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Having lived in four different US states and in a number of European countries (currently resident in Germany), all I can say is good riddance. USPS is by far

Having lived in four different US states and in a number of European countries (currently resident in Germany), all I can say is good riddance. USPS is by far the worst mail service I have ever encountered. It's so bad that there's absolutely no doubt in my mind that one can do a lot better, assuming one is allowed to compete. And even though they proudly say they receive NO money from the federal government, they do receive subsidies in the hundreds of millions.

jdm2212 6y ago
What do you find lacking in USPS? My experience with other countries is Israel and Russia's postal systems, which are both notoriously bad at actually delivering mail. USPS doesn't ever seem to lose my mail, and stuff gets to where I send it in ~3 days, so I've always been a happy customer.
- armitron 6y ago
  What they don't seem to lose is priority mail (I'm assuming it's actually tracked in a way that counts). They have lost plenty of my regular mail. Not to mention consistently misdelivering my mail to other mailboxes. One time, I had to escalate all the way to the region supervisor before I found someone that would actually hear me out. The general attitude seems to be one of incompetence and total indifference.
- schnable 6y ago
  USPS is a disaster in Philly. Mail and packages don't get delivered, the tracking is a lie ("attempted delivery" when they haven't etc.), and it's impossible to get any customer service at all because the the escalation path is to a local postmaster with a full voicemail inbox.
  - loeg 6y ago
    Ah, sounds like Fedex and DHL in Seattle.
_emacsomancer_ 6y ago
All of the other major delivery services in the US (UPS, FedEx, DHL, Ontrac) are horrible and far worse than the USPS. And without the USPS to compete against, they'd be even worse.
- Matticus_Rex 6y ago
  Worse in what way? I've always had better experiences with every one of their competitors.
  - _emacsomancer_ 6y ago
    UPS, FedEx, DHL etc., when they aren't just completely scummy (lying about delivering something when they haven't; lying about delivery charges), take far longer to deliver packages and often leave them in completely arbitrary places - in the middle of the driveway, for instance. Essentially none of the major commercial delivery services in the US seem to know anything about actually delivering packages.
  - loeg 6y ago
    USPS has locked mailboxes at the curb (in cities). In apartment buildings, the boxes may even be inside the building. The other deliverers don't do that. I've never had a USPS package stolen, because they either deliver it to the lockbox or to you. UPS/Fedex/FBA/DHL just drop it in front of my house and don't even bother ringing the doorbell. It rains here a good amount and if you don't notice your ghost package fast, maybe it gets soaked through. Fedex has lied to me multiple times about attempting delivery on days they never did.
- RodgerTheGreat 6y ago
  To say nothing of the fact that other delivery services frequently rely upon USPS for last-mile delivery in more rural (read: less- or un-profitable) areas, and those areas would simply not be served by a privatized postal service.
  - _emacsomancer_ 6y ago
enraged_camel 6y ago
The USPS offers a unique combination of affordability and reliability that simply cannot be matched by the private sector. Yes, it is subsidized. The reason is that being able to send and receive mail cheaply and reliably is the cornerstone of our society and our economic system.
- ralph84 6y ago
  I guess maybe you haven't enabled electronic statements for your accounts or something, but for me 99% of what I get from USPS is junk mail or online shopping deliveries. Not clear why either of those need to be subsidized.
  - jschwartzi 6y ago
    They're not subsidized. USPS is required by law to pay its own way. This is a common misconception about USPS that is simply not true. When people talk about International Mail being "subsidized" they're talking about EG treaty negotiations with China that force the USPS to receive international packages from China at significantly below cost. They then have to pass those costs onto the US consumer.
  - Avicebron 6y ago
    Except demanding that all people in the US to be reliant on the successful use and ownership of a sufficiently reliable computing device is a very real form of discrimination. Arguments of cheapening electronics can be made, but just the issues that many people are having with remote learning is pretty strong evidence to the contrary.
    - ralph84 6y ago
      Subsidizing access to computing devices would be much more beneficial to society than subsidizing junk mail and online shopping.
      - binsh 6y ago
        What is your problem with the USPS? You've been refuted several times in this thread, but you keep repeating blatant falsehoods.
Cheyana 6y ago
I can counter that. Here in Arizona, I have sent packages probably a few dozen times in 20 years and have never had an issue, and the post office near where I work is busy almost all day with people sending things, so their problem might just be consistency across all sites. Some sites may not do enough business to support their staff while others may take in more than enough. Maybe they just need to reduce their footprint, and close underutilized sites.
Avicebron 6y ago
I think it's a slippery slope in eroding public services in favor of private corporations, instead of improving these systems we shouldn't let them die and allow monopolies to run rampant and become less and less competitive.
hendiatris 6y ago
Please provide more detail. I find the USPS to be one of the best things about this country. Every morning I get an email with photos of the mail I will receive, and a listing of the packages that are coming my way. I can’t remember the last time they’ve ever lost anything of mine. I’m sure not everyone’s experience is like mine - I’m curious how they can be so bad that they create a sense of loathing.
- armitron 6y ago
  As I said, regularly losing mail. Regularly misdelivering mail. A lot of effort to get someone to even acknowledge the problem or even myself. My mailbox stuffed with junk mail all the time (even if I have permanent sticker telling them not to do so). I've even talked to the USPS delivery person and told her not to do so. Next week, same issue. Rinse, repeat. I've never, ever, ever had a problem with Fedex or UPS. They've been 100% professional and everytime I had to interact with them either on the phone or in a store, I always got good service. With USPS, this was the rare exception rather than the rule.
  - ZekeSulastin 6y ago
    Speaking from my anecdata on both the retail customer and business customer side, if you've never had a problem with a given carrier you are damned lucky and should probably go buy lottery tickets.
    - anfilt 6y ago
      I have lived in multiple places in the US, and never had problems with USPS. I have had troubles with Fedex, UPS, and DHL though.
  - binsh 6y ago
    It sounds like you personally have a beef with your mail carrier(s) and/or your local post office. Which is fine, but that doesn't mean the entire system is broken. My experience has been overwhelmingly positive, and it's a little selfish of you to celebrate the destruction of a government program that a lot of people who don't make FAANG salaries depend on for medication and bill paying. Seriously, where is the compassion?
klyrs 6y ago
It's way worse in Canada. Similar arrangement where politicians love to gut its budget for short-term gains, and it lives in a weird category somewhere between business and utility. But delivery times (and reliability) are atrocious here in Canada. In the US, I mailed something to my mom across town, and she got it the same day that I put it in the mailbox. I rarely saw a letter delivery take more than 2-3 days. Here in Canada, it may take over a week to send mail in the same province. Takes over a month when my mom sends me a letter from the US. IMHO, they shouldn't get subsidies. They should be a public utility. They provide a necessary channel of communication between citizens and their goverment: taxes, passports, ballots, voter registration, etc. happen through USPS. In my experience (admittedly, I've been in Canada for a decade, so this is probably out of date) they've been much more reliable than any other shipping service, and I don't think any other private carrier does letter mail.
spfzero 6y ago
Just anecdote, but I probably mail about 100+ packages a year through USPS, about 40% to international addresses. Never had one fail to deliver. I always use USPS to ship, because it is reliable and the fees are reasonable. Also receive lots of documents, periodicals, and packages through USPS, never had a problem there either, always in the mailbox or right at the front door. Of course I'd like to skip the junk mail. USPS seems technically up-to-date as well, more or less. I can schedule pickups on-line, as well as buy and print postage. No complaints.

jdm2212 6y ago

What do you find lacking in USPS? My experience with other countries is Israel and Russia's postal systems, which are both notoriously bad at actually delivering mail. USPS doesn't ever seem to lose my mail, and stuff gets to where I send it in ~3 days, so I've always been a happy customer.

armitron 6y ago
What they don't seem to lose is priority mail (I'm assuming it's actually tracked in a way that counts). They have lost plenty of my regular mail. Not to mention consistently misdelivering my mail to other mailboxes. One time, I had to escalate all the way to the region supervisor before I found someone that would actually hear me out. The general attitude seems to be one of incompetence and total indifference.
schnable 6y ago
USPS is a disaster in Philly. Mail and packages don't get delivered, the tracking is a lie ("attempted delivery" when they haven't etc.), and it's impossible to get any customer service at all because the the escalation path is to a local postmaster with a full voicemail inbox.
- loeg 6y ago
  Ah, sounds like Fedex and DHL in Seattle.

_emacsomancer_ 6y ago

All of the other major delivery services in the US (UPS, FedEx, DHL, Ontrac) are horrible and far worse than the USPS. And without the USPS to compete against, they'd be even worse.

Matticus_Rex 6y ago
Worse in what way? I've always had better experiences with every one of their competitors.
- _emacsomancer_ 6y ago
  UPS, FedEx, DHL etc., when they aren't just completely scummy (lying about delivering something when they haven't; lying about delivery charges), take far longer to deliver packages and often leave them in completely arbitrary places - in the middle of the driveway, for instance. Essentially none of the major commercial delivery services in the US seem to know anything about actually delivering packages.
- loeg 6y ago
  USPS has locked mailboxes at the curb (in cities). In apartment buildings, the boxes may even be inside the building. The other deliverers don't do that. I've never had a USPS package stolen, because they either deliver it to the lockbox or to you. UPS/Fedex/FBA/DHL just drop it in front of my house and don't even bother ringing the doorbell. It rains here a good amount and if you don't notice your ghost package fast, maybe it gets soaked through. Fedex has lied to me multiple times about attempting delivery on days they never did.
RodgerTheGreat 6y ago
To say nothing of the fact that other delivery services frequently rely upon USPS for last-mile delivery in more rural (read: less- or un-profitable) areas, and those areas would simply not be served by a privatized postal service.
- _emacsomancer_ 6y ago

enraged_camel 6y ago

The USPS offers a unique combination of affordability and reliability that simply cannot be matched by the private sector. Yes, it is subsidized. The reason is that being able to send and receive mail cheaply and reliably is the cornerstone of our society and our economic system.

ralph84 6y ago
I guess maybe you haven't enabled electronic statements for your accounts or something, but for me 99% of what I get from USPS is junk mail or online shopping deliveries. Not clear why either of those need to be subsidized.
- jschwartzi 6y ago
  They're not subsidized. USPS is required by law to pay its own way. This is a common misconception about USPS that is simply not true. When people talk about International Mail being "subsidized" they're talking about EG treaty negotiations with China that force the USPS to receive international packages from China at significantly below cost. They then have to pass those costs onto the US consumer.
- Avicebron 6y ago
  Except demanding that all people in the US to be reliant on the successful use and ownership of a sufficiently reliable computing device is a very real form of discrimination. Arguments of cheapening electronics can be made, but just the issues that many people are having with remote learning is pretty strong evidence to the contrary.
  - ralph84 6y ago
    Subsidizing access to computing devices would be much more beneficial to society than subsidizing junk mail and online shopping.
    - binsh 6y ago
      What is your problem with the USPS? You've been refuted several times in this thread, but you keep repeating blatant falsehoods.

Cheyana 6y ago

I can counter that. Here in Arizona, I have sent packages probably a few dozen times in 20 years and have never had an issue, and the post office near where I work is busy almost all day with people sending things, so their problem might just be consistency across all sites. Some sites may not do enough business to support their staff while others may take in more than enough. Maybe they just need to reduce their footprint, and close underutilized sites.

Avicebron 6y ago

I think it's a slippery slope in eroding public services in favor of private corporations, instead of improving these systems we shouldn't let them die and allow monopolies to run rampant and become less and less competitive.

hendiatris 6y ago

Please provide more detail. I find the USPS to be one of the best things about this country. Every morning I get an email with photos of the mail I will receive, and a listing of the packages that are coming my way. I can’t remember the last time they’ve ever lost anything of mine. I’m sure not everyone’s experience is like mine - I’m curious how they can be so bad that they create a sense of loathing.

armitron 6y ago
As I said, regularly losing mail. Regularly misdelivering mail. A lot of effort to get someone to even acknowledge the problem or even myself. My mailbox stuffed with junk mail all the time (even if I have permanent sticker telling them not to do so). I've even talked to the USPS delivery person and told her not to do so. Next week, same issue. Rinse, repeat. I've never, ever, ever had a problem with Fedex or UPS. They've been 100% professional and everytime I had to interact with them either on the phone or in a store, I always got good service. With USPS, this was the rare exception rather than the rule.
- ZekeSulastin 6y ago
  Speaking from my anecdata on both the retail customer and business customer side, if you've never had a problem with a given carrier you are damned lucky and should probably go buy lottery tickets.
  - anfilt 6y ago
    I have lived in multiple places in the US, and never had problems with USPS. I have had troubles with Fedex, UPS, and DHL though.
- binsh 6y ago
  It sounds like you personally have a beef with your mail carrier(s) and/or your local post office. Which is fine, but that doesn't mean the entire system is broken. My experience has been overwhelmingly positive, and it's a little selfish of you to celebrate the destruction of a government program that a lot of people who don't make FAANG salaries depend on for medication and bill paying. Seriously, where is the compassion?

klyrs 6y ago

It's way worse in Canada. Similar arrangement where politicians love to gut its budget for short-term gains, and it lives in a weird category somewhere between business and utility. But delivery times (and reliability) are atrocious here in Canada. In the US, I mailed something to my mom across town, and she got it the same day that I put it in the mailbox. I rarely saw a letter delivery take more than 2-3 days. Here in Canada, it may take over a week to send mail in the same province. Takes over a month when my mom sends me a letter from the US. IMHO, they shouldn't get subsidies. They should be a public utility. They provide a necessary channel of communication between citizens and their goverment: taxes, passports, ballots, voter registration, etc. happen through USPS. In my experience (admittedly, I've been in Canada for a decade, so this is probably out of date) they've been much more reliable than any other shipping service, and I don't think any other private carrier does letter mail.

spfzero 6y ago

Just anecdote, but I probably mail about 100+ packages a year through USPS, about 40% to international addresses. Never had one fail to deliver. I always use USPS to ship, because it is reliable and the fees are reasonable. Also receive lots of documents, periodicals, and packages through USPS, never had a problem there either, always in the mailbox or right at the front door. Of course I'd like to skip the junk mail. USPS seems technically up-to-date as well, more or less. I can schedule pickups on-line, as well as buy and print postage. No complaints.