Return to Transcripts main page
CNN 10
Protests in France Over Diesel Fuel; Honoring the Late President George H. W. Bush; New Idea on Sharing Energy; Retirement Home for Research Monkeys; Hershey Bears Help Children in Need
Aired December 05, 2018 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CARL AZUZ, CNN 10 ANCHOR: France`s government is getting into a major demand of protestors but will it be enough to stop the riots that have been
taking place there. I`m Carl Azuz for CNN 10 and that`s where we begin today`s show. Most cars in France run on diesel fuel. The cost of that
has gone up significantly this year and the government of French President Emmanuel Macron has planned an increase on diesel taxes starting in
January.
Two main reasons for that. One, President Macron wants French drivers to switch from diesel cars to electric ones. He said that`s necessary to
fight climate change. And two, the French government spends more than it takes in so the higher taxes would help make up for that. But the
president`s been criticized for ignoring the needs of drivers who live outside cities and depend on their cars for transportation.
The proposed diesel tax triggered the "Yellow Vest Protests". Demonstrators have been wearing the yellow vests that French law requires
drivers to keep in their cars. Over the weeks that protests have been held, the reasons for them have expanded to reflect general opposition to
Macron`s government. An estimated 36,000 people turned out across the country on Saturday and violence broke out. Statues were vandalized.
Graffiti was written on the famous Arc De Triomphe. The Reuters News Agency reported that a high school was set on fire.
About 400 people were arrested. The New York Times reports that three people were killed and that hundreds of others were hurt in the protests.
On Tuesday, the French Prime Minister announced that the planned tax increases on diesel would be postponed for six months. But the question
remains, will that cause tensions to simmer down or will unrest continue to swell in the weeks ahead?
10 Second Trivia. George H. W. Bush, the 41st U.S. President was also known by what nickname? Dutch, Poppy, Bubba, or Big Chief. Since he was a
child, President George H. W. Bush was called "Poppy".
Starting Monday evening a long line formed outside the U.S. Capitol Building. The public stood in the cold to join current and former elected
officials in paying their respects to former U.S. President George H. W. Bush. He passed away on Friday at the age of 94 and his casket was brought
to the U.S. Capitol rotunda to lie in state until Wednesday morning. This is an honor reserved for military officers and U.S. government officials.
The 41st President`s death brought together Republicans and Democrats who paid solemn tributes to President Bush at the Capitol and are expected at
his state funeral at the Washington National Cathedral set for Wednesday. Former Senator Bob Dole a friend of President Bush for decades
characterized the 41st leaders passing as the end of an era. George H. W. Bush was the last World War II veteran to serve as U.S. President.
A debate`s growing about whether blockchain technology could change the way people get electricity. Here`s an example of how this could go. Let`s say
a home gets it`s energy from it`s own solar panels. It stores more energy than it needs so it`s owner makes an agreement to sell the extra energy to
a neighbor. Potentially sharing costs. Potentially moving both these homes from a centralized energy station to their own. There are questions
about whether this would work especially when expanded to communities.
What if one home used more energy than others, say for Christmas lights in December or air conditioning in summer? Would the others be willing to
settle or make energy sacrifices? What if one family went on vacation, their home used very little energy and they wanted to pay less that month?
Some sort of agreement or binding legal document may be needed. And some analysts suggest this whole idea might work better when it`s combined with
current energy stations instead of being used as a replacement for them. But real world experiments are underway.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Imagine a shared economy innovation like Air B&B or Uber for the utility sector that can shift energy generation away from
remote power stations into the hands of the community.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: About three years ago, our family along with 11 other neighbors purchased a rooftop solar for our houses. So we were at that
point starting to produce more energy than we consumed and that`s when I discovered the Brooklyn Microgrid and their vision for the future of more
localized energy system.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Garrett Golden (ph) is part of a developing community powered energy platform which could eventually enable more than 100 homes
in his neighborhood to share electricity with one another.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So the way the Brooklyn Microgrid works is here in Brooklyn we`ve got a lot of community members that really want to buy
energy from people that are producing it here in the community.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: LO3 CEO Lawrence Orsini is the man behind one of the world`s first pier to pier energy trade initiatives using blockchain
technology. Usually associated with Bitcoin, blockchain technology is used for verifying and recording transactions and is now being leveraged for
trading in renewable energy.
LAWRENCE ORSINI: So I can actually put panels on my roof. I can produce my own electricity. So what that does is that shifts economically the way
that we get to participate on an energy grid. Now it`s not just one way anymore. It`s me, participating in this market.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are some challenges. Users have to sign up, set up some hardware and an app and there could be Federal regulation down the
road. Traditionally, energy has come from a large central station and flowed in one direction. The Brooklyn Microgrid allows power to be
generated and distributed locally which they say could take stress off the grid. And with New York`s ambitious plan to power 50 percent of the city
with renewable energy by 2030, locally produced clean energy coming from homes like Golden`s might help that transformation.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think what`s really important about this transformation underway in the electric system is as much as it is a
technology story, what doesn`t get talked about a lot is it`s also a human story. That has a human impact on how people interact with and think about
energy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And this mentality shift is happening globally with similar initiatives taking place in Australia to Germany proving that
blockchain technology is about more than just Bitcoin.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARL AZUZ: Twenty-six squirrel monkeys have arrived at their new home at a wildlife sanctuary facility in Florida. They used to be part of a research
study by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says just under 76,000 primates were used in experiments last
year and more than 34,000 were held in facilities but not used in studies. People who support animal research say it helps develop drugs and medical
treatments that benefit people, pets, farm animals and wildlife.
People who oppose it say it`s inhumane and wasteful and that computer models could replace animals in research. Regardless of where folks stand,
the monkeys that recently arrived in Florida will soon stand on grass for the first time. But that has to happen gradually since the outside is
something completely new to them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They`ve never been outside. So they`ve never felt the sun on their face or the grass under their feet or rain or wind. It`s
all going to be such a new experience for them.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Bongo. Casey. You too Jenny (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Not only from laboratory research but we`ve got monkeys from the exotic pet trade from defunct animal facilities, zoos.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: White Coast Waste Project first uncovered the nicotine testing experiments on monkeys in 2016 and immediately launched a
grassroots campaign who united to get these monkeys out of the lab. And get them sent down here to Jungle Friends where they can live out the rest
of their lives.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No other monkeys have ever retired from the FDA.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And we`re absolutely thrilled that they showed incredibly bold leadership and did the right thing for the monkeys.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They have the same emotions that we do and you can just watch their little wheels turning in their head. You know, and
they`re just so funny. They have a sense of humor.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARL AZUZ: 10 out of 10 goes to bears on ice. The Hershey Bears is the name of a team in the American Hockey League. About half way through the
first period of a recent game, the Hershey Bears scored and fans celebrated by flinging teddy bears into the arena. This was planned. It`s part of an
effort to help children in need and the team says the 34,798 bears that were thrown into the game set a new world record.
Seeing all that could make some players "plush". But if you`re going to "stuff" an arena with something besides fans, if you`re looking for a way
to "soften" up the ice and if you`re hoping that players who fight will just "hug" it out. That`s the "beary" best way to do it ya`all. And it
"stitches" up another addition of CNN 10. I`m Carl Azuz.
END
