First-Class Stamp to Rise To 39 Cents

[Eugene]

First-Class Stamp to Rise To 39 Cents

Bloomberg News
Tuesday, November 15, 2005; Page A04

The U.S. Postal Service board of governors approved a rate increase
that will boost the price of mailing a first-class letter to 39 cents
from 37 cents starting Jan. 8.

Overall, rates will rise by 5.4 percent, the Postal Service said in a
news release.

<snip>

More: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/14/AR2005111401442.html

[SteppingRazor]

1. Any reason why we still need mail?

All I get these days is magazines and junk mail.

[Ilsa]

5. Well, for some people, using the mail is easier than

other means. I have clients who pay me via a check in the mail every month. Some people are reluctant to give out credit card info, and i can't blame them.

But i get your drift. I'm getting ready to start doing more bill paying online.

[SteppingRazor]

6. Yeah, but not me...

I feel like Cramer in that one Seinfeld episode. I want to just go to the post office and say, "I want out!"

[Ilsa]

8. Yeah, I'm sick of sorting through the trash in my mailbox

in order to get to the letters, bills, and payments.

[SteppingRazor]

10. Letters = e-mail. Bills = paid online. Payment = direct deposit...

Like I said, I get nothing but magazines and junk mail. It's almost like the mailman shows up at my door and says, "Here's some magazines. Oh, and could you throw out all this crap for me?"

[lakercub]

23. an additional problem

I give quite a bit to charity, but that has gotten me on every charity mailing list in the world. I get upwards of 80 charity requests a week now. I can paper my wall with the address labels they've sent me (I can damn near paper ALL my wallls). These charitites send so many freebies like address labels, stickers, notepads, magnets, and so forth that my mailbox is often too full to close.

Don't get me wrong, I like address labels, but this has gotten out of hand. Plus, I assume these charitites send this stuff to others so they seem to spend more than they should on this. I would just as soon they spend the money on the charitable endeavor itself.

[lumpy]

24. Doesn't anyone send Xmas cards

anymore? E-mails greetings just don't hack it.

[lakercub]

26. I get those by the gross from charities too n/m

[eowyn_of_rohan]

62. and what about birthday cards?

And I kind of miss getting letters in the mail, and writing back at my leisure (say within 2-3 weeks). Now there is this pressure to respond right away to everyone via email, and it just adds to the daily pressures! Also its sad there will be very little record of people's correspondence for future generations...

[goclark]

15. Life is so much easier when bills are pd. directly from

the checking account.

It is impossible to locate the bills from the junk mail.

Is there any website that will take you from the junk mail?

[Occulus]

17. I'd like to point out that if the USPS did not

subsidize the mass mailing industry, the rate would not be rising.

[Megahurtz]

61. Of course the price of oil isn't helping,

it takes a lot of gas to fill up those delivery vehicles.

[Captain Hilts]

42. Bulk Mail rates have actually gone DOWN. nt

[lumpy]

22. No bills?

nt

[LeftyMom]

25. birthday cards and such?

E-cards really aren't the same as something that's been in the hands of somebody you love and has thier writing on it.

[lumpy]

28. I am old fashioned about that also.

Love the e-mail greetings but it's not quite like getting the personal envelope and the lovely card enclosed. I have saved greeting cards for many years, boxes full. The family kids will have fun reading them and will appreciate the memories enclosed. Photographs and memories.

[Squatch]

30. It's kinda hard to e-mail Christmas presents

[earth mom]

34. Shipped any packages lately?

It's way cheaper than Fedex or UPS. The rethugs want to privatize the USPS and we should all be fighting it because we will be the ones that are screwed with higher prices.

NO ONE will be willing to ship a letter or package cheaper than the USPS.

And BTW, the USPS is self supporting, meaning you pay no taxes into it. :)

[stevedeshazer]

54. DING

There it is.

[Megahurtz]

56. And THERE you have it!

:applause:

[Captain Hilts]

43. A paper letter is better than an e-mail.

And if you really want to get people's attention, that's what you use.

[henslee]

47. Analog mail is bitchin'. Getting mail is bitchin'. Junk mail aint bitchin.

[manic expression]

50. One I know of

is that if someone wants to contact someone where there is very little internet access (i.e. the 3rd world), regular mail is usually the best.

[leQ]

2. why don't they jus go to $0.40 and make it easier on everybody? (eom)

[underpants]

3. No idea. People would actually go for that I'd bet

What am I saying people just want to blame the government for all their problems.

[BlueJazz]

7. leQ..I know what you mean. I've wondered that myself...

..I mean, just raise the damn price to 40 cents and in a year or two raise it to 45 , then 50....etc..etc..
This constant 2 and 3 cent increase is just ridiculous

[NV Whino]

13. There was discussion about this a couple of weeks ago

I believe there is a limit on how much they can raise at any one time. Like 2 cents is the limit?

[bigworld]

19. You can buy 40c stamps if you really want to

... I'm sure the USPS doesn't mind.

[Captain Hilts]

44. YES! Forty cents would be better! nt

[Mizmoon]

4. It's still a bargain for the service

IMHO

[katmondoo]

9. For mailing packages the Post Office is still better

and cheaper than UPS or Fed X. If you need overnight, it will arrive on time.

[catabryna]

11. Completely agree...

and it's also a source of those truly middle class jobs that some are still lucky to have. Oddly enough, I send e-mail on line, but don't pay bills online because I want those folks to keep their jobs. Sort of like I don't use the self-service check out lines.

[NV Whino]

14. Don't worry.

All my responses to Publishers Clearing House sweepstakes will keep the post office in business.

:)

[catabryna]

20. Heehee!

I've been known to add just a little extra weight to those postage pre-paid envelopes and return them if justified by the idiocy of the group in sending it to me in the first place. I'm sure your contribution is appreciated as well! O8)

[lumpy]

29. Oh good grief yes.

I get a couple of mailers from PCH on a daily basis. I confess I'm a PCH junky. One of these days my sinfull hobby might pay off nd I will donate a bunch of money to my favorite Democrat candidate.

[Redstone]

12. 39 cents to cart a letter all the way acros the country?

I'd certainly call that a bargain.

And $3.85 for the Priority Mail flat-rate envelope (anything that will fit, regardless of weight) can't be beat.

And all of it's MUCH better than dealing with UPS's rigamarole.

Redstone

[Tesha]

21. There's actually a weight limit, but it's very high.

Something like 3 lbs for the first $3.85. So unless you're mailing
lead sheets around, you'd probably never hit it with the Priority
Mail envelope (although you hit it often with the Priority Mail
boxes).

Tesha

[wildcat78]

63. Post Office Box

Can't beat the price of a Post Office Box for $38/year. Mail is secure and my nosy neighbors aren't reading it!

[4_Legs_Good]

18. Absolutely agreed

The US mail is awesome.

david

[lumpy]

27. Bargain, yes. I trust my own bookkeeping

more than some computer idiot on the other end. Paper only burns, computers crash. I know of too many people who are burned when the computer crashes and they have no record backup system.

[Dora]

16. Any mail experts here? This makes me so effing mad.

I really want to know why in the hell don't they just raise the commercial mail bulk rates?

I'm sick and fucking tired of filling my recyling bin day after day after day with nothing but the garbage that is MAILED to me from loan sharks and credit thieves. These assholes pay significantly less per piece only because they're sending out brazillions of pieces across the entire goddamn city/state/country... yet they create more work for the carriers, the facilities, put a bigger burden on our local waste processing, etc. GAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH.

I swear, sometimes I think somebody is trying to kill the P.O.

[llmart]

31. You can greatly reduce your junk mail.....

by writing a letter to the Direct Mail Marketing company (I can't remember their exact name and address - I believe it's in NY somewhere)asking to be removed from all lists. Also, when you get an unsolicited piece of mail with a self-addressed stamped envelope, load up the envelope with the junk they sent you and send it back and write "please remove this name and address from your mailing lists." Then they have to pay the postage and they have to get rid of the junk mail.

[Dora]

36. Thank you very much for the tip.

Though I still think it's a travesty that the direct-mail marketers pay a pittance to send something that's nothing more than an annoyance and a burden, whereas individuals have to pay more and more and more each year to conduct real business.

[freestyle]

39. The Direct Marketing Association, I think.

They have a website. This does eliminate a huge amount of the junk mail. You can also write to one of the credit bureaus to stop those solicitations. The Center for a New American Dream, at newdream.org , has a stop junk section with forms to fill out, print, and send off. I did it. The letter carrier and the environment will thank you.

[imperialismispasse]

40. A relative had bad luck with that

She did that where you return the junk mail to them. She ended up getting MORE junk mail and couldnt figure out why. She then found out (from a friend of the family who works in the industry) that even though the companies had complied to her "take me of your list" request they had actually turned around and sold her name to other mass marketing lists, and they even got more money for her name because she had proven it was a valid address. She believes at this point the best thing to do is ignore it.

[llmart]

60. Well, I can tell you that I have virtually eliminated......

all junk mail. It's not the only thing I do - when I get a piece of unsolicited mail or a catalog I didn't request, I just call the 800 number and ask to be taken off their lists. I don't have my address printed on my checks. Never fill out those warranty cards that come with appliances, etc.

I can't remember the name of it, but about 10 years ago I purchased a little pamphlet on how to stop most junk mail. I followed all the steps and now I get almost none.

[lumpy]

32. Geez, I'm glad I have other pressing business

to take care of instead of worrying about my recycle barrel.

[Dora]

33. Gosh, isn't that nice!

:eyes:

[lumpy]

38. I like it.

nt

[Dora]

46. Apparently...

...there's no business so pressing it can't be put aside so that you can make unnecessarily snarky remarks.

I and your well-rested recycling bin are all the better for it.

[bigworld]

35. mail expert here...

... the USPS rates are based on how much work the mailer does before it hits the mail system. If you have everything sorted and barcoded, there's very little the post office has to do manually before it reaches the addressee. Hence, the big discounts.

Whereas if they have to manually read an address, enter the zip+4, cancel the stamp, etc -- it costs them more. And you more.

Not defending the practice... just 'splaining.

You can get less junk mail by contacting the DMA as well as the three credit agencies and tell them to put a no-solicitation clause in your credit report. I did that and might get perhaps one offer every three weeks. My wife, who hasn't done that, must get one or two a day.

[Dora]

37. Wow. That's very useful!

On one level, I know all that about pre-sorting, etc. I used to process bulk mailings at a former job.

I guess I think they "deserve" higher postal rates than they pay because they're so annoying. Consider it a "Solicitation & Horrid Waste of Paper Tax," if you will.

[MGKrebs]

66. The ones I hate are the 'value shopper' things.

It's a bunch of loose sheets, and the postage is printed on a separate card, which usually has a missing kid's picture on it. I suppose that's how they get the usps to buy into the program, but I'm sure the Postal Service would let me send a bunch of loose pieces of paper in the mail with a completely separate piece of paper indicating the postage paid. Not.

[Captain Hilts]

41. Does this mean postal employees will be polite?

The folks working in the post offices near me are so incredibly rude. And my standards aren't high, I've lived in Russia and Canada.

[Bridget Burke]

48. I had a good experience with my Post Office substation.

A package arriving from an eBay seller didn't appear. But it was scheduled to arrive during the Hurricane Rita/Evacuation period--quite understandable. The seller said it had arrived in Houston, so I called the substation with my info. He took my number & called right back. The package was insured, so I had to come & sign for it.

The next Saturday was the only time I could make the trip. They said the package should have been sent back, but they kept looking. They found it! And the fragile contents were in perfect shape.

I pay most bills online now. But I can't recall an unpleasant encounter with a Post Office employee.

[JI7]

51. all the ones i have come across are very kind

[Captain Hilts]

57. The mail carriers/couriers are great! The folks behind the desk at...

the post office are terrible! They're really rude.

This is Arlington Road in Chevy Chase.

I've dealt with really nice postal folks in Va. Beach and Utica, NY. But not in Maryland!

[OldLeftieLawyer]

45. I am so old,

I remember three cents as postage for a letter.

Penny postcards, too.

I love the feel of a fountain pen in my hand, writing checks, paying bills, entering the amounts. That's how I've always done it and I never minded.

I love the different stamps - the latest "Muppet" collection is wonderful. When I was a kid, I collected stamps.

But, this hike in rates is the final straw. Funny how you never know a line's even there until it's been crossed.

Everything has been switched over to online payments. The romance of the fountain pen and the stamps will be saved for personal letters, and those, I refuse to give up.

We still have a great bargain in the Postal Service, don't get me wrong. It's just that this party has ended for OldLeftieLawyer.

[SoCalDem]

53. Me too. My aunt used to give me a $5 bill and send me to the Post Office

A roll of 100 stamps, and the other $2 was for Meeeeeeeeee...:)

[slackmaster]

49. Another good reason to pay as many bills as possible online

Electronic banking rocks! So does Internet shopping.

:yourock:

[SoCalDem]

52. Raise Junk mail rates to a DOLLAR and regualr mail to 50 cents

and quit wasting money raising them a penny here and penny there..

Most people call or email these days anyway..

[Polemonium]

55. Hey a hour at minimum wage now buys approx 11 stamps

Too bad minimum wage has not gone up in eight years, but hey 88 stamps a day ain't bad, right. :banghead:

[JitterbugPerfume]

58. i have switched

enough is enough

I think I am the last hold-out in mt family

[Megahurtz]

59. Here Ya Go!!!.........

Whining about junk mail?:nopity:

Need to keep warm this winter?

Well then do something constructive about it Lol!

Turn all of that junk mail and newspaper into logs!!!:

http://www.greenshop.co.uk/catalogue/0506/Household.pdf

So you are getting free utilities (fuel to burn) and keeping the Postal Workers employed!
(Believe me, they don't complain about that junk mail, it keeps food on the table)

It's a win for everyone!!!:7

[seattlemetal]

64. I'll happily pay it...

isnt the PO still the only Fed agency that is self supporting? anything to keep it from becoming otherwise is cool by me....

[NYdemocrat089]

65. They hsould just make stamps $0.40.

It would be easier on everyone, and I doubt most people would care.

[MGKrebs]

67. I hope they keep making stamps like this: