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dahveed
07/25/09

In reply to USPS Suffers as More People Use New-Fangled Electronic Mail
Uh, its unfortunate. I still use snail mail for my bills (coming and going) but I absolutely HATE to go to the post office. Always a line and it seems to take forever. USPS is cheaper to send a package, but I almost always go to the UPS store because its closer and quicker.

I agree with the profit in healthcare not being a good thing, but the way the govt runs the post office, IRS, immigration, and the TSA, it doesn't bode well for Federally run health care - ALWAYS a line, endless forms, never a straight answer, and takes months to get things sorted out.
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superberg
07/26/09

@dahveed: "ALWAYS a line, endless forms, never a straight answer, and takes months to get things sorted out."

Do you know anyone who has had to file a major medical insurance claim? It's more or less the same, unless you have a really good plan.
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fanboy.took.my.star
07/25/09

In reply to USPS Suffers as More People Use New-Fangled Electronic Mail
well yeah...it happens...

its kind of like how post and courier services replaced carrier pigeons...
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cmaceachen
07/25/09

In reply to USPS Suffers as More People Use New-Fangled Electronic Mail
I really hate when people point at the USPS as some example of bad government handling. As a semi-independent government agency, they are not supposed to make a profit. They are supposed to be profit neutral. Naturally this is a hard line to walk and some years they profit, others they require minimal tax revenue. In fact, they were mostly slightly profitable until the 70s. They've posted small losses most years since then, 2004 and 2005 being quite profitable years. The huge increases in fuel costs since 2005 have played a large role in their present predicament. Combined with dwindling use, the USPS may need some extra cash. And so what? It is one of the very few governmental agencies that is required to fund itself. The vast majority of USPS operations are funded by the USPS. It's still an extremely reliable and fast service. Many countries have spent a good deal of time examining the USPS as a model for their own postal services simply because it is one of the most efficient parcel services in the world.

And, to those who point at the USPS as an example of why government run health insurance is a bad idea- this is exactly what we want in health insurance! No profit! The private insurance agencies make a killing by betting that you will use less than you pay in and by denying you coverage as much as they can. I don't want my health to be used as a way for CEOs and upper management to make Billions! A profit-neutral agency will minimize costs. Oh, no, a government bureaucrat deciding if something is covered? Fine by me!! A government bureaucrat doesn't have an incentive not to cover me because his bonus doesn't depend on how many people he denied coverage to. Seriously. Cut off those blood-sucking insurance agencies.
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vgrfx
07/25/09

@cmaceachen: I just wanna say I couldn't say what you said any better non-profit health insurance right on and the USPS is great.
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Kaiser-Machead
07/25/09

In reply to USPS Suffers as More People Use New-Fangled Electronic Mail
I don't think I could go with just Netflix online, since I rip the DVD's before I send them back. A-wakka-wakka.

Anyway, boohoo for them. If they can't adapt, The Lord thy God Darwin will make short work of them, and the packages will keep moving, one way or another.
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Edited by Kaiser-Machead at 07/25/09 4:47 PM Kaiser-Machead was starred Kaiser-Machead was unstarred

What The Geek
07/25/09

In reply to USPS Suffers as More People Use New-Fangled Electronic Mail
I send and receive a good number of packages in my day to day life, and almost none of them go through the usps. I've had way too much mail that was lost, misdelivered, damaged, or open when it got here to trust them with anything imjportant. UPS and Fedex always manage to get my stuff from point A to point B w/o a whole lot of hassle. They're not perfect, but waaaaayyyyy better than USPS.
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se7a7n7
07/25/09

In reply to USPS Suffers as More People Use New-Fangled Electronic Mail
Didn't you hear? Congress is going to pass a bill that will let the USPS charge a fee for every email that we send.

It's completely true.
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bosskev
07/25/09

In reply to USPS Suffers as More People Use New-Fangled Electronic Mail
What? Losing more than half of our post boxes? Shutting down Saturday delivery? This is an outrage! The U.S. Postal Service is the backbone of America! I'm emailing my congressperson.
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switchblade saints
07/25/09

@bosskev: I see what you did there
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Nick
07/25/09

@switchblade saints: he uses "congressperson." so very PC.
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switchblade saints
07/25/09

@Nick: DeusExMach needs a star: Bosskev PC? HA!
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bosskev
07/25/09

@switchblade saints: You're right, switchblade, Nick clearly has me confused with some other person.
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switchblade saints
07/25/09

@bosskev: yeah, glad I was able to clear that up quickly.
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Nick
07/25/09

@bosskev: sooo, you're a Mac then?
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switchblade saints
07/25/09

@Nick: DeusExMach needs a star: +1 and another for truth!
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The Lab
07/25/09

In reply to USPS Suffers as More People Use New-Fangled Electronic Mail
This is bad news for the Philatelic Society.
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switchblade saints
07/25/09

In reply to USPS Suffers as More People Use New-Fangled Electronic Mail
just wait until I figure out how to email this fruit basket. You will lose completely Muahaha
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sharkync
07/25/09

In reply to USPS Suffers as More People Use New-Fangled Electronic Mail
Is there ANYthing the government touches that doesn't turn to crap - other than to continually improve their ability to kill people?
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RainyDayInterns promoted this comment sharkync was starred sharkync was unstarred

RainyDayInterns
07/25/09

@sharkync: that statement is so stupid that we felt compelled to respond.

Without government funding (Al Gore notwithstanding) the Internet would never have happened.

We need government for the BIG infrastructure projects. Even our little whiny cat-minds can understand this.
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Nick
07/25/09

@sharkync: this is exactly what republicans believe. government should stay out of business.
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space_monkey
07/25/09

@Nick: DeusExMach needs a star: and as you know, business with little government oversight do not end up imploding
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switchblade saints
07/25/09

@space101monkey: Yeah the FAA is doing great the past 10 years, especially with keeping up with technology and equipping their control towers with the latest and greatest tools *cough*
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ShibaniHalongelic
07/25/09

In reply to USPS Suffers as More People Use New-Fangled Electronic Mail
I for one am glad. I can't tell you how annoying I find it to throw out and shred all that unwanted snail-spam every day! I get -maybe- one piece of real mail a month, yet my mailbox is always overflowing with 'dear neighbor' and 'important open immediatly' crap!..this is why I miss my watter bill from time to time, as it's mixed up w/all this trash (and no online option is provided)... here's an idea, charge me for an anti-junkmail service ... maybe that will make up some of that lost revinue ? A kinda USPO protection racket.
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Nick: DeusExMach needs a star promoted this comment ShibaniHalongelic was starred

Nick
07/25/09

@ShibaniHalongelic: hey, jerkey. that is the only thing keeping the USPS going. it's like the governement subsidizing the farmers.
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Nick
07/25/09

In reply to USPS Suffers as More People Use New-Fangled Electronic Mail
don't feel too bad Dan. if the USPS wants to survive they will just have to adapt and think about the future. perhaps they could team up with checkfree and do billpay the same as many supermarkets do or perhaps they could try a more bold approach to taking on UPS and FedEx. slimming down is definitely a step in the right direction, but their pricing is gonna have to change to accomodate. and with that i mean they should charge more. another thing -- i heard netflix causes a ton of problems with their envelopes jamming the systems at the USPS and the post office has to spend more than netflix actually pays. i don't know if they are contractually bound, but that would be the first thing i fix. oh, and hire kevin costner. i bet he can fix all this.
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infmom
04/16/09

In reply to Mail Hoarding Is Real, and I Just Experienced It
I once subscribed to a magazine and, as I usually do, chose not to pay the invoice till I'd actually gotten the magazine. The second time I got a bill but no magazines I called them and they insisted they'd been sending me the magazines. I explained that I'd pay as soon as I got the actual magazine.

I never got one single issue of the magazine and eventualy called and canceled my subscription. I don't know whether someone along the line was stealing them or whether the magazine just didn't send them out, but I noticed that the magazine folded about three months later.
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fuchikoma
04/15/09

In reply to Mail Hoarding Is Real, and I Just Experienced It
UPS has left expensive parcels on my front doorstep several times. Then, they've also sent me threatening letters out of the blue that BROKERAGE FEES WERE OWED AND THIS IS THEIR LAST WARNING BEFORE SENDING A COLLECTIONS AGENCY AFTER ME SO PAY UP OR DIE! ...very professional considering that was my first notice.

Couriers suck... plain mail or EMS FTW, but UPS and FedEx just gouge and gouge.
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Nick
04/15/09

In reply to Mail Hoarding Is Real, and I Just Experienced It
mail men don't do this to steal. they do it cause they get backed up and then it snowballs. i think in a lot of cases the fault lies with those bums sending the pennysaver etc. why is it legal to mail something to everyone? regardless of the fact you paid postage it's still a plague on our pony express.
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