The Predator, the Gouger, and the Price-Fixer

Since anointing Kamala Harris as their heir apparent, Democrats have cycled through various buzzwords in an attempt to find one that activates the most voters. After trying out “Republicans are weird” before a vague paean to “Joy,” the party’s latest fixation is price gouging—price gouging in grocery stores, in particular. Since the beginning of this month, Harris has spoken of price controls on food. To field test the idea, The Atlantic ran a story with the headline ‘Sometimes You Just Have to Ignore the Economists: Kamala Harris’s proposed price-gouging ban might irritate academics, but it makes sense to everyone else.’

Grocery stores run on notoriously thin margins, so economically, they’re a nonsensical target. But the goal isn’t to effectively rail against corporate greed; rather, it’s to effectively obscure and distract from the government’s role in inflation. It also hits everyone in the feels: we all eat and have to buy food, and it’s gotten noticeably more expensive.

Here in Tennessee, Rep. Aftyn Behn (D-Nashville) and Sen. Charlane Oliver (D-Nashville) authored a letter to AG Jonathan Skrmetti urging him to take action on this “price gouging.” Earlier this year, the duo teamed up on a piece of legislation that would’ve nixed the four percent grocery tax statewide. Their bill failed; however, Rep. Lamberth (R-Portland) and Sen. Haile (R-Gallatin) passed a bill allowing municipalities to cut their grocery tax.

The focus on price gouging seems like an easy sell because it taps into a deteriorating, but still present, resentment among the Democratic base toward corporations. That probably explains why the many talking heads blaming grocers for elevated food prices have emphasized vague factoids such as Kroger’s netting $4 billion in operating profit in 2022. Nevermind that Kroger’s net margin is 1.42 percent: $4 billion is a lot of moneys and they don’t need that moneys. 

“If politicians or courts think your prices are too low, you can be accused of predatory pricing,” wrote Mark Perry in the winter of 2007, when there was a similar anxiety around gas prices. “If your prices are too high, you’ll be charged with price gouging; and if your prices are the same as your competitors, you can be charged with price-fixing or collusion.”

In other news that’s peripheral only because of vibes, we now have the full text of Mayor Freddie O’Connell’s package of bills that promise to address “public safety concerns” while protecting freedom of speech. Taken in toto, there’s very little teeth to these, aside from $50 fines for anyone who violates the ordinances.

Aside from one Canadian guy arrested for getting into a fight with an onlooker, none of the organizations that the ordinances purportedly target violated any laws, so the bills seem like a tepid attempt to erect a “you’re not welcome here” message to groups like Patriot Front. Not sure that’ll work, but what might happen is a lawsuit were any of these to be enforced that could cost the city more than whatever revenue they might bring in and, yet again, burn some more money on the altar of social consciousness or whatever they’re calling it these days. DAVIS HUNT

🏢 The State Wrestles With Memphis Yesterday, Secretary of State Tre Hargett told the Shelby County Election Commission that he would not approve certain gun control referenda set to appear on Memphis’s November ballot. Hours before Hargett’s announcement, GOP leaders threatened to withhold state funding if city officials went through with placing the measures on the ticket.

Back in July, the Memphis City Council unanimously decided to pose three questions: The first asks whether the Charter should be amended to make the possession of handguns illegal without a valid carry permit, and whether there should be laws regulating gun storage in cars. The second queries whether citizens want to ban the sale and possession of assault weapons within city limits, “except for those who possess a valid permit and only use them on private property or a shooting range.” The third, if approved, would allow citizens to apply for emergency risk protection orders.

Though local municipalities are not allowed to pass their own gun laws, Councilmember Jeff Warren claims that the ERPO law, if approved by voters, would function as a “trigger law.” "All this does is it allows the state to be able to pass laws that will let Memphis do what the voters are voting for,” he told the Jackson Sun. “We won't be able to do anything with it until the state passes laws that say cities over 500,000 in population have the right to do what we're asking for here.” 

Lt. Governor McNally and Speaker Cameron Sexton beg to differ. “With the recent actions of the progressive, soft-on-crime DA in Shelby County and the Memphis City Council’s continued efforts to override state law with local measures, we feel it has become necessary to take action and protect all Tennesseans’ rights and liberties,” Sexton said in a statement. McNally affirmed his assertion. “Shelby County needs to understand that despite their hopes and wishes to the contrary, they are constrained by these explicit constitutional guardrails," he said. MEGAN PODSIEDLIK

🎫 Win Tickets To Americanafest Nashville is three weeks away from hosting the 24th annual AMERICANAFEST. From the 17th to the 21st, storytellers, folk singers, blues crooners, and rockabillies will descend on the city for five days of pickin’ and grinnin’. The lineup includes a healthy roster of live performances and panel discussions across county, from Santa’s Pub in Berryhill to Dee’s in Madison.

The Nashville Symphony and Do615 have teamed up to give away the ultimate festival experience, including VIP passes, tickets to The Lone Bellow, and an invitation to attend the 23rd Annual Americana Honors & Awards show at the Ryman Auditorium. You can enter here for your chance to win and find the full festival lineup here. MEGAN PODSIEDLIK

⛺️ Helter Shelter Yesterday, the Office of Homeless Services announced that they will offer “free cool rides, bus passes, and encampment support” to the homeless during this week’s heatwave. From now until the 30th, the unhoused will also be able to call and request shuttle service between 12:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. Homeless riders can be dropped off at the Nashville Rescue Mission or any other cool location of their choosing. MEGAN PODSIEDLIK

DEVELOPMENT

• Waldo's Chicken & Beer expands; Yolan enters new chapter (NBJ)
• McCallum & Sons Whiskey Co. to open in Nashville (NBJ)
• Hillsboro Village-area apartment buildings listed for sale (Post)
• Property eyed for mixed-use building listed for sale (Post)

✹ THIS WEEK IN STREAMING (August 27th)

A Quiet Place: Day One (Paramount) One of horror’s most acclaimed franchises proves it has plenty of mileage left with this prequel starring Lupita Nyong'o and helmed by indie director Michael Sarnoski (Pig). As we said last month, what could have been a gimmicky chiller ends up an ode to a life well spent and showcases the best cat actor in the history of cinema. 

The X-Files (Hulu) Now that Trump and RFK have joined forces, it’s as good a time as any to travel back to the days when conspiracy theories were cool and unwavering government trust was a telltale sign of a dullard. Mulder and Scully are as iconic as ever, and the series is more relevant in our post-COVID, post-coup moment than it has ever been.  

Sullivan’s Travels (Max) With the Venice and Telluride film festivals upon us this upcoming holiday weekend, moviegoers are about to experience a deluge of overwrought Oscar bait that will fall by the wayside a month after awards season ends. Yet, in the 82 years since its release, Preston Sturges's Hollywood satire about a self-important director (Joel McCrea) who wants to make a grand epic about how the other half lives and gets his comeuppance remains one of the most enduring films of Hollywood’s golden age. Come for the iconic Veronica Lake performance and the ruling class schadenfreude. Stay for the most emotional scene Hollywood has ever produced. 

THINGS TO DO

View our calendar for the week here and our weekly film rundown here.

📅 Visit our On The Radar list to find upcoming events around Nashville.

🎧 On Spotify: Pamphleteer's Picks, a playlist of our favorite bands in town this week.

👨🏻‍🌾 Check out our Nashville farmer's market guide and yearly festival guide.

TONIGHT

🎸 Ethan Samuel Brown @ Dee's Lounge, 7p, $5, Info
+ Nashville singer/songwriter

🎸 Crumb @ Brooklyn Bowl Nashville, 7p, $36+, Info
+ NYC psych-pop

🎸 Hank Born @ The Underdog, 9p, Free, Info

🎸 Glass Animals @ Bridgestone Arena, 7p, $25.1, Info

🎸 Honky Tonk Tuesday @ Eastside Bowl, 8p, $10, Info‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌
+ two-step lessons @ 7p, The Cowpokes @ 8p

🎺 Todd Day Wait @ The Underdog, 11:30p, Free, Info‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌

📰 Check out the full newsletter archive here.