. a blogumn by Monique King-Viehland and Brian Viehland Polamalu & Obama – Two Men Who Can Turn the Game Around My husband and I woke up Monday morning, basking in the glory of our victorious Pittsburgh Steelers who clinched the AFC Championship last night and now have a shot at claiming their sixth Super Bowl victory. Yes, this was MLK Day and the day before the Obama Inauguration, but all else paled in comparison to the need to begin preparations for our “Black & Gold” Super Bowl Party. About 5pm or so, reality set in that I had flittered the entire day away in “Steeler Bliss” and had yet to identify what this week’s blog would be about. Then Brian (my brilliant husband) suggested the convergence of two of our favorite things – the Steelers and Obama. God I love him. 1st Quarter – The Clinton Years Twice before, the Pittsburgh Steelers had held AFC championship games at Heinz Field and twice they’d walked off the field watching their opposition celebrate a trip to the Super Bowl. But within the first few minutes of the game it was clear that this was different. The Steelers had a 13-point lead for the entire first quarter of the game. It was a glorious time and it felt as if it would go on forever. During the eight years of the Clinton Presidency, if you look at the typical economic indicators, it too was a glorious time and it felt as if it would go on forever. According to the Progressive Policy Institute, on average annually during the Clinton Administration: jobs increased by 2.38%, jobs with higher than average income increased 4.7%, per capita gross domestic product increased 2.42%, median household income increased 1.65%, the number...

. An Unexpected Argument by Brian Viehland I recently received an email entitled “Bar Stool Economics” that tried to relate a bar tab to taxes. The summary was that 10 men drank together daily and one rich man was paying to offset several of the poor men’s beer. When the bartender gave the group a break on their tab, the rich guy got most of it.  The rest of the group got pissed and killed him, and without his money, no one could drink.  (Read the whole story after the jump). However, the breakdown saying that 40% are paying nothing and 10% are paying 60% doesn’t sound accurate at all. As a small business owner who is in the middle class, my tax burden is 42% of every penny I make – I pay it proudly and without hesitation or argument (maybe a little grumbling from time to time).  I pay it even though 24% of my income goes to social security that I don’t think will be in existence 35 years from now when I’m allowed to retire (if I’m ever allowed).  I pay it not because I can’t find loopholes to get out of it, I pay it because it’s right and I can. I pay it because my brother-in-law is on disability for a brain tumor. I pay it because I know people who have been laid off when their companies moved oversees and are now on unemployment. I pay it because large numbers of kids with potential will never get to go to college without government loans and grants. I pay it because my local library is struggling and needs the money the government provides. I pay it because I want the roads paved, the factory pollution limited, the NIH...

. An E-Mail Forward from Fierce and Nerdy Contributor, Brian Viehland. File your answers in the comments, and the best answer gets a free I-Pod — not really. Joking obviously. We’re only 3-weeks-old, but some sweet day….  Still, leave your answers in the comments. I was serious about that...

. A Proof of Nerd ID by Brian Viehland Apple is the Borg…  and I’m OK with my assimilation so far. Although I have not switched to a Mac due to the limited availability of some of the software I must use for my business, I have dumped my Windows Mobile smart phone, gone through a short stint with a Palm device, and have landed on the new 3G i-Phone by Apple. This is by far the coolest portable device I have ever had. Although there are a few obviously missing functions for those of us who are business users (tasks don’t sync, and you can’t accept appointments), the best argument of why Apple isn’t ready for business users comes from the Apple store itself. The Apple store, if you haven’t been in one, is far from a standard shopping environment – it is a retail experience.  Not only is it hands-on and over-staffed with hand-picked nerdy youth, but it also has this great checkout system: most of the employees carry a small hand held device that can scan your items, swipe your credit card, and email you the receipt! How awesome is that?! No waiting in long lines – no idiot writing checks in front of you or counting out change – just swipe and go! Awesome, right?   This is obviously the future of shopping and Apple was so on top of their game when they developed this business model. As I checked out, thinking how awesome this whole experience was and how Apple was clearly advancing in the business world and how this was the example I needed to convince me that Apple was really ready to fight the big fight against Microsoft, I noticed it: The Mark Of The Devil.  It...