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Hard work

Posted: Thursday, July 03, 2008 4:28 PM by Sam Singal

By Lester Holt, NBC News anchor

Brian is off and so I'll be in the anchor chair tonight.

It's been said before that if you're the one out of work the unemployment rate is 100%. The government posted its unemployment numbers for last month today and they won't come as a surprise to those out there pounding the pavement for a job and coming up empty. 438,000 jobs have been lost this year as May's high unemployment rate held steady last month. Employers have cut workers for six straight months. CNBC's Scott Cohn will be on the broadcast to show us exactly what job seekers are facing, and the sometimes tough choices they are forced to make.

Barack Obama is sending some interesting signals today that some believe could be a prelude to him changing his tune on when and how to exit Iraq. This all comes ahead of Obama's previously announced trip to Iraq. NBC's Lee Cowan is working the story and will have a lot more on this.

NBC's Mark Potter has learned some fascinating details of exactly how that hostage rescue was pulled off in Colombia yesterday. Call it the anatomy of a sting.

We just received word that another part of California has been placed under a state of emergency because of threatening wildfires. Things there are going from bad to worse. George Lewis will be reporting that story tonight.

I hope you can catch our story tonight on a young man from South Africa who danced his way through long held barriers and out of the townships to become one of that country's premier ballet performers. And now he is in this country. NBC's Amna Nawaz will share his journey with us.

Thanks for checking in. We'll look for you tonight on NBC Nightly News.

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Keep up the good work and I will see you tonight.
Good Evening Mr.Holt, Nice to see you this evening filling in for Mr.Williams. Terrible times for the economy between the rising prices of everything and unemployment. It has been a very difficult year for so many people and I just hope things take a turn for the better. On the subject of an exit strategy for Iraq there is no clear cut answer. There needs to be a plan for peace, but it will take a long time and will not be resolved quickly. I am looking forward to the piece about the young man who is a ballet dancer. I love to dance and ballet is one of my favorite kinds of dance. Looking forward to the broadcast Mr.Holt. Hope you have a great holiday Mr.Holt! Peace to you and to all!

Lots of Love to Laurel,Jackie,Stephanie,Celine,Claudia,Anna and Matt!
Happy Fourth of July to all! Especially the "regulars" Have a safe and Happy Fourth!
Be Well Always!
XOXO  
Dear Lester,

I look forward to seeing you on the broadcast tonight.  I've said it before, but it bears repeating - you bring a touch of class to everything you do.  And what a trouper - to step in, so that others may have an extended holiday.  When is it that you sleep, exactly?

Anyway, I was hoping to escape a night of politics.  I think the presidential campaign is just BORING!  Two boring men, trading boring barbs, in the most boring way imaginable.  Bore, bore, pander, pander.  YAWN.

I think the story on the freeing of the hostages in Colombia is wonderful, however.  What a terrific surprise.

For all who are interested, here's a link to a "War Journal" review:
http://www.bookpage.com/0807bp/nonfiction/war_journal.html

Also, here's an article about BW:
http://njmonthly.com/articles/lifestyle/people/his-heart-belongs-to-jersey.html

Happy Fourth to all!

XOXO to Lisa, Jackie, Stephanie, Celine, Claudia, Anna, and Matt.

Jackie:  Are you still on vacation?  If so, I hope you are having a wonderful time!  You should go back to NYC and queue up outside the Today show, and give a big shout out to all your friends and family!  And make sure you're wearing your "Hillary for President" t-shirt at the time!  LOL  I'm with you - I still need some convincing from the presumptive nominee!
Good Evening Mr.Holt, A fine broadcast this evening as always! First of all the report by Mr.Potter concerning the rescue of the hostages in Columbia is an amazing story and showed how the plan really worked. It is wonderful to see their faces and how happy they appeared, also good to know they are doing well.
On another note the In Depth report was extremely sad and how the horrors of this war causing this PTSD to be so destructive to the soldiers. He had much promise in his life and his achievements and the experience in Iraq was simply too horrible. So very sad for the family because of the fact the young man is gone. The wounds of war can be unbearable and I really hope that  peace comes soon to the region in order that no more suffering can happen. Too many people have suffered already and I hope it stops soon.

Being a person who likes to dance I really enjoyed the piece about the young man from South Africa who is now dancing ballet in the United States. He certainly has great technique and dances very well. The Washington Ballet is a good company and since he is on scholarship with the junior company he may end up with the professional company. His story is very inspirational to all young children who not only want to dance, but wish to achieve their dream of anything they want to become in life. Good Piece! Thank you for the broadcast Mr.Holt. You are certainly great at filling in for Mr.Williams and on your broadcasts on the weekends. I hope you can enjoy the Fourth of July with your family! Have a wonderful day tomorrow! Peace to you and to all!

Lots of Love to Laurel,Jackie,Stephanie,Celine,Claudia,Anna and Matt!
Happy Fourth to all of you!
Be Well Always!
XOXO
Hi Lester:

Another solid broadcast tonight.

@ Laurel:  I am bored with politics too and all the sad news broadcast these days.  While the race is fascinating with the former possibility of a women President I find the constant "sound bites" of the news mind bogging.   I say let's have some GREAT debates and not all of this grammar school politics!

Thanks for the link on Brian's story and congratulations Brian for a good article about you!

And my favorite lines from the story........

“It’s a bit disorienting to see him right there, I would say,” Springsteen acknowledges. “Particularly because when Brian is in the pit of an E Street Band show, he usually has his shirt off and is dancing wildly with his wife, Jane. Well, maybe just his tie is off...”  

Happy 4th to everyone including our dancing anchor!
Sorry moderator for a double post...

@ Jackie:  You should be at Rockerfeller Center for The Today Show.   Al Roker is one of my favorites along with Meredith.  I have been on the Today Show twice smiling in the outdoor audience.

I was on segment of ABC Good Morning America and actually had a speaking role about Junior's Cheesecakes.  

I am not sure if the show's producers are checking for political candidate's TV shirts but they do scan all of the signs and tell folks that some shirts are not appropriate.  I always wear a solid color I look smashing in just in case they need me to sample cheesecake at 8 AM.

Get over to Junior's and have some cheesecake for me!


It was such a nice surprise, Mr. Holt, to see you
fill in this evening for Mr. Williams.  I loved
the story on the young man from South Africa
who became one of that country's premier
ballet performers.  As a girl, I took
ballet lessons and was going to do a ballet
dance to "Nola" one night but was unable
to because of Rheumatic Fever.  Good came
out of bad and I started reading, a great
passion now and the rhythm came back when
I was a teenager and dancing was another
passion.

This afternoon on AOL there was a negative
article about Sen. Obama which stated that
he was ruthless because he won out over
the CLintons who are ruthless but that he
was smarter which does not make sense to
me.  He won because he was the better man.
I don't how some journalists come up with
all this stuff.

It was a heartbreaking tragedy about the soldier and
and his family. I felt bad for them. I pray that there will be peace at year's end. If not then,
when?

Phyllis Kunz        
@Claudia, Celine, and Anna - Just finished moving into a new house, and connecting the Internet.  Just wanted to say thanks for all the kind words and for including me among the "regulars." Hope to get back to posting soon. :)
I did not realize, Mr. Holt, until this
evening how much I had inundated your Blogg
with my political comments and I will curb
my enthusiam in the future. I am a news junkie!  Sorry!  Have
a nice Holiday!
Luck, always
Phyllis Kunz
Unemployment in America wears many faces. It's biggest accelerator has been NAFTA. What worries most forcasters, is now what remains of the American Corporate production inside the U.S. has been hit with the gas crisis, the urgency to move south and north of the border will become even more defined. We can not allow the U.S. to become a service nation to the rest of the world, with no national product to drive production and employment, both of which fuel our economy. NAFTA has allowed American corporations to abandon the American worker, and the American economy. Add the Gas crisis, inflation, and the sub prime mess,out of control budget defecit,for an uneccessary war, and we've got ourselves a recipe for disaster. Osama Bin Laden couldn't have done better himself!. We need to elect leaders who can address these issues, and turn America back into the great productive country that we celebrate this July 4th.


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