VOL. 37 | NO. 26 | Friday, June 28, 2013
Hemlock would have been a disaster elsewhere. But Clarksville’s robust economy has Fort Campbell at its heart, helping it become one of the fastest-growing cities in the nation.
The bluffs that lift much of Clarksville high above the Cumberland River could be some sort of literal fiscal cliff if those who predict the worst are to be believed.
Fort Campbell authorities are reviewing the furlough appeals of some of the 3,000-plus civilian employees post-wide who have been notified that some of their work is falling victim to the sequester, according to Bob Jenkins, public affairs officer for the post, which is home to the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault).
Memphis, Nashville feels your pain. When Delta announced earlier this month it would no longer use Memphis International Airport as a hub – cutting 230 jobs in the process – it brought back bad memories for the Music City, dark memories of 1996.
Tapping an app to see what’s on television, or maybe to do some research on a car before buying it? Chances are good you are using an app on your mobile device that was developed here in Nashville.
REALTY CHECK
Tia Sillers is best known for taking words used in everyday language, transforming them into lyrics, then choosing music notes that have been around since the beginning of time and melding the assemblage into art in the form of her songs.
NEWSMAKERS
Erik Daugherty, founder and owner of E3 INNOVATE, has been elected chair of the Middle Tennessee chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).
BUSINESS BOOK REVIEW
Retirement is too far away. You can see it from your work desk. It’s tantalizingly close, filled with sun and sand, golf and travel, but it’s oh-so-unreachable.
GUERRILLA MARKETING
Years ago, psychologist Martin Seligman discovered a dramatic correlation between a salespersons’ optimistic outlook and his ability to close sales. Optimists do indeed sell more than pessimists – 33 percent more.
THE WORLDLY INVESTOR
All eyes were on Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke last week as the Federal Open Market Committee held its June meeting, followed by a Bernanke press conference.
SMART STUFF 4 WORK
Today, I finished reading the book “Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion and Purpose” by Tony Hsieh. Tony is the CEO of Zappos – and Tony is an experimenter extraordinaire.
I SWEAR
Did you ever wonder if in golf you get a lift from the loo? Or if there’s a penalty for breaking and entering while on the course? Tourneys in May spoke to these issues. Kinda.
KAY'S COOKING CORNER
My mom has been talking for the last few weeks about the blackberries she’s growing in her backyard.
MIDSTATE
NASHVILLE (AP) - Fresh cut fruit and vegetable processor Taylor Farms is expanding its plant in Smyrna, adding 170 jobs.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) - A state environmental official who said unfounded water quality complaints could be considered acts of terrorism has been demoted.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Tennessee transportation officials are clearing the road ahead for the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
KNOXVILLE (AP) — Your power bill may be lower than usual this month largely due to heavy rains in May.
HEALTH CARE
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama's health care law, hailed as his most significant legislative achievement, seems to be losing much of its sweep.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. companies stepped up hiring last month, a private survey showed Wednesday. And the government says fewer people applied for unemployment benefits last week.
NEW YORK (AP) — Gasoline prices are on a summer slide, giving U.S. drivers a break as they set out for the beach and other vacation spots for the Fourth of July.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Doug Engelbart, the inventor of the computer mouse and developer of early incarnations of email, word processing programs and the Internet, has died at the age of 88.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Average U.S. rates on fixed mortgages eased this week after last week's surge, declines that could prompt homebuyers to act quickly before rates rise further.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. services firms grew at a slower pace in June from May but added more jobs. The figures offered a mixed sign for companies that employ roughly 90 percent of the workforce.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A private survey shows U.S. businesses stepped up hiring last month, a hopeful sign for economic growth.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell 5,000 to a seasonally adjusted 343,000 last week, a sign that layoffs remain low and companies are adding a modest number of jobs.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. trade deficit increased in May to the highest level in six months as a weak global economy depressed U.S. export sales while imports of autos and other nonpetroleum products hit an all-time high.
NEW YORK (AP) — Stock indexes are closing slightly higher after a half-day of trading on Wall Street ahead of the July 4th holiday.
NEW YORK (AP) — The price of oil rose to its highest level in 14 months on concerns about possible disruptions to Middle East supplies and signs of an increase in U.S. demand for fuel.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Several times every day, at airports across the country, passengers are trying to walk through security with loaded guns in their carry-on bags, purses or pockets, even in a boot. And, more than a decade after 9/11 raised consciousness about airline security, it's happening a lot more often.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Just a year after Congress imposed significant changes in the government's oft-criticized flood insurance program, howls of protest from homeowners facing higher premiums have coastal lawmakers pressing for delays that would preserve below-cost rates for hundreds of thousands of people in flood-risk areas.
TUESDAY, JUNE 2
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) - Tennesseans facing a cut in their unemployment benefits are getting a reprieve - thanks to the federal government.
NASHVILLE (AP) - As a Tennessee General Assembly committee prepares to review a Chicago-based company's dealings with state government, an administration plan to raze a state office building is being questioned.
NASHVILLE (AP) — The Tennessee Highway Patrol will conduct "no refusal" DUI enforcement in 16 counties over the Fourth of July weekend.
NASHVILLE AREA
ST. LOUIS (AP) - Fifty-five hospitals in 21 states have agreed to pay $34 million to the U.S. government to settle allegations that they used more expensive inpatient procedures rather than outpatient spinal surgeries to get bigger payments from Medicare, the U.S. Justice Department said Tuesday.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Former U.S. Sen. James R. Sasser has donated his papers to Vanderbilt University.
AUTO INDUSTRY
DETROIT (AP) — Three years ago, U.S. car buyers started trickling back into showrooms after largely sitting out the recession. That trickle has turned into a flood.
NEW YORK (AP) — General Motors Co. and Honda Motor Co. are joining forces to develop hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — Oil nearly reached $100 a barrel for the first time this year, as traders worried about disruptions to Mideast supplies while anticipating an increase in oil demand in the U.S.
NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market ended slightly lower Tuesday after reports of intensifying political turmoil in Egypt offset good news about the U.S. economy.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Orders to U.S. factories rose in May, helped by a third straight month of stronger business investment. The gains suggest manufacturing may be picking up after a weak start to the year.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. home prices jumped 12.2 percent in May from a year ago, the most in seven years. The increase suggests the housing recovery is strengthening.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — College students' interest rates are at the mercy of Congress.
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — For decades, country and city interests had come together every few years to pass the farm bill, a measure that provided billions of dollars in subsidies to farmers and businesses in rural areas and food stamp money for urbanites.
MONDAY, JULY 1
MUSIC INDUSTRY
NASHVILLE (AP) - Steve Moore, CEO of the Country Music Association and longtime board member, has resigned after nearly four years serving in the position.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Carrie Underwood has found her voice on Twitter.
LEBANON, Ind. (AP) - A tour bus for country singer Toby Keith caught fire on a highway near Indianapolis, though the singer wasn't on board and no one was injured.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) - The commissioner of the state Correction Department said Monday he is looking forward to working with the new chairman of the Board of Parole to enhance public safety across Tennessee.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Republican Gov. Bill Haslam has named Abbie Hudgens as the head of the state's new Workers' Compensation Division.
NASHVILLE (AP) — A measure that allows people with handgun carry permits to store firearms in their vehicles no matter where they are parked is among a number of new state laws that take effect Monday.
MIDSTATE
MURFREESBORO (AP) - Health care real estate investment trust National Health Investors Inc. said Monday that its joint venture with Bickford Senior Living paid $135 million to buy 17 assisted living and memory care communities.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — You must be a lawyer to argue before the Supreme Court.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — Investors have stopped worrying about the Federal Reserve. At least for now.
NEW YORK (AP) — The price of oil gained 1.5 percent and finished just below $98 a barrel Monday on rising concerns about Middle East tensions and their possible impact on oil supplies.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Spending on residential housing rose in May to the highest level in 4½ years, helping to send overall construction spending higher despite a big drop in nonresidential activity.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. manufacturing activity grew in June behind a pickup in new orders, exports and production. Better economic growth overseas is boosting U.S. exports and could help American factories rebound in the second half of the year.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. government says it has received $66.3 billion in dividend payments from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, reflecting stronger earnings at the start of the year. The payments are a key reason the government expects its smallest budget deficit in five years.
NEW YORK (AP) — Citigroup has agreed to pay $968 million to Fannie Mae to resolve potential future repurchase claims on residential mortgage loans originated between 2000 and 2012.
BERLIN (AP) — Random House Inc. and Penguin Group have completed a planned merger that creates the world's largest publisher of consumer books.
PARIS (AP) — Hachette Book Group, a division of French publishing giant Hachette Livre, says it's buying Disney's Hyperion, in a deal that will significantly expand HBG's backlist with about 1,000 books and a list of forthcoming titles from authors including actor Ethan Hawke.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — It took 50 years for American attitudes about marijuana to zigzag from the paranoia of "Reefer Madness" to the excesses of Woodstock back to the hard line of "Just Say No."
WASHINGTON (AP) — The immigration debate is shifting to the Republican-led House, where lawmakers have shown little appetite for the large-scale, comprehensive approach their Senate colleagues embraced last week.
FRIDAY, JUNE 28
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) - Two environmental groups have filed a federal lawsuit against the owner of a metals recycling yard in downtown Nashville, claiming stormwater runoff is polluting the Cumberland River.
MIDSTATE
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — A celebrity hunter from Tennessee illegally baits his land for turkeys and violated terms of his federal probation in Kansas by participating in hunting parties that included NFL players and members of a country music band, wildlife agents testified Thursday at a hearing for William "Spook" Spann.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. (AP) - Two health care companies have ended talks about the prospect of merging two Hot Springs hospitals.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) - King Pharmaceuticals LLC has agreed to pay $2.2 million and comply with the Clean Air Act to resolve a complaint filed by federal prosecutors over emissions from its Bristol, Tenn., facility.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee first lady Crissy Haslam has named a new chief of staff. Haslam's office announced that current staffer Rachel Lundeen has been promoted to the top job following the departure of Christi Gibbs.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Education officials say students have continued to perform better on the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program since the state implemented more rigorous standards nearly four years ago.
AUTO INDUSTRY
NASHVILLE (AP) — Nissan is adding 900 jobs to start making the Rogue crossover SUV at its Tennessee plant.
REAL ESTATE
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. mortgage rates have suddenly jumped from near-record lows and are adding thousands of dollars to the cost of buying a home.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of people who signed contracts to buy U.S. homes jumped in May to the highest level in more than six years, a sign home sales will probably rise in the months ahead.
COURTS
DENVER (AP) — Hobby Lobby stores won't have to start paying millions of dollars in fines next week for not complying with the federal birth-control coverage mandate, under a federal appeals court ruling issued Thursday.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are ending mostly lower on Wall Street as the market closes out a turbulent month.
NEW YORK (AP) — As the week went along, Americans' commutes got cheaper.
NEW YORK (AP) — News Corp. will formally split in two after the market closes Friday, with existing shareholders getting one share in the new publishing entity for every four shares they hold in the media company.
VATICAN CITY (AP) — A Vatican cleric and two other people were arrested Friday by Italian police for allegedly trying to smuggle 20 million euros ($26 million) in cash into the country from Switzerland by private jet. It's the latest scandal to hit the Holy See and broadens an Italian probe into its secretive bank.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A measure of U.S. consumer confidence remained near a six-year high in June as higher home and stock prices boosted household wealth.
TORONTO (AP) — Shares of BlackBerry maker Research In Motion plunged nearly 30 percent Friday after the company posted a loss and warned of future losses despite releasing its make-or-break new smartphones this year.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve officials sought Thursday to calm investors by assuring them the Fed won't start trimming its bond purchases until the economy has strengthened. They said any pullback in the Fed's stimulus will hinge on the economy's performance, not a calendar date.
NEW YORK (AP) — Paula Deen just lost another partner.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Attention is shifting to the House and its conservative majority after the Senate passed a landmark immigration bill opening the door to U.S. citizenship to millions while pouring billions of dollars into securing the border with Mexico.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Treasury Department watchdog who detailed Internal Revenue Service mistreatment of tea party groups seeking tax-exempt status says he has no evidence the IRS mishandled progressive groups' applications in the same way, even as Democrats continue criticizing him for conducting a one-sided probe.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The top Democrat and Republican on the Senate's tax writing committee said Thursday they're starting with a "blank slate" approach to tax reform that envisions stripping the code of every single tax break as a setup to a debate over which ones to add back in.