General Forum

I'm in Canada so the increase does not effect (affect?) me directly. It's still astounding that for $1.30 CDN I can place something in a envelope, toss it into a mailbox and it will get to Texas, Vermont or Florida in a few days, or maybe a weeks time.   

Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but our rates increase (and by more than the increase in the US being discussed here) as of May 6th.

Yup. I did buy 20 stamps for Canadian destination letters as those are valid for as long as you have them without price increase. But the US bound stamps will be going up as well as I am sure, small packages.

Another problem for USPS is that they are losing business to Amazon and other shippers. This is causing them to close down facilities because there's not enough mail, so they are consolidating the regional centers.

Yes sir, I read that post. Hoping to get some of the P (forever) stamps after work or Saturday. 

Mototown Mike wrote:

"These entities need to be put up for bid and run by contractors who can make them efficient and profitable."

There's a reason virtually every nation in the world still has a state owned postal service, and not contracted out to the private sector. Because it remains the most cost effective way to deliver mail.

You can state, quite fairly perhaps that the package delivery companies get subsidized rates and your private mail increases pay for it, but the painful truth is, you're going to pay the same or more for the delivery any other way. The online sellers won't take a cut in profits so everyone can get cheaper shipping.

I have to disagree with the "most cost effective way to deliver mail" part. How would one know this when the government has been sole controller?  The whole purpose of cost effectiveness is to turn a profit, something the USPS (along with any other gov't entity) fails to do because it's subsidized by the U.S. taxpayers. They could care less.

A profit minded company would work circles around the USPS Civil Service employees. Unlike the Civil Service, a new operator would offer profit sharing and other incentives to its employees to reach its goals. They might even offer "frequent flyers" (like the little-guy ebay seller or traders on this site) preferred customer status with discounts and promotions.  About the most excitement the USPS ever generates is when they come out with a new stamp. 

There's a reason private business isn't banging on the door of governments, in the US or anywhere else to take over mail delivery. They've done the math. If there was a profitable business case, they'd try. If there was an offer, the government would sell out.

Courier companies were perfectly happy when they just mainly had to deliver business documents between businesses. Once online commerce exploded they tapped out.

If you think a private company can maintain the means to do door to door delivery to millions of addresses daily more cost effectively, then you don't understand the infrastructure required. And no, I dont nor ever have worked for the posy office.

Some things in modern life simply aren't profitable. Mail delivery is one of them.

Looks like we kinda went off- topic but I guess we won't ever know the answer because the government will never put it up for bid. They want control of it all (look what they do with mail-in ballots). They would lose it if they couldn't track everyone's mail and it's contents. And yes, just like they monitor our phones, computers, autos,...they monitor your mail.