[Nguyen:] All right, you've got to check out this week in our "Wows of the Week." This video is amazing. A meteor about the size of a washing machine recently lit up the sky over southwestern Australia. Show that again. It's lucky someone had a video camera there it is...
[Harris:] Man!
[Nguyen:] ... at just that moment. Witnesses say the sonic boom was an impressive, just as impressive as the dazzling entry. That is really a sight to be seen. So where does a 700 pound black bear hibernate? The answer, anywhere it wants, within reason, that is. Underneath a porch in Pennsylvania was not considered suitable winter digs. So, the experts were summoned to tranquilize the Bruin and relocate him someplace more bear friendly. And you may have seen this awesome Christmas lights display. And we say lights display because look at them, there's so many of them. And it's even set to music. You were talking about this earlier, Tony. The Mason, Ohio home has been all over the Internet and television. Just listen.
[Harris:] Yes, listen.
[Nguyen:] There's some techno Christmas music going on right there.
[Harris:] Yes.
[Nguyen:] Sadly, though, it's become a victim of its own success. The owner has pulled the plug on this year's extravaganza.
[Harris:] Why?
[Nguyen:] Well, the answer traffic became dangerously congested and his electricity bill went through the roof, of course.
[Harris:] Yes. I thought this was some Mannheim Steamroller music, but it's not.
[Nguyen:] What is that?
[Harris:] Well, Glenn knows. One of our writers on the morning show knows and he'll let me know. But it's that techno kind of thing.
[Nguyen:] Yes.
[Harris:] But it's all synced up to the music and it was beautiful. There was just too much traffic, too much mayhem and chaos.
[Nguyen:] You know how people are. They want to get in the car...
[Harris:] That was great.
[Nguyen:] ... see the Christmas lights. I've done it myself. And then you're stuck going great, can I get to the next house already?
[Harris:] Well, here's the thing, if you were in your car thinking about it this morning trying to get to one of the malls in the Northeast, good luck.
[Huffines:] Forget about it.
[Harris:] Good luck.
[Huffines:] Not.
[Harris:] Brad Huffines in the CNN Weather Center for us this morning good morning, Brad.
[Huffines:] Guys, seeing this kind of stuff...
[Harris:] Yes?
[Huffines:] ... makes me not want to put up any Christmas lights.
[Nguyen:] Really?
[Huffines:] Yes.
[Nguyen:] Oh, come on, get in the spirit.
[Huffines:] None. No, the best I can do is like a third of that.
[Nguyen:] Oh, I know, really. I can barely put a wreath out, you know?
[Harris:] Simple is best, though, Brad.
[Huffines:] My wife is smart though, and doesn't let me on a ladder above my knees. Very smart.
[Harris:] Here's our e-mail question this morning. What do you use, Happy Holidays or Merry Christmas? This from Laura, who writes: "I think that being offended by hearing the phrase Merry Christmas is ridiculous. Anyone that has that much time on their hands to pick this apart should volunteer that time to a charity in their community instead of making a big deal out of nothing."
[Nguyen:] Well, Brian Dill says: "You can't take Christ out of Christmas. Merry Christmas, though," he does say. That's from Brian Dill.
[Harris:] What is this? This is from Eldon from Indiana: "No one is required to celebrate Christmas. If this holiday offends someone, they are free to ignore it or move to a country that does not celebrate it." That's it, get out of the country. If you don't like it, get out of the country. All right, that's the question of the day. More of your responses the next hour. As a matter of fact, the next hour...
[Nguyen:] Right now.
[Harris:] Now in the news, just 15 minutes ago in Oslo, Norway, the Nobel Peace Prize is formally awarded to Mohamed ElBaradei, chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency. ElBaradei says winning the prestigious prize boosts the agency's credibility and authority worldwide. Later today, the Nobel Prizes in literature, medicine, physics, chemistry and economics will be awarded. Today is the deadline set by kidnappers to kill four Western hostages. The captors are demanding that U.S. and Iraqi authorities release all their prisoners. Iraq's interior minister says it's had no contact with the kidnappers today and has no information on the fate of the hostages. America's peace mom is across the pond today at an antiwar conference in London. Cindy Sheehan said her heart goes out to the four humanitarian workers abducted in Iraq. She urged the kidnappers to rise above violence and let them go. She has taken part in a series of war protests in Britain. Snow up to a foot deep spreads across the Northeast. Snowplows and shovels will be used throughout the day as people try to dig out. Power company crews will also be getting plenty of overtime, as the storm knocked out electricity to tens of thousands of customers.
[Nguyen:] California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is still considering the fate of Stanley "Tookie" Williams. Will his life be spared? The debate rages on as we await the answer. From the CNN Center, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING, December 10. Good morning, everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen.
[Harris:] And good morning. I'm Tony Harris. Thank you for being with us.
[Nguyen:] There is a bird flu readiness test at the White House this morning. Want to talk about that for a little bit. A virus infecting millions of birds has already spread through Asia and parts of Europe. Now government planners have been working under a worst- case assumption on the number of U.S. infections and deaths. The simulated exercise is expected to get underway at this hour. And CNN's Kathleen Koch joins us now live to explain exactly how this is going to work. This a tabletop exercise, correct, Kathleen?
[Kathleen Koch, Cnn Correspondent:] Yes, Betty. And as you mentioned, it is supposed to be beginning right now, right around 8:00 a.m., lasts through noon. And it will be basically be a rehearsal of how every single branch of the federal government would respond if the pandemic began spreading across the United States. And a very few details, though, have been released, but we are told that when it is over, the homeland security adviser to the president, Fran Townsend, will come out and give us a report on how the drill went, what they learned, what they're going to be taking from it. Now, it was just Thursday that the top Republican in the Senate unveiled the Congressional Budget Office's evaluation of the impact that a pandemic would have on the United States.
[Sen. Bill Frist , Majority Leader:] The scenario suggests that a severe influenza pandemic would have an impact on the U.S. economy that is slightly larger than the typical recession, the average recession, experienced since World War II. It is huge.
[Koch:] Well, last month, President Bush announced that he would ask Congress for $7.1 billion in emergency funding for a possible flu pandemic. The Bush administration right now has begun stockpiling vaccine, and it wants to accelerate the development of technology to speed pharmaceutical companies' ability to make enough vaccine to protect each and every American. Though presidential aides do say that the White House doesn't think that there is an imminent threat of a pandemic, medical experts here in abroad do believe it is a matter of not if but when. So, Betty, the White House certainly wants to be ready.
[Nguyen:] That is definitely a frightening thought, and it's better to be ready than not. Kathleen, thank you for that. Of course, we're going to want to get more details on this as it occurs. Thank you. Well, chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta examines the potential threat of avian flu in a primetime special. CNN travels to Southeast Asia to explore the origins of bird flu in an hour-long special. That's going to air tomorrow at 10:00 p.m. Eastern right here on
[Cnn. Harris:] And Betty, Chicago commuters are being diverted around the intersection where a Southwest jet still sits this morning. A live is this a live picture, or are we turning tape around in the OK, live pictures. Crash investigators are expected to allow the plane to be moved later today, but say it could take a year before they know what caused the accident. The jet was landing in a snowstorm on Thursday when it slid off the end of the runway, killing a 6-year-old boy in a car on the ground. Interviews with witnesses also begin today. An attorney for the family explains what the boy's father saw.
[Ronald Stearney Woods, Family Attorney:] Joshua was a typical boy who interested in planes and trucks and that sort of thing. And the father was pointing out airplanes. And as they approached the field, or passing by the field, they heard the noise, the roar of some jet engines, and this noise continued to rise in volume until it was a deafening roar, and then, bang, the plane landed on top of the car.
[Harris:] We will continue to follow the investigation now to Chicago. And once again, let's see that live picture again. We will sort of monitor this picture to give you a look as it happens when... How strange that is. In the foreground, you see the bus... ... and then the it's a busy intersection, very near a residential neighborhood. Residential neighborhoods all around that area. We'll keep that shot up from WLS, our affiliate in Chicago. We're talking about high schools in the area, malls in the area, right on the Internet runway, and just beyond the retaining wall. We'll keep that picture up and let you see it for yourself if authorities try to move that plane.
[Nguyen:] They're expected to move that this morning, so we will be watching and bring that to you when it happens. All right, well, some of you may be snow lovers, but you know What? What is happening across the Northeast is down right nasty. Heavy snow and ice is blamed for knocking out the power to more than 150,000 utility customers in Massachusetts. Snow and high winds closed Boston's airport yesterday afternoon. Snowplows are out from Maryland all the way to Maine. A plow was even attached to an Amtrak train to clear the rails. Just think of that, so much snow in the area. The storm is also blamed for five fatal crashes in New Jersey, Connecticut, and New Hampshire. So what's next in this winter weather? Well, CNN's Brad Huffines has your forecast. That's going to be in about seven minutes. So stay tuned for that.
[Harris:] And officials in Ecuador have released airport surveillance video of a man believed to be Rigoberto Alpizar in the Qito airport. He was later fatally shot to death in Miami by a federal air marshal there. Authorities say he ran off the plane in Miami shouting that he had a bomb. Alpizar's wife, who was traveling with him, says he had a mental disorder, and had not taken his medication. The couple was returning to their Orlando-area home from a missionary trip in Ecuador. And tougher cell-phone restrictions for drivers could be just ahead in New Jersey. A bill has sailed through the state senate that would make talking while driving a primary offense. If it becomes law, police stop a motorist for talking on a cell phone while behind the wheel. And actor Matt Damon is a married man this morning. He and his girlfriend tied the knot yesterday in a small private ceremony at New York's City Hall. You notice I didn't try the name again. It happens to be the most popular story on CNN.com right now. Click on and check out the rest of the top stories.
[Nguyen:] Is it Luciana Bozan...
[Harris:] Ahhh.
[Nguyen:] ... Luciana?
[Harris:] Yes.
[Nguyen:] Anyway, she's a married just call her Mrs. Damon, why don't you?
[Harris:] There you go.
[Nguyen:] Well, the top choice facing Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, should Stanley "Tookie" Williams live or die? That debate does rage on, and we're going to take a closer look straight ahead.
[Huffines:] And your cold and flu report across the country does show some activity across the Great Lakes and across parts of the Northeast, as well as the Florida peninsula, portions of Texas also seeing a area where we're seeing the flu start to outbreak as well, and out West, we're also seeing the flu start to pop out across much of the Western states and across the Northern Plains and Alaska. Good news is, no local, regional, or widespread activity, but the nation's forecast may not be conducive to this little activity as well. We'll talk about that coming up in just a few minutes on CNN.