USPS Deserves to go down

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Originally Posted By: fdcg27

No need for polling places in rural areas.
If you live in a rural area, you may just have to drive forty miles out of your way to vote, or maybe pay a fee to vote locally.


LOL...I have a better idea, lets make all the city dwelling voters travel forty miles to vote...lol...what do we have now for turnout? 50% for a huge election, much less for smaller ballots...make everyone drive and we'll see voter turn out in the 10% range.

Although...I get your point...just got a kick out of the sarcasm.
 
what will happen to the USPS folks who get a pension and healthcare through the postal workers union if the USPS file for bankruptcy? taxpayers have to pick up the tab?
 
Geez guys...all I'm saying is they do a poor job at what they claim to do well. From what I have learned from them messing up twice in 6 moths....they deserve to go down.
My opinion....my experiences.
 
You're right.
The current governor of my state squeaked in with just 29% of the registered electorate voting for him.
My personal rule is that anyone who doesn't vote in every election has no right to complain about any action any level of government takes, or any tax levy.
It is a pity that something many sacrificed and even fought and died for is treated as an inconvenience by so many of our fellow citizens.
 
The problem with the post office is its an outdated service. Who sends mail anymore? Everything can be done online and correspondence via email and Facebook have replaced writing letters.

I for one could do without my daily helping of junk mail.

The post office needs to do two things:

1. Charge everyone the same price, none of this discounted postage nonsense for the junk mailers.

2. Reduce service, I think cutting Saturday would be a good state. They need to just keep cutting until they can break even.

But the writing is on the wall, the post office is obsolete and won't exist in 20 years.
 
The Postal Service lost $1.1 billion in its latest quarter. That number would be even larger if it weren't for direct mailings, which now constitute 52 percent of mail volume, up from 38 percent in 1990. Revenue from direct mail "is the financial underpinning of the Postal Service—it could not survive without it," says Michael Coughlin, former deputy postmaster.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2008/09/26/to-postal-workers-no-mail-is-junk.html
 
I'd be OK with no Saturday delivery. I might be OK with four-day delivery, like MTRF.

TO say that the PO is horrible is a bit excessive, IMO. I can move mail far cheaper (especially light stuff) via USPS than using UPS or Fedex. Going to some parts of the country (territories, for example), USPS is FAR faster and FAR cheaper. For heavy stuff, the PO seems to do a slightly better job not destroying it than UPS does.

UPS is hopelessly expensive. Sure, USPS maybe has been subsidized to some extent, but Ill bet it would still be cheaper. $5-6+ to send a letter or a few pages of paper? LOL UPS.

IMO the first thing to do is cut back a few days and also make the letter carriers' union align to the standard GS scale and benefits packages that the rest of the federal workers get. Feds pay in a good deal more for their health insurance than the postal employees do. Stuff like that is just unsustainable.
 
Stop Saturday delivery. (Not sure it would help much, some analysts say no it wouldn't)
Raise the rate on bulk mail (presorted standard) 1¢

The current problem seems to be the high payments to the healthcare benefit package. Congress COULD stretch that out some;
that would help the immediate problem.

I've reviewed the list of closing in my state. Most of those 40+ I've never heard of, they must be pretty small indeed. Yet, there are a few that I do know of that could be closed but aren't on the list. They could go farther in closing small, low volume P.O.s.
 
How about getting rid of the dead-wood? Why not go back to a performance requirement and a mandatory retirement age? I know....it's 'inhumane'. I have a friend that used to work there and he told me it was shocking how lazy many senior employees were and how they actually hide in the back to not have to work the counter. He also told me of all the lost mail pieces that fall down behind the machinery.
Scary.
 
I need to set a fact straight:
The US Postal Service is not directly "authorized" or "mandated" by the Constitution. The "Postal Clause" authorizes Congress to set up the Post Office to help interstate communication.

Factoids:
Prior to 1980, the USPS was funded by the government.
Thomas Jefferson was afraid that setting up a postal service would be a waste of money.
If you have something shipped UPS "basic" it's routed through the USPS system then delivered by a brown truck because the USPS transports packages at less cost than UPS's own system.

Try a private carrier for:
A letter delivered anywhere in the US in 2 days, for less than $1.
Try to ship something overseas to a military base (care package).
Try to mail something to a PO box
Nobody but the USPS does that.
 
Originally Posted By: simple_gifts
Quote:

The fact remains that the USPS is losing money and the taxpayers may want to stop propping up failing business models.


Postal service is authorized by the US Constitution. It clearly serves markets no business model would support.

UPS and Fedex cherry pick profitable routes and leave the rest for USPS. Not exactly a fair fight.

My local school doesn't make a profit; perhaps people with kids need to send their kids to for profit schools and pay with their own $$




I'm with SG on this one...this is not something that can just go away. While there may not be as many letters as there used to be, people will always need to mail stuff...always.


Get rid of the USPS...watch the prices fly....
 
Originally Posted By: Cutehumor
what will happen to the USPS folks who get a pension and healthcare through the postal workers union if the USPS file for bankruptcy? taxpayers have to pick up the tab?


Good chance.....makes the auto companies look small here...
 
I think that the Postal Service should have the same benefits as the 'regular' worker has.Those that are in 'public service' jobs should not have these outstanding benefits that they have.

How many of those in the private sector get the benefits that public workers get?

Those that are public workers should make comparable to private sector jobs,not thousands and thousands more.

If a public worker wants to pay more for better benefits,as the private sector worker does,that is fine but dont automatically give them the huge benefits.

The Postal Service also needs to make it easier to use the post office.The office in my town closes at 4:30 pm.That makes it very hard to be able to go to the post office and buy/send things that you would need a workers help to do.

They have also taken out the automated stamp machines,this also makes it hard for a person to use their service.You cant use a service that isnt open or that makes it less user friendly.

The postal service needs to be run more like a quick stop store,I dont mean that they need to be open day and night but they could have some services open later in the evening on at least a few days a week.They could stagger the hours that the counter workers work to allow for someone to work late.

The Postal Service almost seems to be trying to make it harder and harder for people to use their service by some of the things they have done.
 
Originally Posted By: tom slick


I need to set a fact straight:
The US Postal Service is not directly "authorized" or "mandated" by the Constitution. The "Postal Clause" authorizes Congress to set up the Post Office to help interstate communication.

Factoids:
Prior to 1980, the USPS was funded by the government.
Thomas Jefferson was afraid that setting up a postal service would be a waste of money.
If you have something shipped UPS "basic" it's routed through the USPS system then delivered by a brown truck because the USPS transports packages at less cost than UPS's own system.

Try a private carrier for:
A letter delivered anywhere in the US in 2 days, for less than $1.
Try to ship something overseas to a military base (care package).
Try to mail something to a PO box
Nobody but the USPS does that.

But they do it POORLY. Lost TWO pieces of MY MAIL in 6 months. That's POOR SERVICE in my book and worth paying more to have it done correctly.
No offense....just my opinion.
 
I guess many of are so conditioned to Government mismanagement and lack of measurable success wh just assume its "Normal" for it to operate in the fashion that it is. [/quote]

yes, they are Al. And that 'conditioning' has to change. Not 'should', HAS TO.

No matter your philosophical arguments, the government has to become different. Lack of funding is a serious issue, and real. No conspiracy theories here, just broke entities that can't pay any more. Even Urchin knows that incomes are declining and people can't pay their taxes.

And duh, the USPS has TONS of very real assets, like cars, trucks, buildings, planes, and equipment that would be easy to sell. I am certain some business people would jump at the challenge. A little oversight and bingo, it could work.

You can sure see the 'employee mentality' versus the 'business owner mentality' at work here. Some of us are quite happy with the Government providing all for everyone.

But some of us aren't. Take all the shots you want gents, my opinion remains. USPS is/has failed, and repeatedly. needs a big change.
 
Originally Posted By: hattaresguy
The problem with the post office is its an outdated service. Who sends mail anymore? Everything can be done online and correspondence via email and Facebook have replaced writing letters.
.....
But the writing is on the wall, the post office is obsolete and won't exist in 20 years.

Exactly! lol:
 
I get all my meds thru the postal service from the VA. Service is excellent.

I order many items from E-Bay and Amazon. I get 3 day deliverly from anywhere in the U.S., less than 2 weeks from Europe as long as its not held up in customs.

I have NO problems with the USPS.
 
Failed business model

Failed to change with the times

Government run

Excessive pensions/retirement/healthcare expenses/promises

What could be better than a huge influx of taxpayer cash to "fix" the problems!
 
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