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© Copyright 2000, Jim Loy
The U. S. Post Office, like other businesses and organizations, charges more and more for less service. That's just inflation, apparently. And of course, they goof up like everyone. Two consecutive postcards of mine recently took about three weeks to go from Montana to Virginia (the bar code they inserted at the bottom of at least one of these cards was mistyped). At the beginning of one checkers-by-mail tournament, my opponents sent their cards to Bozeman, UT 59715, because of a typo in the tournament assignments (I live in Bozeman, MT 59715). The zip code was right, but I never EVER received any of those cards. I am told, by the Post Office that postcards are first class, but apparently sometimes they go right into the trash when misdelivered, even to a nonexistent town in Utah.
Recently, I thought I had a new complaint about the Post Office. I bought 50 postcards for $10.50. I asked the guy why they cost 21 cents (they say 20 cents on them). He said, "That's right, 21 cents." I thought that postcards were supposed to cost 20 cents, and I thought I had been cheated out of 50 cents. But I guess they really do cost 21 cents each, 20 cents for the postage and 1 cent for the paper and printing. And postcards have apparently always cost more than the amount printed on the card. [I am told that my original impression is right; at one time postcards did cost their face value.] By the way, last year, one of my 20 cent (which cost me 21 cents, I guess) checkers postcards was returned with "insufficient postage" marked on it. The mail person who I asked about that apologized profusely, and accepted the 20 cent card.
In some ways, they have improved their service. I remember waiting in a very long line that was hardly moving, and then seeing two of the mail people close up their counters and go to lunch. Now, they are often friendlier and more helpful. And fewer of my packages are damaged. But they keep charging more and more (like everyone else), with no noticeable improvement in service. I hear that in 19th century London, the mail was delivered three times a day. But it travels faster now, most of the time.