US Post Office Faux Woes

[frogboy4]

I just can't wrap my brain around the numerous articles about why the US Post Office is suffering. Everybody likes getting mail and nobody provides that service better these days than the USPS. So what's the problem?

Hey, we all order things online
The idea that fewer people are mailing things is bunk. Sure, there's email, but there are a slew of online orders that have slaughtered brick and mortar stores. However, Amazon and most other online services don't provide the customer with an option to use the USPS. UPS and FedEx ground have made sweetheart deals with companies to exclusively use them instead of the Post Office and customers usually don't know what method of service has been used until they receive an emailed invoice.

The secret evils of UPS
Personally, I hate UPS. It's a joke in San Francisco because they never come on time and they no longer provide scheduled delivery windows. That means I am held hostage in my apartment on some arbitrary delivery date that they may or may not honor. Signing that silly little yellow note is useless in a gated apartment building and there's rarely anybody in urban buildings to accept packages on a tenant’s behalf. Their pick-up station is far away from the heart of the city that requires use of a car (that few people possess) or carrying a package back home on public transportation (that requires more than one bus) rendering that option nearly prohibitive to use. The USPS local buildings are sprinkled all over the city in very short distances...well, until more of them are forced to shut down. Rescheduling UPS is tricky and costs an additional $5.00! But apparently they make deals with companies under the guise of "free shipping" offers to customers that actually make them money in the long run. It's a scam and a hassle. I only purchase through secondary sellers on Amazon to avoid UPS. It gives me a headache just thinking about them.

With all the laws, how about this one...
Why can’t Congress pass a law stating that US businesses must offer customers the choice to ship packages via the US Post Office? Businesses are beholden to the federal government for almost everything else and I can think of nothing more American than offering customers options. The USPS has cleaned up their act in the last couple of decades and service has never been better. UPS and even FedEx have frogged me over on more occasions than I can count. I wonder what would happen to them if they were forced to legitimately compete in the market place like every other kind of business.

Just my thoughts
I'm tired of hearing all of these ludicrous proposals of three-day-a-week mail services and hiked-up stamp prices. It shouldn't be necessary. And there are still enough proud Americans who would support the USPS even if it required a few extra cents. I just don't get the madness that keeps circulating. Mail services will always be necessary until the invention of that Star Trek teleportation beam. The postal service is part of this country’s backbone and I don’t think it requires more cuts. Just give them the same fair opportunities as private companies.

 

[Drtooth]

I suppose like all government agencies, they lost a crap load of funding when a certain group of politicians decided to recklessly slash budgets to fill up on reckless, corporate handout tax cuts. I really don't wanna go into all that, but let's just say, while everyone was extolling the virtues of the police and firefighters, a LOT of layoffs and station closures happened in that period. No one even bothered to notice that because it was a time where we were constantly told "The Economy is GREAT!" Now look at the mess everyone;s trying to clean up with a toothbrush and a small dustpan.

What's gonna happen? we're going to lose days of mail delivery, the postage will jump up... and I'm sure they'll shove weird fees here and there no one will want to pay that won't even make up for the losses from lost business for putting the fees in place anyway. I agree... they need to have a Post Office option when it comes to online delivery. The few times I even ordered something online, I was able to get it through the mail system, and the only problem I had was that a DVD fell out of it's spindle, and rolled around. But it played perfectly fine for me.

 

[GonzoLover85]

Jamie, I'm with you on the evils of UPS.

Being Canadian, I've found when ordering things from the USA via USPS, regardless of which type of shipping one may pay for, it's still a minimum of 2 weeks to receive any packages.
Not to hold it against USPS, it's the customs offices at the border which seem to hold packages for weeks just because they can.

Now, UPS, they can get you your parcel the next day with their "free shipping", but because it's over the border, you end up paying duties on your goods. Which normally wouldn't be a problem, except UPS seems to double the costs just for fun.

I once bought a few posters off of ebay, on the same day, each were shipped in a standard size cardboard tube, one with UPS one with USPS.
They both arrived in perfect condition, and I ended up having to pay duty for both. The duty costs from UPS were roughly $75! For a poster!

When it comes down to it, I would always choose USPS over UPS. I would rather wait a few weeks then pay out the nose double or triple the actual value of the item in shipping fees.

 

[D'Snowth]

NEWMAN: Alright... but just remember... when you control the mail, you control... information!

 

[Vic Romano]

The USPS is the best mailing and shipping service, hands down. It is more reliable, faster, cheaper, and more careful with packages then FedEx, UPS, and DHL. It is one thing the American government does really well. There are hundreds of other places in our government we pour funds into that are completely useless. My heart broke when I heard this news. Everyone loves getting stuff in the mail. I write my mother and sister a letter every week, and they usually get it on Saturday, so I really hope this does not happen.

 

[MuppetsRule]

The USPS is the best mailing and shipping service, hands down. It is more reliable, faster, cheaper, and more careful with packages then FedEx, UPS, and DHL. It is one thing the American government does really well. There are hundreds of other places in our government we pour funds into that are completely useless. My heart broke when I heard this news. Everyone loves getting stuff in the mail. I write my mother and sister a letter every week, and they usually get it on Saturday, so I really hope this does not happen.

That's a very scary thought - the USPS is over $10 billion in debt! If it was a private business, they'd be gone long time ago.

 

[JaniceFerSure]

My Post Office has been having problems for years. They deliver mail approx. every 3rd day now, which obviously makes it harder to receive and pay bills on time. My finances are in dire straits, so unless it's a critical bill, like BGE or my insurance, I try to hold off as much as I can by paying over the phone. Post Offices are suggesting to start paying bills online. There are many I am positive that do not have access to a computer, so this idea would not be affective. The Post Office 2 miles away from me has claimed to have lost several billions of dollars. There has to be a middle ground somewhere, between delivery and customer. It is very frustrating depending on USPS to not only deliver mail to me and to my neighborhood on time, but to deliver outgoing mail to its destination on time as well too.

 

[D'Snowth]

Our post office was almost shut down, but apparently, enough people managed to call into the senators' offices to put a stop to that, because it's still here, with no problems at all.

Post Offices are suggesting to start paying bills online.

Uh... hello? Credit card fraud? Identity theft? Account hacking?

 

[bazooka_beak]

Did anybody hear the Post Office might stop delivering on Saturdays? :/

 

[D'Snowth]

Did anybody hear the Post Office might stop delivering on Saturdays? :/

They've been talking about that for years now.

Apparently not even the mail is recession proof.