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[–] • 1 pt

Mail is so 20th century.

[–] • 1 pt

I honestly wish they would go private. I'd take the mailbox off my house so quick the mounting holes would start smoking.

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> honestly wish they would go private.

Problem with this statement here is that you're basically saying you'd be willing to give up one of your constitutional rights and services. I take much harder stance. I refuse to give up even one single right. Regardless of how miniscule it is. Does the post office need modernization? Absolutely. Does the post office need to change the way they do mail delivery? Absolutely. Am I willing to give it up? Absolutely not. If someone is willing to give up one right, then they're okay with giving up other rights.

The major problem with the modern post office is the dei crap. When covid hit they quit giving drug tests or background checks. The general public doesn't know this.

[–] • 1 pt

It's not a right, it's a power granted to congress. The constitution doesn't guarantee postal service to anyone.

Article I, Section 8, Clause 7 grants congress the power to establish a post office and postal roads. It's interpreted as being implied that it grants this post office the right to carry and deliver mail, as well as define where those offices are and the routes they must follow. This doesn't require congress to do it, it merely grants them that power. Congress could essentially end their use of that power at any time, as there's nothing preventing them from doing so.

They could just as easily establish a postal service and define those services for a private company - which is essentially what the post office is now. It's a private company that isn't allowed to define it's own practices, they have to petition congress for them. Or, they could simply say "Anyone that wants to carry mail can do so, WDGAF anymore."

[–] • 1 pt

They say unprofitable rural routes are the main barrier to privatization. Honestly though, what mail is really needed? The only thing I can think of is official government or legal correspondence. Everything else can be an email or not exist. You could even argue that government and legal letters could be emails as well. Although I can see the fraud concerns.

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Those rural routes should charge more for mailings to those routes if the sender wants to get it there. That would be my solution. It's not $0.81 or whatever for Pa Kettle out in Dogpatch, it's the full priority $7.85 (or whatever) and it goes out for delivery once a week. Medications and things can go FedEx like Medicare, or any one of a dozen other parcel carriers. Even my folks out in podunkia have internet services now.

There's also the problem of all those little offices. For example, in the area of PA I like to travel, there's an office in every little town - some of them no more than some dude's house where a room that's accessible from the road has a counter that's open from 9-12 every day and has some boxes in it. Consolidation is the key.

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You never get a parcel at your house?

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Also who’s getting fucking rich here? Every postal truck I see (semi) is labeled US MAIL but not US Postal Service. Ones I see around Texas are https://www.southernmail.com/

Here is a maybe complete list of companies that do the same.

Southern Mail Service Inc, Texas Bancroft & Sons Transportation, Texas Federal Express Corporation, National 10 Roads Express, National UPS Worldwide Forwarding Inc, National EVO Transportation, National Matheson Trucking Inc, National Eagle Express Lines Inc, Midwest Traffix USA, National Midwest Transport Inc, Midwest Alan Ritchey Inc, Texas AJR Trucking Inc, West McCormick Trucking, Southeast B & B Trucking Inc, Southeast Davis Mail Services Inc, Southeast Davenport Transportation Inc, Southeast Carroll Fulmer Logistics Corp, Southeast STK Transportation LLC, West Freedom Trans USA, Southeast United Express Service Inc, Northeast Cargo Force Inc, Southeast Metro Air Service Inc, Southeast FX Logistics LLC, Southeast C L Services Inc, Southeast Total Quality Logistics LLC, National XPO Logistics, National C H Robinson, National Mail Management Services, Midwest ITS National LLC, National Victory Packaging, National Ryder Truck Rental Inc, National Northern Air Cargo, Alaska Amerijet International Inc, Florida Kalitta Air LLC, Midwest ITF Group LLC, Texas Newkirk Logistics Inc, Texas Sunlight Trucking LLC, Texas Mojo Trucking LLC, Texas Ek Transport LLC, Texas Fergo Trucking LLC, Texas

[–] • 0 pt

Just saw where 10 Roads Express is shutting down because they lost their postal contract.

https://www.midlandco.com/10-roads-express-to-shut-down-operations-end-usps-contracts/

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I wonder how you fuck that up?

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Sounds like a bunch of stuff. Cheaper carriers and internal people problems.

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The postal service has always used cartage provided by third parties to haul the bulk of mail between distribution centers. It's quite uncommon to see a tractor-trailer with the USPS Eagle on it.

We used to have T.A. Ruck (they missed an opportunity there) and R.M. Neff as the haulers in central ohio. I think both of those have lost their contracts, however. I'm sure there are others, but I don't pay much attention to them anymore.

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My real point is the money flow. Southern Mail Services has been a thing since since I asked Dad about it like 40 years ago. Fleet Size 473 Tractor(s) owned 450 Trailer(s) owned 490 Total drivers 550 Revenue Over $500 million, or $89.8 million or 9.4 million depending on what you find

I'd but that contract renewal is a rubber stamp....seems like it was back in the late 70s or early 80's when I aked dad, who is that, dosent the post office carry the mail...

[–] • 0 pt

Owning your own trucks can be expensive. While I never really checked, I always assumed the carriers were using the trucks for other things when not hauling mail. Mail is just a known payout for them.

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It wasn’t technically a right to you. It was a right given to Congress to create it.

But that’s splitting hairs.

No one has a good solution I’ve seen presented. Not just you guys but anyone.

Eliminate all the data mining and social watching they do, in fact eliminate all facets of technology unless it is used directly to send mail.

Eliminate all custom builds of mail vehicles, outsource using standard vehicles, on lease and or with maintenance included (think Volvo truck type shit)

Eliminate all classes of mail, pay the full price to send a letter, bill or junk. That would likely eliminate most of the junk mail and thus reduce all the operational costs.

Eliminate all their enforcement arms, that’s for law enforcement.

Eliminate all leasing of any postal buildings (yes it happens) either close that mail office, reduce to a postal drop or purchase the land outright.

Eliminate all costs for designs of all packaging, stamps, and bullshittery. If you need a stamp designed, do a public call for designs, winner gets 1 year free unlimited postal mail. Encourage kids to do it.

Renegotiate the Amazon contract. Tell Amazon to fuck off or pay up. If they weren’t takin advantage of the USPS, and thus the taxpayer, they wouldn’t have them do it. Make it so costly for Amazon that they roll their own trucks. Why? If Amazon kicks them now, likely the USPS would be bankrupt tomorrow since that contract has to be gigantic (and full of grifts)

Then let the privates do their thing. And the USPS Goes back to carrying letters and not trash, or filling corporate holes for cheap.

[–] • 0 pt

It's not even a right issued to congress - it's a power granted to them. They're under no obligation to use it.

There's no easy solution to the postal boondoggle, but the easiest way to force a fix would probably be to cut it loose from congressional control. Congress issues them a charter that lays out obligations, but the entity can run their business however they want and charge whatever they want as long as those obligations are met. If there's demand, eventually someone would come along and deliver letters cheaper. There probably isn't, however.

Yeah, you're going to be paying the actual cartage costs for that first class letter. It's going to hurt. But then again, how many letters do you send? Personally, I send two a year because a local authority doesn't have an online portal worth a damn, and the fucking IRS is going to process my 50 page return on fucking paper because fuck them.

But that's not going to happen because the federal postal service is considered the "official" way to deliver legal documents to you, and it's a great way to make sure you're not doing wrongthink.

[–] • 1 pt

You said it correctly. Words matter, I say that lots, and I fucked up, but yes, power granted. And they don't have to do it. Not sure if they could resend it, they have to power to create, but maybe not the power to destroy?

Would cutting it loose from congressional control help? Who knows.

I do remember, the USPS wanted to do something like Paypal and MoneyGram, Etc back in the late 80's. They already moved money around by issuing stamps, they wanted to be a place you could go to send money and receive it. That made sense since stamps are actualy money base don the face value, and likely worth more than the fucking dollar. Congress told them to get fucked, they arent a bank. If Congress let them do that, well two things would have happened. 1) they would likely be profitable (what if they could keep 3% of all stamps used?) 2) the bad, they could track all kinds of money movement.

And yeah, its written in so many Corp or LLC docs that notifications must use USPS registered mail and shit....hard to unwind that, but if it went away, likely all that shit would just be ammended to USE FEDEX with Signature Receipt.

No matter, this is a good conversation on the USPS. Wonder what Theo's thoughts are.

[–] • 0 pt

There's no easy solution. Anything that's done is going to hurt someone's feefees. But they're not willing to try anything at all, so...the point is moot.

c'est la vie.