VOL. 38 | NO. 49 | Friday, December 5, 2014
REALTY CHECK
As hot as this market is, the old axiom of pigs get fat and hogs get slaughtered can apply.
TENNESSEE TITANS
Instead of CBS, Fox or even the NFL Network, the Titans might need to move to the HGTV, where experts take once-proud houses and restore them to their former grandeur.
NEWSMAKERS
Douglas Hanto, M.D., Ph.D., the new associate director of the Vanderbilt Transplant Center, will work with the departments of Pediatrics and Surgery to develop a comprehensive pediatric liver center at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt.
BEHIND THE WHEEL
America’s best-selling sport utility vehicle for a decade, the Honda CR-V, is an even smarter buy for 2015 with added features, updated styling and improved fuel economy.
FAMILY TRAVEL
December is here, and with it comes holiday decorations, busy party schedules and trips to Grandma’s house.
BUSINESS BOOK REVIEW
Your credit card was declined. Such an annoyance. You paid your bill, the expiration date was right, your signature was on the back and it should’ve worked.
GUERRILLA MARKETING
The explosion of the Internet and the ensuing 24/7 news cycle, combined with a significant reduction in reporting staff at most media outlets over the past decade, has created a perfect storm driving a significant shift in public relations tactics that are effective and worth your time.
CAREER CORNER
Thanksgiving week has come and gone. Let’s hope you took some time to reflect on what you’re thankful for at work.
I SWEAR
I get a laugh now and again for telling what the crossword clues are for the term “comb over.” In light of a recent story from the sports page, I can’t resist writing about the topic. For your edification, of course.
KAY'S COOKING CORNER
Nov. 28 was a highly celebrated day in my life. No, it wasn’t my birthday, or my anniversary, although those are important. (Well, not the birthday one, unless for some reason I start getting younger.)
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) — A nationally recognized FedEx executive will give the commencement address at Tennessee State University on Saturday.
STATE LEGISLATURE
NASHVILLE (AP) - Legislation introduced in the Tennessee General Assembly would require all of the state's law enforcement agencies to adopt written policies to ban racial profiling.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) — The State Funding Board is meeting Thursday to begin the process of projecting that state's revenue collections in the upcoming budget year.
HEALTH CARE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Nearly 20 percent of U.S. consumers — 42.9 million people — have unpaid medical debts, according to a new report by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
REAL ESTATE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Average U.S. long-term mortgage rates edged higher this week after four weeks of declines, but they remained at historically low levels that could entice potential homebuyers.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — An encouraging report on U.S. consumer spending pushed stocks sharply higher Thursday. The energy sector rose after crude oil prices stabilized.
NEW YORK (AP) — Being a teen can be tough, but catering to one is even more difficult.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Fewer people sought U.S. unemployment benefits last week, as the continued low levels of applicants reflect growing job security.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. retail sales perked up in November with the start of the holiday shopping season, led by online buying and purchases of autos, clothing and electronics.
NATIONAL POLITICS
NEW YORK (AP) — Would-be 2016 presidential candidates take note: the Internet may potentially make or break your campaign.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Growing opposition among Democrats and persistent opposition from the tea party Republicans has left a $1.1 trillion government-wide spending bill teetering as many lawmakers find more in the measure to dislike than like.
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 10
EDUCATION
NASHVILLE (AP) - Faced with flat revenue projections, higher education officials will have to find ways to cover costs at their institutions because the state won't be able to help them anytime soon, a top economist said Wednesday.
STATE LEGISLATURE
NASHVILLE (AP) - House Speaker Beth Harwell decisively defeated a tea-party challenge from Rep. Rick Womick on Wednesday to win the Republican nomination for another term in charge of the lower chamber of the Tennessee General Assembly.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee's Education Department has awarded nearly $5 million in federal funds to five school districts.
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) — About 200 protesters and supporters gathered outside a south Nashville community center on Tuesday while President Barack Obama spoke inside about his executive action on immigration.
COURTS
NEW YORK (AP) — A New York federal appeals court has dealt a blow to the government's approach to insider trading cases by reversing two convictions.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — The price of oil took another dive Wednesday, plunging to five-year lows amid mounting evidence that global supplies are far outstripping demand.
NEW YORK (AP) — Oil resumed its slide on Wednesday and took the stock market down with it.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Morgan Stanley has agreed to pay $4 million to settle federal charges of failing to prevent the unauthorized purchase of $525 million in Apple stock by one of its customers.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal government's deficit for the first two months of the new budget year is down 21 percent from the same period a year ago, although much of that improvement stems from quirks in the calendar.
GENEVA (AP) — Flying could get cheaper next year as airlines say they will finally start passing on some of the savings made on plummeting oil prices.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Exposed to the light of day, a year-end, $1.1 trillion spending bill drew vociferous objections from liberals and milder criticism from conservatives on Wednesday while lawmakers readied a brief, stopgap measure to prevent a government shutdown both parties vowed to avoid.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress is taking some whole grains off the school lunch line.
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 9
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) - President Barack Obama on Tuesday tried to reassure immigrants that if they register under his new executive action they won't be a priority for deportation in the future.
NASHVILLE (AP) — President Obama is scheduled to give a speech in Nashville discussing his recent executive action on immigration.
MIDSTATE
SMYRNA (AP) — The Tennessee Board of Regents and Nissan have broken ground for a new $35 million training center in Smyrna.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that warehouse workers who fill orders for retail giant Amazon don't have to be paid for time spent waiting to pass through security checks at the end of their shifts.
REAL ESTATE
WASHINGTON (AP) – It's the new career trade-off: Around the country, areas with the strongest job markets increasingly have some of the costliest homes. And areas with the most affordable homes lack a solid base of middle class jobs that attract workers.
AUTO INDUSTRY
FRANKLIN (AP) - Republican Gov. Bill Haslam, a longtime critic of the United Auto Workers' efforts to organize foreign automakers in the South, on Tuesday questioned the process by which the union qualified under a new labor policy at the Volkswagen plant in Tennessee.
NEW YORK (AP) — Nissan has agreed to pay some customers up to $800 each to settle claims that certain vehicles had faulty brakes.
DETROIT (AP) — Nissan is recalling about 470,000 cars and SUVs worldwide to fix a problem that can cause fuel leaks.
NASHVILLE (AP) — The United Auto Workers on Monday qualified for the top tier of a new labor policy at the Volkswagen plant in Tennessee, giving the union its first formal role within a foreign-owned auto plant in the South.
HEALTH CARE
NASHVILLE (AP) - A $38 million computer system that had been in the works for the Department of Human Services might be scrapped.
WASHINGTON (AP) — MIT economist Jonathan Gruber — an adviser on the president's health care law — told Congress on Tuesday he was glib and "inexcusably arrogant" when he said it was "the stupidity of the American voter" that led to the law's passage. Democrats tried to limit the damage as the GOP raked Gruber at a four-hour hearing, but they acknowledged he has given Republicans a political gift "wrapped in a bow."
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
The Energy Department again slashed its prediction for next year's average price of gasoline across the U.S., this time to $2.60 a gallon. That would be 23 percent below this year's projected average and the lowest full-year average since 2009.
NEW YORK (AP) – The U.S. stock market ended slightly lower Tuesday, avoiding the sharp declines in Europe and Asia thanks to a rally in beaten-down energy companies.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal regulators are proposing that the eight biggest U.S. banks be required to further increase the amount of capital they set aside to cushion against unexpected losses.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of available U.S. jobs rose in October to the second-highest level in 14 years, and companies kept hiring at a healthy pace, adding to evidence of an improving economy.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Stockpiles held by wholesale businesses rose in October, while sales posted a smaller gain.
NEW YORK (AP) — Day after day, Facebook captures our best and worst moments, from the birth of a new baby to heated political spats. So what got discussed the most in 2014? The Ice Bucket Challenge and the death of Robin Williams, to name a few.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Time running short, Republicans and Democrats reached for elusive agreement Tuesday on a $1.1 trillion spending bill to avoid a government shutdown and delay a politically-charged struggle over President Barack Obama's new immigration policy until the new year.
MONDAY, DECEMBER 8
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) — A researcher at Tennessee State University has received a national award for his work on water conservation.
NASHVILLE (AP) — The Tennessee Residence, home to Gov. Bill Haslam and Crissy Haslam, is open to the public for holiday tours.
NASHVILLE (AP) - While there's been progress in making Tennessee a safer state, much remains to be done, particularly on domestic violence, Gov. Bill Haslam said Monday.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Notre Dame will try to end its late-season slide when it faces No. 22 LSU on Dec. 30 in the Music City Bowl.
MIDSTATE
FRANKLIN (AP) — A Williamson County commissioner is facing a gun charge.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee Republican Party Chairman Chris Devaney on Saturday turned back a tea party-styled challenge to win a fourth term in charge of the state GOP.
EDUCATION
WASHINGTON (AP) — The seven largest school districts in the U.S. are joining more than 50 others to start offering introductory computer science to all their students, the White House said Monday.
AUTO INDUSTRY
DETROIT (AP) — At least 38 people have died and 51 have been injured in crashes involving General Motors cars with defective ignition switches.
REAL ESTATE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Some Americans will soon be able to buy a home with a down payment as low as 3 percent, compared with the current minimum of 5 percent, the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac say.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. economy, helped by a stronger job market and falling oil prices, should enjoy the fastest economic growth in a decade next year, according to a panel of top business economists.
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks fell on Monday as oil prices turned sharply lower and spooked investors into dumping shares of drillers and other energy-service companies.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Just a few years ago, early adopters of e-cigarettes got their fix by clumsily screwing together a small battery and a plastic cartridge containing cotton soaked with nicotine.
GARDI SUGDUP, Panama (AP) — Solar panels glisten from every thatched hut on this crowded island, one of the largest in this remote chain off the Panamanian coast. But the tiny emblems of green energy offer no hope against climate change.
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 5
MUSIC INDUSTRY
NEW YORK (AP) — British newcomer Sam Smith and Beyonce — the most nominated female in Grammy history — are the current leaders at the Grammy Awards with five each.
Nominees announced Friday in the top categories for the 57th annual Grammy Awards:
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) — U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper's Nashville-based counsel is leaving to become chief deputy criminal court clerk of Davidson County.
NASHVILLE (AP) - President Barack Obama is traveling to Nashville to speak about his executive actions on immigration.
HEALTH CARE
NASHVILLE (AP) - Gov. Bill Haslam said Friday that he's talked with nine Republican governors who have expanded Medicaid for low-income people in their states, and he plans to announce what he will do by the end of the month.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Many people covered under President Barack Obama's health care law will face higher premiums next year, the administration acknowledged Thursday. While the average increases are modest, it's more political fodder for the nation's political battles over health care.
AUTO INDUSTRY
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Subaru of America says it is applying for $118 million in state tax credits from New Jersey to move its headquarters about four miles.
MURFREESBORO (AP) - An auto parts maker is locating its new North American headquarters facility in Murfreesboro, bringing 250 jobs, including 100 new positions.
BERLIN (AP) — The last vehicle has rolled off Opel's production line at its flagship factory in Bochum, which General Motors is shuttering as it restructures its lossmaking European subsidiary.
TOKYO (AP) — The top Japanese auto safety official acknowledged Friday that Japan's recall system needs an overhaul to better respond to global problems highlighted by the debacle over Takata air bags that can explode.
TECHNOLOGY
OAKLAND, California (AP) — Three years after his death, legendary Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs held a federal courtroom transfixed on Friday as attorneys played a video of his testimony in a class-action lawsuit that accuses Apple of inflating iPod prices by locking music lovers into using its players.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is taking up a patent infringement dispute between computer networking giant Cisco Systems Inc. and rival Commil USA LLC.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — For want of an iPod, a billion-dollar lawsuit may be in jeopardy.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The resurgence in U.S. hiring accelerated in November and put 2014 on track to be the healthiest year for job growth since 1999.
NEW YORK (AP) — A strong jobs report boosted U.S. and European stocks Friday, and leaving the Dow Jones industrial average just short of the 18,000 mark.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. trade deficit fell slightly in October as exports rebounded while oil imports dipped to the lowest level in five years.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Orders to U.S. factories slipped for a third straight month in October and would have fallen even more except for a big jump in defense orders. A key category that tracks business investment spending fell for a second straight month.
NEW YORK (AP) — Despite recent bad publicity over privacy violations and other problems, the ride-hailing app Uber has raised $1.2 billion in its latest round of funding from venture capitalists, valuing the company at $40 billion.
NEW YORK (AP) — The holiday shopping season is always a make-or-break period for struggling retailers.
NEW YORK (AP) — Starbucks plans to let customers across the U.S. order ahead on their smartphones over the next year, a move that should help shrink lines as it pushes more snacks, sandwiches and even wine.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. employers are thought to have hired at another robust pace in November in the latest sign that the United States is outshining struggling economies throughout the developed world.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senators from both parties warned the National Football League Thursday to get rid of a 4-decade-old TV "blackout" rule or risk congressional action to restrict the league's lucrative antitrust exemption, which allows NFL teams to negotiate radio and television broadcast rights together.
WASHINGTON (AP) — As Congress races to its lame-duck finish, time is running out on a government program that provides a backstop to private-sector insurance against terrorist attacks.