Turns out no one is safe from the economic downturn, not even an NBA franchise. The New Orleans Hornets dumped Tyson Chandler (and his paycheck of $12.3 million next year) on the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Hornets received Joe Smith and Chris Wilcox in return, along with the draft rights to DeVon Hardin.

According to various outlets (including ESPN.com), the Hornets have long been shopping Chandler for "financial reasons." The two players received in return have contracts that expire at the end of the season, so this is the classic rent-a-player scenario for the Hornets. New Orleans' payroll was set to hit $77 million next season, and they felt strongly enough about keeping that number in check to deal Chandler.

Now that the United Autoworker's Union (UAW) is finished with General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM) in terms of labor talks, next up to bat will be Chrysler LLC. The company is being acquired by private equity firm Cerberus Capital, but that's not stopping it from making vehicles and trying to dent into the domestic market share being rapidly enjoyed by Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM).

This past Sunday, the two parties began negotiating terms of a new labor agreement after nearly three weeks of stalling due to UAW's extension of Chrysler's existing contract so that the GM deal could be put to rest, which it was. UAW President Ron Gettelfinger now has his sights set on Chrysler and hopes that new ground can be broken with the Detroit automaker now that it has a new owner in a private investment firm (new blood, heh) along with the problem of slowing and stagnating sales -- a problem Chrysler has in common with GM and Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F).

The broken-record syndrome currently facing all three domestic automakers is causing production plant idling and increased incentives to move out overloaded inventory just at a time when competitors like Toyota and Honda Motor Co. (NYSE: HMC) are increasing market share and are putting out highly competitive passenger vehicle models. Will Cerberus break new ground with its UAW labor talks that are significantly different from former parent Daimler (which still owns a 20% stake)? I'm thinking yes, or the company would not have bought the Chrysler brand for $7.4 billion in the first place.

Chrysler (NYSE: DAI) joined Ford (NYSE: F) and General Motors (NYSE: GM) today when it proposed to divest its non-core assets. It is looking at divesting Chrysler Transport, which manages deliveries of supplies to Chrysler plants, and its Mopar unit, which makes high-performance and specialty auto parts, people familiar with the matter told the Wall Street Journal (subscription required).

Obviously, the United Auto Workers oppose the divestitures. It is unclear if the divestiture of the assets will be part of the final agreement between the UAW and the newly independent Chrysler.

In addition to the potential non-core asset sales, the company already has a restructuring plan that calls for 13,000 jobs cuts and a return to profitability next year.

The UAW's talks with Chrysler have also revolved around the auto maker receiving a concession on health care costs, similar to what Ford and GM received back in 2005. Chrysler also wants to outsource non-core employees to a third party, similar to the agreements Ford currently has with UAW locals at individual plants.

The UAW now faces a battle at each of the three major Detroit automakers. The contract between the UAW and Chrysler expires on September 14.

I encountered a fascinating article at Forbes.com. Writer Tara Weiss brings to light the fact that when accepting a new job, recruits should realize that they have a right and even a responsibility to take some initiative in negotiating their pay package. Think of it this way: After all the long hours of processing applications, reviewing resumes, and conducting interviews, if you are the individual who receives the offer for employment, that indicates you have a lot going for you. Don't be undersold. It's not an issue of pride. It's responsible economics plain and simple.

With the hope that you'll read Ms. Weiss's article, I'll take the proposition one step further. I submit to you that once you have become established in a job, don't let a job classification or title restrict you from asking for more. If you're not bound by the terms of a labor agreement through a union or other labor contract, then the sky's the limit, and I'm saying that you should go for it. Every employment situation offers opportunities for advancement and for income increase also. If you don't believe me, let me prove it to you.

The company I work for is historically tight-fisted when it comes to employee compensation. It's not that we don't generate enough profit to justify pay raises, but as a subsidiary of a larger entity that provides the lion's share of our workload, accounting is "manipulated" to push the profit up to the parent company. This is simple to prove when given the fact that, in a responsible business sense, any company that shows the minimal profit we do would be immediately shut down and those capital assets would be put to work elsewhere. This makes it tough for a guy like me to get ahead. I, however, applied a strategy that has performed for me all of my working years, and which is encompassed in the following ideal:

I don't work for my employer, I work for me. It's all about my own bottom line.

Inferential Focus, Inc. was the subject of Barron's interview this past weekend. This research driven company combs the world looking for new investment trends.

One emerging trend that could prove profitable for investors is the Department of Defense's need for a new generation of military satellites and communications networks in general. Technology exists, and could easily get into the hands of potential enemies, that can jam communications between U.S. spacecraft and ground stations by messing up the current DOD satellites that serve as central communications point for all these devices. A simple ground station based in any country could potentially mess up the communications of our military.

To solve this potential problem, the DOD has embarked on a $34 billion project to build a whole new global networking system similar to the Internet called GIG, or Global Information Grid. The DOD's goal is to make this network the most secure communications network ever to exist.

The companies that are going to benefit from this build-out are Globecomm Systems Inc (NASDAQ: GCOM), SAIC Inc (NYSE: SAI) and Radvision Ltd (NASDAQ: RVSN). My knowledge about these companies is severely lacking. Please send in comments if you know anything about this satellite build-out or these companies.

Wisconsin-based Johnson Controls (NYSE:JCI) is boasting advances in lithium ion battery technology that is enabling automakers worldwide to successfully create and sustain the new breed of high-efficiency automobiles. Remember, these new hybrids and plug-ins are useless without adequate and dependable, long-life power sources to support them. Since January 2006, Johnson Controls has sought to make lithium ion batteries the chosen power pack for future energy efficient vehicles. I'm pleased to report that they have met with admirable success.

Earlier this month, Johnson Controls accepted a development contract with General Motors to develop and test lithium ion batteries for use in GM's Saturn Vue plug-in hybrid SUV. Concentrated development efforts begun in January 2006 by Johnson Controls-Saft Advanced Power Systems (JCS) have come to the point where JCS was able to install and display a fully integrated lithium ion battery system in a prototype hybrid-electric SUV at the 2007 North American International Auto Show.

Alan Mumby, president and general manager of Johnson Controls hybrid battery business, states: "We are thrilled to be a key player in enabling tomorrow's green technologies". The JCS lithium ion battery laboratory, situated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is the only dedicated facility in the world focused exclusively on developing lithium ion technology for use in hybrid vehicles.

At least partial funding of the JCS lithium ion battery development project has been provided by the U.S. Department of Energy in furtherance of the Freedom CAR and Fuel Partnership project. The United States Council for Automotive Research (USCAR) is also a driving force in this effort. USCAR is a development and research effort operating with the combined forces of Americas big three automakers. This all speaks well of our friends in American auto manufacturing. Breathe easy America, they're working on it.

Based on a pending labor agreement with members of the United Steelworkers Union, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (NYSE: GT) shares have posted a new 52- week high, rising 40 cents to close at $20.12 on Tuesday, Dec. 26. At market close today, shares were still up.

As outlined in its press release, Goodyear's goals in the negotiations were to "reduce excess high-cost manufacturing capacity, reduce legacy costs, improve productivity and reduce labor costs." Goodyear states that the pending contract will, at least in part, service those goals.

On its face, the three-year contract now pending appears to serve both labor and corporate interests in reasonable fashion. Goodyear will agree to withhold from closing its Tyler, Texas manufacturing facility for one calendar year and will provide $1 billion in retiree health care provisions. The union will concede to a newly-created pay structure for new hires.

Based on a news release from the United Steel Workers website, "The tentative agreement is endorsed by the USW's Goodyear Policy Committee" which is comprised of local union leaders. Members will be voting on the new contract at ratification meetings on December 28, 2006. The union still colors Goodyear as a nasty corporate entity that previously tried to get away with something, but as we all know unions will rarely paint corporations with a favorable brush. I think the USW would do well to admit that in today's economic climate, this pending agreement should assure that the workers are being very well treated.

Was the upward spike in Goodyear shares premature? I don't think so. It seems to me that both sides on the pending agreement are pretty well satisfied. Now if Goodyear exercises their obligations diligently and honestly and the labor force continues to push ahead as in the past, Goodyear should be on very solid ground for the next three years...until contract time again.

Our correspondent, Mike Brewster, is a freelance writer and sports enthusiast. We asked him to begin contributing pieces on the business of sports.

Following the shortest drive of his career (about 10 feet of stage while behind the wheel of the newly introduced Buick Enclave last week at the L.A. Auto Show), world number one golfer Tiger Woods is back making business news, re-upping with NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) Tuesday for a third successive multi-year contract.
While terms weren't announced, this pact is bound to exceed the two previous five-year agreements, which at $40 million and $100 million were relative bargains for the Oregon sporting goods giant.

Interestingly, Nike's stock price took a tumble on the news, thereby temporarily disproving my "As-Tiger-Goes-So-Goes-Nike" theory. Ever since Tiger regained his form over the summer and posted six consecutive PGA Tour wins, Nike's stock has risen from a 52-week-low of $75.52 on August 10 to a high of $99.30 on November 30. But today, the stock fell nearly a full percentage point. Maybe Tiger's deal is for a little more scratch than we thought?

In a day marked by a massive sell-off and a lawsuit that could potentially delay release of Microsoft's next-generation operating system, Vista, MSFT stock ticked up a bit, 10 cents to $22.83. After hours? It ticked up still more, hovering around $22.90 and providing evidence that the stock may have found its floor.

Symantec says Microsoft stole its intellectual property with a technology that allows operating systems to handle large quantities of data. The security software company is also claiming breach of contract, and wants Microsoft to remove the technology from Vista before it's sold. The contract is a bit of ancient history, dating back to 1996, and wasn't even part of the Symantec toolkit until last year, when the company acquired Veritas Software Corp.

The market, though, must be standing behind Microsoft in this showdown, as Symantec's stock was down eight cents at the end of the day.