Gator victim: It was my arm or my life
CNN's Soledad O'Brien talks to Kaleb Langdale about his battle with an alligator and losing his arm during the attack.
Find out how you can help Kaleb's family raise money for a prosthetic arm.
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Letters to the President #1271: 'Jab, jab, uppercut'
Reporter's Note: President Obama is throwing some haymakers at Mitt Romney, who has started throwing them back.
Dear Mr. President,
As you know, I’ve long been a fan of boxing and I’m always amazed when one fighter tees off on the other with a direct shot and the other guy comes away as if he was not even touched.
I know it has to hurt the guy who is being hit, but sometimes I think the effect of something like that is worse on the puncher than the punchee. Can you imagine how demoralizing that must be? “I hit him with a haymaker and it produced no effect!”
I mention it, of course, because for all the very energetic and focused attempts by your campaign to throw Mitt Romney down over his time at Bain Capital, the poll numbers suggest that you’ve not had a lot of impact. You’re both pretty much tied. The numbers, if they are moving at all, don’t seem to be surging in the direction you might expect after such an attack.
Mind you, I’m not discussing here the wisdom or foolishness of the strategy; I’m just saying the results must be a little daunting for your team.
Take heart. It is possible you’ll still see a result. This whole business of defining your opponent before he can fully define himself is usually a pretty solid tactic.
On the other hand, there is still a fair amount of time between now and November, and if your Bain gambit doesn’t start showing some real results soon, I suspect you’d better have some other punch in your repertoire, or that ring could turn into a rough place…at least rougher than it already is.
Call if you can. Hope you have a nice weekend.
Regards,
Tom
Tonight on AC360: Teen survives gator 'death roll'
Kaleb Langdale, 17, lost part of his right arm, just below the elbow, during a struggle with an alligator in Florida. The attack from the 10-foot alligator happened in the Caloosahatchee River, where Kaleb and his friends were cooling off on a hot day.
The others watched as the alligator suddenly emerged from the bushes, dragged their friend under water and tore his limb from his body. One of the boys tried to warn him by shouting "gator," but Kaleb thought it was a joke until he was in its grip. "I knew it was either going to be the arm, or my life," he said.
By grabbing the skin under the animal’s jaw, Kaleb thought he could break free. When that didn't work, he tried to overpower the alligator by wrapping his legs around it. That maneuver didn't deter it, and the battle got more difficult, leading up to the bite that severed his arm.
The teen is now in the hospital recovering from surgery. His family started a fundraising campaign for a prosthetic arm to help Kaleb live life as he did before the incident.
Watch a preview of the interview, and hear more from Kaleb at 8 and 10 p.m. ET.
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