Mailing Systems Technology - May/June 2008 - (Page 8) Peer to Peer BY MARK FALLON Don’t Privatize Our United States Postal Service! Declining mail volumes. The rise of the Internet. An unstable economy. The postal rate hike. Each of these factors is a challenge for the USPS. Combined, they create a struggling environment for the USPS to accomplish its mission in a fiscally responsible manner. Tough times. Critics declare that these tough times signal the death knell for mail delivery as we know it. Think tanks, politicians and columnists declare universal service and six-day delivery of the mail need to be re-examined. And the calls for privatization seem to clang louder and more frequently. The arguments for privatization usually are based on the changes in technology, the privatization of other countries’ posts, the belief that private companies can meet consumers’ needs better and that government monopolies are bad for a free market economy. These arguments are weak, and even as a whole, they remain unconvincing. The technology argument is usually centered on the rise of the Internet, email and electronic commerce. While electronic payments have impacted First-Class Mail, the “doomsday” predictions of 25% or 50% decreases in mail volumes aren’t even close. Instead, First-Class Mail volumes have only declined at about 1.5% a year. It’s a mistake to look at the Internet as a “replacement” technology. The Internet has added to the volume of messages we send and receive, not just replaced old messaging we received through the mail, the telephone and television. Savvy marketers distinguish themselves by using mail to drive users to their stores and websites. Many privatization advocates point to the global trend of privatizing postal services, using Great Britain and Germany as examples. Well, to paraphrase Michael Keaton in the movie, The Paper, “I don’t live in the world; I live in the United States.” (Note: numerous swears omitted.) And my comment isn’t some xenophobic rant. While boundaries may have changed, Europe was settled long before letter writing existed and posts became necessary. The expansion of the US was helped by the integrated expansion of the USPS and its services. From colonial post 8 MAY-JUNE 2008 | WWW.MAILINGSYSTEMSTECHNOLOGY.COM http://www.renausa.com http://www.renausa.com http://www.mailingsystemstechnology.com Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Mailing Systems Technology - May/June 2008 Mailing Systems Technology - May/June 2008 Contents Editor’s Note Peer to Peer It’s an Inside Job Greening Your Mail Center Adopting an Automated Document Factory Intelligent Mail and Address Quality 7 Steps to Combat “Do Not Mail” A Successful Resolution Q&A with Dan G. Blair, Chairman, Postal Regulatory Commission The Intelligent Mail Barcode Developing High-Performance Teams Simple Strategies to Save You Money A Powerful Social Network With Change, Comes Opportunity Increasing the Deliverability of Mail Kate’s Slate Products & Services People of Distinction Advertiser Index Sho Time Mailing Systems Technology - May/June 2008 http://www.nxtbookMEDIA.com
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