Take a Hike... Again

Today, the United States Postal Service is once again instituting a price increase on the cost of a stamp for regular first class mail service. In recent years, the cost of first class service has been bumped up several times and in that time, it's not necessarily true that the service has gone up with it, or even that the service has stayed the same. To give an example, I was once expecting a package and it arrived at a time when I was at work. When I came home there was a delivery attempt note on my door which indicated that if I wanted the postman to leave the package at my door, I should mark the slip and leave it where he could see it. I posted the slip and waited and waited and waited. And every day, I would come home and my mail would be there but no package. Finally I went to the Post Office and complained and picked up my package but still, no reason was given as to why the package wasn't delivered. It doesn't make sense to pay extra for 'priority shipping' if your package is held up in limbo between your local post office and your mailbox.

So why the need for these periodic increases? Well, part of the reason is the fact that just like everyone else, the cost of doing business these days has gone up. When you figure that there are some suburban areas where mail carriers lug their wares in jeeps or mail trucks, you realize that with the rising cost of fuel, it probably costs more per mail carrier to deliver the mail. Okay, part of the equation is solved. But why else would the price rise? What else are we getting for our additional two cent rate increase? Well, perhaps a more modernized system. If you've been to the Post Office these days, there are some very modern offices with state of the art computer systems and mail services but there are others that still look as if Mr. McFeely would be at home there. (And in case you're wondering who Mr. McFeely is, I am truly dating myself by making reference to Mr. Rogers' mailman.

Plus the fact that so many people are now turning to the internet means that the number of people actually posting bills or letters via the post office are decreasing in numbers while the number of packages going and coming out are on the rise. Recent statistics have shown that in the past few years, the amount of e-commerce and purchasing has increased tremendously. The convenience and relative safety (or so it seems) of the internet has made it much easier to shop online. And with shipping by companies like FedEx or UPS there are times when the Post Office must feel like a forgotten relic of the past. That's not to say that it's an essential service. I mean just see how popular a place it is during Christmas and Tax Season. People will stand in line for hours just to ensure that their packages are delivered on time.

In order to stave of further frustrations by postal customers, the postal service is also issuing what is known as the 'forever' stamp. This flat rate stamp can be purchased and regardless of any future postal rate increases, the forever stamp will still count. I'm waiting for the day that stamps hit 59 cents. I have this odd feeling that I may very well see it in my lifetime. My question is this though, why can't we just make the 'forever' stamp the end-all-be-all stamp and not worry about whether or not rates increase. It seems they're trying to show some concession while doing something else. I mean if you think about it, you assume that by purchasing the forever stamp you won't have to worry about future increases, but supposing a future increase doesn't happen. You've just been duped into paying much more for a book of stamps that are costlier than regular stamps. Clever.

There are times when it seems that the postal service doesn't live up to it's motto of delivering the mail despite the snow, sleet and freezing rain. My description of the package was just one such incident. I'm sure other people have other complaints as well but in their defense, postal carriers don't have the easiest of jobs. Try being out there in the dead of winter with the door to your jeep open (or on foot) and deliver the mail from door to door. Deal with the houses or the people who dont' clear a path to their mailbox or leave it buried in snow, expecting that the post man will be able to reach it. Try dealing with the angry customers who think that becoming irate and loud from the start will ensure that their package will be treated with extra care (when the opposite is just as likely to happen). All these things being said, one would hope that the rate increase will make a difference in service but I hesitate to say that it will. When you think of all the things the postal service has to do; two-cents more per letter isn't much in the grand scheme of things.