USPS Facts

[BarryD]

Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds. Many of us have clear childhood memories of that mailman.
People are spewing wildly inaccurate statements. USPS is losing money now, but not for the reasons most often claimed. USPS did not use any tax dollars for years. The steep drop in mail volume and laws/rules from congress are like a python squeezing the air out of USPS. Amazon and Vote-By-Mail are not suddenly spiking a need for capital.
Mail Volume (The Volume Falls but the Fixed Costs Remain)
• Internet banking and email resulted in a massive (-33%) reduction in first class mail, marketing mail (-7.5%) in the past decade (severe revenue loss)
• COVID-19 caused an enormous drop in advertising revenue, including mail for USPS (marketing mail -36.4%) (severe revenue loss)
• Package volume including Amazon helps revenue. By law, USPS cannot offer package discounts at a loss (Amazon and other online sellers are paying their lawful share on the books). Package costs will go up after the next regulatory update of overhead allocations.

Congress/Regulator Laws and Rules (forced USPS to comply with rules no competitor has)
• They require USPS to deliver mail to everybody, rural or not, at the same price.
• USPS cannot just raise or fix prices (regulatory review required). Until 1970 it was a regular, tax supported agency of the federal government.
• There are many cost-saving actions that USPS is not allowed to take. For example, regulations prohibit them from buying and operating their own fleet of airplanes (to save money like FedEx/UPS do), weren’t allowed to cut Saturday deliveries.
• In 2006, USPS was given 10 years to fund retiree healthcare for 40(+) years in advance (NPV). The law took cash that should have funded more automation and efficiencies. No other firm or government agency has to do this. USPS defaults started in 2012.

Postmaster General (PMG) Actions (Making Mail Slower)
• Forbes reports that PMG dismantled and removed over 600 sorting machines, which each process 35,000 pieces of mail per hour. Forget any claim of innocence you may hear.
• PMG prohibited overtime and (replacement) hiring despite staffing shortages from COVID-19.
• Former Attorney General, Eric Holder said that anyone who “willfully obstructs or retards the passage of the mail” can face fines and imprisonment of up to six months.

Additional Remarks:
• USPS bankruptcy would damage people and businesses. People depend on delivery of prescriptions, social security checks, and legal documents and much more.
• Only USPS is set up to deliver your mail (not FedEx, UPS or anybody else). Almost all countries have government run postal systems. USPS has been with us since Ben Franklin became the first Postmaster General in 1775.

It’s elementary, Dear Watson. We have found the contract killer. Now we must uncover the suborner. Let’s follow the money and see who would profit by privatizing the post office.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds. Many of us have clear childhood memories of that mailman.
People are spewing wildly inaccurate statements. USPS is losing money now, but not for the reasons most often claimed. USPS did not use any tax dollars for years. The steep drop in mail volume and laws/rules from congress are like a python squeezing the air out of USPS. Amazon and Vote-By-Mail are not suddenly spiking a need for capital.
Mail Volume (The Volume Falls but the Fixed Costs Remain)
• Internet banking and email resulted in a massive (-33%) reduction in first class mail, marketing mail (-7.5%) in the past decade (severe revenue loss)
• COVID-19 caused an enormous drop in advertising revenue, including mail for USPS (marketing mail -36.4%) (severe revenue loss)
• Package volume including Amazon helps revenue. By law, USPS cannot offer package discounts at a loss (Amazon and other online sellers are paying their lawful share on the books). Package costs will go up after the next regulatory update of overhead allocations.

Congress/Regulator Laws and Rules (forced USPS to comply with rules no competitor has)
• They require USPS to deliver mail to everybody, rural or not, at the same price.
• USPS cannot just raise or fix prices (regulatory review required). Until 1970 it was a regular, tax supported agency of the federal government.
• There are many cost-saving actions that USPS is not allowed to take. For example, regulations prohibit them from buying and operating their own fleet of airplanes (to save money like FedEx/UPS do), weren’t allowed to cut Saturday deliveries.
• In 2006, USPS was given 10 years to fund retiree healthcare for 40(+) years in advance (NPV). The law took cash that should have funded more automation and efficiencies. No other firm or government agency has to do this. USPS defaults started in 2012.

Postmaster General (PMG) Actions (Making Mail Slower)
• Forbes reports that PMG dismantled and removed over 600 sorting machines, which each process 35,000 pieces of mail per hour. Forget any claim of innocence you may hear.
• PMG prohibited overtime and (replacement) hiring despite staffing shortages from COVID-19.
• Former Attorney General, Eric Holder said that anyone who “willfully obstructs or retards the passage of the mail” can face fines and imprisonment of up to six months.

Additional Remarks:
• USPS bankruptcy would damage people and businesses. People depend on delivery of prescriptions, social security checks, and legal documents and much more.
• Only USPS is set up to deliver your mail (not FedEx, UPS or anybody else). Almost all countries have government run postal systems. USPS has been with us since Ben Franklin became the first Postmaster General in 1775.

It’s elementary, Dear Watson. We have found the contract killer. Now we must uncover the suborner. Let’s follow the money and see who would profit by privatizing the post office.

The PMG would profit by seeing the USPS destroyed. He and his wife have heavy investments in competitors - and used to be the CEO of one of them (XPO Logistics).

If the USPS fails, his investments could quadruple within a month.

[davem4616]

some of the nicest people I've come across in my life have been folks working for the USPS

[tvbound]

The U.S. Postal Service should not be a business (https://theweek.com/articles/908447/postal-service-should-not-business)

"There was no hard economic reason for hiving the Postal Service off from general government funding. Nevertheless, this division became the conceptual basis for treating the U.S. Postal Service as a market participant, same as a private business, that needs to keep its finances in the black.

Except the Postal Service wasn't really transformed into the equivalent of a market firm: It's still required to provide mail service to every corner of the country, for one thing. Its private rivals — FedEx, UPS, Amazon, etc. — are under no such obligation.

If you live out in the rural hinterlands, and providing you service isn't profitable, those companies simply don't run delivery routes out to you. Only the U.S. Postal Service does."


Our postal system is a service to our country and like in most other developed nations, shouldn't have to pay for itself any more than any other governmental agency (USDA, DOT, FEMA, military, Etc.).

[Paper1]

Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds. Many of us have clear childhood memories of that mailman.
People are spewing wildly inaccurate statements. USPS is losing money now, but not for the reasons most often claimed. USPS did not use any tax dollars for years. The steep drop in mail volume and laws/rules from congress are like a python squeezing the air out of USPS. Amazon and Vote-By-Mail are not suddenly spiking a need for capital.
Mail Volume (The Volume Falls but the Fixed Costs Remain)
• Internet banking and email resulted in a massive (-33%) reduction in first class mail, marketing mail (-7.5%) in the past decade (severe revenue loss)
• COVID-19 caused an enormous drop in advertising revenue, including mail for USPS (marketing mail -36.4%) (severe revenue loss)
• Package volume including Amazon helps revenue. By law, USPS cannot offer package discounts at a loss (Amazon and other online sellers are paying their lawful share on the books). Package costs will go up after the next regulatory update of overhead allocations.

Congress/Regulator Laws and Rules (forced USPS to comply with rules no competitor has)
• They require USPS to deliver mail to everybody, rural or not, at the same price.
• USPS cannot just raise or fix prices (regulatory review required). Until 1970 it was a regular, tax supported agency of the federal government.
• There are many cost-saving actions that USPS is not allowed to take. For example, regulations prohibit them from buying and operating their own fleet of airplanes (to save money like FedEx/UPS do), weren’t allowed to cut Saturday deliveries.
• In 2006, USPS was given 10 years to fund retiree healthcare for 40(+) years in advance (NPV). The law took cash that should have funded more automation and efficiencies. No other firm or government agency has to do this. USPS defaults started in 2012.

Postmaster General (PMG) Actions (Making Mail Slower)
• Forbes reports that PMG dismantled and removed over 600 sorting machines, which each process 35,000 pieces of mail per hour. Forget any claim of innocence you may hear.
• PMG prohibited overtime and (replacement) hiring despite staffing shortages from COVID-19.
• Former Attorney General, Eric Holder said that anyone who “willfully obstructs or retards the passage of the mail” can face fines and imprisonment of up to six months.

Additional Remarks:
• USPS bankruptcy would damage people and businesses. People depend on delivery of prescriptions, social security checks, and legal documents and much more.
• Only USPS is set up to deliver your mail (not FedEx, UPS or anybody else). Almost all countries have government run postal systems. USPS has been with us since Ben Franklin became the first Postmaster General in 1775.

It’s elementary, Dear Watson. We have found the contract killer. Now we must uncover the suborner. Let’s follow the money and see who would profit by privatizing the post office.
Our grandchildren will profit by bringing USPS to cost neutral regardless of Ben Franklin's involvement. Yearly cost over runs are being added to national debt we all know we are not paying, our grandchildren are. You imply the USPS service is being treated unfairly due to being forced to fund future retiree healthcare cost. All public service retirement plans should be mandated to do this. We have become dependent on spending more than we take in with taxes and are very comfortable with letting next generations worry about it. USPS needs to be brought into 21st century. IMHO

[Stu from NYC]

It should plan to more or less break even. The effiiencies now in it should be fixed with the money coming from congress and stop having to fund pensions so far in advance or even stop the pensions altogether and let people have 401 or IRA's like most of us

[retiredguy123]

I wish people would stop saying that the USPS delivers Social Security checks. They don't. All payments are made by direct deposit. It's mandatory.

[justjim]

Playing politics with the postal service is shameful.

[Stu from NYC]

I wish people would stop saying that the USPS delivers Social Security checks. They don't. All payments are made by direct deposit. It's mandatory.

In so many ways the post office is incredibly inefficient. It should be brought up to date to meet 21st century needs not continue on its current path.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

In so many ways the post office is incredibly inefficient. It should be brought up to date to meet 21st century needs not continue on its current path.

I'm just glad that our bills are mailed with the USPS, and not sent via FedEx or UPS. The bill itself would increase in cost every month, because instead of 55 cents (or less for bulk mailing) the utility would be paying over $8 per household per month, JUST to send the bill.

And then if you want to send your payment by mail, instead of paying 55 cents, you'd have to pay over $8. For every single bill you choose to pay by mail.

And that's just bills. Imagine if you choose to subscribe to a paper magazine, without the USPS to deliver it to you. The cost to FedEx it to you is more than the cost of the magazine.

Without the USPS - our lives would be significantly and profoundly different from how they are now, and most people don't even think about how much we rely on the postal service, and that 55 cents per envelope.

[Cheapbas]

I wish people would stop saying that the USPS delivers Social Security checks. They don't. All payments are made by direct deposit. It's mandatory.

Although 99% accurate, there are still 500k checks mailed every month under a few programs.

None the less, stupid time to be cutting, wait till pandemic has subsided.

[BryanTheGolfPro]

This is really about voting by mail--whether via an absentee ballot, which has existed for decades, or by the newer form of vote-by-mail. Why the concern? Just mail your ballot soon enough to get to its destination on time! This is not rocket surgery or brain science; it's just common sense. Duh!

[J1ceasar]

Not even the garbage companies come to your house for $0.55

[J1ceasar]

It's hard to imagine the politicians have screwed up yet another thing that was working fine. 99% how the problem is a law requiring pensions be fully funded for USPS. We will have heard about Amazon getting a great deal for delivery packages but do you know until this year the international Postal Union then we belong to required us to accept Chinese mailed packages for as low as $0.50 going 12,000 miles to our homes but our own postage a 1000 times more going to China???

[George Page]

Pony Express motto:
"The mail must go through"
and it still does.
Thanks to all postal workers!

[Byte1]

I'm just glad that our bills are mailed with the USPS, and not sent via FedEx or UPS. The bill itself would increase in cost every month, because instead of 55 cents (or less for bulk mailing) the utility would be paying over $8 per household per month, JUST to send the bill.

And then if you want to send your payment by mail, instead of paying 55 cents, you'd have to pay over $8. For every single bill you choose to pay by mail.

And that's just bills. Imagine if you choose to subscribe to a paper magazine, without the USPS to deliver it to you. The cost to FedEx it to you is more than the cost of the magazine.

Without the USPS - our lives would be significantly and profoundly different from how they are now, and most people don't even think about how much we rely on the postal service, and that 55 cents per envelope.

Who uses "snail mail" to pay bills? It's much more efficient to pay on line and not have to worry about your mail getting there late or being lost.

[Byte1]

The USPS is just another example of a poorly managed Gov run business. The Gov. should keep it's nose out of business, since it has no clue how to manage any form of business efficiently.

[Tom2172]

95% of the mail delivered is junk mail that goes right into the trash > then landfill.

The PO needs to charge more for Junk mail
Stop amazon deliveries that lose money

PO needs total overhaul & 75% reduction in size.
It’s not the 1800’s
We have internet mail & Bill delivered
PO is horse & buggy it’s time has pasted

[Malsua]

Without the USPS - our lives would be significantly and profoundly different from how they are now, and most people don't even think about how much we rely on the postal service, and that 55 cents per envelope.

Without the post office our lives would be profoundly different?

How?

I wouldn't even notice.

I haven't sent a payment by mail in at least 10 years.

I occasionally get a check in the mail and that's only because there was a fee for a direct payment. Eliminate the USPS and those fees would disappear.

Sure, I get Amazon deliveries by the mail, those would flip over to the Amazon truck or Fedex/UPS.

If I need to send someone money, it's Paypal, Venmo or Zelle.

Just because YOU haven't caught up to technology, doesn't mean there are no alternatives to the post office.

Sure, we could hail it's passing with a flag and a monument, just make sure the first 50 feet are straight sided and sheer or some woke doofass will try to pull it down.

[soniak4@gmail.com]

The PMG would profit by seeing the USPS destroyed. He and his wife have heavy investments in competitors - and used to be the CEO of one of them (XPO Logistics).

If the USPS fails, his investments could quadruple within a month.

Spot on!!!

[cactusjack158]

I agree, the US Post Office is a vital service and should not be tampered with. When I was in the military during the Viet Nam war, we used to send classified documents by registered mail, that is how safe and dependable our mail service is. The US postal service does an amazing job and should not be used as a political tool by any party.

[soniak4@gmail.com]

Without the post office our lives would be profoundly different?

How?

I wouldn't even notice.

I haven't sent a payment by mail in at least 10 years.

I occasionally get a check in the mail and that's only because there was a fee for a direct payment. Eliminate the USPS and those fees would disappear.

Sure, I get Amazon deliveries by the mail, those would flip over to the Amazon truck or Fedex/UPS.

If I need to send someone money, it's Paypal, Venmo or Zelle.

Just because YOU haven't caught up to technology, doesn't mean there are no alternatives to the post office.

Sure, we could hail it's passing with a flag and a monument, just make sure the first 50 feet are straight sided and sheer or some woke doofass will try to pull it down.

Believe it or not, it’s not just ABOUT YOU!!!! There are millions of people in this country who depend on the USPS. MILLIONS who receive their medication through the USPS. MILLIONS who receive paychecks, necessary packages, legal documents, etc. through the USPS.

People like you need to learn a lesson in this world....there are other people living here other than you and you are not the be all and end all. Wake up.

[cactusjack158]

it should plan to more or less break even. The effiiencies now in it should be fixed with the money coming from congress and stop having to fund pensions so far in advance or even stop the pensions altogether and let people have 401 or ira's like most of us


if it was your pension you would want it funded properly.

[Denvercane]

Can people please stop "reply with a quote". We all read the long article and it doesn't need to be reposted over and over again

[noslices1]

I'm just glad that our bills are mailed with the USPS, and not sent via FedEx or UPS. The bill itself would increase in cost every month, because instead of 55 cents (or less for bulk mailing) the utility would be paying over $8 per household per month, JUST to send the bill.

And then if you want to send your payment by mail, instead of paying 55 cents, you'd have to pay over $8. For every single bill you choose to pay by mail.

And that's just bills. Imagine if you choose to subscribe to a paper magazine, without the USPS to deliver it to you. The cost to FedEx it to you is more than the cost of the magazine.

Without the USPS - our lives would be significantly and profoundly different from how they are now, and most people don't even think about how much we rely on the postal service, and that 55 cents per envelope.

I get ALL my bills sent to me electronically through e-mail, with the exception of the Villages Utilities. I can see that bill coming by e-mail in the future. Also pay all my bills electronically, so the USPS is not involved in any way. That is one reason the USPS is doing less first class mail as “paperless billing” is becoming more prevalent.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Who uses "snail mail" to pay bills? It's much more efficient to pay on line and not have to worry about your mail getting there late or being lost.

Millions of people who don't have internet service. Thousands of people who don't have electricity (and therefore no method of powering their devices or even charging them).

Maybe a visit to the Ocala Forest would do you some good. You'll learn something new.

[SophieP]

As a retired 25 year Postal employee I can say as a fact that my actual pension is peanuts. The bulk of my retirement is from my investing as much as possible into the Thrift Savings plan which is a 401K. Most of my actual pension goes into paying for my medical insurance.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

95% of the mail delivered is junk mail that goes right into the trash > then landfill.

The PO needs to charge more for Junk mail
Stop amazon deliveries that lose money

PO needs total overhaul & 75% reduction in size.
It’s not the 1800’s
We have internet mail & Bill delivered
PO is horse & buggy it’s time has pasted

That junk mail is why you only have to pay 55 cents to mail a 1-ounce standard envelope anywhere in this country.
Amazon deliveries are why the Postal Service is still up and running at all. Without their revenue they would have shut down a few years ago.

Millions of people still rely on the postal service to deliver and send actual mail. Not everyone has internet service, not everyone even lives in an area where internet service is available - even if they could afford to have a computer, laptop, tablet, or smartphone to receive and send mail and other communication.

Some segments of this country are "off the grid." The USPS is their lifeline to the outside world.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Without the post office our lives would be profoundly different?

How?

I wouldn't even notice.

I haven't sent a payment by mail in at least 10 years.

I occasionally get a check in the mail and that's only because there was a fee for a direct payment. Eliminate the USPS and those fees would disappear.

Sure, I get Amazon deliveries by the mail, those would flip over to the Amazon truck or Fedex/UPS.

If I need to send someone money, it's Paypal, Venmo or Zelle.

Just because YOU haven't caught up to technology, doesn't mean there are no alternatives to the post office.

Sure, we could hail it's passing with a flag and a monument, just make sure the first 50 feet are straight sided and sheer or some woke doofass will try to pull it down.

Amazon chooses to use the USPS for some of their deliveries because of a monumental savings in shipping fees. That is WHY you can get 2-day delivery free if you're a Prime member. The cost for their UPS, FedEx, and Amazon-owned deliveries is offset by the low price of USPS deliveries.

If they didn't have USPS deliver much of their envelopes and small packages, there would be NO free delivery at all for MOST packages shipped by Amazon.

Also, FedEx, UPS, and DHL services don't ship to certain locations at all. USPS is required to ship to every single address in the USA. People living in rural areas where FedEx doesn't cover - rely on USPS to get things to them.

[17362]

I wish people would stop saying that the USPS delivers Social Security checks. They don't. All payments are made by direct deposit. It's mandatory.

I agree with that statement as fact, at least in our lives-count 2 towards that statistic.
However, the statements of every month Deposit comes by USPS, they insist to deliver the statements every month by USPS mail.

Now, there are medications that doctors prescribe, like Florida Cancer specialists that do come by mail, you have no choice, according to their policy. So how many other doctors offices insist on certain specialty meds must be delivered via mail!? We found this out the hard way. So those policies must be changed! - give us a choice, instead of no choice.

[17362]

The USPS is just another example of a poorly managed Gov run business. The Gov. should keep it's nose out of business, since it has no clue how to manage any form of business efficiently.
I agree. Look at the historic records.. the gov can’t do it right!

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

I agree with that statement as fact, at least in our lives-count 2 towards that statistic.
However, the statements of every month Deposit comes by USPS, they insist to deliver the statements every month by USPS mail.

Now, there are medications that doctors prescribe, like Florida Cancer specialists that do come by mail, you have no choice, according to their policy. So how many other doctors offices insist on certain specialty meds must be delivered via mail!? We found this out the hard way. So those policies must be changed! - give us a choice, instead of no choice.

Maybe they could let you get it via FedEx delivery. It's only an extra $8.50 per package (unless it's far away, then it's more).

Sure you might pay more for shipping than the value of the contents of the bubble envelope, but hey - let's just gut the USPS so that the Postmaster General's wife gets a nice fat dividend check from her investments in FedEx.

[Stu from NYC]

if it was your pension you would want it funded properly.

Is there another pension in this country that was funded like this is?

[cegallup]

"Playing politics with the postal system is shameful." So true. Especially when the current Administration IS IN THE PROCESS of making it much more efficient and responsive. A lot more than previous "talkers" !

[Pedrocarrasco01@yahoo.com]

It should plan to more or less break even. The effiiencies now in it should be fixed with the money coming from congress and stop having to fund pensions so far in advance or even stop the pensions altogether and let people have 401 or IRA's like most of us
the Post Office is the most inefficiently run business in Government, why do you think made UPS, FedEx, and others successful, better faster delivery And a much better business model. Remember at one time they did not exist, a good business person would not allow it and would become more competitive and efficient.
USPS is inefficient and loaded with PORK, in any town you have several post offices, reduce them, pay mail carriers a per mile allowance for use of their vehicles, Instead of paying $45,000 plus for the vehicles it uses, new sorting equipment, eliminate double staffing at some of the Post Offices and staff the reduced offices right, stop the vacation (after 5 years they get one week per week of service) I had a mail carrier in Virginia that had 27 weeks of vacation. Congress has failed our Country in so many ways, they have done nothing for the last 3 years except work against our Country success. Finally it’s impossible to fire or demote an employee for anything, including destroying mail, this Union is killing their own employees by failing to negotiate for a better business model to compete with the others, remember the others were born out of the inefficiencies of the Post Office.
God Bless America

[Dana1963]

No company is required to put aside money for pensions/medical insurance 75 years in the future. USPS is self funded by revenue from stamps postal fees just like Soc Sec and Medicare is not subsidized by fed tax dollars it’s done with payroll tax.

[psoccermom]

No company is required to put aside money for pensions/medical insurance 75 years in the future. USPS is self funded by revenue from stamps postal fees just like Soc Sec and Medicare is not subsidized by fed tax dollars it’s done with payroll tax.

Post Office Pensions: Some Key Myths And Facts (https://www.forbes.com/sites/ebauer/2020/04/14/post-office-pensions--some-key-myths-and-facts/#492fd61e47f5)

[meridian5850]

This is really about voting by mail--whether via an absentee ballot, which has existed for decades, or by the newer form of vote-by-mail. Why the concern? Just mail your ballot soon enough to get to its destination on time! This is not rocket surgery or brain science; it's just common sense. Duh!

People don't have a problem with getting a ballot via absentee voting because the voter is requesting a ballot. The issue I have is states (mostly blue) sending out ballots to everyone on the voter rolls which aren't maintained in real time. So, when someone leaves a household through divorce, adult kid moving out, death, moving to another state etc., the ballot will still go to the address of the voter and fraud "can" occur. That's not acceptable to me.

For example, a husband and wife go through a nasty divorce. Husband moves out and forgets to register again. His and her ballots are mailed to the house. Wife fills out both ballots for her candidates and sends them both in.

Or how about kid graduates from high school and goes to college in the fall. He's registered to vote at his folks address. But, being busy with college, doesn't re-register and won't be home for the election, and really isn't going to vote. Dad fills out his ballot along with his own and sends them in.

Doing important things usually takes some effort and voting is important to a lot of people. The little bit of effort required, like requesting an absentee ballot and sending it back, voting early, or going to the polls on election day isn't too much to ask.

[mk1126]

For the same low price, I can mail a first class letter to Nome, Alaska, Honolulu, Hawaii, Key West, Guam, American Samoa, and even APO's in Europe!
Of course this 2006 "Postal Accountability ..." Act pushed thru by Suzie Collins et al to fund Retiree's health care 75 years into the future is an absurdity that nor other business nor any entity is, nor could be, required to be mandated of. Also, someone check with the "bookkeeper" (that's how they got Alfonso Capone) where that money was actually intended to pay of/for - the incursion into Iraq?!?! maybe.

[wiltma]

I wish people would stop saying that the USPS delivers Social Security checks. They don't. All payments are made by direct deposit. It's mandatory.

Not true. Some folks are still receiving checks. I know them

[roscoguy]

the Post Office is the most inefficiently run business in Government...Come on. Which parts of our government actually make money?

USPS is inefficient and loaded with PORK...stop the vacation (after 5 years they get one week per week of service) I had a mail carrier in Virginia that had 27 weeks of vacation
I'm pretty sure you meant one week per year of service, but even this is untrue according to the USPS web site: "Full-time and regular part time employees of the USPS get different amounts of vacation time depending on seniority: Employes with Less than 3 years USPS service get 13 days per year Those with 3-15 years USPS service get 20 days per year. Those with 15 or more years service get 26 days of paid time off per year. US Postal Service Employee Benefit: Vacation & Paid Time Off | Glassdoor (https://www.glassdoor.com/Benefits/US-Postal-Service-Vacation-and-Paid-Time-Off-US-BNFT29_E3032_N1.htm)
Having had both family & friends that worked for the USPS, I know that (at least in years past) Postal employees could bank part of their leave time, so it's entirely possible that the carrier you knew had that much time available, but they can't earn that much leave annually.

Finally it’s impossible to fire or demote an employee for anything, including destroying mail...False. Just plain anti-union, fake 'facts'. They can even be jailed for "Delay or destruction of mail or newspapers." 18 U.S. Code SS 1703 - Delay or destruction of mail or newspapers | U.S. Code | US Law | LII / Legal Information Institute (https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1703)

[4557Spahr]

I don’t think anyone wants the USPS out of business. They just have an unrealistic, outdated way of doing business. Paying for a postmaster in every corner of the country is no loner necessary. Mail can still be delivered to the same locations but let’s be realistic. It’s time for a housecleaning.

[Ken D.]

"Vote-by-mail" is NOT the same as the "Absentee Ballot" process..... for the 1,000th time!

[gb1944]

It is hard to believe that there has been a decrease in the amount of mail considering how many contribution solicitations I get every day.

[Malsua]

Believe it or not, it’s not just ABOUT YOU!!!! There are millions of people in this country who depend on the USPS. MILLIONS who receive their medication through the USPS. MILLIONS who receive paychecks, necessary packages, legal documents, etc. through the USPS.

People like you need to learn a lesson in this world....there are other people living here other than you and you are not the be all and end all. Wake up.

LOL. Sounds like someone who is living in 1965.

Where did I ever suggest what you are imputing? I'm suggesting there are alternatives for ALL of those things. Most people are already using them, just because you're late to the party, don't get angry with me.

[Malsua]

Amazon chooses to use the USPS for some of their deliveries because of a monumental savings in shipping fees. That is WHY you can get 2-day delivery free if you're a Prime member. The cost for their UPS, FedEx, and Amazon-owned deliveries is offset by the low price of USPS deliveries.

If they didn't have USPS deliver much of their envelopes and small packages, there would be NO free delivery at all for MOST packages shipped by Amazon.

Also, FedEx, UPS, and DHL services don't ship to certain locations at all. USPS is required to ship to every single address in the USA. People living in rural areas where FedEx doesn't cover - rely on USPS to get things to them.

So you're saying that running a business at a loss distorts the actual cost across the market for other players? Now we are getting somewhere. If people actually paid the actual costs for things, maybe the USPS wouldn't be in such a hole.

If rural delivery is such an issue, maybe people wouldn't live in a mud hut on the side of a hill in rural bumfoot and at least move closer to the hard road.

[Gizemo33]

Barry D, your article about the history of USPS and the current attempt to dismantle it, is a great explanation of what it used to be, what it presently is, and the disaster that it could become in the future.

Thank you!!!

[KRM0614]

Not true the USPS loses money every year much due to inefficiency the unions and mismanagement. Most taxpayers don’t realize that for every piece of junk mail they get the mail carrier gets a bonus. The postmaster general gets over a million dollar bonus every year. Most companies do not reward management for losing money. They have a fantastic benefit package amazing healthcare and as usual the taxpayers Foot the
bill.
Ironically with volume down huge my mail has been lost delivered sent to neighbors etc

The reason it’s a joke is it’s run like part of the govt, when they exceed their budget the general fund kicks in more.

[chrissy2231]

It's outdated . SS cks can be direct deposit into checking/savings, RX will come UPS or FedEx ground, my legal documents were emailed. Mailing checks to pay bills is dangerous - it can lead to stolen identity. Set up auto bill pay or pay by phone.

[njbchbum]

I wish people would stop saying that the USPS delivers Social Security checks. They don't. All payments are made by direct deposit. It's mandatory.

"Facts: Do Social Security Checks Still Go Through the Mail?
Less than 1% of Social Security recipients still receive their benefits through the USPS.
The Treasury announced in 2010 that they would begin phasing out the practice of sending physical checks through the mail. In 2013, the Social Security Administration announced they would begin the process of moving everyone to an electronic system.
As you can imagine, the federal government is so inefficient, that process is not fully completed. However, the number of checks that still go through the mail represent a very small percentage of recipients.
Nearly 550,000 people are receiving paper Social Security checks in August, according to Social Security Administration data,”
FACT-CHECK: Do Seniors Receive Social Security Checks In the Mail? (https://thepoliticalinsider.com/fact-check-do-seniors-receive-social-security-checks-usps/)

[retiredguy123]

the Post Office is the most inefficiently run business in Government, why do you think made UPS, FedEx, and others successful, better faster delivery And a much better business model. Remember at one time they did not exist, a good business person would not allow it and would become more competitive and efficient.
USPS is inefficient and loaded with PORK, in any town you have several post offices, reduce them, pay mail carriers a per mile allowance for use of their vehicles, Instead of paying $45,000 plus for the vehicles it uses, new sorting equipment, eliminate double staffing at some of the Post Offices and staff the reduced offices right, stop the vacation (after 5 years they get one week per week of service) I had a mail carrier in Virginia that had 27 weeks of vacation. Congress has failed our Country in so many ways, they have done nothing for the last 3 years except work against our Country success. Finally it’s impossible to fire or demote an employee for anything, including destroying mail, this Union is killing their own employees by failing to negotiate for a better business model to compete with the others, remember the others were born out of the inefficiencies of the Post Office.
God Bless America
Most of what you said applies to the entire Federal Government. I'm not a fan of the Post Office, but, I don't think it is anywhere close to being the most inefficient agency. Medicare loses $60 billion per year just to fraud alone. The Medicare budget of about $660 billion makes the Post Office budget look like pocket change. Another part of the Government that, is hugely inefficient, although popular, is the military.

[tvbound]

So you're saying that running a business at a loss distorts the actual cost across the market for other players? Now we are getting somewhere. If people actually paid the actual costs for things, maybe the USPS wouldn't be in such a hole.

If rural delivery is such an issue, maybe people wouldn't live in a mud hut on the side of a hill in rural bumfoot and at least move closer to the hard road.

"If rural delivery is such an issue, maybe people wouldn't live in a mud hut on the side of a hill in rural bumfoot and at least move closer to the hard road."

I don't think you really understand the definition of "rural." All of the farmers in our area, and for that matter any I have ever known, live in (by definition) "rural areas." If the postal service wasn't mandated to deliver to these locations, including even a lot of small towns that are rural also, they could immediately reduce costs substantially. We can't have it both ways in that the USPS must be self-sufficient, while also being mandated to deliver to everyone. For those that don't want to accept that our postal system is actually a national service and should instead be treated more like a business, be careful of what you wish. It would certainly be interesting to watch the national ramifications and attitudes, if all of a sudden the "Heartland of America" no longer received reasonably priced postal services.

[markhollis]

USPS service is a service that provides an amenity that adds to the quality of life of all Americans. It makes an essential service available at a cost that all Americans can afford, one of very few services that does not not discriminate.

Yes it is more essential to some people's lives than others. Unlike the military, NSA, CIA, FBI, Treasury, IRS, Congress, administration, etc., all of which also provide necessary services to us as citizens, it generates revenue that offsets much if not all its expenses. Taxpayers pay the cost of the rest, and according to every survey, they are grateful for and highly satisfied with the service (until it was sabotaged). Many if not most Americans say they 'love' the Post Office and Postal workers.

I am confident many Americans that know today, as a result of the outrage created by this assault, that hundreds of thousands of veterans are dedicated and proud employees. They love USPS even more than before. USPS employees are proud and dedicated to the responsibility of providing and care taking this essential service for their fellow citizens. I think many Americans envy their pride of work and sense of personal responsibility. The assault with its supposedly 'unintended' consequences is an attack on the USPS, the dedicated employees of the USPS, and all Americans, including service men and women at home and abroad, vets, and seniors, to name just a few.

I think we should stand up and defend our citizens and our country, no matter what the motivations were, no matter who is responsible. Whoever is responsible has placed themselves above American citizens, and they have made America weaker, instead of stronger. I hope Congress will stand up for us and Fire and prosecute everyone who is responsible. We need to insist upon it.

That is my opinion, for what it is worth.

P.S. America's enemies, Russia, China, N. Korea and Iran being the best know, are targeting America and Americans and our institutions including banks with which we have entrusted our life savings, and our online and offline identity, and our personal computers. NSA directors do not bank online nor do they pay their bills online to avoid vulnerability. All of your data and your identity can be hacked and held hostage by Windows and Linux ransomware. Paper ballots cannot be hacked by Russia and creates a backup that assures of a credible election. Without the USPS, we would all be climbing without a safety line. Many IT professionals minimize their online exposure to minimize their risk.

[njbchbum]

Doesn't Sports Illustrated still get delivered by the USPS?

[Malsua]

"If rural delivery is such an issue, maybe people wouldn't live in a mud hut on the side of a hill in rural bumfoot and at least move closer to the hard road."

I don't think you really understand the definition of "rural." All of the farmers in our area, and for that matter any I have ever known, live in (by definition) "rural areas." If the postal service wasn't mandated to deliver to these locations, including even a lot of small towns that are rural also, they could immediately reduce costs substantially. We can't have it both ways in that the USPS must be self-sufficient, while also being mandated to deliver to everyone. For those that don't want to accept that our postal system is actually a national service and should instead be treated more like a business, be careful of what you wish. It would certainly be interesting to watch the national ramifications and attitudes, if all of a sudden the "Heartland of America" no longer received reasonably priced postal services.

I grew up very rural. We were 25 minutes to the nearest grocery store. Back then, the mail was important.

I know people who live 15 minutes off the hard road today. They aren't using a land line only. They have modern cell phones just like everyone else. In the 80s at some point, everyone of them, us included had a 15 foot satellite dish for TV. Today? The dishes are gone for the most part excepting the occasional Dish/direct TV. They all have internet connections and not just dial up either. If you can have electricity, someone has come along and strung communication cables further down the pole.

If you can use even a dial-up, you really don't need the postal service. To your point, the USPS should charge actual costs. If it's $12 a package to deliver to the middle of nowhere, people will drive to town and pickup/drop off. In fact, in the 70s, the mail carrier did NOT come out to our house. There was a rural box farm a couple miles away. It had about 50 boxes or so. The house delivery started in the 80s at some point, I don't recall when. Probably when they paved our road.

[BarryD]

Please get your facts straight before making claims.
Some people still receive their benefits the old fashioned way, thanks to mail delivery.

Nearly 550,000 people are receiving paper Social Security checks in August, according to Social Security Administration data. That number goes up to about 848,000 if you include Supplemental Security Income.

But the vast majority — over 63 million — access their benefits via direct deposit.

[Byte1]

Millions of people who don't have internet service. Thousands of people who don't have electricity (and therefore no method of powering their devices or even charging them).

Maybe a visit to the Ocala Forest would do you some good. You'll learn something new.

I'm sure those that live in the Ocala Forest have bills to pay and a local postal box available...........:1rotfl:
No electricity, but maybe a new car payment? :1rotfl:

[Robertnavarre70]

Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds. Many of us have clear childhood memories of that mailman.
People are spewing wildly inaccurate statements. USPS is losing money now, but not for the reasons most often claimed. USPS did not use any tax dollars for years. The steep drop in mail volume and laws/rules from congress are like a python squeezing the air out of USPS. Amazon and Vote-By-Mail are not suddenly spiking a need for capital.
Mail Volume (The Volume Falls but the Fixed Costs Remain)
• Internet banking and email resulted in a massive (-33%) reduction in first class mail, marketing mail (-7.5%) in the past decade (severe revenue loss)
• COVID-19 caused an enormous drop in advertising revenue, including mail for USPS (marketing mail -36.4%) (severe revenue loss)
• Package volume including Amazon helps revenue. By law, USPS cannot offer package discounts at a loss (Amazon and other online sellers are paying their lawful share on the books). Package costs will go up after the next regulatory update of overhead allocations.

Congress/Regulator Laws and Rules (forced USPS to comply with rules no competitor has)
• They require USPS to deliver mail to everybody, rural or not, at the same price.
• USPS cannot just raise or fix prices (regulatory review required). Until 1970 it was a regular, tax supported agency of the federal government.
• There are many cost-saving actions that USPS is not allowed to take. For example, regulations prohibit them from buying and operating their own fleet of airplanes (to save money like FedEx/UPS do), weren’t allowed to cut Saturday deliveries.
• In 2006, USPS was given 10 years to fund retiree healthcare for 40(+) years in advance (NPV). The law took cash that should have funded more automation and efficiencies. No other firm or government agency has to do this. USPS defaults started in 2012.

Postmaster General (PMG) Actions (Making Mail Slower)
• Forbes reports that PMG dismantled and removed over 600 sorting machines, which each process 35,000 pieces of mail per hour. Forget any claim of innocence you may hear.
• PMG prohibited overtime and (replacement) hiring despite staffing shortages from COVID-19.
• Former Attorney General, Eric Holder said that anyone who “willfully obstructs or retards the passage of the mail” can face fines and imprisonment of up to six months.

Additional Remarks:
• USPS bankruptcy would damage people and businesses. People depend on delivery of prescriptions, social security checks, and legal documents and much more.
• Only USPS is set up to deliver your mail (not FedEx, UPS or anybody else). Almost all countries have government run postal systems. USPS has been with us since Ben Franklin became the first Postmaster General in 1775.

It’s elementary, Dear Watson. We have found the contract killer. Now we must uncover the suborner. Let’s follow the money and see who would profit by privatizing the post office.
I have seen a number of positive comments about USPS efficiency but more negative comments about inefficiency. I did a lot of contract management consulting with USPS over the years and believe that most USPS operations were efficiently performed by good workers. There were, as in all businesses public and private, some slackers and poor managers. But as to processing vote by mail this should be no problem as first class mail moves very fast through almost completely automated processes...unless Mr. T's new PMG has in fact directed removal of automated sorting machines that were seeing reasonable volumes of mail sorting and did so for the sole purpose of slowing mail processing down. Only those inside USPS management could confirm or deny that and I wish that they would speak up....but if not union they would likely be fired or grossly demoted if the facts are critical of the current WH.

[Robertnavarre70]

the Post Office is the most inefficiently run business in Government, why do you think made UPS, FedEx, and others successful, better faster delivery And a much better business model. Remember at one time they did not exist, a good business person would not allow it and would become more competitive and efficient.
USPS is inefficient and loaded with PORK, in any town you have several post offices, reduce them, pay mail carriers a per mile allowance for use of their vehicles, Instead of paying $45,000 plus for the vehicles it uses, new sorting equipment, eliminate double staffing at some of the Post Offices and staff the reduced offices right, stop the vacation (after 5 years they get one week per week of service) I had a mail carrier in Virginia that had 27 weeks of vacation. Congress has failed our Country in so many ways, they have done nothing for the last 3 years except work against our Country success. Finally it’s impossible to fire or demote an employee for anything, including destroying mail, this Union is killing their own employees by failing to negotiate for a better business model to compete with the others, remember the others were born out of the inefficiencies of the Post Office.
God Bless America
Over my years doing USPS construction and renovation projects I saw small Post Offices closed to be consolidated with other offices in towns just a few miles away and then reopened due to political pressure through congress. So even when USPS tried to improve efficiencies the efforts were often thwarted by political pressure of by the Union. Over the good years the Postal Union negotiated too good contract provisions that now are totally unacceptable in tough times. Those agreements need to be renegotiated just like the UAW contracts were when the auto companies were in serious trouble.

[Dana1963]

Just because your employer fooled you into a 401k doesn’t make it right for everyone. Today we are sitting on a stock market inflated by The FED again buying JUNK BONDS. It’s funny money.

[Byte1]

That junk mail is why you only have to pay 55 cents to mail a 1-ounce standard envelope anywhere in this country.
Amazon deliveries are why the Postal Service is still up and running at all. Without their revenue they would have shut down a few years ago.

Millions of people still rely on the postal service to deliver and send actual mail. Not everyone has internet service, not everyone even lives in an area where internet service is available - even if they could afford to have a computer, laptop, tablet, or smartphone to receive and send mail and other communication.

Some segments of this country are "off the grid." The USPS is their lifeline to the outside world.

That's their choice. The whole country does NOT revolve around a minority. Even if the media attempts to make it so.

[Byte1]

Just because your employer fooled you into a 401k doesn’t make it right for everyone. Today we are sitting on a stock market inflated by The FED again buying JUNK BONDS. It’s funny money.

Doesn't "funny money" pay the bills?

[Stu from NYC]

Just because your employer fooled you into a 401k doesn’t make it right for everyone. Today we are sitting on a stock market inflated by The FED again buying JUNK BONDS. It’s funny money.

Not right for everyone but few companies these days are offering pensions. Many municipal pensions are well under water and functionally bankrupt.

[davem4616]

I find it really difficult to sort out the truth from fiction today... who do you really believe...everyone is pushing their own agenda and their own bias and pointing the finger at the other fellow

[retiredguy123]

Please get your facts straight before making claims.
Some people still receive their benefits the old fashioned way, thanks to mail delivery.

Nearly 550,000 people are receiving paper Social Security checks in August, according to Social Security Administration data. That number goes up to about 848,000 if you include Supplemental Security Income.

But the vast majority — over 63 million — access their benefits via direct deposit.
So, my statement was 99.13 percent accurate. Picky, picky.

[Stu from NYC]

I find it really difficult to sort out the truth from fiction today... who do you really believe...everyone is pushing their own agenda and their own bias and pointing the finger at the other fellow

The people who have previously worked for the post office pretty much all say that it is inefficiently managed and way behind the times technologically speaking.

If the govt expects it to stand on its own too feet they should get rid of the 75 year funding pension nonsense and probably allow people to get 401's and let it figure out what it needs to do its job in an efficient manner.

[catlady1955@aol.com]

Our grandchildren will profit by bringing USPS to cost neutral regardless of Ben Franklin's involvement. Yearly cost over runs are being added to national debt we all know we are not paying, our grandchildren are. You imply the USPS service is being treated unfairly due to being forced to fund future retiree healthcare cost. All public service retirement plans should be mandated to do this. We have become dependent on spending more than we take in with taxes and are very comfortable with letting next generations worry about it. USPS needs to be brought into 21st century. IMHO
But right now is not the time to fix what has been limping along for a long time. If people vote in areas that have long lines and long waits they are endangering their health. And to slow down the mail I believe is illegal.

[biker1]

I guess you don't understand the concept of asset allocation. By the way, my 401Ks, which were completely portable, provided an excellent return over the years. And my employer did not fool anybody.

Just because your employer fooled you into a 401k doesn’t make it right for everyone. Today we are sitting on a stock market inflated by The FED again buying JUNK BONDS. It’s funny money.

[jscocco]

One should witness the abundance of WASTE and inefficiency that has become the norm in the Mail Handling facilities throughout our country. An overhaul is way overdue.

[soonerforever]

Please get your facts straight before making claims.
Some people still receive their benefits the old fashioned way, thanks to mail delivery.

Nearly 550,000 people are receiving paper Social Security checks in August, according to Social Security Administration data. That number goes up to about 848,000 if you include Supplemental Security Income.

But the vast majority — over 63 million — access their benefits via direct deposit.


Claims that Americans rely on the United States Postal Service for Social Security benefits are invalid because the Social Security Administration stopped mailing paper checks in 2013.

source APNEWS

[junieben]

I wish people would stop saying that the USPS delivers Social Security checks. They don't. All payments are made by direct deposit. It's mandatory.
Many people opt to have printed checks as they have no checking accounts. Takes money to have an account.
ENT cards aren’t always practical.

[retiredguy123]

Many people opt to have printed checks as they have no checking accounts. Takes money to have an account.
ENT cards aren’t always practical.
I don't think that paper checks are allowed anymore. You must sign up for direct deposit. Apparently, some people are grandfathered in.

[Snowprint]

There is, and never has been, a policy to threaten employees for talking to anyone. Never before have USPS employees been threatened with answering questions from the press. Never before have they been threatened for talking to about their jobs. I know private companies get away with that nonsense, but the USPS is OUR, the American people, company and we have never said it was okay to muzzle OUR employees unless it threatened national security. I think anyone that defends silencing people is not cognizant of what America was founded upon. It wasn’t founded to allow a King decide who can talk and who they can talk to. This is tyranny and it’s shameful to defend the indefensible.

[soonerforever]

There is, and never has been, a policy to threaten employees for talking to anyone. Never before have USPS employees been threatened with answering questions from the press. Never before have they been threatened for talking to about their jobs. I know private companies get away with that nonsense, but the USPS is OUR, the American people, company and we have never said it was okay to muzzle OUR employees unless it threatened national security. I think anyone that defends silencing people is not cognizant of what America was founded upon. It wasn’t founded to allow a King decide who can talk and who they can talk to. This is tyranny and it’s shameful to defend the indefensible.

I am a retired USPS employee and I concur that it would be impossible to silence those workers.

This is nothing but a ploy....don't believe 99.999% of what you see in the media.

[retiredguy123]

There is, and never has been, a policy to threaten employees for talking to anyone. Never before have USPS employees been threatened with answering questions from the press. Never before have they been threatened for talking to about their jobs. I know private companies get away with that nonsense, but the USPS is OUR, the American people, company and we have never said it was okay to muzzle OUR employees unless it threatened national security. I think anyone that defends silencing people is not cognizant of what America was founded upon. It wasn’t founded to allow a King decide who can talk and who they can talk to. This is tyranny and it’s shameful to defend the indefensible.
Wow! These people work for you and me. They were hired to deliver the mail, not to trash the Government, or to even comment on it. Why would you want them to badmouth their employer, who us, the taxpayers? If they don't agree with the Government policies, they should quit and get another job. How does it make any sense to hire Government employees and then encourage them to try to harm our country? And, the Post Office employees are smart enough to know that they cannot be terminated.

[Topspinmo]

Millions of people who don't have internet service. Thousands of people who don't have electricity (and therefore no method of powering their devices or even charging them).

Maybe a visit to the Ocala Forest would do you some good. You'll learn something new.

Or rural American and many small towns less than 500.

[Topspinmo]

The people who have previously worked for the post office pretty much all say that it is inefficiently managed and way behind the times technologically speaking.

If the govt expects it to stand on its own too feet they should get rid of the 75 year funding pension nonsense and probably allow people to get 401's and let it figure out what it needs to do its job in an efficient manner.

I observed most government agencies has 5 or more managers and bean counters for every employee that actually does the work. Mismanagement and over management. Funny how the people that do the actual work get paid less than ones setting behind desk. The business model for any government agency is out dated and broken.

[soonerforever]

I observed most government agencies has 5 or more managers and bean counters for every employee that actually does the work. Mismanagement and over management. Funny how the people that do the actual work get paid less than ones setting behind desk. The business model for any government agency is out dated and broken.

More like the Dilbert Principle

[retiredguy123]

I observed most government agencies has 5 or more managers and bean counters for every employee that actually does the work. Mismanagement and over management. Funny how the people that do the actual work get paid less than ones setting behind desk. The business model for any government agency is out dated and broken.
That's the way the Government works. If you are a manager, you make more money. It won't change because there is no profit motive or incentive to be efficient. Just spend as much taxpayer money as you can.

[Stu from NYC]

Sad part is someday our kids or grandkids will have to start repaying the debt our govt has managed to create.

[Tom2172]

Unfortunately 95% of what the post office handles is junk mail!
Junk mail that goes straight to the landfill.
If PO charged more for junk mail it would cut down on all the junk mail
And 1/3 of postal staff could be cut
We have electronic mail we don’t need the post office it’s a relic

[roscoguy]

Claims that Americans rely on the United States Postal Service for Social Security benefits are invalid because the Social Security Administration stopped mailing paper checks in 2013.

source APNEWS

"Hundreds of thousands of Social Security checks still go out by mail
By ALI SWENSON August 18, 2020"

source APNEWS Hundreds of thousands of Social Security checks still go out by mail (https://apnews.com/afs:Content:9273880035)

[Bay Kid]

The PO doesn't need any money this year, or most of next year. They are financially ok for them. This is just another distraction full of half truths.

[soonerforever]

Unfortunately 95% of what the post office handles is junk mail!
Junk mail that goes straight to the landfill.
If PO charged more for junk mail it would cut down on all the junk mail
And 1/3 of postal staff could be cut
We have electronic mail we don’t need the post office it’s a relic

Just so you know- "junk mail" or bulk business mail is the biggest money producer USPS has and has been for some time...first class mail has dropped significantly over the past 25 years with the internet and computerized bill pay.
Revenue sources have also shrunk because of their vision....USPS had FedEx, UPS, DHL, and others on the ropes in package delivery but allowed them to take over to the point that most all of them now have surpassed USPS and use them for local delivery (the biggest cost of delivery and least profitable) while garnering the big profits of shipping point to point.
The system has been broken for many years with the management of the post office and the hiring practices they have. So many of the employees feel entitled and put in little to no effort in their work and it shows. I was once told by one of my supervisors that "pride had no place at the post office." This affected me greatly and if hadn't already been so far along in my career there, I would have changed careers. I sought out people that had the same work ethic and vision to survive my time there.
USPS has become through their hiring and promotion of incompetent people from supervisors to management "the worlds largest welfare organization."

[soonerforever]

"Hundreds of thousands of Social Security checks still go out by mail
By ALI SWENSON August 18, 2020"

source APNEWS Hundreds of thousands of Social Security checks still go out by mail (https://apnews.com/afs:Content:9273880035)

I stand corrected ...the link I tried to share (new poster rules) was proven wrong.

As the body of that January 2013 CNN article made clear, people who didn't adopt direct deposit by March 2013 were not forced to do so, merely urged to do so with more aggressive government communication efforts. More than seven years later, the Social Security Administration website currently says: "If you still receive checks, the U.S. Department of the Treasury will contact you about complying with the requirement."
And the new rule still allows Social Security recipients to apply for hardship waivers to get checks for certain reasons -- if they were born before May 2, 1921, if they live in a remote area without the financial infrastructure to allow for electronic transactions, or if they have a "mental impairment" that leaves them unable to manage a bank account or a debit card account.
When I started receiving my benefits there was absolutely no option other than direct deposit or their " cash atm" card.

[retiredguy123]

Just so you know- "junk mail" or bulk business mail is the biggest money producer USPS has and has been for some time...first class mail has dropped significantly over the past 25 years with the internet and computerized bill pay.
Revenue sources have also shrunk because of their vision....USPS had FedEx, UPS, DHL, and others on the ropes in package delivery but allowed them to take over to the point that most all of them now have surpassed USPS and use them for local delivery (the biggest cost of delivery and least profitable) while garnering the big profits of shipping point to point.
The system has been broken for many years with the management of the post office and the hiring practices they have. So many of the employees feel entitled and put in little to no effort in their work and it shows. I was once told by one of my supervisors that "pride had no place at the post office." This affected me greatly and if hadn't already been so far along in my career there, I would have changed careers. I sought out people that had the same work ethic and vision to survive my time there.
USPS has become through their hiring and promotion of incompetent people from supervisors to management "the worlds largest welfare organization."
What is the source of your information that junk mail "produces money"? If that were true, the Post Office should be "rolling in dough" because it accounts for about 95 percent of what they do. And, if it produces money, why don't UPS and FedEx offer junk mail delivery to compete with the USPS? Does anyone like getting junk ads in their mail? I wish they would put the postage cost on the junk ads, so the taxpayer can see how much the advertiser paid to deliver your trash before you throw it away.

[Villages Kahuna]

USPS cannot be privatized with it’s current cost structure. If postage rates were increased to assure at least breakeven, mailing letters or packages would be unaffordable.

The element of the USPS cost structure that needs to be fixed in order that USPS be run like a business are their pension fund obligations. The postal unions would never approve such a thing. Maybe the only solution is a bankruptcy filing. The pension obligations would then be equal in seniority with those of all the other unsecured USPS creditors. Everyone would “get a haircut” of what they are owed, including the USPS retirees. The pension benefits offered current employees would also probably be cut by the bankruptcy creditor’s committee and the court.

[soonerforever]

What is the source of your information that junk mail "produces money"? If that were true, the Post Office should be "rolling in dough" because it accounts for about 95 percent of what they do. And, if it produces money, why don't UPS and FedEx offer junk mail delivery to compete with the USPS? Does anyone like getting junk ads in their mail? I wish they would put the postage cost on the junk ads, so the taxpayer can see how much the advertiser paid to deliver your trash before you throw it away.

I am a 30 year retiree from USPS and this was drilled in often along with educating people in not referring to it as "junk mail." As I have stated in my other posts, first class mail is going going gone and the revenue generated by bulk business mail is decent but not enough to continue with the same business model.
New hires are brought in at a different pay scale but this isn't enough to keep it afloat. The main culprits of its impending demise is the postal unions, bloated uneducated and overstaffed management and supervisors and an entitled workforce.
What used to be a program for veterans returning to the workforce now has become a "welfare program" for those that are unemployable anywhere else.
FYI the reason no one else can deliver bulk business mail is because no one other that USPS can legally access a persons mailbox besides its owner.

[soonerforever]

USPS cannot be privatized with it’s current cost structure. If postage rates were increased to assure at least breakeven, mailing letters or packages would be unaffordable.

The element of the USPS cost structure that needs to be fixed in order that USPS be run like a business are their pension fund obligations. The postal unions would never approve such a thing. Maybe the only solution is a bankruptcy filing. The pension obligations would then be equal in seniority with those of all the other unsecured USPS creditors. Everyone would “get a haircut” of what they are owed, including the USPS retirees. The pension benefits offered current employees would also probably be cut by the bankruptcy creditor’s committee and the court.

The problem I have with cutting benefits of retirees is that there is no way that you would expect the same from say that of a retiree and their pension from social security.
There are two programs with USPS as well as any other government agency. CSRS or civil service and FERS federal retirement system in which people still pay social security on their wages while those in CSRS can only receive social security on wages they have received (at least 40 quarters) and even that is limited. All employees hired after the mid-eighties fall into the FERS program.

[EviesGP]

USPS, like many govt agencies, needs to improve efficiencies, by consolidating, reducing, and pricing. As a former federal govt and military member, I witnessed much of that. Unfortunately, it's very difficult to execute that with our congress. The military has been trying to modernize, while trying to consolidate/reduce where it's not needed, but they're continually blocked. They have been trying to execute another BRAC(Base Realignment and Closure), along with eliminating equipment/airframes/operations(etc), for years! But, the Senate/Congress have prevented that, as they don't want those reductions in THEIR BACKYARD(s)! So, I'm sure this will be/has been an issue in USPS operations. So, guess where the problem lies?!

[soonerforever]

USPS, like many govt agencies, needs to improve efficiencies, by consolidating, reducing, and pricing. As a former federal govt and military member, I witnessed much of that. Unfortunately, it's very difficult to execute that with our congress. The military has been trying to modernize, while trying to consolidate/reduce where it's not needed, but they're continually blocked. They have been trying to execute another BRAC(Base Realignment and Closure), along with eliminating equipment/airframes/operations(etc), for years! But, the Senate/Congress have prevented that, as they don't want those reductions in THEIR BACKYARD(s)! So, I'm sure this will be/has been an issue in USPS operations. So, guess where the problem lies?!

Exactly what the new Post Master General at USPS is trying to accomplish, but Congress and the media like playing games.

[Stu from NYC]

Exactly what the new Post Master General at USPS is trying to accomplish, but Congress and the media like playing games.

Sad but three and this is why we need term limits

[Dilligas]

I'm just glad that our bills are mailed with the USPS, and not sent via FedEx or UPS. The bill itself would increase in cost every month, because instead of 55 cents (or less for bulk mailing) the utility would be paying over $8 per household per month, JUST to send the bill.

And then if you want to send your payment by mail, instead of paying 55 cents, you'd have to pay over $8. For every single bill you choose to pay by mail.

And that's just bills. Imagine if you choose to subscribe to a paper magazine, without the USPS to deliver it to you. The cost to FedEx it to you is more than the cost of the magazine.

Without the USPS - our lives would be significantly and profoundly different from how they are now, and most people don't even think about how much we rely on the postal service, and that 55 cents per envelope.
Your analysis is precisely why it should be operated at a profit. That is why most creditors are pushing and some requiring online billing. You also should be paying online. Save the 55 cents, have proof of your payment, and accomplish bill paying in minutes rather than hours. If the cost of a stamp were increased to $1 or $2 (far cheaper than UPS or FedEx), would you continue requiring bills to be sent to you and paying by mail? Times have moved forward and we have to keep up.

[NoMoSno]

Your analysis is precisely why it should be operated at a profit. That is why most creditors are pushing and some requiring online billing. You also should be paying online. Save the 55 cents, have proof of your payment, and accomplish bill paying in minutes rather than hours. If the cost of a stamp were increased to $1 or $2 (far cheaper than UPS or FedEx), would you continue requiring bills to be sent to you and paying by mail? Times have moved forward and we have to keep up.
Marion County Utilities charges $2 per month if you pay your bill on-line. I'll keep mailing in payment.

[Curtisbwp]

Bravo! Any initiative by the postal service is quickly squashed by congress. Cell towers on postal facilities is prohibited. I once designed and opened a retail outlet selling postal memorabilia, squashed. Eliminate redundant facilities and combine with no adverse effect on mail delivery, oh no! Your congressman/woman puts a stop to that. The list goes on. Schulmer complaines that the NEW postmaster general is not a career postal employee.....what about the savior of Chrysler MARVIN RUNION?? Known as "carvin Marvin:

[soonerforever]

Bravo! Any initiative by the postal service is quickly squashed by congress. Cell towers on postal facilities is prohibited. I once designed and opened a retail outlet selling postal memorabilia, squashed. Eliminate redundant facilities and combine with no adverse effect on mail delivery, oh no! Your congressman/woman puts a stop to that. The list goes on. Schulmer complaines that the NEW postmaster general is not a career postal employee.....what about the savior of Chrysler MARVIN RUNION?? Known as "carvin Marvin:

Only one of the many problems at USPS....department heads and postmasters under performing or in some cases being accused of sexual abuse ( I saw this many times in my 30 years there)....just transfer them to another facility...female supervisors using "favors" to get promoted into higher management positions...more than 95 percent of management I encountered during my time there was unqualified for their position.

[Stu from NYC]

Only one of the many problems at USPS....department heads and postmasters under performing or in some cases being accused of sexual abuse ( I saw this many times in my 30 years there)....just transfer them to another facility...female supervisors using "favors" to get promoted into higher management positions...more than 95 percent of management I encountered during my time there was unqualified for their position.

So sad that govt is run like this. Term limits!

[Stu from NYC]

Marion County Utilities charges $2 per month if you pay your bill on-line. I'll keep mailing in payment.

How strange is that

[Heyitsrick]

Marion County Utilities charges $2 per month if you pay your bill on-line. I'll keep mailing in payment.

Have you ever asked them why the $2 fee?

I see they use a billing service ("First Billing") to handle online payments.

[soonerforever]

So sad that govt is run like this. Term limits!

Unfortunately USPS=The worlds largest welfare organization--too many entitled people there...and those of us that did work were criticized or more work dumped on by management because they were too lazy to get rid of the trash.

[NoMoSno]

Have you ever asked them why the $2 fee?

I see they use a billing service ("First Billing") to handle online payments.
That's the charge "First Billing" charges per transaction.
It is strange.

[Heyitsrick]

Can people please stop "reply with a quote". We all read the long article and it doesn't need to be reposted over and over again

I take your point on long posts that are quoted (and the forum software really should have a "snip" or "...read more" for longer quotes), but I see the bigger problem is when people don't quote.

Example: Someone will chime in on a thread with 10 posts and say "I agree!". The problem is that in the time it took for them to post that, someone else posted right before them and said something that wasn't even an agree/disagree statement. The person could have actually have been asking a question.

Person 1: "How often does sanitation come around?"

Person 2: "I agree!"

Since "Person 2" didn't quote who they were replying to, their comment doesn't make sense.

And note: I quoted your comment, or people here would be wondering who I was referring to in my reply.

[Stu from NYC]

I take your point on long posts that are quoted (and the forum software really should have a "snip" or "...read more" for longer quotes), but I see the bigger problem is when people don't quote.

Example: Someone will chime in on a thread with 10 posts and say "I agree!". The problem is that in the time it took for them to post that, someone else posted right before them and said something that wasn't even an agree/disagree statement. The person could have actually have been asking a question.

Person 1: "How often does sanitation come around?"

Person 2: "I agree!"

Since "Person 2" didn't quote who they were replying to, their comment doesn't make sense.

And note: I quoted your comment, or people here would be wondering who I was referring to in my reply.

Very true and this is why I quoted you

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Your analysis is precisely why it should be operated at a profit. That is why most creditors are pushing and some requiring online billing. You also should be paying online. Save the 55 cents, have proof of your payment, and accomplish bill paying in minutes rather than hours. If the cost of a stamp were increased to $1 or $2 (far cheaper than UPS or FedEx), would you continue requiring bills to be sent to you and paying by mail? Times have moved forward and we have to keep up.

If they increased it to $1 I would absolutely still use postage stamps and send mail via the USPS. I still write letters (it's that thing some of the more educated people used to do, back in the last century, using paper - which is a sort of flattened wood pulp - and a pen - which is very similar to the thing used to scribble a line at the checkout when you buy something more expensive than $50, except it has this black gooey stuff that transfers to the flattened wood pulp thing).

People still send greeting cards, made out of that funky wood pulp previously mentioned.

I would LOVE to pay my health insurance bill via the internet, but it isn't an option unless I sign up for automatic payment. I'm not willing to give my bank account routing number to a health insurance company and have them automatically withdraw a penny. We already have a couple of automatic withdrawals, and even that makes me uncomfortable. The rest is done electronically when my husband releases the funds to pay those bills, and not a moment earlier.

So I can mail a check, or I can drive to CVS, get in line, and pay my bill there. We choose to mail a check.

Regardless of "the times" - there are people who don't even OWN a computer living in the Villages. They don't OWN a smart-phone. One of my neighbors doesn't even own a flip-phone, or an answering machine. She insists that if it's important enough, they'll call back when she's home.

No one should feel obligated to buy a computer, pay for monthly internet service, or buy a smartphone and learn how to download apps and pay for cellular service, JUST because YOU don't like mailing things in the post office.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Have you ever asked them why the $2 fee?

I see they use a billing service ("First Billing") to handle online payments.

And Lake County (the entire county government) charges a fee if you choose to pay for ANYTHING via credit card, because they also use a billing service.

But they don't charge anything extra if you mail in a check.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

[snip](and the forum software really should have a "snip" or "...read more" for longer quotes),[snip]

The forum software doesn't need to provide it. You can do it yourself.

That brings me to reiterate my previous points about this thread:

Some people are saying "get with the times, do this online" but they can't even manage to figure out how to edit a quoted post.

How about they learn how to use a simple community forum, before chastizing ANYONE who might not be as much of a genius as they are when it comes to online banking and bill paying. You (not necessarily you personally - this is the "editorial you") want everyone to get with the times? You first.

[Raton270]

We’ve had some good people running the USPS and the problem still exists. Amtrak is the postal system’s cousin and both the responsibility of our government.

[Dr Winston O Boogie jr]

Please get your facts straight before making claims.
Some people still receive their benefits the old fashioned way, thanks to mail delivery.

Nearly 550,000 people are receiving paper Social Security checks in August, according to Social Security Administration data. That number goes up to about 848,000 if you include Supplemental Security Income.

But the vast majority — over 63 million — access their benefits via direct deposit.

This makes an interesting point about voting by mail. Over the years we have had a small minority of people casting absentee votes. Those that were out of the country at the time or incapacitated and couldn't get to the polls. USPS could easily handle this small number of ballots.

But when it is being suggested that ballots are mailed to every voter in the country and they are all being encouraged to vote by mail, the sheer volume of those ballots is going to create a problem.

Think about this. What if next month, the post office was required to handle all 63 million Social Security checks. How many problems do you think there would be? Twice that number of people are expected to vote in the presidential election.

I realize that we have the electoral college but the popular vote is often won by 2% or less. Would you think that less than 2% of the votes might get lost or destroyed.

I'm not even talking about voter fraud, which may also be increased by a system of mail in votes, but just a simple error rate by and organization that is already stressed.

The more ballots that are mailed the more chances of there being errors. Heck, we have problems counting the votes that are cast in person. Mail in voting will only make that much worse.

[Bucco]

This makes an interesting point about voting by mail. Over the years we have had a small minority of people casting absentee votes. Those that were out of the country at the time or incapacitated and couldn't get to the polls. USPS could easily handle this small number of ballots.

But when it is being suggested that ballots are mailed to every voter in the country and they are all being encouraged to vote by mail, the sheer volume of those ballots is going to create a problem.

Think about this. What if next month, the post office was required to handle all 63 million Social Security checks. How many problems do you think there would be? Twice that number of people are expected to vote in the presidential election.

I realize that we have the electoral college but the popular vote is often won by 2% or less. Would you think that less than 2% of the votes might get lost or destroyed.

I'm not even talking about voter fraud, which may also be increased by a system of mail in votes, but just a simple error rate by and organization that is already stressed.

The more ballots that are mailed the more chances of there being errors. Heck, we have problems counting the votes that are cast in person. Mail in voting will only make that much worse.

Other than time, I would be interested to have examples of "Heck, we have problems counting the votes that are cast in person" Where, When.....been delays in getting accurate results, for sure.

Thanks

[Bucco]

Why not? Been a worsening problem for years never a good time to fix.

Govt has been kicking the can down the road for social security. Never a good time to fix that either.

Again, are you speaking of voter fraud, which is controlled by individual states and has shown no problems.

Or are you speaking of the PO ? Why fire the Postmaster General now....why dismiss the top operational people now, and why appoint someone with Zero experience. Why now ?

[Dianne1449]

I wish people would stop saying that the USPS delivers Social Security checks. They don't. All payments are made by direct deposit. It's mandatory.

They do however use USPS to send award letters every year that are required for certain financial transactions.

[Stu from NYC]

Again, are you speaking of voter fraud, which is controlled by individual states and has shown no problems.

Or are you speaking of the PO ? Why fire the Postmaster General now....why dismiss the top operational people now, and why appoint someone with Zero experience. Why now ?

I am speaking of the post office itself. Always thought it was greatly mismanaged and after reading the entire thread with quite a few comments from long term employees seem like the whole thing she be changed and brought up to current times and reducing management to a more normal level for a business.

[Bucco]

I am speaking of the post office itself. Always thought it was greatly mismanaged and after reading the entire thread with quite a few comments from long term employees seem like the whole thing she be changed and brought up to current times and reducing management to a more normal level for a business.

I see....so firing an experienced person in that job 2 months ago, assigning the job who knows nothing about the job, allowing the firing of many or most experienced operations managers, beginning the dismantling of sorters, among other things (such as requiring delivery the same day as you take out the mail) while having the country worry about an election on which it appears we would depend greatly on the established system, was just the fix, and in two months brought it "up to current times" ?

Well, that certainly answers the question.....why now.

[Byte1]

Other than time, I would be interested to have examples of "Heck, we have problems counting the votes that are cast in person" Where, When.....been delays in getting accurate results, for sure.

Thanks

Boxes of ballots lost or misplaced, later found in the trunk of a car. Don't you remember? As a matter of fact, during a recent election one county had a major glitch in the counting of ballots and I believe someone was fired over it. Lost ballots happen all the time, and there was a time where a candidate was declared a winner and absentee votes were not counted before he was declared.
Mail in voting is behind the times. We have technology and snail mail should be a last resort not a preference.

[NoMoSno]

I do recall in 2018 a box of "ballots" found in a car.....found not to be, but got Florida headlines. Remember it well..very well.

Low rates of fraud in vote-by-mail states show the benefits outweigh the risks (https://www.brookings.edu/blog/fixgov/2020/06/02/low-rates-of-fraud-in-vote-by-mail-states-show-the-benefits-outweigh-the-risks/)

The States do a great job, and even reports or claims of fraud have drizzled out. So many safeguards today.

The 'voter fraud' fraud | TheHill (https://thehill.com/opinion/civil-rights/494649-the-voter-fraud-fraud)
It was in 2016
Election Fraud Is a Nonpartisan Issue. These Cases From Florida Prove It. | The Heritage Foundation (https://www.heritage.org/election-integrity/commentary/election-fraud-nonpartisan-issue-these-cases-florida-prove-it)
Three in Florida, Virginia charged with voter fraud - Reuters (https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-fraud/three-in-florida-virginia-charged-with-voter-fraud-idUSKCN12S213)

[Bucco]

It was in 2016
Election Fraud Is a Nonpartisan Issue. These Cases From Florida Prove It. | The Heritage Foundation (https://www.heritage.org/election-integrity/commentary/election-fraud-nonpartisan-issue-these-cases-florida-prove-it)
Three in Florida, Virginia charged with voter fraud - Reuters (https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-fraud/three-in-florida-virginia-charged-with-voter-fraud-idUSKCN12S213)

On the Reuters link...good job by all. Arrests made no harm, and that is by far the typical.

On Heritage, sorry I gave up totally in that group awhile back, but appreciate you showing the infinitely small number of cases, and it keeps shrinking.

[Lindsyburnsy]

It's hard to imagine the politicians have screwed up yet another thing that was working fine. 99% how the problem is a law requiring pensions be fully funded for USPS. We will have heard about Amazon getting a great deal for delivery packages but do you know until this year the international Postal Union then we belong to required us to accept Chinese mailed packages for as low as $0.50 going 12,000 miles to our homes but our own postage a 1000 times more going to China???
Amazon did not get a deal. They actually gave a lot of business to the USPS until it became political. Amazon bought their own fleet of trucks for deliveries.

[Lindsyburnsy]

I cast one absentee vote during election, yet I mail out 200 Christmas cards each year. Never been a problem for the USPS.

QUOTE=Dr Winston O Boogie jr;1821113]This makes an interesting point about voting by mail. Over the years we have had a small minority of people casting absentee votes. Those that were out of the country at the time or incapacitated and couldn't get to the polls. USPS could easily handle this small number of ballots.

But when it is being suggested that ballots are mailed to every voter in the country and they are all being encouraged to vote by mail, the sheer volume of those ballots is going to create a problem.

Think about this. What if next month, the post office was required to handle all 63 million Social Security checks. How many problems do you think there would be? Twice that number of people are expected to vote in the presidential election.

I realize that we have the electoral college but the popular vote is often won by 2% or less. Would you think that less than 2% of the votes might get lost or destroyed.

I'm not even talking about voter fraud, which may also be increased by a system of mail in votes, but just a simple error rate by and organization that is already stressed.

The more ballots that are mailed the more chances of there being errors. Heck, we have problems counting the votes that are cast in person. Mail in voting will only make that much worse.[/QUOTE]

[Stu from NYC]

Amazon did not get a deal. They actually gave a lot of business to the USPS until it became political. Amazon bought their own fleet of trucks for deliveries.

Most of the stuff we get from Amazon does come via USPS.

When you buy some thing for $ 10 and it comes within one day with no additional shipping cost nobody can be paying much of the actual delivery cost.

[BarryD]

Funding $25 billion to USPS (as voted in the House) would cost us $75 per person. This is not the thing that will destroy your grandchildren. Again, the postal service is funded and run by the government all over the world. The legislation that switched USPS to self-funding was ____________.

[soonerforever]

I see....so firing an experienced person in that job 2 months ago, assigning the job who knows nothing about the job, allowing the firing of many or most experienced operations managers, beginning the dismantling of sorters, among other things (such as requiring delivery the same day as you take out the mail) while having the country worry about an election on which it appears we would depend greatly on the established system, was just the fix, and in two months brought it "up to current times" ?

Well, that certainly answers the question.....why now.

Sorry but the next day turnaround hasn't been in effect for the last 4 years and the dismantling of sorting equipment has been in response to the falling mail volume.
You stated also the firing of experienced operation managers-I say BRAVO...although I doubt the number you are insinuating-I worked in the second largest mail processing center in the country and It was run horribly- we routinely got retread postmasters from Chicago and other poorly ran cities to end up in worse shape than from the previous postmaster- these people were NEVER fired, just put somewhere else..this not only happened with postmasters , but also operation managers, maintenance managers, etc.
I don't know where you are getting your information from, but I would recheck it. I retired at the end of 2018, but follow what is happening from people that are still there and trust what they are saying.

[Stu from NYC]

Sorry but the next day turnaround hasn't been in effect for the last 4 years and the dismantling of sorting equipment has been in response to the falling mail volume.
You stated also the firing of experienced operation managers-I say BRAVO...although I doubt the number you are insinuating-I worked in the second largest mail processing center in the country and It was run horribly- we routinely got retread postmasters from Chicago and other poorly ran cities to end up in worse shape than from the previous postmaster- these people were NEVER fired, just put somewhere else..this not only happened with postmasters , but also operation managers, maintenance managers, etc.
I don't know where you are getting your information from, but I would recheck it. I retired at the end of 2018, but follow what is happening from people that are still there and trust what they are saying.

Thanks for sharing. I do not understand people putting more trust in what the media and politicians are saying as compared to people who actually worked at the post office and can offer first hand experience.

[Bucco]

Sorry but the next day turnaround hasn't been in effect for the last 4 years and the dismantling of sorting equipment has been in response to the falling mail volume.
You stated also the firing of experienced operation managers-I say BRAVO...although I doubt the number you are insinuating-I worked in the second largest mail processing center in the country and It was run horribly- we routinely got retread postmasters from Chicago and other poorly ran cities to end up in worse shape than from the previous postmaster- these people were NEVER fired, just put somewhere else..this not only happened with postmasters , but also operation managers, maintenance managers, etc.
I don't know where you are getting your information from, but I would recheck it. I retired at the end of 2018, but follow what is happening from people that are still there and trust what they are saying.

The question that began this was....WHY NOW

Why start turmoil just weeks before a large mail in ballot situation is to unfold. Was this not a problem before...you say it was....WHY NOW

Does not even make good business sense. Unless...

[Heyitsrick]

[snip](and the forum software really should have a "snip" or "...read more" for longer quotes),[snip]


The forum software doesn't need to provide it. You can do it yourself.

I'm not sure who - editorially, or otherwise - you're referring to about editing a quoted post. It's certainly not me, as I post snippets of people's posts when replying quite a bit, as witnessed by this reply.

Sometimes it may not be a matter of whether someone knows how to edit a quoted post. It could be that they just don't see the need for it, or, perhaps, that there's no salient one-liner in the quote that would constitute enough for other readers to know why they replied.

My point about the forum software is just about usability. There's plenty of software out there in the world (think of a CMS - content management system - like WordPress, for example) that can shift into "excerpt" mode when the content being posted exceeds a certain number of words or characters. At that point, you will see (if it's enabled) a "read more ..." notification. If you click/tap on that notification, the snipped content will then appear on screen. This would be especially useful for people reading in a mobile environment, such as a smartphone. It would entail much less scrolling.

Yes, everyone can edit larger posts when quoting them, but there's billions of things in the world that people can "do themselves". You can get up off the couch and manually change the channel on your TV's cable box by walking over to it, or turn the TV off/on and/or volume up/down on the TV, itself. See? You can do it yourself! But that's not usability in action.

If the person who's quoting a large post thinks there are many points made in the post that needed to be replied to as a whole, then it would be a bit tedious to quote/reply to each point. Could you do it? Sure. Does it work well to do a point-by-point quote/reply? Sometimes it does; no doubt.



That brings me to reiterate my previous points about this thread:

Some people are saying "get with the times, do this online" but they can't even manage to figure out how to edit a quoted post.

How about they learn how to use a simple community forum, before chastizing ANYONE who might not be as much of a genius as they are when it comes to online banking and bill paying. You (not necessarily you personally - this is the "editorial you") want everyone to get with the times? You first.

I would say this: that doesn't mean there aren't inefficiencies in the USPS system that can't be addressed. Servicing those who need USPS and keeping the organization efficient are not mutually exclusive. If there are areas (small towns / very rural environments / very poor neighborhoods, etc.) that can't be expected to access the online world at all - or as much - as many others do, then redirect USPS resources to them. But again, that hardly means that the system as a whole can't be examined for systemic inefficiencies, be them methodologies, staffing and/or logistics.

[Bucco]

Reading is fundamental......don't know what more I can say

Right....actually, the question....WHY NOW....

Is rhetorical...I believe the answer is universally known.

[Heyitsrick]

The question that began this was....WHY NOW

Why start turmoil just weeks before a large mail in ballot situation is to unfold. Was this not a problem before...you say it was....WHY NOW

Does not even make good business sense. Unless...

My question is why are some peddling this ongoing ideological conspiracy?

Let's take a trip in the time machine back to the "WHY NOW" date of December 5, 2011. My memory's a little foggy on this, so perhaps you can remind me who was president at that time.

Here's an article from "The Atlantic", that publication that's not known for supporting our current president:

The Atlantic - Who Killed The Postal Service? (https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2011/12/who-killed-the-postal-service/249508/)

Salient quotes from that December day in 2011:



Today, the Postal Service announced roughly $3 billion in service cuts that will slow down the delivery of first-class mail for the first time in 40 years. Starting in April, it plans to shutter more than half of its 461 mail processing centers, stretching out the time it will take to ship everything from Netflix DVDs to magazines. One-day delivery of stamped envelopes will all but certainly become a thing of the past.



The announcement is just the latest sign of a sad and increasingly dire fact: the Postal Service is in shambles. This past fiscal year, it lost a mere $5.1 billion. In 2012, it's facing a record $14.1 billion shortfall and possible bankruptcy. In order to turn a profit, Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe says the agency needs to cut $20 billion from its annual budget by 2015. That's almost a third of its yearly costs.

How did it come to this? The culprits include the Internet, labor expenses, and, as with pretty much every problem our country faces now, Congress.



THE INTERNET KILLED IT

In the days of yore, sending letters by mail was pretty much the most efficient way to communicate in writing. Then the Internet happened. Although total mail volume stayed relatively steady until 2006, it has dropped an astonishing 20 percent in the past five years. More important, first-class mail, the Postal Service's biggest moneymaker, has fallen 25 percent during the past decade. That's a huge problem for its bottom line. The agency now delivers far more "standard mail" -- what most of us call junk mail -- than first-class mail. According to Businessweek, it takes three pieces of junk to equal the earnings from a single stamped first-class envelope. J. Crew catalogs and pizza menus alone won't pay the bills.



LABOR COSTS KILLED IT

Yet even as its profits have dwindled along with the mail it handles, the agency's labor costs have remained stubbornly high. Salaries and benefits make up 80 percent of the Post Office's budget. By comparison, FedEx spends 43 percent of its budget on labor, while UPS spends 63 percent, according to Businessweek. Why the disparity? As the magazine put it, "USPS has historically placed the interests of its unions first." For years, it has happily negotiated contracts with generous salary increases and no-layoff clauses.

That seems to finally be changing. As part of his budget-cutting campaign, Donahoe is looking to slash roughly 220,000 of the Postal Service's 653,000 employees. About 100,000 of those cuts would happen through attrition. Meanwhile, Donahoe has asked Congress for permission to break the no-layoff provision of the service's current contracts so it can let go the additional 120,000.

You get the picture. "WHY NOW" isn't really "now", is it? These have been ongoing issues with USPS for quite some time.

[Number 10 GI]

The USPS is just another example of a poorly managed Gov run business. The Gov. should keep it's nose out of business, since it has no clue how to manage any form of business efficiently.

The government can't even run itself efficiently and economically.

[Number 10 GI]

That junk mail is why you only have to pay 55 cents to mail a 1-ounce standard envelope anywhere in this country.
Amazon deliveries are why the Postal Service is still up and running at all. Without their revenue they would have shut down a few years ago.

Millions of people still rely on the postal service to deliver and send actual mail. Not everyone has internet service, not everyone even lives in an area where internet service is available - even if they could afford to have a computer, laptop, tablet, or smartphone to receive and send mail and other communication.

Some segments of this country are "off the grid." The USPS is their lifeline to the outside world.

There are a number of satellite internet providers so there is no such thing as "off the grid". Most of these people who don't have a computer, laptop, tablet or smartphone have a television so if they can afford that, cheap tablets are available for less money than a TV.

[retiredguy123]

That junk mail is why you only have to pay 55 cents to mail a 1-ounce standard envelope anywhere in this country.
Amazon deliveries are why the Postal Service is still up and running at all. Without their revenue they would have shut down a few years ago.

Millions of people still rely on the postal service to deliver and send actual mail. Not everyone has internet service, not everyone even lives in an area where internet service is available - even if they could afford to have a computer, laptop, tablet, or smartphone to receive and send mail and other communication.

Some segments of this country are "off the grid." The USPS is their lifeline to the outside world.
I don't agree that the Post Office would have "shut down" without revenue from junk mail and Amazon. Congress never shuts anything down.

[Stu from NYC]

I don't agree that the Post Office would have "shut down" without revenue from junk mail and Amazon. Congress never shuts anything down.

Why would anyone be thinking the govt would allow the post office to shut down. At some point both parties would compromise and kick the can down the road doing what they do best, nothing.

[Number 10 GI]

So you're saying that running a business at a loss distorts the actual cost across the market for other players? Now we are getting somewhere. If people actually paid the actual costs for things, maybe the USPS wouldn't be in such a hole.

If rural delivery is such an issue, maybe people wouldn't live in a mud hut on the side of a hill in rural bumfoot and at least move closer to the hard road.

Where are you living, Africa? Mud huts, really? It is painfully obvious that you have no clue how farmers/ranchers live or in what. Those "people" living in a mud hut in rural bumfoot are the people who grow the food you put into your mouth. Some of these farms and ranches are miles from a town and from a hard road, so how are they supposed to move to a location on a hard road?

[nn0wheremann]

The post office has run on its own revenue, along with a line of credit from the Treasury Department, since 1970. Since the 1990s it has had to cover accrued pension costs 100% as well. The idea is that it should run like a business. Problem is, it is a constitutionally mandated government service, not a business. We do not expect our police or fire departments to run at a profit, like a business. Immigration and customs enforcement is not expected to run like a profitable business. We all benefit by having a post office. It’s competitors are not eager to replace it, at least not its unprofitable functions, like rural free delivery, or carrying mail and packages to those unfortunate enough to live in high crime neighborhoods. We need to get serious about government and necessary services, and throw out the clowns that are trying to destroy our government. The problem with carrying “less government” too far, is we might get stuck with just that.

[Stu from NYC]

The post office has run on its own revenue, along with a line of credit from the Treasury Department, since 1970. Since the 1990s it has had to cover accrued pension costs 100% as well. The idea is that it should run like a business. Problem is, it is a constitutionally mandated government service, not a business. We do not expect our police or fire departments to run at a profit, like a business. Immigration and customs enforcement is not expected to run like a profitable business. We all benefit by having a post office. It’s competitors are not eager to replace it, at least not its unprofitable functions, like rural free delivery, or carrying mail and packages to those unfortunate enough to live in high crime neighborhoods. We need to get serious about government and necessary services, and throw out the clowns that are trying to destroy our government. The problem with carrying “less government” too far, is we might get stuck with just that.

I agree with most of what you said but dont you think the post office should be run more efficiently?

[Aloha1]

I'm just glad that our bills are mailed with the USPS, and not sent via FedEx or UPS. The bill itself would increase in cost every month, because instead of 55 cents (or less for bulk mailing) the utility would be paying over $8 per household per month, JUST to send the bill.

And then if you want to send your payment by mail, instead of paying 55 cents, you'd have to pay over $8. For every single bill you choose to pay by mail.

And that's just bills. Imagine if you choose to subscribe to a paper magazine, without the USPS to deliver it to you. The cost to FedEx it to you is more than the cost of the magazine.

Without the USPS - our lives would be significantly and profoundly different from how they are now, and most people don't even think about how much we rely on the postal service, and that 55 cents per envelope.

So, let's move the base cost of postage to $1. Those that want to use the USPS to pay bills instead of free online payments can do so. The rest of us can continue to benefit from modern technology secure in the knowledge that our payment was received. Oh, and most magazines now come digitally. Problem solved.

[Aloha1]

Postmaster General (PMG) Actions (Making Mail Slower)
• Forbes reports that PMG dismantled and removed over 600 sorting machines, which each process 35,000 pieces of mail per hour. Forget any claim of innocence you may hear.
• PMG prohibited overtime and (replacement) hiring despite staffing shortages from COVID-19.
• Former Attorney General, Eric Holder said that anyone who “willfully obstructs or retards the passage of the mail” can face fines and imprisonment of up to six months. .

And herein is the rub to your argument. The USPS is facing a severe financial deficit because of all that you posted above. The Postmaster General has an OBLIGATION to do what needs to be done to reduce costs since Congress ( AKA the House) has failed for years to appropriate the necessary monies to keep USPS solvent. As to the sorting machines, they are ancient technology with multiple mechanical parts prone to breakdown. New digital sorters are being installed as funds allow. As to mailboxes, we all know now that many were simply being replaced with new boxes and others were being removed because their use was below the base standards set by USPS. Anyone who gets mail can also PUT mail there to be delivered elsewhere.

This whole Kabuki Theatre issue of some nefarious goings on is, as Shakespeare put it, "A tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing".

[Stu from NYC]

And herein is the rub to your argument. The USPS is facing a severe financial deficit because of all that you posted above. The Postmaster General has an OBLIGATION to do what needs to be done to reduce costs since Congress ( AKA the House) has failed for years to appropriate the necessary monies to keep USPS solvent. As to the sorting machines, they are ancient technology with multiple mechanical parts prone to breakdown. New digital sorters are being installed as funds allow. As to mailboxes, we all know now that many were simply being replaced with new boxes and others were being removed because their use was below the base standards set by USPS. Anyone who gets mail can also PUT mail there to be delivered elsewhere.

This whole Kabuki Theatre issue of some nefarious goings on is, as Shakespeare put it, "A tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing".

Well said. I wonder how often any of us has put mail in a blue postal box

[Bucco]

And herein is the rub to your argument. The USPS is facing a severe financial deficit because of all that you posted above. The Postmaster General has an OBLIGATION to do what needs to be done to reduce costs since Congress ( AKA the House) has failed for years to appropriate the necessary monies to keep USPS solvent. As to the sorting machines, they are ancient technology with multiple mechanical parts prone to breakdown. New digital sorters are being installed as funds allow. As to mailboxes, we all know now that many were simply being replaced with new boxes and others were being removed because their use was below the base standards set by USPS. Anyone who gets mail can also PUT mail there to be delivered elsewhere.

This whole Kabuki Theatre issue of some nefarious goings on is, as Shakespeare put it, "A tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing".


A favorite poster of mine asked this wuestion awhile back, and to this point, lots of words, but no response to WHY NOW on the surface, if what is being said is true, this might be the worst possible time to create dissension at USPS, and to bring in someone with zero qualifications.

Why not last year...pre pandemic....why not anytime but now....WHY NOW

[Stu from NYC]

A favorite poster of mine asked this wuestion awhile back, and to this point, lots of words, but no response to WHY NOW on the surface, if what is being said is true, this might be the worst possible time to create dissension at USPS, and to bring in someone with zero qualifications.

Why not last year...pre pandemic....why not anytime but now....WHY NOW

I have no idea why now but as I believe I answered last time you said this Why Not now.

Post office needs to be more efficient in terms of equipment and deployment of manpower.

[Bucco]

I have no idea why now but as I believe I answered last time you said this Why Not now.

Post office needs to be more efficient in terms of equipment and deployment of manpower.

Not a new problem at all, is it ???

Are you suggesting this just occurred in June of this year ?

WHY NOW is a great question. Why create havoc in the middle of a pandemic with inexperienced folks at the helm. A search for someone qualified would have been great thing to start and beginning 3 years ago would have helped.

Why create chaos in the country while we fight through a pandemic ? Why not start years ago ?

AND I am saying this assuming you are correct in all of your "assumptions", which is what they are frankly.

A poor business move for sure....a move like this in private business for the wrong reasons could lead to bankruptcy, don't you think.

An NPR interview had Art Sackler, manager of the Coalition for a 21st Century Postal Service, a group of companies that rely on the post office, including Amazon, Hallmark and others. Say this about the moves...

"Having potentially a material change, if you like, without any kind of consultation is a disappointment and hopefully was just a mistake or a mix-up. It looks as if what they're proposing has the potential to do everything you just said - to delay mail, to have that mail that is being delayed accumulate from day to day."



Critics Say Changes To USPS May Completely Transform The Post Office : NPR (https://www.npr.org/2020/07/23/894794250/critics-say-changes-to-usps-may-completely-transform-the-post-office)

"Far from being a drag on taxpayers, the Postal Service operates – by law – without a dime of taxpayer money. And, despite the lingering impact of the worst recession in 80 years and the challenges posed by the Internet, the earned revenue from selling stamps and other products and services has produced a $3.7 billion operating profit since 2013 – including $522 million in the first quarter of Fiscal Year 2017 alone.

The Postal Service provides Americans and their businesses with the industrial world’s most affordable delivery network. Moreover, USPS is the centerpiece of the $1.3 trillion national mailing industry that employs 7 million Americans in the private sector. That figure consists of, just to cite a few examples: 180,238 Wisconsinites, 551,988 Texans, 121,763 Oregonians, 170,731 Hoosiers and 966,901 Californians.

So USPS is a driving engine of our national economy, as much today as ever.

Criticism of the Postal Service is unfounded and unfair | TheHill (https://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/economy-budget/326755-criticism-of-the-postal-service-is-unfounded-and-unfair)

And finally...

"...a startling departure from precedent. From the 1850s until the 1960s, Congress routinely covered whatever deficits the Postal Service incurred — no matter how large — and with little controversy, partisanship or debate. Why? Because the Postal Service was a public service, whose rationale was civic rather than commercial. As a New York journalist put it in 1854: The Postal Service’s “benefit to mankind” far outweighed the “pecuniary consideration” of any financial shortfall. In 1958, a federal law made this even clearer: The Postal Service was “clearly not a business enterprise conducted for profit.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/04/27/founders-never-intended-postal-service-be-managed-like-business/

[Stu from NYC]

Not a new problem at all, is it ???

Are you suggesting this just occurred in June of this year ?

WHY NOW is a great question. Why create havoc in the middle of a pandemic with inexperienced folks at the helm. A search for someone qualified would have been great thing to start and beginning 3 years ago would have helped.

Why create chaos in the country while we fight through a pandemic ? Why not start years ago ?

AND I am saying this assuming you are correct in all of your "assumptions", which is what they are frankly.

A poor business move for sure....a move like this in private business for the wrong reasons could lead to bankruptcy, don't you think.

An NPR interview had Art Sackler, manager of the Coalition for a 21st Century Postal Service, a group of companies that rely on the post office, including Amazon, Hallmark and others. Say this about the moves...

"Having potentially a material change, if you like, without any kind of consultation is a disappointment and hopefully was just a mistake or a mix-up. It looks as if what they're proposing has the potential to do everything you just said - to delay mail, to have that mail that is being delayed accumulate from day to day."



Critics Say Changes To USPS May Completely Transform The Post Office : NPR (https://www.npr.org/2020/07/23/894794250/critics-say-changes-to-usps-may-completely-transform-the-post-office)

"Far from being a drag on taxpayers, the Postal Service operates – by law – without a dime of taxpayer money. And, despite the lingering impact of the worst recession in 80 years and the challenges posed by the Internet, the earned revenue from selling stamps and other products and services has produced a $3.7 billion operating profit since 2013 – including $522 million in the first quarter of Fiscal Year 2017 alone.

The Postal Service provides Americans and their businesses with the industrial world’s most affordable delivery network. Moreover, USPS is the centerpiece of the $1.3 trillion national mailing industry that employs 7 million Americans in the private sector. That figure consists of, just to cite a few examples: 180,238 Wisconsinites, 551,988 Texans, 121,763 Oregonians, 170,731 Hoosiers and 966,901 Californians.

So USPS is a driving engine of our national economy, as much today as ever.

Criticism of the Postal Service is unfounded and unfair | TheHill (https://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/economy-budget/326755-criticism-of-the-postal-service-is-unfounded-and-unfair)

And finally...

"...a startling departure from precedent. From the 1850s until the 1960s, Congress routinely covered whatever deficits the Postal Service incurred — no matter how large — and with little controversy, partisanship or debate. Why? Because the Postal Service was a public service, whose rationale was civic rather than commercial. As a New York journalist put it in 1854: The Postal Service’s “benefit to mankind” far outweighed the “pecuniary consideration” of any financial shortfall. In 1958, a federal law made this even clearer: The Postal Service was “clearly not a business enterprise conducted for profit.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/04/27/founders-never-intended-postal-service-be-managed-like-business/

I agree this should have been done a few years ago, but do not think the post office is really in an upheaval by discontinuing highly inefficient sorting machines and eliminating some boxes.

Have not noticed any slowdown in the mail so far, have you?

Going by what former postal employees have said on this thread no time like the present.

[Aloha1]

A favorite poster of mine asked this wuestion awhile back, and to this point, lots of words, but no response to WHY NOW on the surface, if what is being said is true, this might be the worst possible time to create dissension at USPS, and to bring in someone with zero qualifications.

Why not last year...pre pandemic....why not anytime but now....WHY NOW

Oh come on. You surely know the answer to your question. Who started the conspiracy theory? Think.

As to the PMG, DeJoy has a degree in logistics management, is a CPA, and has run several global logistics operations. What is the USPS if not a logistics operation. He came into the role this past June, assessed the situation, and continued the streamlining started in the previous Administration. Better a businessman than another politician.

[Stu from NYC]

Oh come on. You surely know the answer to your question. Who started the conspiracy theory? Think.

As to the PMG, DeJoy has a degree in logistics management, is a CPA, and has run several global logistics operations. What is the USPS if not a logistics operation. He came into the role this past June, assessed the situation, and continued the streamlining started in the previous Administration. Better a businessman than another politician.

Agreed.

[Bucco]

Agreed.

I know or at least hope, that you know the new PMG's resume is longer than that and includes much more.

Please tell me were or how he "assessed" anything. He tells congress he did not order any of the removal of equipment and does not know who ordered it. He does not know.

[Neils]

$25 billion to pay for lavish pension plan and satisfy the postal union. Private companies can not afford the pensions paid to gov retirees

[Kilmacowen]

Oh come on. You surely know the answer to your question. Who started the conspiracy theory? Think.

As to the PMG, DeJoy has a degree in logistics management, is a CPA, and has run several global logistics operations. What is the USPS if not a logistics operation. He came into the role this past June, assessed the situation, and continued the streamlining started in the previous Administration. Better a businessman than another politician.

To bad he didn't even know the price to mail a post card. Anyone with a brain can see what is going on here! Voter suppression. Megan Brennan was harrassed and basically "kicked out" as postmaster general. Conveniently replaced by big-time donor to suppress voting.

[Aloha1]

To bad he didn't even know the price to mail a post card. Anyone with a brain can see what is going on here! Voter suppression. Megan Brennan was harrassed and basically "kicked out" as postmaster general. Conveniently replaced by big-time donor to suppress voting.

And just how many post cards do you mail every day?? At what price? No peeking at Google, now.

[Kilmacowen]

And just how many post cards do you mail every day?? At what price? No peeking at Google, now.

That was just one of the MANY simple questions he couldn't even answer.

[Bucco]

And just where was this? Post a link, not just listen to faux news

It was in
Philly in 2008, and I was appalled.

Stand by, we already have been notified troops at voter stations in 2020

By the way, those Panthers were intimidating but did nothing. I was vocal on here and did not feel anywherevas intimidated as right now

[Aloha1]

Link with credible evidence, please.

And that is not meant to defend the person you accuse (iwas the most anti you ever saw) , but an indictment of reckless and malicious accusations.


Did the Obama Administration Remove USPS Mailboxes? (https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/obama-remove-usps-mailboxes/)

[Aloha1]

It was in
Philly in 2008, and I was appalled.

Stand by, we already have been notified troops at voter stations in 2020

By the way, those Panthers were intimidating but did nothing. I was vocal on here and did not feel anywherevas intimidated as right now

Who is "we" and how were they notified and by whom?

[Bucco]

Did the Obama Administration Remove USPS Mailboxes? (https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/obama-remove-usps-mailboxes/)

I was not clear, I suppose...I was speaking mostly of sorters, and not sure the locations stripped previous were as "sensitive" as location

Oh, and just a hint....you should actually read your own links to insure they don't ....sort of......go against your point

[Mrprez]

And just where was this? Post a link, not just listen to faux news

New Black Panther Party Monitors Philadelphia Polling Place, Fox News Says It's 'Intimidating' (VIDEO) | HuffPost (https://www.huffpost.com/entry/new-black-panther-party_n_2082423)

[Bucco]

New Black Panther Party Monitors Philadelphia Polling Place, Fox News Says It's 'Intimidating' (VIDEO) | HuffPost (https://www.huffpost.com/entry/new-black-panther-party_n_2082423)

I already posted this information and it was from 2008.

At the time I was an active GOPER......and was appalled, but as it turns out, nothing happened.

We have already been alerted that troops may very well be used in 2020, for what reason...that not given to us.

Do you read what has already been posted or simply post on out.

See posts #152, 153 and 156.

Old news and not the least bit relevant

[Kilmacowen]

I believe all this voter suppression will backfire and more people will get out and vote. I voted today , previous years there was only one day , Tuesday. This year it was 4days , Sat, Sun, Mon and Tues. Very safe also