Meet the runners who dominated the Princeton Invite
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www.newstrib.com | Monday, September 16, 2019 | 75 cents
Auto workers strike against GM in contract dispute By Tom Krisher and MIKE Householder
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Jazsmine Farley of Boss Vapes in La Salle blows a cloud of vapor in the store. A lung illness related to vaping has been reported in 36 states across the country. The outbreak has not been linked to a specific e-cigarette product, but most patients reported a history of using e-cigarette products containing THC, the intoxicating compound in marijuana.
Vaping: Healthy alternative or harmful for the lungs? Officials warn of e-cigarette use following lung illnesses, deaths By Brett Herrmann
of lung illness, including one death. “Everybody should pay atFor Michael Dean, vape prod- tention to that,” said Dr. Paul ucts were the healthy alternaBonucci, medical director of tive — they ended a reliance on the emergency department traditional tobacco products. at Illinois Valley Community “I haven’t bought a cigarette Hospital in Peru. “There defiin years and I’ll never go back,” nitely have been no long term Dean said as he made adjuststudies to see the effects (of ments to a vape rig at Boss e-cigarettes).” Vapes in downtown La Salle. “Now I can run. I can swim. I WHAT IS THE CAUSE? can breathe. I don’t smell like No single vaping device, s*** and I still get my nicotine.” liquid or ingredient has been But nationwide, health tied to all the illnesses, The officials are warning e-cigaAssociated Press reports. rette products may not be the However, a strong majority of healthy cigarette alternative the people experiencing illness some believe it to be. The said they had been vaping THC, Center for Disease Control and the intoxicating compound in Prevention reports more than marijuana. 380 cases of lung illness associFor Boss Vapes’ Jazsmine ated with the use of e-cigarette Farley, the THC component is products, including six deaths, a telltale sign that there is more in 36 states. In Illinois, there at play than bad vape products. have been 42 reported cases Farley said people are able to NEWSTRIBUNE REPORTER
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buy empty cartridges for a vape pen and fill them with products they are making on their own outside of regulation of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. “You can buy them empty and fill them yourself,” she said. “What is making people sick is illegal for us to sell here.” Still, she said many customers have raised concerns when coming into the store in recent weeks. “Everyone that has come in our door has had questions about it,” she said. “If you’re not getting high, you’re good. You should not have any issues at all.” WHAT IS THE SICKNESS? Different types of e-cigarette products also tend to get lumped together in the “vaping” category. Vape juice is made up of propylene glycol or vegetable glycerin, food flavoring and
water whereas more discrete e-cigarette pens like the popular JUUL products contain nicotine salts juice, which does not produce the large clouds of vapor. Then there is the possibility of added THC oil, which if purchased on the black market, could contain vitamin E acetate, an ingredient some health officials believe to be the cause of the illness. However, all reported cases have a history of e-cigarette use with many reporting a combination of THC and nicotine use, according to the CDC. Some have reported the use only of e-cigarette products containing nicotine. But the CDC is warning people to not use e-cigarette products at all during this time. Bonucci said lung damage is critical to health and people should be cautious about inhaling any chemicals. See VAPING Page A2
What a bash! Right: Caitlyn Bell , 6, of La Salle competes in the hula-hoop contest at the first Perfectly Flawed Foundation Back2School Bash on Sunday. Students enjoyed games and food. Organizers say the event was a way for children to “Just say ‘Yes’” to fun activities, not drugs. Far right: Paula Tomsha, Luke Tomsha’s mother, serves hot dogs during the event. Luke battled addiction problems for years and founded the Perfectly Flawed Foundation.
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DETROIT (AP) — More than 49,000 members of the United Auto Workers walked off General Motors factory floors or set up picket lines early Monday as contract talks with the company deteriorated into a strike. Workers shut down 33 manufacturing plants in nine states across the U.S., as well as 22 parts distribution warehouses. It wasn’t clear how long the walkout would last, with the union saying GM has budged little in months of talks while GM said it made substantial offers including higher wages and factory investments. It’s the first national strike by the union since a two-day walkout in 2007 that had little impact on the company. GM workers joined striking Aramark-employed janitors assigned to GM facilities on the picket lines Sunday night at a sprawling factory on the border between Detroit and the small town of Hamtramck. Worker Patty Thomas said she wasn’t scheduled to picket, but came out to support her colleagues at the car plant, which GM wants to close. She’s heard talk that GM may keep the factory open and start building electric pickup trucks there, but she’s skeptical. “What are they going to take away?” she asked. “That’s the big issue.” She said workers gave up costof-living pay raises to help GM get through bankruptcy, and workers want some of that back now that the company is making profits. Striking GM employees were joined on the picket lines by workers from Ford and Fiat Chrysler, who are working under contract extensions. Night shift workers at an aluminum castings factory in Bedford, Indiana, that makes transmission casings and other parts shut off their machines and headed for the exits, said Dave Green, a worker who transferred from the now-shuttered GM small-car factory in Lordstown, Ohio. Green, a former local union president, said he agrees with the strike over wages, plant closures and other issues. “If we don’t fight now, when are we going to fight?” he asked. “This is not about us. It’s about the future.” UAW Vice President Terry Dittes, the union’s top GM negotiator, said a strike is the union’s last resort but is needed because both sides are far apart in negotiating a new four-year contract. The union, he said Saturday, does not take a strike lightly.