Here’s the reality: Federal employees’ retirement applications are processed manually in a 230-foot-deep mine in Pennsylvania. Over 700 workers handle stacks of paper files because the system is too outdated to go digital. The result? Only 10,000 applications can be processed per month, causing massive delays. With AI and automation, this could be done in seconds—but instead, your tax dollars are paying for a literal underground bureaucracy. | Kristin Sokoloff