USPS Saturday Delivery

Austin said:

Oh stop with the anti-government ranting.
The Postal Service has been financially devastated by skyrocketing fuel prices over the last decade.
A gallon of gas has quadrupled from a dollar around 1998 to the current $4.
Everything the USPS does relies on fuel. Planes, trucks... Do you realize how much gas a letter carrier uses stopping and starting for hours every day?

Then there's the massive fuel usage of the airplanes shipping packages and letters to every state and foreign countries.
Yet postal rates have barely risen over the years, and certainly nowhere near enough to offset rising fuel prices.

And don't forget the fact that there has been millions less letters sent every month since the mid '90s because of emails and it's no wonder the USPS is losing money.
Still, people complain whenever the price of a stamp rises a penny, or a package goes up 50 cents.

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zach said:

Then why can FedEx and UPS still turn a healthy profit? They are faced with the same fuel issues.

I have no problem with the cost of a stamp going up more significantly if it means that they can be in the black and right the ship. Instead of raising the price $.04 cents every year, raise it $.30 and really make a difference.

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Austin said:

Oh stop with the anti-government ranting.
The Postal Service has been financially devastated by skyrocketing fuel prices over the last decade.
A gallon of gas has quadrupled from a dollar around 1998 to the current $4.
Everything the USPS does relies on fuel. Planes, trucks... Do you realize how much gas a letter carrier uses stopping and starting for hours every day?

Then there's the massive fuel usage of the airplanes shipping packages and letters to every state and foreign countries.
Yet postal rates have barely risen over the years, and certainly nowhere near enough to offset rising fuel prices.

And don't forget the fact that there has been millions less letters sent every month since the mid '90s because of emails and it's no wonder the USPS is losing money.
Still, people complain whenever the price of a stamp rises a penny, or a package goes up 50 cents.

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uniquebaseballcards said:

FedEx and UPS are businesses, as said above USPS is a service that will do things and go places the others won't. They're not really competitors - you may have noticed FedEx pick-up points at your local USPS.

EDIT: The USPS technically reports to... Congress LOL

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zach said:

While I don't disagree that they are a service, that doesn't mean that the service needs to lose money just for the convenience of being there.... Especially after all these years. The business model is broken and outdated.

Reporting to congress only makes the situation worse.... Though understandable why they can even make their books break even.

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sneekc said:

EDIT-MOD

The USPS is an extension of the Federal Gov. and has failed because of Union regulation and the increased bullXXXX of pension parents, look at the numbers alone. While they have decreased since 2002 there is still substantial volume that negates your uneducated liberal excuse Postal Facts
and since maill has decreased postal trucks and routes have increased especially in the past several years? That's good ole USA federal govt for ya, less work and more workers.
I say replace every ******* USPS retail window with an APM and let the pshycopaths inline figure out how to mail a fricken postcard for themselves. Reduce government waste and increase efficiency. With a 40% monopoly on the entire worlds shipping revenue there is no way to flunk. Give me a 40% stronghold on any product or service and I guarantee I'm wealthier than Warren Buffet in under 5 years.

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uniquebaseballcards said:

I don't think you're getting that they ARE indeed a convenient service and NOT a business. This is why they 'report' to Congress.

Specifically they are a service that makes sure that people in remote areas will have access to postal services. Their primary focus is NOT to make money. However they obviously need to maintain some level of financial responsibility - which is what they're trying to do here. Its tough to blame the PO for their current actions.

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zach said:

Oh, I get it. I just have a hard time understanding why a service needs to lose money year after year. Again, just because its a service doesn't mean it should lose money and be fiscally irresponsible just for the sake of existence. That's simply poor management. But, based on what your sayng I believe you agree.

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