(CNN Student News) -- November 19, 2008
Quick Guide
Dangerous Waters - Examine the dangers faced by ships passing through pirate-infested waters.
Transition of Power - Consider how partisan politics could challenge President-elect Barack Obama.
One Tough Teen - See how a teenage martial artist is mastering the discipline without feet.
Transcript
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CARL AZUZ, CNN STUDENT NEWS ANCHOR: Danger on the high seas, taking on party politics, and an eco-friendly workout. We're covering all of it in today's edition of CNN Student News.
AZUZ: First up, hijackings near the Horn of Africa, where piracy, of all things, is on the rise. Yesterday, a cargo ship was attacked off the coast of Somalia. This just days after the capture of the Sirius Star; that's a Saudi Arabian oil tanker about the size of a U.S. aircraft carrier. Experts believe it's the largest vessel ever seized by pirates, but it's just one of the dozens of ships hijacked this year. Alphonso Van Marsh examines the danger facing sailors as they pass through the waters where these attacks are taking place.
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ALPHONSO VAN MARSH: Jack Sparrow in The Pirates of the Caribbean; Captain Hook in The Adventures of Peter Pan. That's the image of pirates in popular culture. But for sailors navigating the Horn of Africa, piracy on the high seas is no laughing matter.
PETER HINCHLIFFE, INTERNATIONAL CHAMBER OF SHIPPING: What we are dealing with here are armed criminal gangs who are working for war lords in Somalia.
VAN MARSH: Armed pirates holding ships and their sailors hostage for ransom has reached unprecedented levels. In the wake of the hijacking of the Saudi supertanker, the U.S. military is warning shipping companies to do more to protect themselves. The idea of hiring armed security firms, like those protecting clients in Iraq, is something shipping companies say they're loath to do.
NIALL BURNS, SHIPPING SECURITY EXPERT: Insurance premiums will go up if you have to put armed personnel onboard ship, because then the risk goes up.
VAN MARSH: And the International Chamber of Shipping says carrying weapons is inappropriate.
HINCHLIFFE: Some flag states will not allow crews on ships flying their flags to carry arms. And perhaps even more restrictive is the fact that some ports will not allow crews in if there are small arms on the ship.
VAN MARSH: Shipping experts say most crews prefer to be known as unarmed sea merchants, so they can do little more than dispatch more lookouts at night, use firehoses to keep pirates at bay, or improve engine speeds to out-run them. Pirates are targeting three types of ships: oil tankers, like the Saudi vessel hijacked earlier this week; container ships delivering household goods to your favorite shopping mall; and bulk cargo ships full of raw products like coal, or military equipment like tanks. But it's the ship and its sailors that are the most valuable treasure. And where ships traditionally sail through the Suez Canal and into the Gulf, now some shipping companies say it may be safer for those boats to actually work this way: sailing down the east coast of Africa and around the Cape of Good Hope; though that didn't help the Saudi supertanker. And that would add weeks to shipping deliveries and drive up costs. Shipping experts say better coordinated military escorts are a temporary solution to the pirate problem. Until then, perhaps the best crews can do is batten down the hatches and hope for safe passage. Alphonso Van Marsh, CNN, London.
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Word to the Wise
ERIC GERSHON, CNN STUDENT NEWS: A word to the wise...
partisan (adjective) loyal or devoted to a particular party or cause
source: www.dictionary.com
AZUZ: You hear a lot of talk about partisanship when it comes to politics; Republicans and Democrats being loyal to their own parties and opposing the other. As Carol Costello explains, bringing those groups together can be a challenge, and it's one that's facing President-elect Barack Obama.
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CAROL COSTELLO, CNN REPORTER: Don't know if you caught it, but a line in Barack Obama's victory speech was similar to a line uttered by George W. Bush after he won.
U.S. PRESIDENT-ELECT BARACK OBAMA: I may have not won your vote.
U.S. PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH: I will need your support.
OBAMA: I need your help.
BUSH: I will do all I can do to deserve trust.
COSTELLO: Both men, in victory, promising to be president to everyone, Democrat, Independent and Republican. But today, America is more partisan than ever. So, Mr. President-elect, how to keep that promise?
FORMER SEN. BOB GRAHAM (D): I hope that President Obama has picked up the phone on more than one occasion and talked to John McCain.
COSTELLO: And President-elect Obama has reached out to John McCain, inviting him to talk face-to-face. But former Senator Graham says that's not enough. Interaction between the two ought to be consistent. That way, McCain will be more willing to persuade Republicans to work with Obama on issues like global warming and alternative energy ideas. And, he says, reaching out consistently to McCain and other Republican rivals will demonstrate respect for the other side, something certainly not on display in today's Congress.
REP. JOHN BOEHNER, (R) OHIO: This is a boneheaded idea.
U.S. VICE PRESIDENT-ELECT JOE BIDEN: This is brain dead.
REP. JOHN MURTHA, (D) PENNSYLVANIA: Standing here doesn't solve the problem.
BIDEN: Stop this. Stop this. Stop this.
COSTELLO: Both Democrats and Republicans say it's vital that civility returns to Capitol Hill. Some say the president-elect can do that if he finds a way to be centrist without alienating his liberal base.
FORMER CONGRESSWOMAN SUSAN MOLINARI (R): He has to rule from the center and take leadership positions from the center so he can make this nation and our elected officials feel comfortable that he can, in fact, bring parties together on some very difficult issues.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
Lost in Space
AZUZ: NASA's keeping a close eye on a situation outside the international space station: A runaway tool bag! It was last seen leaving an astronaut's hands during a space walk yesterday. Oh, oh, awwww! Come back! The identified floating object took off while the astronaut was trying to clean up the mess from a leaky grease gun, although this probably isn't what she had in mind.
People Power
AZUZ: Switching it up now, a gym owner in Oregon isn't looking to change the world, but he has worked out a way to help the environment. He's keeping his clients and his costs in shape by using one to help the other! Judy Fortin hits the gym.
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JUDY FORTIN, CNN REPORTER: If you're going to work up a sweat riding an exercise bike, why not capture the energy and turn it into electricity? That's one of the concepts being tested at The Green Microgym in Portland, Oregon.
ADAM BOESEL, THE GREEN MICROGYM: We're seeing if we can create as much electricity as the gym uses every day. And we're doing that by combining solar power and human power.
FORTIN: Gym owner Adam Boesel retrofitted some of the workout equipment with special motors that convert extra energy into electricity, which is then stored in special batteries and used to power other machines.
BOESEL: We're not going to power the community or solve the energy crisis, but there is energy there that you can get.
FORTIN: Boesel didn't stop there. He purchased energy efficient treadmills, ceiling fans and fluorescent lights, and he says his customers know their priorities.
BOESEL: Getting a good workout is the first thing. And saving the earth or helping power the gym, or whatever, I think it does add a little bit of motivation for people.
FORTIN: The concept seems to be catching on. His business opened three months ago, and already he has 100 members. I'm Judy Fortin.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
Shoutout
GERSHON: Time for the Shoutout! Which of these Japanese words means "empty hand"? If you think you know it, shout it out! Is it: A) Origami, B) Karate, C) Arigato or D) Sashimi? You've got three seconds -- GO! Karate is a method of defending yourself without weapons, or being "empty handed." That's your answer and that's your Shoutout!
AZUZ: If you've ever taken karate, or seen any movies about it, you know it's all about using your hands and feet in self-defense. But one teenage martial artist is mastering the discipline, and she's doing it without everything you've got. Del Rodgers of affiliate KCRA in Granite Bay, California has the details.
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DEL RODGERS, KCRA REPORTER: After seven years of concentration, training and dedication, Kate Wilmarth has earned a second-degree black belt in karate, and she's only 14 years old.
KATE WILMARTH, SECOND-DEGREE BLACK BELT: When I was in first grade, I did a talent show and I also play piano. So, I was doing a piano performance, and there was about three karate performances. And I really like it, so I decided to start karate.
RODGERS: And while a second-degree black belt may or may not impress you, let me add this: Kate Wilmarth has accomplished her feat without feet.
KATE WILMARTH: Well, I pretty much had an infection that took effect when I was four days old, and I almost died and I lost my feet. And so the part of my feet that are missing died and had to be amputated.
STEPHEN WILMARTH, KATE'S FATHER: The most important issue here was the attitude of the parents. If the parents saw this as a disability and was very negative about it, the kid would have difficulty adapting. But if you just accepted it as this is the way she is, then it would work out fine.
RODGERS: And it has. Kate has turned her disability into a positive thing, not only for herself, but for other kids at her karate school.
MARK CASWELL, INSTRUCTOR: The desire is there. The goal setting is there. She's working real hard to get that squared away and sharing that with our other children.
KATE WILMARTH: It makes me feel better about myself, with how far I've gotten with my problem, 'cause it makes me happier to know that it's ok if I'm not able to do those things, because I can't do everything that everyone else can do.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
Goodbye
AZUZ: Great story. That's where we step off the mat for now. We'll see you again tomorrow.
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