VOL. 38 | NO. 45 | Friday, November 7, 2014
STREET LEVEL
J.T. Gray – who pioneered smokeless nightclubs before it became fashionable (and/or mandated) – is glad to see sparkling condo towers, office buildings, restaurants and the like sprouting around him. After all, these newcomers eventually might find themselves inside his time-out-of-mind blockhouse where Bill Monroe used to just drop by and pick.
REALTY CHECK
If a tree falls in the woods and no one hears it, is there sound? That’s a question for the ages.
TENNESSEE TITANS
As the Tennessee Titans reassemble from their bye week, there is some sense of optimism that somehow this team that went 2-6 through the first half of the season can put together something to make the final 2014 ledger look somewhat respectable.
UT SPORTS
As the jubilation settled this week, the University of Tennessee’s football team and its fans still savored last Saturday’s 45-42 overtime victory at South Carolina.
NEWSMAKERS
Former U.S. Senator and Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-SD) and law and government affairs firm Baker Donelson announced today the formation of The Daschle Group, A Public Policy Advisory of Baker Donelson.
BEHIND THE WHEEL
The full-size, 2015 GMC Yukon Denali is a no-excuses sport utility vehicle that’s both capable and pampering.
FAMILY TRAVEL
For years I’ve been asked: “What’s the best day to book airfare.”
GUERRILLA MARKETING
Millennials. They’re unmotivated. They lack the work ethic of their Gen X predecessors. They’re perfectly happy living off mom and dad versus making their own way. They’ll never really have spending power.
CAREER CORNER
With Halloween still fresh on our minds, we’re talking about our fears.
THE WORLDLY INVESTOR
Nearly five years after the conclusion of the Great Recession, the U.S. Federal Reserve has chosen to conclude its quantitative easing program.
I SWEAR
“Unfortunately, the quip in this puzzle didn’t tickle [the editor] quite enough to say yes.
KAY'S COOKING CORNER
The cooler days and nights we have been experiencing have me craving big, hearty pots of soups and stews accompanied by piping hot slices of fresh-from-the-oven cornbread or cornbread sticks.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee's Department of Agriculture plans to hold a public hearing to gather input on the permitting and regulation of industrial hemp.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Folks who want to eat their turkey while enjoying some of Tennessee's natural wonders can do so at one of eight state parks that will be serving Thanksgiving dinner.
AUTO INDUSTRY
WASHINGTON (AP) — Nineteen automakers accounting for most of the passenger cars and trucks sold in the U.S. have signed onto a set of principles they say will protect motorists' privacy in an era when computerized cars pass along more information about their drivers than many motorists realize.
TECHNOLOGY
NEW YORK (AP) — One more time, Facebook is trying to simplify its lengthy privacy policy — and make it much shorter — to explain how it targets advertisements to its 1.35 billion users.
HEALTH CARE
Early enrollment for the health overhaul's small business insurance exchanges fell far short of the 2 million workers who were expected to sign up this year. The shortfall calls into question the future of the exchanges as they begin accepting enrollment for 2015.
REAL ESTATE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Average U.S. long-term mortgage rates edged lower this week, approaching their lows for the year. The benchmark 30-year loan rate hovered near 4 percent.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. companies ramped up hiring in September, and more Americans were confident enough to quit their jobs — two signs of a steadily improving economy. The number of available jobs declined but remained at a healthy level.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Time to stock up on the ramen noodles. The average cost of attending college crept up again this year, the College Board said Thursday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — More people sought U.S. unemployment benefits last week, but the increase wasn't sharp enough to disrupt the job market's positive momentum.
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are inching higher in afternoon trading Thursday as traders respond to generally positive corporate earnings results. DreamWorks soared on a report that Hasbro is trying to buy the movie company. The price of oil fell to a four-year low.
NEW YORK (AP) — One of publishing's nastiest, most high-profile conflicts, the months-long standoff between Amazon.com and Hachette Book Group, is ending.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — As the U.S. and China — the world's top two polluting nations — turn to implementing new rules aimed at curbing climate change, the countries can look to the most populous U.S. state as an example of the costs and challenges of fighting global warming.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is extending many of the financial protections of bank accounts to prepaid cards.
NEW YORK (AP) — Prepaid cards allow users to store and spend their money without tying themselves to a traditional bank. Now regulators want many of the protections that cover bank accounts expanded to this product.
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 12
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) - One of Tennessee's largest home health providers has agreed to pay $25 million to resolve allegations of false billing to the Medicare and Medicaid programs.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) - Tennessee Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bill Hagerty is leaving the administration to return to the private sector, Gov. Bill Haslam announced Wednesday.
AUTO INDUSTRY
NASHVILLE (AP) - By giving labor groups more access to its lone U.S. plant in Tennessee, Volkswagen signaled Wednesday that it won't follow the lead of other foreign-owned automakers in the South in seeking to tamp down union activity.
DETROIT (AP) — For the owners of 189,000 General Motors SUVs, the days of parking them outside the garage for fear that they could catch fire will soon come to an end.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam is downplaying the significance of a new policy that the United Auto Workers has characterized as an avenue toward union recognition the Chattanooga Volkswagen factory.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — The Energy Department now predicts the average price of gasoline will be below $3 a gallon in 2015. The dramatically lower estimate will save U.S. consumers and the economy more than $60 billion if it holds true.
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes are ending mostly lower, breaking a string of five record high closes.
BEIJING (AP) — A groundbreaking agreement struck Wednesday by the United States and China puts the world's two worst polluters on a faster track to curbing the heat-trapping gases blamed for global warming. With the clock ticking on a worldwide climate treaty, the two countries sought to move beyond their troubled history as environmental adversaries and spur other nations.
LONDON (AP) — Traders with nicknames like the "Three Musketeers" and the "A-Team" plotted over Internet chat rooms to manipulate currency markets for years, profiting at the expense of clients — and then congratulating themselves for their brilliance — regulators said Wednesday, as they fined five banks $3.4 billion.
LONDON (AP) — Trillions of dollars change hands every day in the global foreign-exchange markets. Major currencies like dollars, euros and yen are traded in a scantly regulated market dominated by a group of elite banks.
Macy's Inc. reported a 23 percent increase in its fiscal third quarter earnings as some expenses fell. But the department store cut its annual profit outlook because of a sales shortfall in the period.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Conservative Republicans want to drag must-pass spending bills into their fight with President Barack Obama over his planned executive action on immigration, inviting comparisons to last year's shutdown showdown over the health care law.
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 11
MUSIC INDUSTRY
HELSINKI (AP) — Spotify's Swedish CEO voiced disappointment Tuesday that Taylor Swift pulled her music off the popular music streaming service, denying claims it's making money "on the backs of artists."
NASHVILLE (AP) - Fresh off his entertainer of the year win at the Country Music Association Awards, country star Luke Bryan leads the finalists for the inaugural American Country Countdown Awards.
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) — Bridgestone Americas plans to move its Nashville headquarters to a new downtown facility that will allow it to consolidate its current staff with three out-of-state business units, Gov. Bill Haslam announced Tuesday.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) — Undocumented high school students will not be able to take advantage of Tennessee Promise, the state's new free community college program.
NASHVILLE (AP) — A report by the Governor's Veterans Education Task Force outlines ways to improve higher education opportunities for Tennessee veterans.
AUTO INDUSTRY
NASHVILLE (AP) — The United Auto Workers union is hailing a new Volkswagen policy as a vehicle to soon gain representation of workers at its first foreign auto plant in the South.
TECHNOLOGY
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Let's say President Barack Obama gets his way and high-speed Internet service providers are governed by the same U.S. regulations imposed on telephone companies 80 years ago.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market eked out another all-time high on Tuesday, but the gains were slight as investors awaited more news to give them an indication about the strength of the economy.
NEW YORK (AP) — Gym classes that promise a plump posterior are in high demand. A surgery that pumps fat into the buttocks is gaining popularity. And padded panties that give the appearance of a rounder rump are selling out.
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Veterans Day is not only a time to honor those who have served in the military: For American businesses, it's also a time to back up that appreciation with a freebie.
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 10
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) - Gov. Bill Haslam said Monday he's continuing to talk with Washington so he can make a decision about Medicaid expansion in Tennessee before the legislative session starts in January.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Former state Rep. Joe Carr, who in August won 41 percent of the vote in his primary challenge of U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, says he is mulling a bid for chairman of the Tennessee Republican Party.
NASHVILLE (AP) — A new state report reveals signs of economic growth in Tennessee.
MIDSTATE
NASHVILLE (AP) - Environmental groups say the coal ash stored at a Gallatin plant is illegally seeping toxic chemicals into the Cumberland River, a drinking water source for millions.
LYNCHBURG (AP) — Jack Daniel Distillery says it's joining forces with the Armed Services YMCA again to help junior-enlisted service members and their families travel home for the holidays.
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) — The head of the now-defunct Sommet Group, which formerly held the naming rights to the Bridgestone Arena, has been found guilty of stealing from clients.
AUTO INDUSTRY
DETROIT (AP) — Emails released in a court case show that General Motors Co. ordered a half-million replacement ignition switches nearly two months before telling the government that its small cars should be recalled because the switches were defective.
HEALTH CARE
WASHINGTON (AP) — With a bright look to its rebuilt website, version 2.0 of President Barack Obama's health insurance overhaul represents another chance to win over a skeptical public.
TECHNOLOGY
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama on Monday embraced a radical change in how the government treats Internet service, coming down on the side of consumer activists who fear slower download speeds and higher costs but angering Republicans and the nation's cable giants who say the plan would kill jobs.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Postal Service said Monday it is the victim of a cyberattack and that information about its employees, including Social Security numbers, may have been compromised.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — For stocks on Monday, the path of least resistance was up.
CAMARILLO, Calif. (AP) — A national survey of gas prices reports that the average cost of U.S. regular grade gas dropped 13 cents per gallon in the last two weeks.
HONG KONG (AP) — China is opening its stock market wider to foreigners, approving a cross-border trading link Monday that will allow investors in Shanghai and Hong Kong to buy and sell shares on both exchanges.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Flight attendants at American Airlines rejected a five-year contract Sunday, forcing the world's largest carrier and its union for cabin-crew workers into binding arbitration.
NEW YORK (AP) — Pizza Hut is letting customers play mad scientist, giving them the freedom to make pies with honey Sriracha sauce or add curry flavor to the crusts.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The morning after Democrats' thrashing in the midterm elections, President Barack Obama unexpectedly dropped by his senior staff's daily meeting to buck up his exhausted and defeated team.
WASHINGTON (AP) — So many nominees, so little time.
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 7
STATE LEGISLATURE
NASHVILLE (AP) - Gov. Bill Haslam and fellow Republicans in the General Assembly are putting forward plans for how to select Tennessee Supreme Court justices under a constitutional amendment ratified by voters this week.
MURFREESBORO (AP) - A state representative who recently decried fellow Republican Gov. Bill Haslam a "traitor to the party" says he will run for speaker of the state House next month.
NASHVILLE (AP) — With the passage of a constitutional amendment that gives Tennessee lawmakers more power to restrict abortion, they are planning to do just that.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee Higher Education Commission director Richard Rhoda is retiring.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Gov. Bill Haslam has unveiled a website where Tennesseans can review and comment on the state's current K-12 academic standards.
NASHVILLE (AP) — The former executive director of Tennessee Citizen Action says she will seek to chair the Tennessee Democratic Party.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Republican Gov. Bill Haslam's administration has paid out $1 million in secret settlements related to moving state employees around downtown Nashville.
COURTS
NASHVILLE (AP) - Three same-sex couples who sued Tennessee to force the state to recognize their out-of-state marriages will join couples from Kentucky, Michigan and Ohio in asking the U.S. Supreme Court to decide their cases.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court agreed Friday to hear a new challenge to President Barack Obama's health care law — a case that threatens subsidies that help millions of low- and middle-income people afford their health insurance premiums.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Gov. Bill Haslam and fellow Republicans in the General Assembly are putting forward plans for how to select Supreme Court justices under a constitutional amendment ratified by voters this week.
NASHVILLE (AP) — A federal appeals court upheld Tennessee law prohibiting the recognition of same-sex marriages, even if they are performed in other states.
NASHVILLE (AP) — The Tennessee appeals court dismissed a lawsuit against Gov. Bill Haslam over a state law that nullified a Metro nondiscrimination ordinance in 2011, saying the plaintiffs weren't injured by the law.
TECHNOLOGY
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Microsoft is releasing new, beefed-up versions of its popular Office software apps for iPhones and iPads, part of the company's push to stay relevant to workers in an increasingly mobile world.
AUTO INDUSTRY
DETROIT (AP) — Honda is adding hundreds of thousands of vehicles to a previously announced recall for passenger air bags that can explode with too much force and send shards of metal into the passenger compartment.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. stock market is ending the week with meager gains, sending major indexes further into record territory.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. consumers increased their borrowing in September with gains in credit card debt and auto and student loans.
PARIS (AP) — Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said Friday that the Fed is striving to clearly communicate its intentions on interest rates in order to minimize surprises that could disrupt financial markets both in the United States and globally.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Three days after voters registered their sourness about the U.S. economy, the government said Friday that employers added a solid 214,000 jobs in October, extending the healthiest pace of hiring in eight years.
NEW YORK (AP) — Hackers stole 53 million email addresses in addition to customers' card data, Home Depot said Thursday.
NEW YORK (AP) — Nothing is going gold's way. Inflation remains tame, the dollar looks strong and Americans are increasingly confident.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Postal Service will deliver packages on Sundays in major cities and high volume areas during the holiday season.
DALLAS (AP) — If you're flying somewhere for Thanksgiving, expect airports to be even more crowded this year.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Voters made clear Tuesday that they're worried about the economy, despite steady job gains, a robust stock market and faster economic growth this year.