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May 10, 2012 at 8:45 am
AnnonyMoose
The article you linked yo does not address the real problem with the Post Office, the law that was passed by Congress that forces the Post office to pay for 75 years of benefits ahead of time. They are paying for benefits for employees who aren’t even hired yet. Another problem is that Post offices are prevented from offering other services that would be logical (and profitable) especially in rural locations.
May 10, 2012 at 9:20 pm
Anonymous
The post office is obsolete anyhow.
May 11, 2012 at 10:53 am
Jane
Government isn’t in the business of “profitable”. It is a service. The idea is that government, as a whole, has to bring in enough money to pay for the services it creates. One program may lose money and another may bring in more revenue than others. But putting together products simply because it can make money when the service isn’t needed is left to private for-profit business.
May 11, 2012 at 10:54 am
HUUFC
From my house I see three of the neighborhood group mailboxes. Three different USPS trucks and employees deliver mail at three different times, at least the delivery is quick. Houses in Fortuna on the same block as the PO get mail delivered to their door. Houses on Rohnerville Road get the delivery to the box out in front of the house.
The USPS is losing $25 million each day. Rather than change the way they do business the USPS is keeping all of the offices open?
All mail delivery should be in the neighborhood gang boxes, anybody living within a 1/2 nile of the office should go there to get their mail. No more rural free delivery, (cause it aint free).
Stop the bleeding.
May 11, 2012 at 11:17 am
Eric Kirk
According to an NPR story yesterday, the rural post offices and delivery account for maybe 1 percent of the Post Office budget. There are probably other places to cut back.
May 11, 2012 at 12:20 pm
HUUFC
One percent is a start, the USPS needs to do something smart, if they don’t congress is poised to give them a cash bailout. A bail out of money that dosen’t exist and will be printed. And deeper into the hole we go.
May 11, 2012 at 12:38 pm
Eric Kirk
Well, given the potential economic consequences of denying Humboldt County overnight mail delivery, I think they can start somewhere else.
May 11, 2012 at 2:32 pm
Jane
Putting government in bed with private companies IS the problem. Money doesn’t exist. It is a value place holder. It represents wealth. Printing money if the GDP were not growing and had no potential growth is a problem. Transferring the burden of getting mail onto people who will then pay the bill means less consumer dollars to spend in the economy. During a recession this is already the problem and not the cure. Mail delivery has to be efficient and effective and has to service those who can’t make it a mile to the box. Private companies will not price or cater services to the lowest income people they will take the cream of the market and charge the price they want for profit to the group of people who can afford it. Government would still have to subsidize private companies in order for all people who need the service to get it and that puts government in bed with private companies and starts the whole corruption thing snowballing. Privatization of public services is not the answer.
May 11, 2012 at 3:39 pm
AnonnyMoose
FedEx and UPS would charge at least $5 to deliver a letter. They often use the Post office to do the” last mile” or leave packages at the PO for box holders. Many rural people depend on the PO for delivery of prescriptions, for money orders, bill paying and packages of all sorts. Many small town PO s are the social center of their town as well as the place for information. Why not let them have computers with internet for rent? Sell prepaid phone cards? copy machines? and many other services.
What other government agency is burdened with paying for 75 years of benefits ahead of time. This requirement is the only reason the Postal Service is “losing money”. This is a blatant attempt to kill a government service so private companies can make a profit ( and pay their execs huge salaries.) Also PO employs a lot of veterans and has a strong union.
I use Express Mail and Priority Mail to ship packages at cheaper rates then FedEx or UPS and get 2 day delivery with Express and 3-4 day with Priority.
Stop giving away the good services to private companies.
May 12, 2012 at 7:03 am
Dave Kirby
How about doubling the postage on all the unsolicited crap I toss into the P.O. trash every visit. Do away with the bulk rates available to for profit mailers. Reverse political franking privileges so politicians have to pay for mailing their self serving “newsletters” but we get free postage on anything mailed to them. Make everyone pay box rent. Hundreds of box holders at local P.O.s pay no rent due to an outdated loophole. In Phillipsville alone 70 of the boxes collect no rent
May 12, 2012 at 7:43 am
Cove dude
“…due to an outdated loophole. In Phillipsville alone 70 of the boxes collect no rent.”
Now that is absurd.
Eliminate the loophole.
I would be willing to bet that some, if not all, of those 70 non box rent paying people are screaming the loudest over losing local P.O.s.
They should be responsible for paying up front, and should have to pay back rent as well.
May 12, 2012 at 10:09 am
Eric Kirk
Dave – I think that crap mail is actually a revenue generator for the post office.
May 12, 2012 at 11:22 am
pathetic actually
>>>Hundreds of box holders at local P.O.s pay no rent due to an outdated loophole. In Phillipsville alone 70 of the boxes collect no rent<<<
What about eliminating "home delivery," and making everyone pick up their mail at a PO? Garberville PO delivers to customers in zip 95542, but residents of Redway have to pick their mail up at the PO. Folks "in town" in Redway, who might otherwise get home delivery, are offered a free small PO box instead. Is that the "loophole" you want to eliminate? How much does home delivery cost all of us who don't get it?
And Eric is right. Junk mail delivery is a money maker for them. Too bad.
May 12, 2012 at 5:31 pm
Cove dude
Having all the information, that is not a “loophole”.
Having home delivery in Shelter Cove is a drain on resources. Some Cove residents have boxes at the Whitethorn P.O., most have home delivery.
May 12, 2012 at 6:51 pm
Jane
Maybe we can start paying per mile for when we drive too. And put tolls on every single bridge. That way we can end the idea that pooling money together as a society is a good idea at all. We can all just buy into the political idea that the Tower of Deficit is the biggest evil since the Taliban and that America is broke rather than just being “drowned in the bathtub” so the elites can pay less taxes and have less regulations. Each and every person can go on the pay as you go plan. If nothing else at least it would finally bring back slavery officially and prison for debtors and we can end all the conservative pretense that this really isn’t a class war.
On the other hand we could just shift some of the 57% of the GDP which is being poured into the Military Industrial complex and use it to cover the basic necessities of the working class and others.
May 13, 2012 at 11:49 am
anonymous
>>>Maybe we can start paying per mile for when we drive too.<<<<
don't we already do that?