Never give up, never surrender!

[caseydog]

So why isn't FedEx or UPS allowed to place letters in the mailbox I paid for? Is there some kind of law? Because I'd gladly pay double what the PO charges for Fedex to handle my daily mail. They'd do a much better job.
The PO is the biggest crock of bull I've ever seen. "One low flat rate, if it fits it ships" You've gotta be effin' kidding me. The clerk always hits me with a dozen questions. How heavy is it? What's the destination? When do you want it to arrive? Simple, indeed. Post office=Government sanctioned failure.

Forgive my negativity, my posts arent usually this negative. I'm having a bad day.

Oh, and another thing. COUPON DAY That's when the PO crams a big bundle of loose trash in my mailbox that's impossible to remove without losing in the wind. If a private individual tried to mail such a bundle the postmaster would call homeland security on his azz. Yet big marketing agencies can mail whatever they want (At one low, flat rate no doubt.). That's your postal service. Your government at work. Ain't it grand?

Article I, Section 8, Clause 7 of the United States Constitution, known as the Postal Clause or the Postal Power, empowers Congress "To establish Post Offices and post Roads".

With that power comes responsibility.

Unlike the USPS, FedEx and UPS are allowed to not deliver to far out rural homes. And, they can charge more to deliver to rural communities than they do for urban deliveries.

The Post Office MUST deliver mail to outlying areas for the same price as they charge to deliver in urban areas.

Besides, if any company could put mail in your mailbox, it would be stuffed everyday with garbage by companies that do NOTHING other than junk mail.

BTW, I use those flat-rate envelopes and boxes all the time, and never have issues with the PO. Again, I do my labels and postage online, and don't ever need to talk to a PO desk clerk. I drop my boxes off, and walk out the door. Done.

CD

[eamarquardt]

CD,

You make some valid points in the above post.

However, I remain firmly convinced that the government is rarely efficient. Having served for 3.5 years and experienced plenty of "HURRY UP AND WAIT" I've been there done that. I do, however, understand and 100% support our Marines (and to a lesser degree Sailors, Airmen, and even Soldiers-a little interservice competition is not a bad thing, IMHO).

A good friend has been fired from every civilian job he's ever had. He's now thriving working for the Feds. Based upon my efforts to get government attention on the abuses permitted under ERISA (the law governing employer benefits and retirement plans) I have yet to find a government employee responsive to the issues, problems and fraud allowed under this law.

If we force businesses and individuals to pay the real costs of delivering letters and parcels I'm convinced that things will become more efficient and new solutions to our shipping needs will rise to the surface.

Subsidizing a money losing outfit is not the answer, IMHO.

Angry, no. Dissatisfied, yes!

Cheers,

Gus

[teardrop_focus]

Here's something different from the usual news of the USPS' typical inefficiency...

This happened to me yesterday early evening...

When arriving at the local Post Office annex that used to stay open late for last-minute tax form mailers such as myself, I noticed that (due to various budget cuts) this office was closed.

I knew then that I should continue driving to the airport P.O. some 20 mins away... but I had already entered the parking lot of the old annex where there was a U.S. Mail 5-ton freight truck about to pull away.

When I asked him if indeed the airport post office was taking last-minute filers, he offered to take my envelopes over there!

I decided that I could trust this friendly face of this postal worker/truck driver (I guess he's a mail man, after all!), handed him both my stamped Fed and State envelopes, shook his hand and said, "THANK YOU!" to which he smiled and said, "No problem! I'm headed over there anyway!"

[eamarquardt]

Here's something different from the usual news of the USPS' typical inefficiency...

I think I would have told him: "You have exceeded my wildest expectations for excellent service".

Re CD's comments:

Living in a remote rural area is choice. Choices involve compromises. If all of us were required to pay the actual costs of the services we recieve we might make different choices. I for one would be willing to accept twice a week mail delivery for a significant reduction in the delivery fees. The USPS surely delivers more mail per driven mile than the other carriers! But the other carriers are able to compete. One might argue that the independant carriers operate at a smaller cost per mile driven. How can they do that? One might argue that the independant carriers only carry the "cream of the crop". However, with volume comes efficiency. Why isn't the post office more efficient than the independant carriers?

I called UPS and they will deliver to every physical address in the country. IMHO delivery to a remote location is a premium service and premium services should and do cost more. UPS will not deliver to a p.o. box as they don't have a key to the post office.

IMHO more government is usually not a solution for much of anything!

Angry, no. Dissatisfied, YES!

Cheers,

Gus