CNN's Kiran Chetry talks to Dominic Nutt, spokesman for Save the Children UK, about Madonna's plans to adopt.

Happy Monday!

Madonna is in Malawi today trying to adopt a second child from the African nation. Amid some controversy, she adopted a 13-month-old boy named David Banda back in 2006.

And things are no different this time around, with many opinions on whether or not this is the right thing for little 4-year-old Mercy James. According to our reporting, Mercy's mother died in childbirth and her father is also dead. She does have other relatives but lives in an orphanage.

Today I interviewed Dominic Nutt, the spokesman for Save the Children UK, who strongly feels the little girl would be better off staying in Malawi than living with the newly divorced Madonna and her three other children. Here's his take.

It should be noted that the 50-year-old pop icon is a big supporter of Malawi. She made a documentary, "I Am Because We Are," about the country's struggle with poverty, AIDS and disease.

Her nonprofit group, Raising Malawi, also donates money and time to help the country's children. And they need that help. According to UNICEF, for every 1,000 births, 120 children will die, the life expectancy in Malawi is only 44-years-old and most children over the age of 10 don't attend school.

Today when I posted the question "what do you think about Madonna wanting to adopt another child from Malawi?" to those following me on twitter.com/kiranchetrycnn, we got a lot of great responses and many different opinions!

On a personal note, I can understand the tough choice that goes with deciding whether or not to send your child away in hopes of a better life somewhere else.

I was born in Kathmandu, Nepal to a native Nepali and an American Peace Corps volunteer. My father and his 4 siblings took very different paths in life. My dad and his youngest brother came to the U.S. to study and eventually live. His other brothers and sister didn't come here themselves, but scraped together every cent they could to make sure all of their children came to the United States for their educations. Nepal is quite a poor nation and my cousins' prospects for a better life were definitely improved by having an American education and access to healthcare. Now, it's not the same as giving up parental rights by any means, but my aunts and uncles sacrificed a lot in their decision to send their children away. They had to trust that they were cared for from afar and could only communicate with letters and the occasional phone call. That is why I understand why some of the relatives of children like David and Mercy decide to give their children away when faced with bleak circumstances at home.

In the case of Madonna and Malawi, the question of how to best help the other children left behind is an even harder one.

Kiran

[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/03/27/fargo.volunteers.getty.art.jpg caption="Volunteers fill sandbags at the Fargodome in Fargo, North Dakota."]

Happy Friday everyone!

My thoughts are with the people of North Dakota and Minnesota as they band together to try to save their own homes, while helping their neighbors do the same against the rising waters of the Red River.

Not only are they fighting the power of Nature, they are also entering into uncharted waters so to speak.

This morning, the Red River rose to 40.2 feet, breaking a 112-year-old record. This means emergency officials can no longer rely on historical data to figure out how to best handle the situation.

But facing the unknown is exactly what the brave people living in this flood zone are doing.

We brought you the pictures today and yesterday of the tireless efforts of the volunteers filling sandbag after sandbag. At the Fargodome, the music was blaring, but the volunteers were quiet, yet determined while going about their back-breaking work. Our Susan Rosegen gave us a first hand look at the local efforts to surround the banks of the river. Watch

Meantime, hundreds have already evacuated Fargo neighborhoods, hospitals and even a nursing home. And people living just across the state line in Moorhead, Minnesota, are also being urged to leave.

So will the heroic efforts of the rescue crews, local law enforcement and everyday citizens be enough? We hope so. But we won't know until this weekend when the river is expected to crest. Meantime we are thinking about and praying for the folks living there.

God bless!

Kiran

PS – If you want to help, here's the link.

CNN's Kiran Chetry speaks to management consultant Peter Bregman about how to start a business in this economy.

It's a recession. If you find yourself without a job, well you aren't alone and it doesn't mean you can't find a way to success.

Bill Gates, Jim Henson, Walt Disney, just to name a few, all took a chance and hit it big during an economic downturn.

Instead of waiting around to get a call back from one of the hundreds of resumes you've sent or posted online, why not start your own business? Is it possible if you've never done it before and haven't the slightest idea where to begin? Yes, says Peter Bregman, a business management consultant who joined me on the show this morning. He says find your passion and go from there! Watch the interview.

On Twitter this morning, I asked people to tweet about their passions. We got some great answers; cooking, working in the field of green energy. News is my passion and has been since I was a kid. But if I had to try to start up my own business on the side, I'd probably do some photography. I love taking pics of the kids, gorgeous landscapes, everyday objects seen through an artistic eye. I'm also not bad with doing people's makeup. Among my friends, I'm the go-to gal if they need to get glam for a party.

Everyone's got a knack for something beyond what they get paid to do. Our guest today says it's just a matter of taking a risk at a time when you probably have a little less to lose.

Good luck,

Kiran

Good Monday morning to you! Hope you had a good weekend.

Here on AM we started the week talking about the new plan by the Treasury Department and Secretary Tim Geithner to establish a public/private partnership to help get toxic assets off the banks' books and help them lend again. Here's a look at the actual plan.

And just as soon as it was released, the criticisms started as well. Not just from political foes but from leading economists who say it's a waste of money and a rehash of a similar plan the Bush administration's Treasury secretary floated and then backed away from. Read Paul Krugman's NY Times op-ed here.

Christine Romans told us today in one of the breaks just how much hope there is on Wall Street and in the banking industry that this plan will work. Other questions too, after getting eviscerated by Congress last week during the AIG bonus scandal, how willing a partner will some of these private investment firms be? Will they be scared away by the potential for caps on compensation if things do turn around and these assets start making money again? And what about the taxpayers? Many of our viewers asked... why does it seem we as the taxpayer put the money up front and assume the risks while Wall Street benefits if the plan works?

Well, we put a lot of these questions to Christina Romer, President Obama's Chief Economic Adviser. Check it out here.

Another big issue today, the more than one hundred billion dollars set for infrastructure projects around the nation. We talked to Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell who co-founded Building America's Future Coalition along with California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
I asked Governor Rendell how soon we'll see jobs come out of it and if now is the time to be spending billions more tax dollars.

Finally, the story of a former banker who found a new job and passion as a NY cabbie. He is a real character and shows us that success comes in all forms.

As always check us out on twitter.com/amfix and twitter.com/kiranchetrycnn.

Cheers,

Kiran

Hello Everyone!

Happy Friday and happy first day of spring. Here in NYC we welcomed the change of seasons with... SNOW!

Congressman Ron Paul may be the lone voice in the wilderness especially when it comes to his colleagues in the House of Representatives. He joined us this morning on our special "Road to Rescue" edition of AM. He voted against the new bill to tax bonuses calling it a disgrace. And he says the AIG bonus mess has actually made us lose sight of even bigger problems. Here’s his interview.

But on the brighter side, we did a segment on whether women could be one of the keys to economic recovery.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics puts unemployment over eight percent for men, but under seven percent for women, and now some groups are trying to help even more women find good work. Jacki Zehner with the Women's Funding Network joined Christine as well as Linda Butler, a woman who benefited from the program. Watch it here.

Thanks for joining us this week. Hope to see you on Monday! As always you can reach us at cnn.com/amfix or twitter.com/amfix, twitter.com/kiranchetrycnn.

Cheers!

Kiran