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They have a literal monopoly on the deliver of letters. They have a monopoly on the use of mailboxes. Profitability is a gauge of efficiency, and the USPS is a

They have a literal monopoly on the deliver of letters. They have a monopoly on the use of mailboxes. Profitability is a gauge of efficiency, and the USPS is a funds incinerator. Having a monopoly on the delivery of letters should be a self sufficient operation. I'm for removal of the monopoly entirely. Most other countries like Japan, Germany, the UK, Netherlands, and others have privatised post with great success. There is no reason the government should continue to run it in the US.

kube-system 5y ago
You can deliver documents via for-profit couriers in the US. They're going to charge you profitable rates, though -- not necessarily rates that are accessible for poor citizens. Those countries you've listed that have privatized (or partially, in the case of some of them) are subject to strict regulations so that they continue to provide basic levels of service to keep their countries moving smoothly. If you want to see what Deutsche Post would do without those government regulations they're subject to domestically, look no further than the price to send a document across the US via DHL. The bottom line is, many of the mail services that countries need to operate smoothly are not profitable. The only difference between any of the mail services in any country on the planet is the mechanism by which the government forces them to provide those services.
- missedthecue 5y ago
  You cannot ship first class mail with anyone but the USPS in the US, and they are litigious about it. Yes, you can put documents into a large manila envelope, or in a parcel, but you cannot mail an envelope using FedEx or UPS.
  - kube-system 5y ago
    Even if FedEx did fold your 8.5x11 document into thirds, they still couldn't profitably send it across the country for 58 cents. Nor do any of those other privatized mail services in their smaller home countries.
    - missedthecue 5y ago
      Yes because the law mandates they charges higher rates than the USPS. If FedEx could sell first class mail (envelopes) in volume, they could do it profitably.
      - kube-system 5y ago
        Japan, Germany, the UK, Netherlands can’t do it either. They have higher rates than the USPS, smaller service areas, and beg regulators to let them charge more because they struggle to make it profitable.
- _-david-_ 5y ago
  >They're going to charge you profitable rates, They are legally required to charge more than the USPS. Even if they could charge less they couldn't legally do it. When a private company was allowed to compete it drove the price of stamps down until it was outlawed. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Letter_Mail_Company https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Letter_Mail_Company
  - kube-system 5y ago
    Yes, when the rates at the post office were ~16x higher than they are now, adjusted for inflation, it was possible for a private company to compete. But, the USPS doesn't charge $9.12 to send a letter from Boston to DC anymore.

kube-system 5y ago

You can deliver documents via for-profit couriers in the US. They're going to charge you profitable rates, though -- not necessarily rates that are accessible for poor citizens. Those countries you've listed that have privatized (or partially, in the case of some of them) are subject to strict regulations so that they continue to provide basic levels of service to keep their countries moving smoothly. If you want to see what Deutsche Post would do without those government regulations they're subject to domestically, look no further than the price to send a document across the US via DHL. The bottom line is, many of the mail services that countries need to operate smoothly are not profitable. The only difference between any of the mail services in any country on the planet is the mechanism by which the government forces them to provide those services.

missedthecue 5y ago
You cannot ship first class mail with anyone but the USPS in the US, and they are litigious about it. Yes, you can put documents into a large manila envelope, or in a parcel, but you cannot mail an envelope using FedEx or UPS.
- kube-system 5y ago
  Even if FedEx did fold your 8.5x11 document into thirds, they still couldn't profitably send it across the country for 58 cents. Nor do any of those other privatized mail services in their smaller home countries.
  - missedthecue 5y ago
    Yes because the law mandates they charges higher rates than the USPS. If FedEx could sell first class mail (envelopes) in volume, they could do it profitably.
    - kube-system 5y ago
      Japan, Germany, the UK, Netherlands can’t do it either. They have higher rates than the USPS, smaller service areas, and beg regulators to let them charge more because they struggle to make it profitable.
_-david-_ 5y ago
>They're going to charge you profitable rates, They are legally required to charge more than the USPS. Even if they could charge less they couldn't legally do it. When a private company was allowed to compete it drove the price of stamps down until it was outlawed. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Letter_Mail_Company https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Letter_Mail_Company
- kube-system 5y ago
  Yes, when the rates at the post office were ~16x higher than they are now, adjusted for inflation, it was possible for a private company to compete. But, the USPS doesn't charge $9.12 to send a letter from Boston to DC anymore.