Rearranging the deck chairs on the titanic 

This is a situation when someone tries to futilly reform the way things are done in a failing system.

The consolidation of domestic agency intelligence under the banner of "Homeland Security" is nothing more than Rearranging the Deck Chairs on the Titanic.

Rearranging the deck chairs on the titanic by R. Kemp December 13, 2004

Rearranging the deck chairs on the titanic 

A joke Stephen Colbert made on the 2006 White House Correspondents' Dinner.

Some people say changing the cabinet around is like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. That's not true; this administration isn't sinking. In fact, this administration is soaring; if anything, it's like rearranging the deck chairs on the Hindenburg.

Rearranging the deck chairs on the titanic by presleyg July 28, 2006