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How contaminated eye drops killed four Americans · Apple News Today

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  Mark Garrison, Narrating: Good morning! It's Monday, August 28th. I'm Mark Garrison, in for Shumita Basu. This is "Apple News Today." On today's show, the unwanted kiss that's leading to a global reckoning for women's soccer. How deadly eye drops made it to U.S. pharmacy shelves. And the surprising health benefits of saying hi to a stranger.
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  But first, let's take a quick look at some of the major stories in the news. In Jacksonville, Florida, three people are dead after a shooting at a Dollar General store over the weekend. Sheriff T.K. Waters says the gunman first tried to enter a historically Black university in the area, before going into the store. He later killed himself, leaving behind extensive racist writing.
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  Sheriff T.K. Waters: He targeted a certain group of people, and that's Black people. That's what he said he wanted to kill and that's very clear.
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  Today, there are two major court hearings in cases against former president Donald Trump. In the federal one, involving his interference in the election, lawyers will discuss timing. Special counsel Jack Smith wants this trial to start in January. Trump's legal team is proposing the trial wait until April 2026, long after the presidential election. And in the Georgia case about the election, there's a hearing on former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows's request to move the case to federal court. Trump is expected to ask for the same thing in his own Georgia case. Today's hearing is seen as the first big test of the strength of the DA's case against Trump and his inner circle. Moving to sports, Simone Biles is the U.S. all-around gymnastics champion for the eighth time, which is a record. Biles hasn't said in public whether she'll compete at the Olympics in Paris next year. The next big competition is the World Championships, starting at the end of next month. And in the world of younger athletes, the Little League World Series champions are the kids from El Segundo, California. The game was tied up, until they finished off the team from Curacao with a home run. Here's what the moment sounded like on "ESPN."
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  [CROWD CHEERING]
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  Sports Announcer: Challenged him, and this game is over!
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  Garrison: That marks the fifth time in a row that a U.S. team has won the Little League championship.
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  Let's turn now to one of the biggest scandals in sports right now: the head of Spanish soccer forcibly kissing player Jenni Hermoso, just after the team won the World Cup. Today, the Spanish soccer federation is holding an emergency meeting about its president, Luis Rubiales. He was suspended over the weekend by global soccer's governing body FIFA while his conduct is under investigation. Rubiales first downplayed his actions, then apologized, but he's refusing to step down. Hermoso's been clear: the kiss was not consensual. And she has the support of her teammates. The Spanish women's players say they will not play unless Rubiales is fired. The Spanish government also wants him out. And players all over the world are rallying behind Hermoso, speaking out and wearing supportive messages on the pitch. She also has the backing of the team Spain beat in the final. "Sky News" asked England's Jess Carter about how seeing the unwanted kiss made her feel.
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  Jess Carter: Really sad, to be honest. Sad that such a special moment like that, like them winning the World Cup, has been, in my opinion, tarnished. For Hermosa herself, for Spain, as a nation, have just achieved something incredible and it's been ruined by that moment.
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  U.S. player Alex Morgan had a similar reaction. She said the championship should've been one of the greatest moments in the players' lives. But it was, quote, "overshadowed by assault, misogyny, and failures by the Spanish federation."
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  Now, safety concerns about some eye drops that are spotlighting a major problem in America's regulation of over-the-counter medicine. The FDA is recalling two brands: Dr. Berne's MSM Drops 5% Solution and LightEyez MSM Eye Drops - Eye Repair. The agency says these drops pose a risk of infection that could threaten vision and potentially be deadly. Earlier this year, two other brands of eye drops were also recalled, after four deaths and several cases of blindness. Those drops contained a dangerous, drug-resistant bacteria. "Bloomberg" senior reporter Peter Robison investigated how hazardous eye drops end up on pharmacy shelves. And he told us the issue is that over-the-counter medications are essentially produced and sold on the honor system. Drugmakers don't have to prove these products are safe and effective, or that they're made under proper conditions.
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  Peter Robison: Over-the-counter drugs are so numerous that what the FDA does is essentially set up a recipe book for manufacturers and it says, "If you're using these approved ingredients, that's okay." And at some point the FDA may inspect or ask for proof of that, but it's really relying on companies to follow the rules.
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  In the case of the eye drops in the deadly bacterial outbreak, Robison said the plant in India that made them had severe sanitation problems, but hundreds of thousands of bottles were shipped before the FDA ever set foot in the factory.
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  Robison: I talked to one expert in sterile processing who said the list of deficiencies the FDA uncovered was among the longest he'd ever seen.
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  There was brown gunk in machines. Employees walked around in dirty, reused booties. And the place just looked like a disaster.
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  Robison: This was more like, you know, something out of a home makeover show on reality TV. It had, you know, nails protruding from the walls and sealant on the walls.
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  The Biden administration is considering ways to stop dangerous over-the-counter products. That includes requiring first-time manufacturers to give the FDA six months notice before drugs go to market, to allow more time for inspections.
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  Finally, when you're going about your day, how often do you say hi to a stranger? Or when you're buying something, really take a moment and chat with the store employee? Scientific research shows that if you do, it could make you and them feel a lot better. "NPR" spoke to psychologist Gillian Sandstrom. She was inspired to study interactions with strangers by a woman who ran a hot dog stand that she passed every day.
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  Gillian Sandstrom: I never bought a hot dog, um, but every time I walked past I would smile and wave at her and she'd smile and wave at me, and I realized after a while that it just made me feel really good.
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  Academics categorize human relationships into what they call strong ties and weak ties. Pretty simple. Strong ties are your closest friends and family. Weak ties are people you know just a little, or maybe total strangers. But interacting with those so-called weak ties can have a strong effect on your mood.
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  Sandstrom: In general, people who tended to have more conversations with weak ties tended to be a little happier than people who had fewer of those kind of interactions on a day-to-day basis.
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  Talking to a stranger may seem a little awkward, especially if you're shy or live in a fast-moving city, but there are ways you can do it. In one of the studies Sandstrom did, they sent people into Starbucks. Some were told to place their order with no small talk. The rest were told to chat the workers up a little bit. Afterwards, surveys found, people who interacted with the staff a little were in a better mood. So, it's not all that hard to try your own little experiment, in the science of making yourself and others feel a bit happier. All it takes is just a few little words with somebody you don't know.
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  You can find all these stories and more in the Apple News app. And if you're already listening in the News app right now, stick around. We have "Bloomberg's" full investigation on contaminated eye drops as a narrated article. That's queued up to play for you next, and we'll be back with the news tomorrow.
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