Live Blog from the Anchor Desk 9/8/09
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Anderson reports from Afghanistan tonight. He takes you along on the most dangerous job for U.S. forces – the search for IEDs. And, 360 M.D. Sanjay Gupta takes you inside a battlefield hospital. Meet the only cardiovascular surgeon on the frontlines. And, see how Dr. Gupta helped in the OR.
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Anderson Cooper goes beyond the headlines to tell stories from many points of view, so you can make up your own mind about the news. Tune in weeknights at 8 and 10 ET on CNN.
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Anderson, the stories that you, Michael and Dr. Gupta covered tonight were both amazing and scary.
Thanks so much for doing this and showing us what it is like over there. I don't think any of us can even imagine unless we have loved ones over there.
Good night and stay safe.
Michael Jackson's glove got over $48,000? Just think of what Anderson could get for that "field shirt!"
So what would Palin do about health care? We know it's a national emergency.
Would she and her party continue to do nothing on this issue??
Good night Anderson, Erica, Ed Henry, David Gergen and my friends Twitter/Facebook Bloggers!!!!!
Have a great night and sleep tight everyone!!!! 😀
See you tomorrow night!
Day of the shot with my favorites are Anderson, Peter, Michael and Dr Sanjay were great sleep on the cot!!! I love the shot everynight! It's so cool shot of year! Excellent!
Sarah Palins story seems pretty irrelevant after watching our troops.
I think the reason Afghans are 'on the fence' is that when we leave, the Taliban will come right back. They can't commit to us without putting themselves at risk later for that support.
It is wonderful to hear the little boy is doing better......A big salute to Dr. Brown!
Good night everyone! Anderson, you and the staff are in my prays. Please be careful. We like you.
It's so odd that on the one hand you might have people drinking and not able to answer what happened to an airstrike that killed civilians and on the other hand a doctor who is shell shocked from have to scrape burned tissue off of a child.
I am so glad to hear that the 2 year old is doing better...thank GOD.
Stay safe and don't step on any IED's.
Dinner with Palin? I want 25K for that......
i would hate to be a MD or even an HM in this war. i think after seeing the stuff they do, i would be mentally and emotionally scared.
Dr. Gupta's report is heartbraking. I hope that little boy gets a normal life.
Smelly LOL – I guess you guys are learning all sorts of things about each other 🙂
It must be very emotionally draining to be a MD in war!
OMG really dinner with Palin...........why?!?!?!?!?!
I bet Dr. Brown just inspired some young girl or boy (or many for that manner) to enter his profession.
@ Samuel M'boro, TN
They are on the fence because we fought with them before!
God bless Sanjay Gupta & his work & God bless Malik and his startling progress....let us pray it continues and he fully recovers!
Dr. Gupta is amazing!
These doctors are remarkable people. Period.
That's great reporting Dr. Sanjay Gutpa to save our troops, God bless our troops on the mission to save people for surgery..... Thank you Sanjay!
Dr. Brown is a hero.
I'm thrilled for the child you reported on last night. Ok, now I'm crying.
sooo glad to hear the little boy is doing better!
RE: Dr. Gupta's report
Amazing story about Dr. Brown whose child was born while he was deployed. I wish the best for his family. Also, I find it awesome that Dr. Gupta is jumping into the action and helping out... that's awesome. Keep up the great work and stay safe!
Maj Brown is one of the quiet heros. It sounds like he is doing a wonderful job.
The surgcal team was very lucky to have Sanjay there to help! The fact that Sanjay is a surgeon really gives an added dimension to these types of reports.
Dr. Gupta's report is amazing!
I wonder how many are wounded for life?
I have to mention how much I've loved Tim Hetherington's photography this week. Excellent shot composition, as capturing "live" shots of such vibrancy and emotional depth is no easy task . I hadn't heard of him before, but I Googled him after seeing quite a few of his photos on here. Glad CNN was able to get him.
@JoAnn I agree. And I think that's something that we can't just "change".. like you said, it's part of their identity/culture. It's ultimately up to them (like the Iraqis) to what direction they want to take their country. I believe we can steer them in the right direction, but after a time we have to say "alright, we're leaving it up to you now to take over." My concern though is that the Taliban will grow strong once we leave and Afghanistan will once again become a harboring point for terrorists.
Can't imagine being on point, being on edge all the time. Are the Afghan forces going to join US forces on patrol in Helmand?
@Isabel, yes words of encouragment are always welcome in school children and in adults. President's speech was to the point spurring student motivation to work hard and continue their studies.
I quickly grew apposed to the Iraq war. It didn't long before it became apparent that we destabilized region, brought insurgents into Iraq, empowered Iran, etc. Like most, I saw Afghanistan as the true war zone. Now, for the first time, I am seriously questioning whether we even belong Afghanistan, most definitely not utilizing our current strategy and our current goals. A presence in the region? Yes. But, not 60,000 of our troops...
@chris Our thought and prayers are with your son and your family. As well as all those serving, and the people such as Anderson and the crew that help to cover the story
War is always a sobering experience! I wish there would be a way to end all wars once and for all!
Thank you for doing this reporting. My son spent about a year in the Kornegal Valley and the Kunar and lost 9 friends in 25 minutes, and I really appreciate your glimpse and perspective on this.
It is a very rough and primitative situation for our troops and a very dangerous enemy, and I appreciate every American soldier.
I sure do not know what the answer is, but I am not sure how we can win in this country of extremes and am hoping for an end. I do think that our ability to work with the locals and gain some trust is the only way.
After hearing so many reports about soldiers being injured or killed by IED's, it's really unnerving to watch how they hunt for them and it makes you appreciate the risks that they take even more.
How would they handle their war without the U.S. troops? Shouldn't they made peace with themselves?
The marines don't have all that technology over there in the Helmand province like they would here for training. They can't get all the equipment they need over there.
Thanks for letting us get a glimpse of our son, Lt. Chris Conanan, on patrol with AC. We pray for all of our marines and a safe return of AC and crew.
My husband recently suffered a concussion when the truck he was in was struck by an IED and we were very grateful that was the extent of his injuries. It's a very sobering moment and really causes you to stop and be and thankful for what you have when you find out.
It is quite disturbing to hear Lieutenant McCullough say that the majority of the Afghan people are still "on the fence." If they truly trusted us would so many of them still be undecided?
The whole country should listen to the President. He's no longer candidate Obama, he is our President.
Please talk to Bravo company 1st Plt. They have had the least contact with hone. Thank you from a proud 1/5 mom
It is great to have Anderson and CNN in Afghanistan and give us a first hand look at the the troops and what they face every day. The troops and their work is much appreciated and hopefully they realize that.
I'm very glad to see that Michael Ware is ok. Thank you for the reporting, Anderson, and everyone. Keep safe.
May God bless the troops and bring them home soon.
@kristal – I hope that happens for you – I really do.
The troops look so young! How do they get to release some stress.. I understand drinking is a bad idea, but they need some sort of outlet, how do they do that?
I'm glad to see our approach abraod has become much more sophisticated. Relationship Marketing could be the most valuable tool we have over the long term.
Candy Crowley, you are just great. Extremely sharp and articulate, I loved your coverage during the 2008 presidential election, no one did a better job.
All my best.