USPS Loosing Billions

In Susannah Hootman's article titled, "America the Inefficient," she explains how the USPS reported a 1.9 billion dollar loss this quarter. I had no idea that this old type of communication was becoming such a national money pit. Most of the way I communicate is though e-mails, texts, and phone calls.

While I like the internet more as a communication device, I can't help believe that my P.O. Box is a safer place to receive confidential information. I would not mind paying more for postage and P.O. box rental if it meant getting the USPS out of the red.

I feel that the USPS should be preserved. America has been using and spreading USPS since 1775. The system, set up by Benjamin Franklin, was one of the only government agencies explicitly authorized by the U.S. Constitution. It currently provides 8 million jobs, processes 158.4 billion mail-pieces a year, and handles 40% of the world's mail. I don't believe private corporations would be able to handle the mass amount of mail the USPS processes. Private carriers would have to spend a lot of money to match the infrastructure and employees of USPS.

In the end the only thing keeping the USPS in the red is Congress. They can't agree whether to prevent facility closures or to reform the USPS processing network. Either way disagreeing is just wasting time and money. Congress needs to quickly come together and decide how to resolve this situation.