VOL. 46 | NO. 2 | Friday, January 14, 2022
This is the year we make up for 2 years of lost travel. Unless, well, COVID
The two words that sum up travel in 2022 are “cautiously optimistic.’’ To be sure, travel is one of the top priorities for many of the pandemic weary. An Expedia report on 2022 travel trends found that more than 68% of American travelers are planning a big trip for their first foray out, whether it be travel to a foreign country or upgrading to luxury accommodations in the United States.
JOE ROGERS: MY TAKE
Having made it a couple of weeks into 2022 without any major new attacks on democracy (fingers crossed), let us briefly turn our attention to 2024 politics: How does the prospect of tens of thousands of ardent Republicans or Democrats swarming through Nashville strike you?
RICHARD COURTNEY: REALTY CHECK
Sylvan Heights is a neighborhood that played bridesmaid to Sylvan Park for years. Located off Charlotte Pike, as opposed to Sylvan Park’s boundary off Murphy Road, the area was filed with smaller residences, most constructed with asbestos shingle siding that clad the 1,200- to 1,500-square-foot homes.
REAL ESTATE
2021 real estate trends for Davidson County, as compiled by Chandler Reports.
December 2021 real estate trends for Davidson County, as compiled by Chandler Reports.
TENNESSEE TITANS
When the Tennessee Titans lost at home six weeks ago to the Houston Texans, there was growing concern that Ryan Tannehill might not have what it takes to lead a team to a title.
The Tennessee Titans have the top seed in the AFC, so now what? For a team that used a record number of players this season – the number reached 91 during Sunday’s win in Houston, with three new Titans making their debuts – a little rest and relaxation are in order.
The NFL playoffs begin this weekend. Here's a look at the matchups and predictions for outcomes.
UT SPORTS
Santiago Vescovi doesn’t really care how anyone pronounces his name. He’s more concerned about the quality of his game.
NEWSMAKERS
McGlinchey Stafford has named three new members, including Lynette Hotchkiss in its Nashville office.
BRIEFS
The Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville is seeking applicants for the 2022 class of Periscope: Artist Entrepreneur Training, an annual business development intensive that empowers working artists to see their creative practice through an entrepreneurial lens.
BEHIND THE WHEEL
Most people are aware that automakers have felt the brunt of the worldwide microchip shortage, resulting in understocked dealerships at a time when consumer demand is high. But there’s another less well-known trend that can further complicate the process of buying a new vehicle.
CAREER CORNER
I recently heard a famous comedian talking about her career and how she got where she is today. When it comes to her work, she said, she’s always tried to bet on herself, and that other people should bet on themselves, too. What a novel idea.
PERSONAL FINANCE
Years ago, a friend who needed cash sold me a $100 Nordstrom gift card. I wish I knew where the heck I put it.
MILLENNIAL MONEY
This one goes out to all you lovebirds who got engaged over the holidays and are now left planning a wedding with zero event-planning experience.
PREDATORS
NASHVILLE (AP) — Jeff Skinner scored twice and Aaron Dell made 29 saves to lead the Buffalo Sabres to a 4-1 victory over the Nashville Predators on Thursday night.
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) — The omicron variant is sickening so many sanitation workers around the U.S. that some cities have had to delay or suspend garbage or recycling pickup, angering residents shocked that governments can't perform this most basic of functions.
REGION
ATLANTA (AP) — Weather forecasters' predictions of debilitating snow and ice as far south as Georgia sent parts of the region into a tizzy Friday with shoppers scouring store shelves for storm supplies and road crews trying to prevent a repeat of past wintertime debacles.
COURTS
NASHVILLE (AP) — A Middle Tennessee county can no longer require misdemeanor probationers to pay the cost of their supervision under a consent decree signed by a federal judge on Thursday.
Newly unredacted documents from a state-led antitrust lawsuit against Google accuse the search giant of colluding with rival Facebook to manipulate online advertising sales. The CEOs of both companies were aware of the deal and signed off on it, the lawsuit alleges.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal prosecutors are recommending dropping charges against a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor who was accused last year of hiding work he did for the Chinese government while also collecting U.S. dollars for his nanotechnology research, a person familiar with the decision said Friday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has stopped a major push by the Biden administration to boost the nation's COVID-19 vaccination rate, a requirement that employees at large businesses get a vaccine or test regularly and wear a mask on the job.
HEALTH CARE
Vanessa Akinniyi was stuck in denial about diabetes until a care manager from her health insurer coaxed her out.
MEDIA
NEW YORK (AP) — Netflix is raising prices for its video streaming customers in the U.S. and Canada, less than a year and a half since its last price increase, as competition from other streaming services increases.
TECHNOLOGY
The crowdfunding platform GoFundMe announced Thursday that it has signed a deal to acquire the nonprofit fundraising company Classy, a move that will help the largest crowdfunding site further increase its influence in the philanthropic sector.
Microsoft said Thursday it is opening an inquiry into how it responds to workplace sexual harassment and gender discrimination, including its handling of allegations about co-founder Bill Gates.
VIRUS OUTBREAK
WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal website where Americans can request free COVID-19 tests will begin accepting orders on Wednesday as the White House looks to address nationwide shortages, but supplies will be limited to just four free tests per home.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Under criticism after weeks of shortages, President Joe Biden's administration is working to make COVID-19 rapid test kits more available and accessible to Americans by boosting supply and lowering costs. A new federal website to request free test kits launches Wednesday, with the first shipments going out to Americans by the end of the month. In addition, most Americans will be able to get reimbursed for tests that they purchase starting Saturday.
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Novak Djokovic faces deportation again after the Australian government revoked his visa for a second time, the latest twist in the ongoing saga over whether the No. 1-ranked tennis player will be allowed to compete in the Australian Open despite being unvaccinated for COVID-19.
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — To people watching from afar, the treatment of tennis star Novak Djokovic by Australian immigration officials might have seemed harsh.
ROME (AP) — To mask or not to mask is a question Italy settled early in the COVID-19 outbreak with a vigorous "yes." Now the onetime epicenter of the pandemic in Europe hopes even stricter mask rules will help it beat the latest infection surge.
BANKING
NEW YORK (AP) — Three of the nation's biggest banks reported blowout profits for 2021 on Friday, helped by the improving economy and consumers and businesses willing to spend and take on loans.
SILVER SPRING, Md. (AP) — Wells Fargo easily beat Wall Street expectations for the fourth quarter with interest rates beginning to take off, likely another boost for the nation's largest mortgage lender going forward.
NEW YORK (AP) — JPMorgan Chase says fourth-quarter profits fell 14% from a year earlier, due to a weaker performance from its trading desk and higher compensation expenses for employees.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
A late-afternoon recovery in technology stocks helped erase most of the market's losses Friday, though it wasn't enough to keep major indexes from posting their second straight losing week.
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico has seized 380,000 boxes of Corn Flakes, Special K and other Kellogg's cereals, claiming the boxes had cartoon drawings on them in violation of recently enacted laws aimed at improving children's diets.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. industrial production fell 0.1% in December, the first decline since September, with manufacturers still struggling with snarled supply chains.
NEW YORK (AP) — Americans, beset by product shortages, rising prices and the arrival of omicron, sharply cut their spending in December after a burst of early spending in the fall that helped bolster the holiday season.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Friday announced the nominations of three people for the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors, including Sarah Bloom Raskin, a former Fed and Treasury official, for the top regulatory slot and Lisa Cook, who would be the first Black woman to serve on the Fed's board.
For companies that were waiting to hear from the U.S. Supreme Court before deciding whether to require vaccinations or regular coronavirus testing for workers, the next move is up to them.
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The risk of recession is looming for Germany after Europe's biggest economy shrank at the end of 2021 and as it faces a bumpy start to this year, with the rapid spread of COVID-19's omicron variant deterring people from shopping and travel and supply bottlenecks holding back manufacturers.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. intelligence officials have determined a Russian effort is underway to create a pretext for its troops to further invade Ukraine, and Moscow has already prepositioned operatives to conduct "a false-flag operation" in eastern Ukraine, according to the White House.
The Transportation Department is launching a $27 billion program to repair and upgrade roughly 15,000 highway bridges as part of the infrastructure law approved in November. The effort is being announced Friday as President Joe Biden tries to showcase how his policies are delivering for the public.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Months after requesting documents from more than a dozen social platforms, the House committee investigating the Capitol insurrection has issued subpoenas targeting Twitter, Meta, Reddit and YouTube after lawmakers said the companies' initial responses were inadequate.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The founder and leader of the far-right Oath Keepers militia group remained in jail after his first court appearance on Friday, a day after his arrest on charges he plotted with others to attack the U.S. Capitol to stop Congress from certifying President Joe Biden's 2020 election victory.
WASHINGTON (AP) — He was supposed to break through the congressional logjam. End the pandemic. Get the economy back on track.
WASHINGTON (AP) — There was a closed-door huddle by an embattled President Joe Biden with his own party's senators, apparently for naught. An eyebrow-raising speech on the Senate floor by a recalcitrant Democrat. And a defiant news conference by the top House Republican.
THURSDAY, JANUARY 13
STATE GOVERNMENT
NASHVILLE (AP) — A proposed U.S. House map that carves up fast-growing, Democratic-leaning Nashville into three different congressional districts advanced another step Thursday over strenuous objections from Democrats that it unfairly dilutes Black representation in Tennessee.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has stopped the Biden administration from enforcing a requirement that employees at large businesses be vaccinated against COVID-19 or undergo weekly testing and wear a mask on the job.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Stewart Rhodes, the founder and leader of the far-right Oath Keepers militia group, and 10 other members or associates have been charged with seditious conspiracy in the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol, authorities said Thursday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department will begin transferring thousands of inmates out of federal prisons this week as part of a sweeping criminal justice overhaul signed by President Donald Trump more than three years ago.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has picked a Shelby County judge for an opening on the state Court of Criminal Appeals.
LONDON (AP) — U.K. Foreign Secretary Liz Truss called for Britain and the European Union to rebuild their relationship, as she and bloc's top Brexit official met Thursday for talks on a thorny dispute over Northern Ireland trade.
WASHINGTON (AP) — All but conceding defeat, President Joe Biden said Thursday he's now unsure the Democrats' major elections and voting rights legislation can pass Congress this year. He spoke at the Capitol after a key fellow Democrat, Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, dramatically announced her refusal to go along with changing Senate rules to muscle the bill past a Republican filibuster.
TRANSPORTATION
Delta Air Lines lost $408 million in the final quarter of 2021, dragged down by a COVID-19 surge that rocked the airline in December, and the carrier predicted Thursday that it will suffer one more quarterly loss before travel perks up in spring and summer.
ATLANTA (AP) — Delta Air Lines said Wednesday it will extend through 2023 the window for customers to rebook credits earned when they purchased but then canceled flights during the pandemic.
MEDIA
More than 80 fact checking organizations are calling on YouTube to address what they say is rampant misinformation on the platform.
HEALTH CARE
People looking for health insurance in the grip of the omicron surge have through Saturday to sign up for taxpayer-subsidized private coverage under the Obama-era Affordable Care Act.
VIRUS OUTBREAK
WASHINGTON (AP) — Two brand-new COVID-19 pills that were supposed to be an important weapon against the pandemic in the U.S. are in short supply and have played little role in the fight against the omicron wave of infections.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden announced Thursday that the government will double to 1 billion the rapid, at-home COVID-19 tests to be distributed free to Americans, along with the most protective N95 masks, as he highlighted his efforts to "surge" resources to help the country weather the spike in coronavirus cases.
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Most access to a major city adjacent to Beijing was suspended Thursday as the government tried to contain an outbreak of the coronavirus's easily transmitted omicron variant ahead of next month's Winter Olympics in the Chinese capital.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
Technology stocks led another decline on Wall Street Thursday, leaving the Nasdaq composite down 2.5%.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Prices at the wholesale level surged by a record 9.7% for all of 2021, setting an annual record and providing further evidence that inflation is still present at all levels of the U.S. economy.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose last week to the highest level since mid-November.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Lael Brainard, President Joe Biden's nominee for the Federal Reserve's No. 2 spot, said Thursday that combating high inflation is the central bank's top priority and said she believed the Fed could reduce it without sacrificing economic growth.
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the biggest contract manufacturer of processor chips, reported Thursday its quarterly profit rose 16.4% over a year earlier to $6 billion amid surging demand for chips for smartphones and other electronics.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Republican National Committee said Thursday it is planning a rules change that would force presidential candidates seeking the party's nomination to sign a pledge saying they will not participate in any debates sponsored by the Commission on Presidential Debates.
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is refusing a request by the House panel investigating the U.S. Capitol insurrection to submit to an interview and turn over records pertaining to the deadly riot.
WASHINGTON (AP) — With Roe v. Wade facing its strongest threat in decades, a new poll finds Democrats increasingly view protecting abortion rights as a high priority for the government.