No More Saturday Mail For Dirt Poor USA

[Actor]

Originally Posted by Tom

Pensions are not sustainable.

Why not?

[Tom]

Seriously?
Why would a never ending pay out with no return on investment be unsustainable?

Surely you jest.

[badcompany]

Whenever I do get mail, it usually has chicken wing or pork fried rice grease on it.

Mostpost,

Is it a violation of USPS work rules to eat greasy food and listen to Godawful rap music while delivering the mail?

[ceejay]

It seems to me that the Postal Service is being told to act more like a business but is not really allowed to do so. For example, retiree health care I do not believe is required to be prefunded in the private sector (although it sometimes is) http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/CNBC/Sec...postal_rhb.pdf .

It is hard to imagine any actual business that wants to stay in business telling their customers that they will increase prices and reduce service.

If the senior management at the Postal Service was allowed to act like senior managers and guide the business they would have seen long ago that mail volumes would decrease with Internet usage increasing. Perhaps they could have refocused the business model. Become a Internet service provider? Embrace changes rather than fighting them? But, the Postal Service must have "major changes" approved by Congress.

To me, the best option might be privatization. But, it is hard to tell a private business that they must serve every address 5 or 6 days a week for the same price irrelevant of location. While $.46 to send a letter or pay any bill across town may be a fair value, it is surely unprofitable to send a letter from Hawaii to rural North Dakota for the same price which is part of the Postal Service mandate. It may be quite difficult to find a private entity to take on the service.

[dartman51]

Originally Posted by Robert Goren

I guess I will just have to wait until Monday for my mail from Gaspar Moschera.

Yeah, but, think of the money you'll save not being able to bet on his "can't miss" selections.

[dartman51]

Originally Posted by PaceAdvantage

What does it matter? They're powerless and irrelevant according to liberals.

There you go, channeling Hillary.

[mostpost]

Originally Posted by PaceAdvantage

If guys like you can't even support the Republican stance on something like this, Lord have mercy if Democrats continue to run this country for another term after Obama....

I mean, this is a gimme....a NO BRAINER....and you scoff at it...why? Because a few union guys might be out looking for work soon?

If we can't CUT HERE, where the hell can we cut?

As usual, NJ Stinks knows what he is talking about. As usual, You don't. The Postal deficit in 2012 was $15.9 Billion. Seventy Percent (70%) was the result of a bill passed by Republicans in the lame duck session of 2006. (Yes, there were Democrats who voted for it too-they are also idiots.)

The bill mandated that USPS pre-fund its heath and pension plans 75 years into the future. No other business does this No other government agency is required to do this. Obeying this mandate is costing the Post Office between five and ten billion dollars each year for ten years. How can any business survive when burdened with an arbitrary expense like that at the same time that their ability to raise prices is severely hindered.

Of the $15.1B deficit, 70% can be assigned to the prefunding requirement.
15% is caused by labor costs not related to the prefunding and 15% is caused by other factors.

There was a perfect example of the ignorance of the general public on this matter on my Comcast home page a few days ago. The story started with this sentence. "The United States Postal Service is planning to end Saturday delivery, thereby saving taxpayers $2.4 billion dollars." No, you fool, they are not saving taxpayers anything because taxes do not fund the United States Postal Service.

[mostpost]

Originally Posted by PaceAdvantage

If guys like you can't even support the Republican stance on something like this, Lord have mercy if Democrats continue to run this country for another term after Obama....

I mean, this is a gimme....a NO BRAINER....and you scoff at it...why? Because a few union guys might be out looking for work soon?

If we can't CUT HERE, where the hell can we cut?

Let me just state that I am kind of neutral on the issue of Saturday delivery. I just want to be sure the blame for this situation is placed where it belongs. On the Republican controlled Congress and its obsession with destroying any government run services.

[HUSKER55]

why should our government fund a service no one wants or needs?

[mostpost]

Originally Posted by fast4522

The absolute truth is that the more we run the government like a business where each department is accountable the better off we all will be no matter what party that you are in.

Why do you think there is no accountability? If a carrier misdelivers mail and a customer complains, he is told about it. If it is a persistent problem, he can be given a letter of warning, suspended and even fired.

Clerks are regularly tested on the scheme to be sure they are sorting the mail to the proper routes. Again disciplinary actions can be taken. (Of course nowadays most of the mail comes to the offices presorted to routes.)

Any postal employee dealing with the public; carriers, window clerks, and categories you would not know what they were if I did list them*) are expected to be courteous, efficient and knowledge able. If they are not, they are held accountable.

Of course all this depends on management being aware of any problems. You have to let us know. Remember that these people are human and they make mistakes, but if you have continuing problem call the office and report it.

Postmasters are also held accountable, the all report to someone at the Sectional Center. They have reports to fill out on misdelivered mail, delayed mail, and other factors. They have to run the office within budget. The Postal Service employs "Secret Shoppers" too assess how an office is being run.

The Post Office is like any other business and each employee is responsible to someone above him, event the Postmaster General. People do get fired.

[ceejay]

Originally Posted by HUSKER55

why should our government fund a service no one wants or needs?

I might refer you to the Postal Clause in article 1 section 8 of the United States Constitution.

Although I believe that cause along with much of the Constitution needs to be reinterpreted in light of modern technology, but that is another discussion.

[Marshall Bennett]

Originally Posted by badcompany

I have the worst mail person, ever.

I wouldn't bet on that. Mine often arrives after dark this time of year. On a couple occasions she never arrived at all. Flag was still up in the morning with mail in it waiting to go. I don't think she gets out of bed before noon.
The service stinks, I've complained about it, and it doesn't do a bit of good. Would suit me fine if they delivered once a week. Would probably take her a week to deliver it all anyway as slow as she is.

[ceejay]

Originally Posted by mostpost

Postmasters are also held accountable, the all report to someone at the Sectional Center. They have reports to fill out on misdelivered mail, delayed mail, and other factors. They have to run the office within budget. The Postal Service employs "Secret Shoppers" too assess how an office is being run.

The Post Office is like any other business and each employee is responsible to someone above him, event the Postmaster General. People do get fired.

As a customer, I have a hard time believing that. Last month for example, I received an important piece of mail for somebody whose address and zip code was in Virginia. I live in Oklahoma!

[FantasticDan]

As long as my PO remains open on Saturday and there's package delivery (yes on both), I'm happy..

[YT=""]JpUqLjjKk4Y[/YT]

[mostpost]

Originally Posted by badcompany

Whenever I do get mail, it usually has chicken wing or pork fried rice grease on it.

Mostpost,

Is it a violation of USPS work rules to eat greasy food and listen to Godawful rap music while delivering the mail?

I think chicken wings are OK, but pork fried rice is verboten. Godawful rap music is redundant.

If you are getting mail that is frequently or even occasionally stained with someone's greasy lunch you should complain. You should also complain about the carrier listening to loud rap music in your lobby. If you don't get satisfaction at your local office, USPS has an 800 number for such things. I can tell you that those calls are taken seriously. I can't recall the number right now. I will look it up and post it later in this thread.

An aside: I do not know your carriers situation. Does she use a vehicle? Is there a place where she can have her lunch nearby? A place that is inside out of the rain and cold. Perhaps your lobby is the only place she can comfortably and conveniently eat her lunch.

But if that is the case, she owes it to you and the other tenants to do so courteously and unobtrusively. Turn off the I Pod, clean up after yourself, use wet wipes when you are through eating.

ETA: Found it.
Call 1-800-ASK-USPS® (800-275-8777)
M-F - 8:00 am - 8:30 pm ET
Sat - 8:00 am - 6:00 pm ET
Sun/Holidays* - Closed
*Except Martin Luther King Day, President's Day, Columbus Day, and Veterans Day with hours from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm ET