Stock Markets Take a Beating
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Good evening, everyone. Tonight, a 13-year-old boy is not just lucky to be home safe. He's lucky, resourceful, gutsy, you name it. He was kidnapped at gunpoint, bound and gagged. But he got away, thanks in part to a safety pin. We will explain in a moment. This may be the survival story of the year. We begin tonight, however, with a big dose of pain for tens of millions of Americans who invest in the stock market. Stocks got hammered today. The Dow Jones average tumbled 416 points, its steepest drop since the markets reopened after 9/11, billions of dollars erased in just a few hours of very hectic trading. We have two questions tonight. Why did it happen? What happens tomorrow. For answers, we turn to CNN's Ali Velshi. Ali, what happened?</s>ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Anderson, this is one of the biggest drops on Wall Street that we have ever seen. It started in Shanghai, a big drop on the Chinese market, one that had not been expected. And it was so big that it triggered sell- offs across Europe. And then finally by the time markets opened in the United States, everybody expected a drop. They didn't expect one this big. Through the morning, we saw losses, 100 points after the first six minutes of trading, and then through the afternoon 200 points, 300 points. And, then, at 2:59, it was down by 300 points, within a minute, 400 points, within another minute, 500 points, finally, 546 points lower, before things pulled back. Just before 4:00, the bell started ringing, and there was resounding boos on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, because the traders there sensed something was wrong. This wasn't normal, to see that kind of sell-off. Well, they were right. Within an hour after that, we heard from the Dow Jones and the New York Stock Exchange that there was some sort of technical problem, a problem we are still trying to get to the bottom of. But this has now started again in Asia Markets are open. And, if it doesn't stop, we might see more problems tomorrow morning -- Anderson.</s>COOPER: Well, if it was Asian markets which got this started, what are the markets doing right now in Asia, because that is going to affect what happens tomorrow morning here in America?</s>VELSHI: The big one to worry, about, Japan. The Nikkei is down. It's been down between 3 and 4 percent. We have seen markets across Asia down. The one place where this started, though, Shanghai, it's actually sort of bobbing and weaving between up and down. If this doesn't get settled in Asia, if someone does not decide this has to stop, we are so interconnected -- that's what we saw this morning -- we could see it again tomorrow.</s>COOPER: A couple days ago, Alan Greenspan talked about the possibility of a recession. How likely is that?</s>VELSHI: Well, you know, it was probably part of the perfect storm that caused today's rout. There were the problems in Asia. There was this bombing in Afghanistan. There were some economic reports that suggested the economy is slowing down. And then in the background was Alan Greenspan's comments about a recession. Probably, on its own, it's not that big an issue. It certainly got people thinking. The folks we have talked to say, don't panic. If you hold stocks, wait until we know what the story is. Nobody ever wins by locking in your losses.</s>COOPER: And 400-and-something points is dramatic. But what was really dramatic was just that it happened in such a quick amount of time.</s>VELSHI: That's right.</s>COOPER: The actual points, in total percentage, is relatively small.</s>VELSHI: This market has been going straight up for months and months and months. Most people say it was due to pull back a little bit. If this happened over a week or a couple weeks, we wouldn't blink. If it was 200 points today, we wouldn't blink; 400, 500 points, it makes people wonder. If it doesn't happen again tomorrow, we should be OK.</s>COOPER: All right. Ali Velshi, appreciate it.</s>VELSHI: OK.</s>COOPER: Thanks very much. Now a look at how today's plunge compares to some record-setting days on Wall Street. Here's the "Raw Data." As we mentioned, the Dow lost 416 points today, or more than 3 percent. But, as we also touched on, its biggest one-day point loss was 684 points, when the markets reopened on September 17, 2001, after the 9/11 attacks. Still, the biggest percentage loss in history, December 12th, 1914, when the Dow lost 24.39 percent or the first day -- on the first day of trading after the stock exchange shut for more than four months due to World War I. Now a phone call and six chilling words: "It's Clay, and I have been kidnapped." Imagine getting a phone call like that from your son or your daughter. Well, fortunately, and amazingly, Clay Moore made it after his escape from captivity. His family spoke out today. They talked about Clay's remarkable getaway -- that's him at the press conference -- something straight out of the TV show "MacGyver." Remember that? He was a 13-year-old boy, now safe. His suspected kidnapper is still on the run. Authorities on Florida's west coast, where the drama has been playing out since Friday, put it very simply today. This guy picked the wrong kid to kidnap, they said. Details now from CNN's David Mattingly.</s>DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Thirteen-year- old Clay Moore's escape from an armed kidnapping was a happy ending to an ordeal that could have ended so badly. And, as details come out, how he got away sounds nothing less than astonishing.</s>STEVE KELLE, STEPFATHER OF CLAY MOORE: He really kept his head about him and did everything he was supposed to be doing. And that is why he is here with us today.</s>MATTINGLY: Kidnapped at gunpoint while waiting for the school bus, all Clay had to stay alive were his wits, his poise, and something so small, something so seemingly insignificant, his kidnapper probably never noticed it hanging from the hole in his jacket sleeve, a safety pin, too small to use as a weapon, but big enough to become the key to his freedom.</s>KELLE: I asked him last night, as we were kind of going over the story, what made you think to put a safety pin in your mouth? And, in his words, he said, just thought it would be helpful.</s>MATTINGLY: He had no idea how helpful it would be. Clay was driven out to the a farm, blindfolded, gagged with his own sock, tied to a tree with duct tape, and then left alone. When he was sure his abductor was gone, Clay went to work, spitting out the sock, but accidentally spitting out the safety pin as well. What could he possibly do?</s>KELLE: It was sweaty, he says, and so it helped get the -- the things off of his eyes. So, he was able to see where it was. So, he actually maneuvered himself around, and -- and grabbed a stick that he used to pick the safety pin back up off the ground with his mouth, incredibly enough.</s>MATTINGLY: Even more incredibly, Clay was able to drop the pin from the stick into the palm of one of his tied-up hands. He then started poke away at the sticky tape, until he punched enough holes in it to break free. Much easier said than done, it took Clay 30 minutes to an hour to gain his freedom. But, in the end, it was an escape that would have made even MacGyver proud, as Clay calmly got help and called his stepdad.</s>KELLE: I heard a voice as calm as if he was calling from a friend's house. And he told me, "Steve, it is Clay, and I have been kidnapped." And it went from there, and we found him, and he was safe. So, I think I got the story right.</s>COOPER: Incredible story, David. What is happening now with the case? And where is this alleged kidnapper? Do we know?</s>MATTINGLY: Well, authorities in Florida say they are going to catch him, and they are going to catch him soon. There was a lot of optimism at this news conference today, in terms of getting ahold of Vicente Ignacio Beltran-Moreno. He is 22 years old, 5 feet, 5'', 140 pounds, goes by the nickname "Nacho." Authorities are saying they give a lot of credit to young Clay Moore, who gave them a very accurate description of this man in the very early days of this investigation. So, they expect this to be wrapped up soon.</s>COOPER: Well, let's hope so. David, appreciate it -- David Mattingly. Stranger abduction is rare, as you probably know, but it does happen often enough that every child and parent should be prepared. Some tips now from family safety expert Bob Stuber. I spoke with him earlier tonight.</s>COOPER: So, Bob, what do you think about Clay Moore? His story is just incredible.</s>BOB STUBER, FAMILY SAFETY EXPERT: Yes, it is a very incredible story. And it's -- it's good to hear the story, in a lot of ways. We are seeing more and more stories these days where kids are escaping because they are not just sitting back and taking a passive position. And that is the main message I think everybody has to get across that works in this field. For years, kids were taught don't try to do anything. You might inflame this guy or you might make him mad. First of all, the guy is a nut. He's crazy anyway. So, you are not going to make him mad. And, second of all, if you don't do something, then it's probably going to be a very tragic outcome.</s>COOPER: It seemed, with this young man, the key was him remaining -- I don't think calm is probably the right word, but at least thinking ahead. He saw this safety pin on him. He took it off and put it in his mouth before he was tied up.</s>STUBER: Yes. It is -- I think you are right. It's a matter of thinking ahead. Obviously, he was the kind of person who had either been taught there were things that he could do, or he has just that type of personality. A lot of kids don't. And that is why it is so important that parents and educators and such have to give them the kind of ideas that they will need in a situation like this, or they won't think of it. The one downside on this whole case, the escaping side was great, and thank God for it. However, he never should have never, ever gotten in that car to start with. Even though this guy had a gun, you still don't get in the car.</s>COOPER: Well, what do you do if someone is approaching you with a gun?</s>STUBER: Well, if somebody approaches you with a gun -- here, let me break it down for you this way. If somebody pulls up and they have a gun -- now, first of all, a child predator, in most -- a vast majority of all cases, is not going to shoot you, because that is not what this crime is about. And they don't want to attract any attention. But, if you were walking down the street, somebody came up to you in a car, they point a gun, they say, get in the car, you say, no. Now, if you get into car, you are probably going to die. If you take off running, there is only a 50 percent chance that this person will choose to shoot at you.</s>COOPER: Obviously, what a lot of people don't think about is, if you do run, you run in the opposite direction that the car is going.</s>STUBER: Yes. Run in the opposite direction, so that -- that the person has to turn around. And, still, you're at a place where people can come and help you. If you do end up getting wounded or injured, you are much safer there than you are out in the woods. So, getting away, I give the -- high marks, definitely high marks, but I wish he had never gotten in that car to start with.</s>COOPER: The other scenario people often talk about is the idea of being locked in the trunk of a car.</s>STUBER: Yes, locked in trunk of a car is not an uncommon place to be in this situation. And this takes us back to these commonsense types of choices. You could kick and scream all you want. Nobody is going to hear you. Nobody is going to see you. But, if you disconnect the brake or taillights, which is very easy to do -- I could show a 3-year-old how to do it -- they are right there, accessible in the trunk -- you have actually increased the percentage, 50 percent, that the cops will pull the car over, because it has no brake or taillights. Then, they are going to hear you, and -- and come to your aid. Little choices like that, common sense, is what makes the difference.</s>COOPER: Well, it is good to be here, talking about a little kid who got away, Clay.</s>STUBER: Yes.</s>COOPER: Great story. Bob, thanks for your perspective. Thanks.</s>STUBER: Thank you.</s>COOPER: It goes without saying Clay Moore's escape brings back memories of Shawn Hornbeck, the Missouri teenager who was freed last month, after four years in captivity. Here is an update on him. An attorney for his family says that Shawn has been in therapy since his rescue. They say he is grappling with post-traumatic stress disorder. The family is together, according to the lawyer, but not at their home, which is being renovated. Shawn, who only completed the third grade, is not yet in school. Ben Ownby was the other teen found in Michael Devlin's apartment. He went back to school just a couple weeks ago. And he is back with his Boy Scout troop, working to earn a merit badge in first aid, we are told. From terror here at home now to America's war on terror -- Vice President Cheney got a rude awakening today, a suicide bombing outside the air base where he was staying in Afghanistan -- up next, what happened and why the months ahead in Afghanistan may be particularly deadly.</s>COOPER (voice-over): Unfinished business, unfinished war.</s>ART KELLER, FORMER CIA OFFICER: You just leave a reservoir of infection, even stronger, to come back after you.</s>COOPER: He should know. He was the CIA's man in Afghanistan. Next: the Taliban comeback, the suicide bombings, what America's ally, Pakistan, is doing about it, and what it isn't. Later: She says she has got the secret.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There is incredible power inside every single human being.</s>COOPER: In print, on "Oprah," she says it can make you rich, bring you love, even keep you thin. And people are spending millions on it. So, what is the secret? Later on 360.