CHICAGO – You might think with all the star power surrounding Chicago's bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics – with President Barack Obama expected to join first lady Michelle Obama and Oprah Winfrey in Copenhagen – that there would be a groundswell of support for the effort here in the Windy City.

There just might be, but that depends on which poll you believe.

This week, the Chicago 2016 bid committee trumpeted a Zogby poll showing that 72 percent of Chicagoans "back the bid" (to use the committee's slogan).

But that is a far cry from a Chicago Tribune poll released earlier this month that had locals split down the middle, with just 47 percent for the bid versus 45 percent against it.

VIDEO: Obamas, Winfrey make Olympic pitch

I did my own highly unscientific poll this week and heard arguments on both sides. Everyone agreed the president's in-person pitch could not hurt Chicago's chances, and that the games could show the world the best the city has to offer. But that publicity is not free, and concern lingers about a projected budget that already exceeds $2 billion and cost overruns that have been a staple of recent Olympic history.

"There will be insiders who will make all the money on the deal," said local Dave Stewart, echoing a common mistrust of the Chicago political machine. "Unfortunately, the taxpayers will be stuck with the overruns and the costs. And I don't see the benefit of it."

Local officials claim that most costs will be covered by revenue from the games, developer financing and donations. They have also devised a $1.4 billion insurance package and pledged $750 million in city and state money in the event of a loss.

But skepticism remains, as evidenced by the approximately 250 people who turned out Tuesday for a protest at City Hall sponsored by the group No Games Chicago.  

A more satirical online protest has gone viral in the form of ChicagoansForRio.com, which features locals expressing support for Rio de Janeiro – already considered Chicago's strongest competitor. After speculation that the Brazilians were behind the site, it was revealed this week to be the pet project of a local ad executive.

Still, some residents remember that when the International Olympic Committee evaluated Chicago last April, several streets went from pothole-riddled to paved overnight. The hope is that a full-blown Olympic polish would bring about much-needed improvement in the city's infrastructure and mass transit.

"They need to improve some of those things anyway," said another local, Doug Hoenig. "So I'm hoping that bringing the Olympics here will help."

With the impeachment and upcoming trial of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich still fresh in local residents' minds (thanks to his seemingly unending media blitz), some supporters welcome the good public relations that the games could bring.

"We've had a reputation that's been kind of negative," said Karen Mendoza. "And I think this would place a really positive light on the city."

Depending on what happens Friday, this whole debate could be a footnote in history. Or it may just rage on for the next seven years.

Related links: Vote: Should Obama be lobbying for Chicago?

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Political activism from rock stars has a long lineage. You can trace it all the way back to George Harrison's "Concert for Bangladesh" in 1972, the "No Nukes" concert in New York in 1979, "LIVE AID" and "We Are the World" in the 1980's, and many more.  Today such activism is ubiquitous. Concert-goers are urged to support a wide range of causes, and artists' web sites act as grass-roots organizations for a multitude of high-minded projects. 

But no band – and no band leader – embodies this ideal more today than U2 and Bono. The band supports the efforts of Amnesty International, Greenpeace, and the Chernobyl Children's Project. Bono has used his fame to put considerable pressure on countries to reduce the burden of debt on developing countries and to draw attention to the fight against AIDS in Africa with his RED project. 

Evan Agostini / AP

Lead singer Bono of the rock band U2 performs with the band during their 360 world tour stop at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ on Thursday.

U2 was the first big band to play in Sarajevo after the Bosnian war, launched an effort to put thousands of musical instruments back in the hands of New Orleans artists after Katrina, and have been very vocal in their support of Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Many of their songs over the years have drawn on socio-political events for inspiration – from the fighting in Northern Ireland to the civil war in El Salvador.

The band's latest world tour, in support of their most recent album, "No Line on the Horizon," has drawn praise from critics. The tour's latest stop, at Giants Stadium in New Jersey, sold out for its two nights. With 84,000 attendees per night, that's more over 160,000 to rally to the cause(s) in just two nights. (According to U2's Web site, they broke every record for attendence in the stadium - breaking the record previously set by Pope John Paul II in 1995.)  Do the math for the rest of the tour, and you begin to understand the extent of the band's reach, and that of others with similar followings.

But what's the real draw, the music or the message?

For Kevin Sheridan, 37, an advertising salesman from Malverne, N.Y. the two go hand in hand. "I tend to like those (musicians) with a message. Usually the music is better, because it comes from the heart." Sheridan drew the line when it comes to Hollywood, however. "These artists write their own music, which reflects their views, and you know going in where they stand. But I don't want to be preached to by someone just because they've starred in a movie."

Blair Thill, 22, of Little Silver, New Jersey, said Bono's activism was part of what attracted her to the band to begin with. His involvement in the fight to eliminate AIDS in Africa even inspired her to do a fundraising bake sale during high school in support of the cause. But, she said, "I would venture to say most people are going to this concert for the music, not a social cause."

John Baiata, NBC News

Images of Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi during a song dedicated to her.

Dori Kenyon, 38, a representative for Amnesty International manning one of several booths outside the venue, did not entirely agree. "You get all types. Some people are here because they [U2] have been around for 30 years, and they love the music…There are others who are here because they believe in what we're doing, and Bono supports that."

Kenyon had made the drive from Lancaster, Pennsylvania with her son because she said, "We have a responsibility to everyone around the globe." She was collecting signatures in support of three causes – a bill guaranteeing maternal health benefits for women in the U.S., a petition urging U.S. lawmakers to deliver a plan that fulfills "the human right to health care," and another urging the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and all other "prisoners of conscience" in Myanmar.

Suu Kyi was in the spotlight on this night almost as often as the band members.

The group's Web site encouraged fans attending the show to download and print a mask of her face, and to wear it during their performance of "Walk On," a song written for her. Her image was beamed over the giant video screens above the set as Bono talked about her lengthy detention and fight for freedom.

Her plight was probably news to most in attendance. Not a single fan I spoke to beforehand had even heard of her, and no one visible in the crowd had donned the mask of her image.

Yet all eyes were on Bono as he spoke, and as he sang, in part:

"You could have flown away

A singing bird in an open cage

Who will only fly, only fly for freedom"

South African Bishop Desmond Tutu's video message to the crowd, which preceded the encores, received a raucous cheer. Tutu reminded the crowd that they were "the same people" who protested for civil rights in America, against apartheid in South Africa and the troubles in Northern Ireland. 

John Baiata, NBC News

A video message from Bishop Desmond Tutu preceded the encores.

A few minutes later we were reminded that contributions from Americans to the "ONE" campaign had helped deliver life-saving drugs to 34 million African schoolchildren, along with a couple of other encouraging statistics.

When the concert was over, those in attendance began to file out, talking excitedly about what they'd just witnessed. And while none I heard were talking about Aung San Suu Kyi, they'd all been given a primer as part of the price of admission.

PITTSBURGH – There are many groups protesting many things outside the G-20 summit: Iraq War veterans against the war, Tibetans against China's policies on Tibet, anarchists against just about everything. But students promoting hula-hoops?

A small band of young people marched through the Pittsburgh neighborhood of Oakland, home of the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie-Mellon University, gyrating their hips and carrying signs with anti-war messages: "Out of Uniform and into Hoops," "Put Down Your Arms and Pick Up Your Hoops."

A message with a grin.

SLIDESHOW: G-20 Summit in PittsburghÂ

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With riot police turning back hundreds of protesters trying to march on the first day of the international summit, we'll see how the rest of the day develops. Stay tuned.

Related link: What is the G-20?

NEW YORK – Ingrid Hong, a petite insurance agent with two grown children, rose early Wednesday morning and left her Queens, New York residence with a placard – and a mission: "We encourage people to get peace by meditation and no killing – but mainly, we urge people to keep a vegetarian diet." 

Hong was among hundreds who braved the crowds and the police barricades to come to Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, across from the United Nations, on Wednesday to try to compete for attention with the headline-generating protests associated with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. 

She is part of a group called "The Supreme Master Ching Hai International Association," which advocates what they consider a simple solution to combat global warming. "According to a U.N. report," Hong explained, "livestock farming contributes more greenhouse gases than the energy sectors…We want the government to encourage organic farming." 

Michael Nagle / EPA

Demonstrators protest against Iran in Dag Hammarskjold Plaza across from the United Nations headquarters on Wednesday.Â

Hong and others in her group occupied a prominent position next to a police barricade at the entrance to the plaza. Amid somber and occasionally graphic posters of wounded and dead Iranian protesters, the vegan group's placards, "Be Veg, Go Green, Save the Planet," seemed to inspire many walkers to stop and chat. "You go!" shouted a well-dressed middle-aged woman. "I'm a vegan myself!  Way to go!" 

A voice for Tibet
However, some of the assembled groups who have come year after year to protest outside the United Nations during the General Assembly sessions had a more sobering message.

"Sadly, [the U.N.] should be the place where disputes are settled – but it's not," said Sonam Wangdu, Chairman of the U.S.-Tibet Committee. 

Wangdu and others, some kneeling in prayer amid the noise and the crowds, were there to call attention to what they consider unfinished business: Their call for Tibetan independence and the end to what they denounce as human rights abuses in the Himalayan region.

"Some of my friend's relatives were arrested in Tibet, and they are 'nowhere' – their family has no idea where they are and it's hard to wrest information from the government," said Pema Chodon, a 37-year-old Tibetan who worked in the design industry, but is currently unemployed. 

Michael Nagle / EPA

Protesters demonstrate for a free Tibet in Dag Hammarskjold Plaza across from the United Nations on Wedneday.

Chodon, who grew up in refugee camps in India, started to cry softly as she recounted why she has come here during the U.N.'s General Assembly every year for the past 12 years. "Those in Tibet cannot bring their voice here, so I can bring their voice." 

She added that the Tibet issue is not just about human rights, but environmental issues, too. "Tibet is vast, with the highest peaks and many natural minerals." Chodon believes that the world has an obligation to try to stop the deforestation in Tibet. She and Wangdu also warned that the rivers in Tibet are a major source of water and have to be kept clean. This, they say, is part of what the United Nations should be doing.

Still, after years of advocacy, does Wangdu believe that gathering in front of the United Nations makes a difference to their cause? 

"To be honest, it's very difficult," Wangdu said. He said he believes that the United Nations' current structure "is designed not to function. But symbolically, we have to do it."     

Related links:
Gadhafi blasts U.N. Security Council  
Obama to world: America can't fix it all
Official: Gadhafi on his way to Trump tent
Outside the U.N., many welcome Gadhafi

NEW YORK – Yussif Ali did not mind waking up at 2 a.m. this morning to come from his native Boston to Dag Hammarskold Plaza, next to the United Nations, to support a world leader he respects.

"I set aside two doctor appointments today to come see [Moammar] Gadhafi's first time visiting the United States. To me, he's a hero," the union carpenter said.  

While many Americans associate Gadhafi with the terrorist bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland in 1988, (Libya formally admitted responsibility for the attack in 2003), Ali and hundreds of others who gathered across the street from the U.N. on Wednesday have a very different view of the Libyan leader.

Bebeto Matthews / AP

Supporters of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi watch a broadcast of his address to the United Nations General Assembly at Dag Hammarskold Plaza in New York on Wednesday.Â

"I'm a black American and taking lives of innocent people is wrong and unforgiveable and I see no excuses," said Ali, who has been a member of The Nation of Islam for more than 25 years. "But I don't believe Col. Gadhafi gave anyone a direct order. You have a lot of radical people you can't control." 

An imposing phalanx of hundreds of Nation of Islam supporters dressed in dark suits flanked the walkway that led to a podium at the end of the plaza. A large JumboTron television had been set up to allow those assembled to watch Gadhafi's speech to the U.N. General Assembly.

After the speech, many left inspired, including Abdush Shahid, a police officer from Newark, N.J. "This is the beginning of the history of Africa. Under the leadership of Gadhafi we begin to unify under one banner." Shahid was clear that he was not a member of The Nation of Islam. "I am a Sunni Muslim, and there is no separation – we are all brothers."  Shahid believes Gadhafi as a leader who is unifying millions of Africans and their descendants into one community. 

On the other hand Earl Dickinson, a 75-year-old retired tractor trailer driver who also traveled from Newark, had a much more practical reason for supporting Gadhafi.  "He gave $2 million to [Louis] Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam." Dickinson said it was Gadhafi's support and connections which helped Farrakhan, the leader of the Nation of Islam since 1978, expand his organization and disseminate his message.

In fact, Farrakhan met Gadhafi at Libya's mission in New York on Tuesday to welcome him ahead of his first ever appearance at the U.N. after 40 years as the ruler of the oil-rich North African nation.

And Alonzo X, a serious and mature-looking high school senior, traveled from Connecticut to witness the Libyan leader's U.N. speech. When asked whether they received any payment or remuneration for coming, Alonzo and others said they volunteered to come to New York as soon as they heard the news of Gadhafi's visit.  "I wasn't paid to be here," said the young man in the somber suit. "God is paying us."  

BEDFORD, N.Y. – "What is that terrorist doing here anyway," one Bedford resident said to us, referring to Moammar Gadhafi, the Libyan leader who erected a tent in this ritzy town.

We're about an hour north of New York City where Gadhafi pitched a tent on Donald Trump's property. Yes, Trump lives here – so does Martha Stewart (told ya it's ritzy).

Turns out, Gadhafi prefers tents to hotels. Apparently he hates riding in elevators, ruling out many of the city's high-rise hotels. So, he sets up tents wherever he goes. He did so in Paris and Rome, and tried to pitch one in Central Park. But the city denied his request. So he tried to pitch one in Englewood, N.J. The neighbors and even the governor pitched a fit. No go there either.

VIDEO: Gadhafi's tent causes a stir

So, the Libyan government apparently made a deal with the Trump Organization to allow Gadhafi to set up his famous tent on the Trump estate in Bedford. The Trump Organization denied that they knowingly rented the property to the man President Ronald Reagan famously called "the mad dog of the Middle East." Rather, it said part of the estate, "was leased on a short-term basis to Middle Eastern partners, who may or may not have a relationship to Mr. Gadhafi."

Either way, there is no "Welcome" mat here. One Bedford neighbor just told me, "He's a criminal. He's a terrorist. He needs to go back where he belongs. We don't want him here."

Gadhafi, who was making his first appearance at the United Nations on Wednesday after 40 years as ruler of the oil-rich North African nation, might not have chosen the best time to come face-to-face with Americans. Remember, he just celebrated Scotland's release last month of Libyan Abdel Baset al-Megrahi, who was convicted of the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 which killed 270 people – including many New Yorkers.

Kevin P. Coughlin / Flying Dog Photos

An aerial photo of the tent erected by Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's on the Trump estate in Bedford, N.Y.   Â

Standing here in "downtown Bedford," reaction is pretty one-sided. "Why is he here?" one woman asked. "It makes no sense."

Under pressure, Bedford officials have issued a stop-work order to the property's caretaker, citing the failure to obtain the proper permits necessary to pitch a tent. So, it seems Bedford has dodged Gadhafi (for now).

He reportedly stayed at the Libyan Mission in midtown Manhattan on Tuesday night. "He should get out of this country," a volunteer firefighter just told me as he walked through town.

Oh, and by the way, if you come to Bedford, try the coffee shop on the Village Green. It's strong – just like the opinions of all the neighbors here today.

NEW YORK – It's been a very difficult day covering the 9/11 anniversary events.

We have been positioned on the tenth floor balcony of an office building across the street from ground zero. It's a very good vantage point to see the World Trade Center site, but today it has been a very hard place to broadcast from. Mother Nature bestowed a wet, rainy day on New York City for this somber day.

The winds have been gusting all morning. Rain has been falling and blowing sideways. Tents are useless – a couple of them blew dangerously over the balcony to the street below. But it's the best place to see ground zero in its entirety.

SLIDESHOW: Remembering 9/11

I've been up on this balcony every few years since the Sept. 11 attacks. I was living in London when the attacks happened and suddenly found myself on my way to Pakistan and Afghanistan for several months. After several years of reporting from overseas, I returned to New York.

I can see the progress at ground zero. And I can also see the overwhelming amount of work left to rebuild.

I'm reminded that the Deutsch Bank building still is standing eight years later. It's a tower the was pretty much destroyed by the attack, but there's been so much wrangling about rebuilding – who should pay, what should be built – that there's still no agreement about how to tear the bank building down.

I was here back in 2007 when two firefighters died in an accident trying to put out a blaze in the building that shouldn't even have still been standing. 

VIDEO: Remembering the victims of 9/11

 
Across the site is perhaps the most hopeful sign of progress. The first tower is rising above street level. It used to symbolically and defiantly be called Freedom Tower. It's expected to stand 1,776 feet tall when it is completed. But in a clear sign of how the emotional and political environment has changed over the years, the building is now called One World Trade Center.

Every anniversary brings back so many memories and rekindles unresolved issues. Another significant concern is the claims by hundreds of people that the infamous dust cloud that formed at the site after the buildings collapsed made them sick.

But this is a day to think about those innocent lives lost – people from around the world. A day to share the grief of the Sept. 11 families still struggling with the tragedy on a very intimate and personal level.

Click here for complete coverage: 9/11: Eight years later

SARASOTA BAY, Fla. – Off of Florida's Gulf Coast, lives perhaps the most unusual wild dolphin: "Beggar."

It's a nickname earned years ago when this highly intelligent bottle-nosed dolphin learned there's more than one way to satiate his appetite.

Beggar, you see, has turned the tables and trained humans.

They come almost every day and fall into his trap.

VIDEO: Don't be lured into feeding finned friends!

This aging dolphin listens for the propeller of an engine, swims up alongside a boat, rolls to his side, and with his etched smile, appears to stare right into the eyes of those on board. And so the seduction begins.

Beggar wants food.

Routinely, excited kids and adults succumb to his charm, reach into a cooler, and pull out something to eat.

And that's the problem say federal authorities.

Feeding human food to a dolphin can be dangerous, mostly to the dolphin.

"He's gotten chips, sandwiches, pickles, sardines, beer," said Randall Wells, a biologist with the Sarasota Dolphin Research Program.

Human food can make a dolphin ill. "It might even kill him," said Wells.

Feeding a dolphin can also result in a $12,000 fine, but truth is, it's hard for agents from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to spot a feeding in progress.

Instead, there's an all-out effort under way to tell boaters what they should already know: Don't feed the wild dolphins!

That message, in a most entertaining way, is now part of a public service campaign.

VIDEO: Public service announcement: Don't feed the wild dolphins!

"Its common sense, in the same way you don't go to the national park and feed a bear," said Laura Engleby, a NOAA scientist.

The growing fear now, as Beggar continues to get hand-outs, is that other dolphins will learn that they can do the same thing, too. "I worry more dolphins will become habituated to this behavior," said Engleby.

And then there's the danger to humans.

One boater called biologists at nearby Mote Marine Laboratory demanding they capture Beggar and cut him open.

"Turns out, the tourist had gotten a little too close with his hand, and Beggar not only ate the food, but latched onto his fingers, pulling the guy's wedding ring off," said Wells.

Needless to say, the researchers did not capture, kill and cut open Beggar just to retrieve the missing wedding ring.

The Bureau of Land Management's roundup of Pryor Mountain's wild mustang herd began on Thursday. NBC News' Kerry Sanders reports on the heated debate over the roundup of the wild horses from Britton Springs, Wy.

VIDEO: Roundup of wild horses begins

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management will round up about 190 wild horses in the Pryor Mountains along the Montana-Wyoming state line on Thursday – much to the chagrin of horse advocates.

A federal judge rejected a request by two Colorado-based advocacy groups, the Cloud Foundation and Front Range Equine Rescue, to halt the action.

The wild horse advocacy groups argued that gathering the herd could end up ruining one of the most genetically pure herds of Spanish colonial horses in the country. 

VIDEO: Horse lovers gather to offer a prayer to preserve wild horses right to run free

But the Bureau of Land Management, which operates the 38,000-acre Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range, says there are too many horses on the range. The agency's Web site says that it is necessary gather the herd of wild horses and reduce their numbers  in order to "achieve a thriving natural ecological balance" in the Pryor range.  

The roundup had been delayed while U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan considered an injunction, but he denied the request Wednesday.

The Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range was created in 1968 to protect an icon of the American West – the wild mustang.

But while the herd has grown to approximately 190 horses, the Bureau of Land Management says that the ideal number of horses for the range is about 120. The BLM has culled the herd before, in 1997, 2001 and 2003.

The horse advocacy groups opposed the roundup this year because they say the action is "unprecedented in size and scope."

The BLM will use a helicopter and wranglers on horseback to drive the horses into corrals Thursday. They plan to capture the range's entire population, with 70 adult horses and their foals to be put up for adoption and sale on Sept. 26.

The remaining 120 horses would be returned to the range and freed after some of the mares are given a contraceptive vaccine.

Watch the video link above to see NBC News' Charles Hadlock report on a recent prayer vigil and group ride held by advocates from the Cloud Foundation for the mustangs in the Pryor Mountain range.

And see NBC News' Kerry Sanders report on the roundup of wild mustangs on the Today Show on Friday morning. 

Click here for more information about how to adopt one of the horses. 

ANTIOCH, Calif. – This unincorporated corner of Antioch, California, zip code 94509, has 101 registered sex offenders, if you check California's "Megan's Law" database. 

Phillip Garrido, suspected of kidnapping, raping and imprisoning Jaycee Lee Dugard, is one of them. Kids in the neighborhood nicknamed him "Creepy Phil" because of his strange behavior.

Garrido and his wife Nancy have pleaded not guilty to 29 criminal charges, including forcible abduction, rape and unlawful imprisonment. They are being held without bail at the El Dorado County Jail in Placerville, Calif., in the county where Dugard was abducted in 1991.

VIDEO: Bone fragment found near suspect's house

In 1977, Garrido was convicted of kidnapping and raping a woman in Reno, Nevada.  He got out on parole eleven years later. In court documents from his trial, Garrido is quoted at length about his sexual attraction to children, something he blamed on heavy drug use when he was a young man.

A neighbor, Betty Unpingco, remembers a few years ago when Garrido helped set up stereo speakers for her son's high school graduation party. He kept lingering around the party, looking at the teenagers in a strange way, Unpingco recalled.

"Somebody informed us that he was down the street," Unpingco said, "and he was motioning for young girls to come over and talk to him."

That's when Unpingco told her children to be careful about "Creepy Phil."

And then, she discovered his name on the database of sex offenders.

"We instituted the buddy system after that," Unpingco said, meaning that her children were told not to go outside the house alone, always with at least one sibling.

Her house, just a few doors down the street from where Garrido and his wife lived with Dugard and her two daughters allegedly fathered by Garrido, has a surveillance camera pointed outward now. 

Unpingco believes that her neighborhood, a rural area on the outskirts of Antioch, has a disproportionate number of sex offenders. "We found they just dump them in this area," Unpingco said. "That's just not right."

One reason is that this neighborhood is not near any public schools or city parks, places where children are expected to congregate, so it's legal for registered sex offenders to live here. But because it's an unincorporated area with no local police department, law enforcement is spread pretty thin.

The local sheriff has admitted that his department dropped the ball three years ago when a neighbor called to complain that there was something strange going on with children in the back yard at the Garrido home. 

A deputy stopped by, but only spent a few minutes at the front of the Garrido house – not noticing the strange warren of sheds and tents out back where Dugard spent the last 18 years of her life.