USPS to propose 5-day mail schedule, major cuts

[Dark Knight]

Again Dark Knight has great points (can you believe I am agreeing with you? again?!)
A delay of receiving a paycheck or SS check can lead to a disaster for many people. Direct deposit is not a service that is available to everyone.
Junk mail is such a HUGE waste of resources and a threat to the environment. The first step should be to raise the cost of mailing junk mail high enough that it will discourage most advertisers. Let them invest their advertising $$ into newspaper/magazine ads, tv spots, web ads and their own web sites. I receive something in my mailbox every day, but at least a few days a week the entire content of my mailbox goes straight to the recycling bag because it is entirely junk mail and I don't even look at it. What a horrible waste! If they cut out junk mail, the postman could deliver the entire route in a shorter period. That would save the USPS a lot of $$.

Wow, they said the earthquake knocked the earth off it's axis, now I am certain of it with you agreeing with me AGAIN! :crazy:

People can reduce their junk mail in much the same way they stop telemarketers. I'd have to Google them, but there are websites and mailing lists you can contact and ask them to remove you and that will stop about 90% of junk mail.

 

[Dark Knight]

Some junk mail removal websites:

www.dmachoice.org

http://www.directmail.com/directory/mail_preference/

http://www.fraudguides.com/tips/jan10.asp

 

[angelmom]

I have to disagree. I do a lot of my shopping online and since the township we live in thinks we live too close to the post office to receive delivery to our house, we are forced to have a PO box. A lot of time Saturdays are the only day I am able to make it to the post office during business hours to pick up my parcels that are too large to fit into our box (all of them). I do not want to pay more for less service.

I can totally see this point, but I don't think they're talking about being closed on Saturdays, just stopping Saturday deliveries.

While I understand how it would affect some people in a big way, something must be done. Yes, the bulk mail prices should be much higher, but the post office is already losing tons of money b/c bulk mail has been reduced greatly due to email and online marketing.

We can't just continue to pour money into a business that isn't profitable and assume that the taxpayers (that's us!) will cover the bill. That's what is wrong with this country today.

 

[Cypros]

The USPS is not a private business. It is a public service.

 

[angelmom]

The USPS is not a private business. It is a public service.

Well first of all, that's not entirely true. And second of all, government entities operating in the red as if there were an endless supply of cash IS what is wrong with this country, IMHO.

http://usgovinfo.about.com/od/consumerawareness/a/uspsabout.htm

According to the laws under which it now operates, the U.S. Postal Service is a semi-independent federal agency, mandated to be revenue-neutral. That is, it is supposed to break even, not make a profit.

In 1982, U.S. postage stamps became "postal products," rather than a form of taxation. Since then, The bulk of the cost of operating the postal system has been paid for by customers through the sale of "postal products" and services rather than taxes.

Each class of mail is also expected to cover its share of the costs, a requirement that causes the percentage rate adjustments to vary in different classes of mail, according the costs associated with the processing and delivery characteristics of each class.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Postal_Service

Since its reorganization into an independent organization, the USPS has become self-sufficient and has not directly received taxpayer-dollars since the early 1980s.

 

[Dark Knight]

The postmaster general's salary is $265,000. (By comparison, the President of the United States makes $400,000. Most of the president's staff and cabinet make under $200,000, IIRC.) I think the postmaster even got a raise not too long ago, despite all the losses in revenue. THAT is what is wrong with this country!

 

[panthera]

I don't think mail needs to get any slower, and having 2 days in a row with no delivery would be more disruptive than you might think. At least spread the days off out a bit. Maybe the Postmaster General needs to take a major paycut first.

And don't forget on Holiday weekends, it would be three days in a row. Personally it really wouldn't be too bad, since most of my mail is junk mail anyway, but I'm more concerned with the backlog how it would affect delivery to businesses. MOO

 

[Dark Knight]

And don't forget on Holiday weekends, it would be three days in a row. Personally it really wouldn't be too bad, since most of my mail is junk mail anyway, but I'm more concerned with the backlog how it would affect delivery to businesses. MOO

Wow! You're right! 3 days in a row with NO mail would be a major problem.