# U.S. Postal System: RIP (Your reaction)



## cheerio (May 16, 2009)

http://blogs.moneycentral.msn.com/topstocks/archive/2009/06/15/u-s-postal-system-rip.aspx



> The US Postal System, which has been dying for years due to the advent of the fax, e-mail, and overnight delivery, may finally be close to its last act.
> 
> The agency lost nearly $2 billion in its last fiscal year and is faced with the serious consideration of cuts of up to 3,100 offices, potentially eliminating thousand of jobs. Media reports say that first class mail volumes are plunging.
> 
> ...


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## MamaProfCrash (Dec 16, 2008)

I have long wondered when the postal system would take a huge hit. I know I do all of my bill pay and banking over the net. I have bought stamps recently but that is in preparation for my wedding and all of the thank you notes I am going to be sending. 

I love that they have the Kindle included as a cause of the demise of the Post Office. hehehe That is probably a bit of a stretch. More like the internet in general. Why buy the magazine when you can read it online? The Kindle is only the latest way of getting a magazine or paper without delivery.

I think they should continue with Saturday delivery, it is one of the few days that most people are off and can receive mail that has to be signed. I would think cutting a couple of days during the week would be better then cutting the one weekend day they deliver on.


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## Rasputina (May 6, 2009)

They can blame it on e commerce all they want, but they have a long history of gross over spending. They need to get their own house in order before they point fingers.


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## Anju  (Nov 8, 2008)

I agree with Rasputina, but it is the same with all the companies in trouble, GM, banks, etc., they are very top heavy and need to get their own houses in order.  As far as the post office goes, sure cut back a few days a week, but not everyone does have access to the electronic age and will need this service.


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## VictoriaP (Mar 1, 2009)

Sigh.  Once the USPS is actually truly gone, I'll miss print catalogs (searching the web is useful, but not half as much fun) and reasonably inexpensive 2 day shipping.  But I'm part of the problem, not the solution--I haven't had an actual paper bill to pay in eons.  I don't write letters, can't get my act together well enough to do Christmas cards, etc.  The only things I mail are packages.

I will say though this article sounds like a little bit of an overreaction.  While I agree that the USPS is going to have to scale back, I doubt it's going to be completely gone anytime soon.  There's still an entire generation that pays their bills on paper, deliveries around holidays are still insane, and there's still a need (even if reduced) for some of the services only the post office provides.  This should end up being the impetus for that agency to streamline a bit, which as Rasputina pointed out is badly needed.


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## Rasputina (May 6, 2009)

They have had outrageous relocation expenses covered for years. Multi million dollar homes, 60k in travel expenses for 1 person on a relocation scouting trip. And this isn't even the highest echelon of management. They were buying peoples home that were relocating for a USPS job without getting real appraisals. I have no sympathy for the USPS. At the same time they are raising postage prices. Sorry, no sympathy here. It's pathetic that they think laying off people and raising postage is the cure. They need to get their overspending under control and get rid of these outrageous programs.


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## Sweety18 (Feb 14, 2009)

I'm surprised they're still in business.  I still use them, however, not as much as back in the day.


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## mom133d (aka Liz) (Nov 25, 2008)

I had heard that they were considering eliminating Tuesday delivery not Saturday. The report I heard (this was towards the end of the year) said that USPS claims Saturday as one of their heaviest delivery days and Tuesdays are their lightest. I still have a few places that I snail mail a check to - either their e-commerce is flawed (works one month not the next) or is just a pain to use and at least 1 doesn't offer it. my biggest worry is how eliminating a day could really screw with due dates on monthly bills. I still know people without their own computer, let alone broadband and those type aren't ones who will go to the library to pay their bills online.


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## MamaProfCrash (Dec 16, 2008)

The bills that I cannot pay through their website, I use my bill pay through my bank. I guess the bank sends a check so technically I am using USPS but probably at a discounted rate.


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## Forster (Mar 9, 2009)

I don't think the post office's problems are that there is _no_ need for their services or that there will be no need for them in the future but more so that the post office is a humongous bureaucracy that is incapable of running efficiently or downsizing and cutting costs to compete. Yes they are suffering a downturn in volume to to competition from alternative methods and will continue to do so, I just have serious doubts about their ability to adapt.


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## cheerio (May 16, 2009)

Forster said:


> I don't think the post office's problems are that there is _no_ need for their services or that there will be no need for them in the future but more so that the post office is a humongous bureaucracy that is incapable of running efficiently or downsizing and cutting costs to compete. Yes they are suffering a downturn in volume to to competition from alternative methods and will continue to do so, I just have serious doubts about their ability to adapt.


most government companies are that way, especially the military, they are paying out billions of dollars and wasting so much at the same time.


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## Shadowraven (May 7, 2009)

We've been going more and more "green" over the past year and are still noticing changes we can make.  This is the major reason why I don't have a newspaper delivery and didn't renew my Backpacker magazine subscription.  Now I'll just go to the bookstore (I'm lucky it carries it) and review the issue.  If it's one I'll read a lot of then I buy right there (like this month), otherwise I pass.  I've also been meaning to ask my mail carrier if they can stop delivering those damn penny savers and all the grocery store ads.  What a waste!  I do look at Albertson's to see what's on sale, but that's the ONLY one since it's the closest store.  But Albertson's has ads in store too that I can just look at and then put back, or look at the one posted on the wall.  If the postal service had to close down a day of delivery, even TWO more days of delivery I wouldn't mind at all, wouldn't affect me one bit.  My mortgate is the one bill I have to pay with a check and envelope (and every month I wonder what's wrong with that damn company that they don't have online bill pay).  For the sake of the postal carriers though, I hope they don't choose Tuesday over Saturday... If I was a carrier I'd rather they choose Monday so I could have two days off in a row.


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## MamaProfCrash (Dec 16, 2008)

The Post Office cannot not deliver something sent to your house. The only way to get them to stop is to contact the mailer directly and ask them to remove you from their list.


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

My dad worked for the USPS for years, and always complained about the bureaucracy and waste. I know of several instances in my rural area where brand new post offices were built in very small towns, although the buildings that had previously housed the post offices were more than adequate. I'm sure the building has taken place throughout the country, and would account for a lot of wasted revenue expenditures.


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## jazzi (May 4, 2009)

When nearly every entity in the country is experiencing problems due to the economic troubles, why is it surprising that the Postal Service is, too?  For some reason, they're easier to knock.  To include Kindles as a reason for their decline is almost insane.  What percentage of the population owns a Kindle.  Sheesh. 

I'm guessing postal critics have never tried UPS or Fedex ground.  For one, I hope the postal service is around for a long time.  They're the only mailing service I use.


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

Don't get me wrong. I use the postal service for quite a few things, as it's much easier around here to get to the post office than to get to a UPS or FedEx facility. (I have a DirecTv receiver than I have to send back via FedEx, and the only feasible and timely way to return it is to go to the FedEx facility 50 miles away. I'm in that city frequently, but I still have to be sure to go there today or I might be charged up to $470 if the receiver isn't returned within 7 days. I wish I could use the post office to return it, but FedEx is the specified carrier.)

I really can't see the USPS ceasing to exist, but I do hope they can get their financial situation under control. It's still a good value, in my opinion, to put a stamp on an envelope and have it sent across the country for $.44. I have had my share of mail lost or the delivery delayed over the years, but I still value the work of the post office.


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## BTackitt (Dec 15, 2008)

Oh yeah, right... the KINDLE made the USPS spend $300,000 to take a 25-year employee to court because they thought she had stolen $78 worth of stamps and stuff. Talk about overspending. when they got to court, after she denied allegations, they reviewed the security cameras, and realized she never took anything. HELLO?? Who was stupid enough to not have checked the tapes before accusing her in the first place?? Oh.. and they suspended her for a year while they did the investigation. A YEAR and no one looked at the tapes all the way?

Personally I hope she sues the HE** outta the USPS and her supervisor.


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## MagicalWingLT (May 12, 2009)

This is totally stupid... They shouldn't shutdown, if that is what they will do in the future... I order dvds, cds, videogames, and other stuff, that USPS delivers to me... What's going to happen? Who will deliver my stuff if this should happen? FedEx? UPS?


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## Elijsha (Dec 10, 2008)

They need a Bail Out!


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## Guest (Jun 17, 2009)

cheerio said:


> most government companies are that way, especially the military, they are paying out billions of dollars and wasting so much at the same time.


The USPS isn't run by the government anymore-hasn't been for quite awhile now. They get no taxpayer dollars.


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## ak rain (Nov 15, 2008)

its the only sevice that comes to my community. UPS and most companies shift it to USPS to come here. we would miss it.
sylvia


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

NYCKindleFan said:


> The USPS isn't run by the government anymore-hasn't been for quite awhile now. They get no taxpayer dollars.


Well, it's an independent agency of the government and its board of governors are mostly appointed by the President and confirmed by Congress. Title 39 of the US code legally defines the Postal Service as an "independent establishment of the executive branch of the Government of the United States". So, it's not a government owned corporation, but is a quasi-governmental organization.

I still don't think they get to decide if Kris Kringle is really Santa Clause, though.


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## jazzi (May 4, 2009)

Elijsha said:


> They need a Bail Out!


Actually, they don't need a bailout. They need Congress to pass legislation which would give them permission to use their own money that's in a different fund. Yep, government accounting at its best.


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## Rasputina (May 6, 2009)

Ann in Arlington said:


> I still don't think they get to decide if Kris Kringle is really Santa Clause, though.


LOLOLOLOL

But they did!

The USPS isn't going to close, The Fed Gov would step in and bail them out.


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## Meemo (Oct 27, 2008)

Rasputina said:


> LOLOLOLOL
> 
> But they did!
> 
> The USPS isn't going to close, The Fed Gov would step in and bail them out.


Might as well - they're bailing out everything else.


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## cheerio (May 16, 2009)

Elijsha said:


> They need a Bail Out!


no they don't


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## drenee (Nov 11, 2008)

Cindy416 said:


> My dad worked for the USPS for years, and always complained about the bureaucracy and waste. I know of several instances in my rural area where brand new post offices were built in very small towns, although the buildings that had previously housed the post offices were more than adequate. I'm sure the building has taken place throughout the country, and would account for a lot of wasted revenue expenditures.


This is happening right now. A brand new larger building in the middle of NOWHERE in Pennsylvania. I do not understand why. 
deb


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## kevindorsey (Mar 4, 2009)

This sucks.  I've always sent stuff through USPS, and been generally satisfied.  And can't beat the price.


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## cheerio (May 16, 2009)

kevindorsey said:


> This sucks. I've always sent stuff through USPS, and been generally satisfied. And can't beat the price.


me too


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## Kind (Jan 28, 2009)

Sorry to the folks that would lose their jobs at USPS. I'm not a fan of USPS or Canada Post AT ALL! I use FedEx, UPS, and Postal System daily. Anytime a package is lost, guess who loses it? And to make it even better, about 75% of the time, FedEx/UPS is cheaper and faster. The ONLY reason we use Post is for the customers who have PO Boxes.


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## jazzi (May 4, 2009)

FedEx and UPS cheaper?  Maybe for their ground service, which for me on several occasions has taken more than 10 days to deliver, and I've never had USPS take that long.


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## MamaProfCrash (Dec 16, 2008)

The USPS has its problems but it is one of the best postal systems in the world. Mailing anything from Italy was more expensive, less likely to arrive, and if it did arrive it took twice as long. And what we pay for postage is pretty bloody good when you compare postage prices around the world. So while I would like to see them get some of the idiotic spending under control, they do do a pretty good job.


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

When my daughter studied in London for a year, I'd take Act II microwave popcorn and Reese's pieces to the post office in a nearby city. One of the postal workers there loved to help me stuff as many packages of candy and popcorn into a priority mail box as could possibly fit. (He was a master of the art!) We even managed to put nearly all of a 9x13 pan of brownies (minus the pan, of course) into one of those boxes. Of course, everything got to her within a matter of 3 or 4 days except for the brownies, which took about a week and a half. I thought they'd be ruined, but she just microwaved them each before eating, and said that they tasted like fresh brownies.  The postal worker who helped me seemed to enjoy the challenge, as he'd see me packing it over at another counter and would call me to his window so he could help.

I do love sending things via priority mail. They usually get to their destination very quickly, and I'd sure miss the service. I don't send a lot of letters, but when I do, I want them to get where they are going in a timely manner. That is usually the case, although I always pay a bit extra for tracking and/or signature notification when sending really important documents.

FexEx and UPS have their place in the package delivery world, for sure, but I still like the USPS, too.


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## Anju  (Nov 8, 2008)

Let's talk about other countries!  Mexico mail?  It has improved, but there is virtually no door to door service, and IF you go to the post office you may or may not have your mail.  IF you have a box your chances are higher, but not much.  Most people here use a Mail Box type service, I do everything critical on line so don't really care if I get my MIL letter.  Received a letter the other day, that had been opened and re-sealed twice, so noted on the envelope, but still.  The USPS is still the best in the world, top heavy but the best.


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## sigrosenblum (Dec 22, 2008)

You'd never guess from what's going on here that the USPS is on the way out. They just built a super, spiffy new facility in old, traditional Southampton, NY.

Does that mean business has increased? Or does it mean they are wasteful? Wish I knew. And if any members have an informed take on this, I'd appreciate their view. In the meantime, I will do a bit of digging and see what I can find out.

Incidentally, when I was a kid, I worked for the PO during the Xmas holidays. Delivered mail--twice a day. "Boxed" mail--that is, sorted it by hand. But those were pre-Web days. In recent years--like everyone else--e-mail is what I do. Haven't been to a PO in years.

One thing is sure: Beware of bureaucracies. They--the structures, not the people--are deadly and dumb.

P.S. If you're interested, here's a local news story. Apparently, growth is the motive.

http://www.hamptons.com/detail.php?articleID=4171


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## Bren S. (May 10, 2009)

Rasputina said:


> They can blame it on e commerce all they want, but they have a long history of gross over spending. They need to get their own house in order before they point fingers.


I absolutely agree.


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## Forster (Mar 9, 2009)

Bit dated, but fun read none the less:




Product Description
"'It began as a mistake.' By middle age, Henry Chinaski has lost more than twelve years of his life to the U.S. Postal Service. In a world where his three true, bitter pleasures are women, booze, and racetrack betting, he somehow drags his hangover out of bed every dawn to lug waterlogged mailbags up mud-soaked mountains, outsmart vicious guard dogs, and pray to survive the day-to-day trials of sadistic bosses and certifiable coworkers. This classic 1971 novel -- the one that catapulted its author to national fame -- is the perfect introduction to the grimly hysterical world of legendary writer, poet, and Dirty Old Man Charles Bukowski and his fictional alter ego, Chinaski."


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## Tip10 (Apr 16, 2009)

Does anyone know of any other service that will get a letter 1/2 way across the country from a box on the front of my house in the midwest to a box on the front of my brothers house on the west coast of Washington in less than a week for $0.44

I'm not saying the USPS is the greatest -- well yeah, in a way, I am.  I'm not saying they are infallible or perfect but I am saying that for letters they still are the very best there is.

UPS, FedEX and the rest notwithstanding they simply cannot compete with the USPS for letters. UPS, FedEx and the others do wonderful with packages and overnight docs and such -- try just sending a letter to someone using their services -- its prohibitively expensive.

To those who wish to point at e-mail consider the infrastructure needed to to support e-mail, computers, comm lines, ISPs, etc. on both ends -- I know many folks consider e-mail to be "free" but it really isn't.

Sure, occasionally it'll take that letter over a week to get there but its an extremely rare occurrence when it does.


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## Meemo (Oct 27, 2008)

Tip10 said:


> Does anyone know of any other service that will get a letter 1/2 way across the country from a box on the front of my house in the midwest to a box on the front of my brothers house on the west coast of Washington in less than a week for $0.44
> 
> I'm not saying the USPS is the greatest -- well yeah, in a way, I am. I'm not saying they are infallible or perfect but I am saying that for letters they still are the very best there is.
> 
> ...


I have to agree, and point out too that Priority Mail is a great deal - $4.95 and delivery almost happens within 2-3 days. As I just mentioned on another thread, I recently traded Oberon covers with a KB member who lives in Alaska - I'm in Florida. We both put our covers in the USPS Friday, both shipped priority. We both had our new covers in hand on Tuesday. Pretty good deal, I thought - would've been way more UPS or FedEx. And even though I can remember postage being 3 cents, and whine with every increase, overall it's a good deal, especially having lived in Europe for almost 12 years and knowing how it compares to postage there.

Yes, the bureaucracy needs to be contained, but that's a little like herding cats - good luck with that.


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## Forster (Mar 9, 2009)

I'll agree the USPS does have its problems but overall it isn't too bad and I guarantee the private shipping companies wouldn't bring letters daily to the boonies.

I also admit I do like the flat rate boxes, up to 70# for like $12.95.  My delivery guy hates them/me though.  I bet the USPS never envisioned people actually being able to stuff 70# in those boxes. 

I've had probably close to 1,000 lbs of lead shipped to me in these boxes.


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