In past shows, there had been little such controversy. Is Donald Trump a buffoon? Is the bear Catholic? Are swindling televangelists the scum of the Earth? Does a pope shit in the woods? (Actually, yes. There were popes long before there was a Vatican). But when we come to the issue of encryption, the issue is not so clear in terms of good guys vs. bad guys. Of course, we are talking about the Department of Justice wanting to compel Apple to write code that would allow them access to the cell phone of the San Bernardino terrorist.

Let it be said at the outset, your narrator hates, loathes and despises the word “infotainment,” but, if ever a show fell into that category, John Oliver’s latest addition of Last Week Tonight did just that. Of course, there was a good measure of Oliver’s brand of comedy throughout the broadcast, and more about that later. The more important aspect of it was that he brought up a subject many of us would have gone on blissfully ignoring to our everlasting detriment: Special Districts.