Going Postal, Less Often

The price of stamps went up two cents today.  I don't really care.  This will increase my postage spending approximately ten cents a year.  I doubt that the USPS is going to make up $3.3 billion (plus the estimated 3 billion more this year) it now owes (as of 3/31/09) two cents at a time.  The USPS has not made a profit since 2006, when parcel volume totaled 213 billion.  In the 2008 fiscal year volume dropped to 203 billion parcels, and the Postal Service lost $2.8 billion.  It has lost $2.3 billion in the six months since then.  Parcel volume is expected to drop more than 20 billion pieces this year and another 10 billion the following year.

Whatever the reason, the Postal Service has been experimenting with Segways and bicycle delivery.  I'm no accountant, but buying a fleet of Segways whose batteries die mid-route doesn't seem like a good way to get out of debt.

Postmaster General (Really?  General?) John Potter says it could become necessary to temporarily reduce delivery to five days a week.  This could supposedly save $3.5 billion annually.  Trouble is federal law has mandated six-day delivery since 1983.  The Postal Service's Board of Governors must approve a work-week reduction, and is unlikely to do so.  Instead the USPS is seeking to reduce annual retirement fund contributions from $7.5 billion to $5.5 billion.  

Why do I give a crap?  Because it's stupid.  If this were a real corporation, instead of a government operation we would have lost Saturday delivery years ago.  You know what I would do?  I'd get rid of Wednesday delivery, too.  Seriously--who's going to notice?  How much good mail does a person get these days?  I don't even get most of my bills by snail mail.  The Postal Service pats itself on the back for exploring alternative fuels and delivery methods, but almost everything that I get goes straight into the trash.  

I've got nothing against the USPS, but let's keep things in perspective.  We don't need the mail every day.  I don't really look forward to the mail like I do packages, which are often delivered by someone else.  Drop Saturday delivery.  Drop another day.  Then shut-up about it.

Special shout-out to my favorite letter carrier, Mary Fenton.  I like your hat.