Jon Stewart kicked off Tuesday night's Daily Show by noting that presidents have been promising to modernize the Department of Veterans Affairs since at least the Truman administration. That effort has apparently progressed in fits and starts. Congress has been holding late-night hearings on the VA's scandalously long wait times at hospitals, Stewart noted, almost approvingly, but a lot of the hearings devolve into ping-ponging responsibility back and forth between the VA bureaucracy and Congress.
Stewart hit his stride when a zombie-like VA bureaucrat (to be fair, it was an overnight hearing) informed Congress that the department's scheduling software was last significantly updated in 1985. "You're running OS... Tandy 1000?" Stewart gaped. "Your system can't process claims, but it can print an all-text picture of Snoopy." He didn't really have a solution, but he offered this suggestion: "Can't we figure out some way to use that death-drone NSA technology for administrative purposes at the VA?" And that's Stewart's sensible solution. His dream scenario is more entertaining. --Peter Weber
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Judge rejects Elon Musk's $56B pay package againSpeed Read Judge Kathaleen McCormick upheld her rejection of the Tesla CEO's unprecedented compensation deal
-
DOJ seeks breakup of Google, ChromeSpeed Read The Justice Department aims to force Google to sell off Chrome and make other changes to rectify its illegal search monopoly
-
Racist texts tell Black people in US to prepare for slaverySpeed Read Recipients in at least a dozen states have been told to prepare to 'pick cotton' on slave plantations
-
Australia proposes social media ban before age 16Speed Read Australia proposes social media ban before age 16
-
FTC bans fake online product reviewsSpeed Read The agency will enforce fines of up to $51,744 per violation
-
States sue TikTok over children's mental healthSpeed Read The lawsuit was filed by 13 states and Washington, D.C.
-
Amazon ending 'Just Walk Out' grocery checkoutSpeed Read In its place, the company will let customers scan while they shop with Amazon Dash Cart
-
Justice Department bites Apple with iPhone suitSpeed Read The lawsuit alleges that the tech company monopolized the smartphone industry
