NBC Nightly News - 1999-07-06

Channel: malgent

Transcript

Language: English (original, YouTube automatic captions)

[0:00] on channel 4.

[0:05] >> Dangerously hot in much of America and

[0:07] new worries tonight about global warming

[0:09] and the oceans.

[0:12] In depth, the mind of a young killer

[0:14] from an affluent suburb to a racist

[0:16] killing spree. His views in his own

[0:19] words.

[0:20] Decision 2000. The Senate race the whole

[0:23] country is watching. a law and order

[0:25] mayor and the first lady and the

[0:29] promised land. Tens of thousands flock

[0:32] to Israel for the millennium. What do

[0:34] they think will happen?

[0:38] From NBC News world headquarters in New

[0:41] York. This is NBC Nightly News with Tom

[0:45] Bro.

[0:47] Good evening. It is supposed to be hot

[0:49] in July, but not this hot. It is

[0:52] dangerously hot and humid in the eastern

[0:54] United States, and that's draining power

[0:57] systems, threatening health, and pushing

[0:59] everyone a little closer to the edge. We

[1:02] have two reports tonight on the

[1:03] record-breaking heat and the health

[1:05] threat. We'll begin with NBC's Fred

[1:08] Francis.

[1:09] >> The Big Bake, a dangerous roasting that

[1:12] again today breaks records and blankets

[1:14] much of the East from New York to North

[1:16] Carolina.

[1:16] >> I'm trying to avoid the sun as much as I

[1:18] can, but it seems to follow me

[1:19] everywhere I go. New York Central Park,

[1:21] a new mark of 101°. And warnings

[1:25] nationwide for people to stay cool,

[1:27] drink water, anything to avoid more

[1:29] deaths like the four this heat wave has

[1:31] already caused. The nation's capital at

[1:35] 102 with a heat index the combination of

[1:38] temperature and humidity, a sweltering

[1:40] 110°.

[1:42] 7,000 kids sent home on the first day of

[1:44] their summer jobs program. It was not a

[1:47] day for relaxing outside unless you were

[1:49] earning a paycheck.

[1:51] >> We're only going to be up there for an

[1:52] hour, so it shouldn't be too bad.

[1:53] >> And with most people indoors for the

[1:55] third day of scorching weather, power

[1:57] supplies on the eastern seabboard taxed

[1:59] right to the edge of blackouts. All made

[2:02] more acute with the end of the

[2:03] Independence Day weekend and office

[2:06] building and factories drawing huge

[2:08] supplies off an already overburdened

[2:10] system. They are worried in Boston, too.

[2:13] >> It's the third day of a heat wave. We

[2:15] got a thriving economy that drives

[2:17] electricity demand up. We have more

[2:19] power available to us than we did a week

[2:21] ago, but the demand unfortunately is

[2:23] much higher, which is making it very,

[2:24] very tight.

[2:25] >> In Providence, Rhode Island, all city

[2:27] hall employees sent home when

[2:29] electricity is cut off to the building.

[2:31] And the heat has civil engineers

[2:33] cautious. Transportation departments are

[2:35] on standby everywhere for roadbuckling,

[2:38] called blowups. Literally small

[2:40] explosions of concrete on road surfaces.

[2:43] Why the danger? Concrete expands in the

[2:46] heat. And when temperatures go above

[2:48] 130°, as is common in this weather,

[2:51] something has to give. Still, concrete

[2:54] beats asphalt in this heat. That's why

[2:56] many bus stops have poured concrete. A

[2:59] heavy bus stops on asphalt will often

[3:01] sink. While experts say this heat

[3:04] emergency should ease in the next 12

[3:05] hours with a regular cold front on the

[3:08] way with 90° weather, those experts do

[3:11] warn the worst is yet to come. August is

[3:14] 3 weeks away. Fred Francis, NBC News,

[3:17] Washington.

[3:21] This is Bob Dodson in Atlanta, where

[3:23] most people think they know how to deal

[3:24] with hot weather. But here's what

[3:26] scientists say we don't know. Everyone

[3:29] is at risk, regardless of age. People

[3:31] who don't exercise are three times more

[3:34] likely to suffer heat related injuries.

[3:36] If they are also overweight, eight times

[3:38] as likely.

[3:39] >> A person who is in less physical

[3:41] condition would possibly suffer the

[3:43] effects at a at a lower temperature or

[3:45] in a more extreme manner.

[3:47] >> Two of the most important ways we

[3:48] regulate body temperature during heat

[3:50] waves are thirst and sweat. But doctors

[3:52] have found that older people don't get

[3:54] as thirsty as they once did, so they

[3:56] don't sweat as much. In part because

[3:58] some of the medications they take

[4:00] actually block the body's ability to

[4:02] cool off. Antihistamines, laxatives,

[4:05] diuretics, anti-depressants, beta

[4:08] blockers, antiarkinson drugs. But

[4:11] researchers have found that people who

[4:12] gradually acclimate themselves to the

[4:14] hot weather up to an hour a week outside

[4:16] away from the air conditioning have

[4:18] fewer heat related health problems.

[4:21] The single most effective safeguard,

[4:23] water. People outside need twice as much

[4:26] as on balmy days. At least a gallon.

[4:29] >> We do not have specific amounts that

[4:32] people should drink except that they

[4:34] should drink plenty of liquids as often

[4:36] as they as they can.

[4:37] >> I think I'm going to pass out. I need a

[4:39] nurse.

[4:39] >> How big a problem is heat? Doctors say

[4:42] nearly 1,000 Americans die needlessly

[4:44] during heat waves each year. A child

[4:47] left in an unairconditioned car can die

[4:49] in 10 minutes. And heat is only half the

[4:52] problem. Humidity can make hot nights

[4:55] deadly when the body has no time to cool

[4:57] off. Researchers have found the number

[5:00] of humid nights has increased 78% in the

[5:03] past half century. So, the US is not

[5:06] only getting hotter, it's getting

[5:07] stickier. And while three out of four

[5:09] homes across the country now have air

[5:11] conditioning, scientists warned that

[5:13] heat combined with drought is still the

[5:16] number one weather related killer. Bob

[5:19] Dodson, NBC News, Atlanta.

[5:22] And the weather tonight helped trigger a

[5:25] huge fire at an apartment complex in the

[5:27] Atlanta area. The fire in the four-story

[5:29] building began on the roof. It was

[5:31] touched off by a lightning strike during

[5:33] a violent thunderstorm. So far, no

[5:36] reports of any injuries. It's one of

[5:39] five lightning fires in the Atlanta area

[5:41] tonight. And while this heat wave is

[5:44] expected to pass, scientists tonight

[5:46] have a new warning on the effects of

[5:48] long-term global warming. specifically

[5:51] the devastation to some of the most

[5:53] important life support systems on Earth

[5:56] on Earth and beneath the sea. NBC's Dan

[6:00] Luthian has more on that.

[6:03] What you're looking at is a critical

[6:05] measure of the health of the world's

[6:06] oceans. And experts say what they see

[6:09] here is alarming.

[6:11] >> In twothirds of the world, we said most

[6:12] of the corals died. And in over half of

[6:15] them, they basically kill almost

[6:17] everything from 80 to sometimes over 99%

[6:20] of the corals.

[6:21] >> In the new report out today, widespread

[6:24] damage to the Great Barrier Reef off

[6:26] Australia and to coral off the coast of

[6:29] Africa and in the Caribbean. Scientists

[6:31] say El Nino and global warming are

[6:34] raising temperatures in these waters.

[6:36] And when they see bleaching, that's the

[6:38] coral hair that's lost its color, that

[6:40] means the plants which feed the coral

[6:42] are dying off. a dangerous threat to the

[6:44] entire coral reef.

[6:46] >> What is worrying about this phenomenon

[6:48] is that a it's new and it's followed by

[6:50] significant coral mortality.

[6:52] >> Researchers have been measuring the

[6:54] damage in inches and feet. Some reefs

[6:56] destroyed by as much as 90%. The worst

[7:00] reef destruction on record took place in

[7:02] 1998.

[7:04] Scientists say it could become an annual

[7:06] event, and if steps aren't taken now,

[7:09] the damage might be irreversible.

[7:12] Although reefs may be the first major

[7:14] ecosystem to be destroyed by global

[7:16] climate change, we know they won't be

[7:18] the last.

[7:18] >> Scripps Institute scientist Nancy Nolton

[7:21] says this ocean problem will become a

[7:23] human one.

[7:24] >> Coral reefs are to the sea what tropical

[7:26] rainforests are to land. They house more

[7:29] species than any other marine

[7:31] environment.

[7:32] >> It is a potential disaster measured by

[7:34] degrees. Only a slight increase in water

[7:37] temperature can mean disaster. Dan Loin,

[7:40] NBC News, San Diego.

[7:43] >> When we come back, deadly rage. NBC News

[7:46] and death tonight. Benjamin Smith, a

[7:48] young man from an upper middle class

[7:50] white home. What turned him into a

[7:52] racist killer.

[7:54] >> This was his way of getting famous. This

[7:57] was his way of making a mark on the

[7:58] world.

[8:00] >> Young man who took racist beliefs to

[8:02] deadly extremes in his own words tonight

[8:04] in depth. And it's Hillary versus

[8:08] probably Rudy. First lady sets her

[8:10] sights in New York and runs up against

[8:12] the toughest act in New York City. Who

[8:14] will win?

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[10:17] >> Tonight, an interactive Dline Court TV

[10:20] exclusive. Log on to msnbc.com and be

[10:22] the judge in a deadly mystery. They were

[10:25] headed for a breakup, and he vanished. I

[10:27] think she pushed him intentionally.

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[10:36] tonight.

[10:38] >> NBC News in depth tonight filled with

[10:41] hate. The young man who went on a deadly

[10:43] rampage over the holiday weekend before

[10:46] taking his own life. Benjamin Smith

[10:48] killed two people and wounded nine

[10:50] others. Apparently, they were all

[10:52] targets of his racist beliefs. From

[10:55] outward appearances, he did not seem to

[10:57] fit the common profile of a white

[10:59] supremacist. Who was this angry young

[11:01] man? We have some answers tonight and

[11:04] the latest on the investigation from

[11:06] NBC's Anne Thompson. Now in depth

[11:09] >> today, federal agents trace Benjamin

[11:11] Smith's determined efforts to get a gun

[11:14] beginning on June 23rd when they say

[11:16] Smith went to this gun shop in Peoria

[11:18] Heights, Illinois, and tried to buy two

[11:21] 9mm semi-automatic pistols and a pump

[11:24] shotgun. Gun shop owner Tony Schneider.

[11:27] >> Well, the background check was done

[11:29] through the state police and he was

[11:31] denied the next day. The check found a

[11:33] protection order against Smith filed by

[11:35] a former girlfriend. On June 26, agents

[11:38] say Smith went to an unlicensed gun

[11:40] dealer, bought a Breco 380 caliber

[11:42] handgun, and later a 22 caliber Ruger

[11:45] handgun like these. The same two weapons

[11:48] Illinois police found on Smith after his

[11:50] rampage ended with his suicide. Today,

[11:53] police say they found more evidence

[11:55] during a search of Smith's home.

[11:57] >> They discovered a receipt for some

[11:59] ammunition that was purchased at a local

[12:01] Walmart. They discovered the boxes for

[12:04] the two handguns that were recovered by

[12:06] the Salem Police Department. Uh they

[12:08] also discovered bundles of hate

[12:10] literature.

[12:11] >> For all the evidence of hate, there are

[12:13] still many questions tonight about how

[12:15] and where Smith formed these views that

[12:18] led to the rampage in Illinois and

[12:20] Indiana. He grew up in peaceful

[12:22] treelined Wilmouth, Illinois, a mostly

[12:24] white upper middle class Chicago suburb.

[12:27] in this house. Raised by his father, a

[12:29] doctor, and his mother, now a real

[12:31] estate agent. Smith attended New Trier

[12:34] High School, one of the finest public

[12:35] schools in the country, graduating in

[12:37] 1996.

[12:39] This man, who does not want to be

[12:41] identified, says he was one of Smith's

[12:43] classmates.

[12:44] >> Not at all. He had friends who were

[12:45] Jewish. He had friends who were Asian

[12:47] and uh every other ethnic background.

[12:50] But in his yearbook, perhaps a clue, the

[12:52] Latin phrase, "Seek seer tyrannis, thus

[12:56] ever to tyrants or death to tyrants."

[12:58] The same phrase that was on Timothy

[13:00] McVeyy's t-shirt when he was arrested

[13:02] for the bombing of the Oklahoma City

[13:04] federal building at the University of

[13:06] Illinois. Complaints Smith put up racist

[13:08] posters and signs of violence, including

[13:11] an incident involving Elizabeth Sar, who

[13:14] says she dated Smith for a year. He

[13:17] turned violent and abusive towards me

[13:19] and I pulled away.

[13:21] >> Scared, Sar filed a protection order

[13:23] against Smith. The order that kept him

[13:25] from legally buying guns. As

[13:28] investigators try to find what set Smith

[13:30] off, Sar says the reason is simple.

[13:33] >> This was his way of getting famous. This

[13:36] was his way of making a mark on the

[13:38] world.

[13:38] >> A bloody mark of hate left on two

[13:41] states. Anne Thompson, NBC News,

[13:44] Chicago.

[13:46] Last year, Benjamin Smith was

[13:47] interviewed by a journalism student at

[13:49] Indiana University. That student, Dan

[13:51] Nelson, is now an intern with NBC's

[13:54] Today Show. What you're about to hear

[13:56] tonight is very disturbing language.

[13:59] Tonight, the young journalist Dan Nelson

[14:02] and the shooter Benjamin Smith, each in

[14:05] their own words.

[14:07] Benjamin Smith was disseminating some

[14:09] flyers throughout the Bloomington

[14:11] community, um, race related flyers, and

[14:13] I just wanted to get that information

[14:15] out to the public so they were aware of

[14:16] what was actually going on in

[14:18] Bloomington. We're still getting more

[14:20] and more non-white, and white people are

[14:21] becoming increasingly secondass

[14:23] citizens. Whites are are the most

[14:25] productive member of society. The Jews

[14:27] are basically a parasitic race. They've

[14:29] never built a civilization by

[14:30] themselves. U, they really just move in

[14:32] and infiltrate and try and suck the

[14:34] people dry. That's why they're

[14:36] considered vampires. Um, and we really

[14:38] need to get them off our backs and take

[14:40] this country back.

[14:41] >> The things that he was saying were so

[14:43] far out there, things that I've never

[14:45] heard before from another individual.

[14:47] >> Blacks are a very dangerous threat

[14:49] because they commit a lot of crime. Uh,

[14:51] if we could just get if we could just

[14:52] deport the blacks back to Africa, this

[14:54] country, the streets would be safe. We

[14:56] all know that a a bad neighborhood

[14:58] really means a black neighborhood

[15:00] whether or not people want to admit it

[15:01] or not. and that the Jews and the blacks

[15:03] and all the mud races are trying to

[15:04] destroy our people and that is why we

[15:06] hate them.

[15:06] >> After the interview, I took the tape and

[15:08] boxed it up because I didn't want to see

[15:10] it again.

[15:13] >> That was Today Showed intern Dan Nelson,

[15:16] then a young journalist and the shooting

[15:18] suspect Benjamin Smith tonight in their

[15:20] own words. Up next, one small step for

[15:23] Hillary Clinton on her way to becoming

[15:25] the first lady to run for the Senate and

[15:28] why her likely opponent doesn't seem

[15:30] worried. in fact seems to relish the

[15:32] prospect.

[15:37] >> Where will you be when your grandson

[15:39] gets his first taste of the ocean?

[15:42] When man walks on Mars?

[15:46] When your children want to discover

[15:48] their heritage.

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[18:05] >> Friday, get a double dose of our summer

[18:07] concert series when Chicago and the

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[18:16] Today Show with Later Today coming in

[18:18] September.

[18:21] President Clinton halfway through a

[18:22] 4-day swing across the country on a

[18:24] mission to draw attention to communities

[18:26] that have not been full participants in

[18:28] this country's economic boom. Today, it

[18:31] was the Mississippi Delta, the boarded

[18:33] up Main Street of Clarksdale, a

[18:35] forgotten town with an unemployment rate

[18:37] that's more than twice the national

[18:39] average. The president is pushing public

[18:42] private partnerships to stimulate

[18:44] investment in these kinds of communities

[18:46] which are still mired in hard times.

[18:50] Today was a big day for Hillary Clinton.

[18:52] She opened a campaign exploratory

[18:54] committee, her first official step

[18:56] toward running for the Senate from the

[18:57] state of New York. This committee allows

[18:59] her to raise money and spend money for

[19:01] advertising, polling, and travel. The

[19:04] travel part is, of course, already well

[19:06] underway. Mrs. Clinton is starting what

[19:08] she's calling a listening tour of

[19:10] upstate New York tomorrow. As for Mrs.

[19:13] Clinton's likely opponent, New York City

[19:15] Mayor Rudolph Giuliani. If he's worried

[19:17] about running against a history-making

[19:20] first lady, he's certainly not showing

[19:22] it. In fact, today he looked downright

[19:24] pleased. More on Giuliani tonight from

[19:26] NBC's Andrea Mitchell.

[19:28] >> His friends and enemies agree. He's

[19:30] brash, arrogant, aggressive, the

[19:33] ultimate New Yorker, a perfect opponent

[19:35] for the first lady. And today, after she

[19:37] opened her exploratory committee, he's

[19:39] already in her face about being a carpet

[19:41] bagger. You should always explore.

[19:44] Exploring is a good thing.

[19:46] >> Who can have anything against exploring?

[19:48] >> Still an undeclared candidate, he's

[19:50] raising money, traveling the state, and

[19:52] ridiculing the first lady's newfound

[19:54] interest in New York.

[19:55] >> I'm going to get off the airplane in

[19:56] Little Rock, and I'm going to say, um,

[20:00] I've uh I've never lived here.

[20:04] I've never worked here.

[20:07] I ain't never been here.

[20:10] But I think it'd be cool to be your

[20:12] senator.

[20:14] >> So, what kind of mayor has he been?

[20:16] >> Good mayor, awful man.

[20:19] That simple.

[20:20] >> His former police chief forced out, some

[20:22] say, for stealing the crime fighting

[20:23] spotlight from Giuliani, a former

[20:25] prosecutor. The Giuliani record, crime

[20:28] is way down, tourism way up. Although

[20:31] many complain he simply cracked down on

[20:33] jaywalkers, pornography, and out of

[20:35] control taxi drivers. It takes a tough

[20:38] man to run a tough city and he has

[20:40] brought about um the the renaissance,

[20:42] the rejuvenation um of a city that so

[20:44] many people thought um was long gone.

[20:46] But at what cost? Critics say that

[20:48] crackdown on crime has led to excesses

[20:50] by the police, especially against

[20:53] minorities and that he doesn't know how

[20:55] to compromise. Incredibly, in six years,

[20:58] has never sat down with New York's

[20:59] congressional delegation. It just

[21:01] doesn't make any sense at all for his

[21:04] staff not to be working on a daily basis

[21:07] with mine.

[21:08] >> And critics say he even picks fights

[21:09] with fellow Republicans.

[21:11] >> He can be costic. He can be tough. He

[21:14] can be rude. He can be arrogant. But

[21:17] isn't that uh the case with all of us?

[21:20] >> Now, those feuds could come back to

[21:21] haunt Giuliani. Sources say Republican

[21:24] leaders angered by what they call his

[21:25] independence are quietly helping a

[21:28] potential challenger for the party's

[21:29] nomination. Even though that could

[21:31] divide Republicans and help Mrs.

[21:33] Clinton. Right now, polls show Hillary

[21:36] Clinton and Rudy Giuliani have one big

[21:38] thing in common. Voters either love them

[21:40] or hate them, which means this could be

[21:43] one of the most polarizing and exciting

[21:45] races in Senate history. Andrea

[21:47] Mitchell, NBC News, New York.

[21:51] In another part of New York today, it

[21:52] was a lackluster back to work Tuesday on

[21:54] Wall Street. Late profit taking sent the

[21:56] Dow down a little more than four points.

[21:59] NASDAQ was also down more than four. Up

[22:02] next, thousands of Americans suddenly

[22:05] flocking to the Holy Land.

[22:07] What are they looking for?

[22:22] This week, the Publishers Clearing House

[22:23] prize patrol has no van to drive and no

[22:26] checks to deliver.

[22:28] Because this week, Publishers Clearing

[22:30] House is putting thousands of real

[22:31] checks right in the mail. If you get an

[22:34] envelope with this green star, open it

[22:36] and you can find a real check for

[22:38] $100,000 that you can take right to the

[22:40] bank. So, this week, the prize patrol

[22:42] will have to find something else to do.

[22:44] >> Yes, nice one. Watch for a publishers's

[22:47] clearing house envelope with a green

[22:48] star. There could be a real check

[22:50] inside.

[22:51] >> Great meal.

[22:53] >> Uh-oh. Gas pressure. What now? What

[22:56] else? Gas X with the most powerful

[22:58] medicine for fast relief. Nothing works

[23:00] faster. Hey, want to go for ice cream?

[23:03] >> Gas X. The power to fight gas fast.

[23:08] >> With Days in hotels in over 1,800 cities

[23:11] and towns, finding a place to stay

[23:14] doesn't take a federal investigation.

[23:18] days in. There you go.

[23:24] >> This is indeed a small miracle. A

[23:27] triumph over everyday arthritis pain.

[23:30] Made possible by a remarkable medicine.

[23:33] Tylenol Arthritis Extended Relief. So

[23:36] effective even the newest arthritis

[23:38] prescription hasn't been proven to work

[23:39] better on pain. And no other type of

[23:41] pain reliever is gentler to your stomach

[23:43] than Tylenol. Miracle drug. Someone sure

[23:46] thinks so. Tylenol Arthritis. Take

[23:49] comfort in our strength.

[23:52] >> Ouch.

[23:52] >> Pain again. I thought your dentist said

[23:54] brush with Sensidine every day.

[23:56] >> I stopped when the pain stopped.

[23:58] >> Keep using it. It keeps working.

[24:00] >> Sensedine everyday. And try Sensine

[24:03] extra whitening for brighter teeth every

[24:05] day.

[24:06] >> It's barbecue season, the busiest time

[24:09] of the year for your deck. Which is why

[24:11] you should protect it with Thompson's

[24:12] wood protector. Nothing we make works

[24:14] harder longer. for rain, sun, mildew, or

[24:17] lowflying meat. Thompson's Wood

[24:19] Protector. It never takes a day off.

[24:24] >> Hi, I have a question about buying

[24:26] stock. What's the difference between a

[24:28] market order and a limit order?

[24:35] >> Hello,

[24:41] excuse me. When you have an investment

[24:43] question, does your online brokerage

[24:45] have anybody there to answer it? We do.

[24:49] >> It's It's not funny anymore.

[24:52] >> Just ahead at 6:00, controversy

[24:54] involving the YMCA. For years, the

[24:57] organization has been considered

[24:58] nonprofit by tax officials, but some

[25:01] health clubs in Tennessee say the Y is

[25:03] their competition. They're challenging

[25:04] its tax exempt status. And a rare shark

[25:07] attack off the Florida coast. The scene

[25:09] at 6 is minutes away.

[25:14] If you haven't not already made New

[25:16] Year's Eve plans for the end of this

[25:17] year, you may wind up at a bad table and

[25:20] a bring your own bottle joint. But then

[25:22] for many people ushering in a new

[25:24] millennium, though it goes well beyond

[25:26] plans for a party, they are part of what

[25:28] can be called Pilgrims 2000. More on

[25:32] them tonight from NBC's Jim Abala in

[25:34] Israel.

[25:36] The new pilgrims already flocking to

[25:39] Jerusalem 6 months before the

[25:41] millennium. By the year 2000, Israel

[25:44] expects 4 million people, three times

[25:46] more than normal, to follow the road to

[25:48] the Holy Land. Many to meet their

[25:51] Messiah.

[25:52] >> It doesn't say he's returning to

[25:53] Anaheim, California.

[25:55] >> The refrigerator salesman from Jersey.

[25:57] >> It says in that day his feet will stand

[25:59] on the Mount of Olives, which is in

[26:01] front of Jerusalem on the east. the

[26:03] former showgirl from Las Vegas.

[26:05] >> Jesus is going to return on the Mount of

[26:07] Olives

[26:09] very soon.

[26:10] >> Her husband, an ex-con, former thief.

[26:12] >> This land, this city is um

[26:17] the focal point of all history and the

[26:20] future.

[26:21] >> And the Brooklyn high school teacher,

[26:23] >> if God wants to save him in California,

[26:25] God is able. But I would encourage them

[26:28] to come into the ark of safety. To come

[26:32] where God's people are.

[26:33] >> They call themselves God's people, not

[26:36] your normal tourists, giving up

[26:38] everything in America, filling hotels

[26:40] and renting homes to greet the

[26:42] millennium here. To these pilgrims, even

[26:44] more important than the holy sites

[26:46] behind the walls of old Jerusalem is the

[26:48] Mount of Olives. They call it God's

[26:51] elevator to heaven, where they believe

[26:53] Jesus ascended and where they now expect

[26:55] him to return.

[26:58] >> It's Wednesday night in Bethany on the

[27:00] backside of the Mount of Olives. A

[27:02] handful of American Christians gather

[27:04] for Brother David's weekly prayer

[27:07] meeting.

[27:07] >> You have to seek the Lord.

[27:09] >> David won't divulge his last name. says

[27:11] his training is as a salesman, not a

[27:13] preacher, citing the Bible, scriptures,

[27:16] to sell the idea that Jerusalem is the

[27:18] only place to wait for the Messiah.

[27:21] >> If you had a loved one and you knew that

[27:22] they were coming in and they were flying

[27:25] in, you would go to the airport. You

[27:27] wouldn't stay in your house and wait for

[27:28] them. You go to the place where you knew

[27:31] they were arriving.

[27:32] >> On a neighboring hillside, Pastor

[27:34] Solomon Ben David, the former Winston

[27:36] Churchill Rose, Brooklyn teacher,

[27:39] awaiting his Messiah. We believe that

[27:40] the kingdom in the last days the kingdom

[27:43] would be set up in Jerusalem.

[27:44] >> So he too gave up everything three years

[27:47] shy of a full pension.

[27:49] >> I'm not saying God is able to save you

[27:51] from anywhere cuz it's God. But you know

[27:55] I wouldn't take a chance.

[27:57] >> Boston University professor Richard

[27:59] Landis heads the center for millennial

[28:01] studies. He says Jerusalem is now

[28:04] Millennium Central.

[28:04] >> It's going to be a magnet. You're going

[28:06] to see a whole bunch of messiahs coming

[28:07] here. Messiahs, pilgrims, all converging

[28:11] on a holy city, risking everything on a

[28:13] special place at a crucial time.

[28:16] >> Jimabala, NBC News, Jerusalem.

[28:21] >> Of course, it's worth remembering that

[28:22] for people of many faiths, including

[28:24] some of the most populous nations in the

[28:25] world, China, India, India, Indonesia,

[28:29] this millennium will have no real

[28:30] meaning because they don't have that

[28:32] kind of calendar. That's nightly news

[28:35] for this Tuesday night. Don't forget

[28:36] Dineine tonight at 10 9 central. I'm Tom

[28:40] Brokaw and I'll see you back here

[28:42] tomorrow night.

[28:57] Nightly News is a presentation of NBC

[29:00] News. More Americans watch NBC News than

[29:02] any other news organization in the

[29:04] world.