Stress Testing

 

 

"We are going to go over and over and over this until it is right. Then we are going to go over and over and over it again to make sure we were right..."

Not that long after I started with IBM, I met a man who was on temporary assignment from the "head shed" in New York. His name was "Steve" and he was in town to oversee the launch of a brand new web portal called "Target.com". This was huge. It was going to make or break the type of shopping many people would be able to do on a large scale, big box retailer like Target.

Because I worked out of my home, when I visited a client's facility like Dayton's (it had not yet switched over to be called Target Corporation), I had a simple cube when on location. The cube right next to where I sat was occupied by "Steve". I got to know him, had coffee with him, helped out on the legal terms with corporate Legal and always made myself available for anything I could do before the "go-live" day.

As "go-live" day grew closer, the more nervous everyone became. We went over the launch from top to bottom and back again. Every possible scenario was envisioned. "Steve" had been through many of these things before, but none this big. Even though he had been with IBM for many years, he knew if this thing "bombed" he would be gone in a heart beat. The system was stress tested to the max and back again.

Finally the day of the launch arrived. It was all hand on deck. No problem - it went fine. Sure there were some minor problems along the way, but the site worked. Happy, happy, happy - everyone was happy.

Compare that with the disaster with the portal in Obamacare. Very little works. The news today told a grim story - they might have to take it down and start a complete re-do. A complete re-launch. After spending untold millions on this thing, much or it using 10 year old technology, it works about as well as a ten year old Yugo with no oil in it. And guess what? The person in charge of this mess is not going to lose her job. She will oversea us pouring good money after bad into this sink hole.

This web portal might just be the "canary in the coal mine" for how well the entire health care program will work. We have taken the best health care in the world, run by some of the smartest health care professionals anywhere, and put it in the hands of the most incompetent government bureaucrats. In other words, we let kids just starting driver's training drive the most expensive car in the lot.

In the next few weeks, the Administration will continue to try and put lipstick on this pig. However, even Max Factor does not have enough cover all to make this mess look good. We were warned about this, and we went full speed ahead anyhow. Now we are in the back seat of Thelma and Louise's car looking at the view as we drive over the cliff.