabaab. you don't want people leaving their homes and fleeing somewhere just to get aid. the best situation will be kind of a wholesale access to this area's controlled by al shabaab and many security analysts because this is a security issue that americans particularly and europeans need to worry about their link to al qaeda. this could be their next wave of terror out of somalia. the other thing that needs to happen, they need to make gains outside of the capital and the forces, the african forces really need more troops and more money and assistance to solidify the gains that they've made in the past months. >> how hot was it there? i look at the number of people in that camp. those conditions are just horrific. >> when you see the place where they're living, next to other, crowd of humanity right next to each other. that's not even natural for somalis sult rally. they often -- the places i'm been many times in so will mal yoe then 10, 15 feet down the road, another place where someone is living. they're doing that for safety. it's a terrible situation for them. they crowded together like that so they can be safe. that's the only reason they're liked crammed together in these sort of little hut that is are about as big as where you and i are sitting. >> they have no idea when it's going to end yet they still have hope? >> they do have some hope. there is a sense for many somalis that the days of al shabaab have ended. over time, a while back, some people supported al shabaab because they brought some securities to their areas. it's interesting the shift in people that i've met and spoken to have said. now that this -- they've been targeted their livelihoods, the cows, the cattle, the things they depend on, they're fed up with this group. they say what they need is sort of long-term solutions. not just a handout when there's a drought. >> david mckenzie, we don't often get to have you here in studio. it's nice to see you. thank you. unfortunate disasters like irene occur all over the world. this week's cnn hero is standing by to help victims. 77-year-old wilma melville and her search dog organization have helped save lives at every major disaster for the past 15 years. take a look at her work. >> when the oklahoma city bombing happened, i saw the size of that building on television. i had a hobby of learning to train a disaster search dog. i was deployed to oklahoma city. i did wonder, can we really do this? can we really find live people? when i got home, i said, what is this nation doing with approximately 15 fema certified dogs? this one building alone requires far more than 15. >> my name is weilma, melville. our organization trains rescue dogs and firefighter handlers to save lives after a disaster. right turn. we like to use shelter dogs. >> it's a humane thing to do. there is nothing better than a dog's nose to find a live human. [ barking ] >> we've been to the world trade center, japan, joplin, missouri, and haiti. >> in haiti, on our fourth day there, we made contact with a ten-year-old girl. we would ask her to acknowledge us with a tap. around the sixth or seventh hour she stopped tapping. >> finding live people is our goal. but providing hope for the onlooker and a place to begin work for the firefighter, those are meaningful, meaningful objectives. >> by partnering shelter dogs with firefighters, wilma and her organization have trained 131 rescue teams for free. you can learn much more about the search dog foundation or maybe even make a donation at cnn heroes.com and be sure to join the conversation on cnn heroes facebook and twitter pages as well. firefighters who got cancer after working at ground zero have been struggling to prove their is a link so they can get insurance coverage. now, a new study gives them more scientific evidence. we were so blessed when we had triplets. if by blessed you mean freaked out about money. well, we suddenly noticed that everything was getting more expensive, so we switched to the bargain detergent, but i found myself using three times more than you're supposed to and the clothes still weren't as clean as with tide. so we're back to tide. they're cuter in clean clothes. 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visit sprintrelay.com. some of the firefighters got cancer after 9/11. they've been fight to go prove their cancer was no coincidence ever since. now a cnn medical correspondent, dr. sanjay gupta reports, those responders have no ammunition for their fight. >> this is on the real issue here is the connection between the dust and cancer. it's been an unresolved issue for some time. other problems such as respiratory problems have been well-studied, but people have been back and forth on the cancer issue. the lead-off on the study said there was a 19% increase, likelihood of cancer if someone was a member of the fire department of new york or first responder. i talked to him in advance of this embargo being lifted. >> as we see cancers, we warrant to answer their question. is cancer increased? i have to tell you my initial bias for the next 10 or 15 years we would not see an increase. that's another reason why the findings are so strong. i actually thought we would find the opposite. >> you were surprised? >> very much so. whether we can say that cancer has increased in other responders or area residents, we have no idea. this is a study about firefighters. their exposure is so unique. 85% of the exposed were present in the first 48 hours of the collapse when the exposure was massive. that is a very unique exposure. >> for firefighters watching, they have the lingering question. why did i get this cancer and was it related to the dust? you would say what? >> for most instances it was world trade center related. >> very powerful there. when you listen to him. saying that most of the cancers in these patients was world trade center related. couple of caveats quickly. ten years is still a short time in the world of science. can take a while for cancers to develop. they would like to see 15, 20, 30-year studies. as mentioned, this study was only of fire department workers who were first responders. you can't generalize to other people in lower manhattan or other first responders. the theory is the dust can get into the system, cause respiratory problems, which is well-study and cause inflammation which potentially be the genesis of the many different types of cancer which the doctor saw. it's a controversial issue and still unsettled obviously. in july of had year, there was no connection between cancer and dust. this study may change that debate so stay tuned to see what happens. back to you. >> and you can see dr. gupta's full investigation of the health fall kraut from 9/11 and also rare never before scene, terror in the dust airs wednesday at 11 p.m. eastern. up next, a vietnam vet who plans to be the oldest college football player ever. he is 61. you have to stick around to meet him. where do you go to find a super business? you know, the ones who do a super job? superpages.com®. for local maps, reviews and videos & it's the only local search site with the superguarantee®. so next time, let the good guys save the day. get the superguarantee®, only at superpages®. in the book, on your phone or at superpages.com®. if something is simply the color of gold, is it really worth more? we don't think so. chase sapphire preferred is a card of a different color. unlike others, you get twice the points on travel, and twice the points on dining, and no foreign transaction fees. call now or apply at chasesapphire.com/preferred. my next guest is kick-starting a new career. allen moore is a place-kicker on o the football team. what's the amazing part? well, he's a vietnam vet who hasn't been to college since 1968 and did i mention, he's 61 years old? that's right. he is the place-kicker for the fighting eagles of faulkner university. a small christian university in alabama. well, some 61-year-olds minds might turn to retiring, he's going to become the oldest college football player ever. his first game is next saturday. allen joins us from montgomery via skype. allen, thank you so much for joining us. tell us how you got where you are today. you started college more than 40 years ago, before heading to vietnam for an 11-month tour. look at you now. >> i went to junior college in 1968, won the national championship. i went to vietnam, came back, got married. raised a family and fast forward it to 2009. was talking to some people i knew at a ball game and i kind of suggested that i could go back to play. just developed from there. wound up at holmes community college in 2010 and faulkner university in 2011. >> so you're 61 years old. you're going back to college to play football. how does this feel? >> well, it feels good. it's exciting. it's humbling when you get around to these 18, 19-year-old kids, though. >> can you keep up with them? >> of course i can keep up with them. >> tell me about your training with them. >> well, they're pretty lenient on me. i don't have to do all the sprints and weightlifting and things that they have to do. that's the real good thing. but they accept that. >> why did you want to go back to football and college? >> the only reason i can figure out why i wanted to do it is because i could do it. it wasn't like an easy thing to get here. but there was a lot of roads we had to cross and it was okay. i mean, it was because i could kick. i wanted to come back and kick, see if i could do it here. >> tell me how your family feels about this. are they helping you train and get ready? >> it's not a whole lot of training to do. i mean, it's not -- it's like stretching exercises. everything at 61 is pretty much stretch to the limit. >> i understand your daughter is helping you? >> oh, yeah. they do. i have three daughters. they've all been very, very supportive of it. the grandkids been very supportive. you know, they've all really proud of it. >> did your daughter set up a goalpost to help you practice? do i have that right? >> well, she didn't really set it up. she just allowed me to put it in her yard. she gave me permission to put it in her yard. >> it was out -- go ahead. >> i was just curious what your major is going to be. >> liberal arts. >> should i ask you what you want to do when you get out of college? >> i want -- i'd like to may with my grandkids, hang around with them, do things like that. i really don't want to work anymore. >> i'm sure. do you find that you're an inspiration to those who look at you and say, hey, he's 61, he's going back to college following his dream, i can do the same thing? >> you know, everybody asks me about my education and things. i've never considered this to be an alan moore thing. i've always said it's not a me thing. it's a we thing. when people express the educational part on my behalf, it seems like it's putting too much focus on me because even if i get a degree at 62 or 63 or 64 or whatever it is, that degree is not going to help me that much. i think the most important thing is that that -- if i can tell these kids and convince the kids that are here on faulkner university that they not give up on their education today, that would be the most important thing to mentor them and make sure that they get their education now and not give up on it. because i think that they're the generation that will be running our country. >> sure. >> the next few years. all my grandkids growing up. i think their education and them not giving up on the education is much more important than alan moore. >> alan moore, well said. 61-year-old kicker now for montgomery, alabama. that's where you're joining us from. thank you so much. we'll take a break here. we'll be right back. r own price. i find empty hotel rooms and help people save - >> - up to 60% off. i am familiar. your name? 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[ bat cracks ] that's a hit. one a day men's. i'm glad you're able to join us this afternoon. that will do it for me. newsroom continues with brooke newsroom continues with brooke baldwin.