USPS needs to to be gutted. Yes, I've come around and I hate this agency.

[CrimsonNagus]

Yes, I am ranting. Yes, I am mad. Right now, if a pollster called, I would side with Trump on the USPS; it needs to be gutted or privatized because it sucks.

The people who work there are lazy bums who refuse to do their jobs. My daughter starts her senior year of high school this week, their senior trip is to Italy and France, so we need to get the ball rolling on a Passport. So I go online to USPS.com and schedule an appointment for last Wednesday @ 8 am. We show up at 7:50 am, 8 am comes and goes, and no one is there. A worker finally shows up around 8:1,5 but takes another 5 minutes to open the doors.

We are then told that the employee who processes passport applications only works on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. The website mentions none of this, which allows you to make appointments for any day of the week except Sundays (yes, according to the website, you can schedule appointments on Saturdays). I leave while angrily telling the employee that maybe they should let the web admins know the crappy hours this lazy Federal employee has, so the website can reflect the actual times they work.

So, I get home and we make another appointment for this morning. We also need a photo taken, which the USPS website says can be done at this location. Get there, and this lazy bum says he doesn't do pictures at all.

I'm done. I hate this organization. Fire them all and hire people who want to do the stupid job. I don't care if the current admin tries to gut this place; they deserve the hate they get.

 

[Its On A Slab]

I have a running fight with my trash collection. I live on a cul-de-sac, and the garbage truck drivers routinely deposit the empty cans in the street. I have tried to get this addressed by the waste authority, but nothing ever gets done.

Which gets me to the postal service. If a can might make the mailman negotiate around it, he will just drive by the mailbox without even hitting the brakes. I've caught him doing it while reviewing the security cameras. Further, he's so lazy that he will attach a heavy box to the flag on my mailbox rather than getting out of the truck and depositing it on my porch. One day, he's going to break the flag.

 

[4Q Basket Case]

Yes, I am ranting. Yes, I am mad. Right now, if a pollster called, I would side with Trump on the USPS; it needs to be gutted or privatized because it sucks.

The people who work there are lazy bums who refuse to do their jobs. My daughter starts her senior year of high school this week, their senior trip is to Italy and France, so we need to get the ball rolling on a Passport. So I go online to USPS.com and schedule an appointment for last Wednesday @ 8 am. We show up at 7:50 am, 8 am comes and goes, and no one is there. A worker finally shows up around 8:1,5 but takes another 5 minutes to open the doors.

We are then told that the employee who processes passport applications only works on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. The website mentions none of this, which allows you to make appointments for any day of the week except Sundays (yes, according to the website, you can schedule appointments on Saturdays). I leave while angrily telling the employee that maybe they should let the web admins know the crappy hours this lazy Federal employee has, so the website can reflect the actual times they work.

So, I get home and we make another appointment for this morning. We also need a photo taken, which the USPS website says can be done at this location. Get there, and this lazy bum says he doesn't do pictures at all.

I'm done. I hate this organization. Fire them all and hire people who want to do the stupid job. I don't care if the current admin tries to gut this place; they deserve the hate they get.

I don't disagree with the lack of respect for the USPS.

But what would you replace it with, how would it be different from what we have now, and how would you handle the transition?

Also, just FYI, Triple-A / AAA / the American Automobile Association does passport pictures on the spot. Usually no line.

 

[75thru79]

I don't disagree with the lack of respect for the USPS.

But what would you replace it with, how would it be different from what we have now, and how would you handle the transition?

Also, just FYI, Triple-A / AAA / the American Automobile Association does passport pictures on the spot. Usually no line.

Where are you supposed to find an AAA office? Staples and Office Depot take passport photos, as does the Mailboxes store. I'm sure there are plenty of places that do as well.

 

[jthomas666]

CVS also does passport photos. Thet's where we went for my youngest's photo when the guy at the post office told us their camera was broken. He's also the one who told us to go to CVS.

My main beef with the USPS is that mail is frequently delivered to the wrong mailbox. One time a LARGE package (it was a mattress) was left on our neighbor's porch, even though

1. Our address was written in sharpie on four sides of the box
2. All the houses on our street have the street number on the porch.

Another big annoyance is that the phone number to the local post offices isn't readily available--if you try to look it up online, you just get the national number. Five years ago my new phone was put in the wrong mailbox (we have those apartment-like mailbox islands). Since I couldn't get through to the actual post office, I had to drive over to explain the situation.

I will give them credit though--once I explained the situation, one of the postal workers drove right over and got me my phone.

 

[Tidewater]

Yes, I am ranting. Yes, I am mad. Right now, if a pollster called, I would side with Trump on the USPS; it needs to be gutted or privatized because it sucks.

The people who work there are lazy bums who refuse to do their jobs. My daughter starts her senior year of high school this week, their senior trip is to Italy and France, so we need to get the ball rolling on a Passport. So I go online to USPS.com and schedule an appointment for last Wednesday @ 8 am. We show up at 7:50 am, 8 am comes and goes, and no one is there. A worker finally shows up around 8:1,5 but takes another 5 minutes to open the doors.

We are then told that the employee who processes passport applications only works on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. The website mentions none of this, which allows you to make appointments for any day of the week except Sundays (yes, according to the website, you can schedule appointments on Saturdays). I leave while angrily telling the employee that maybe they should let the web admins know the crappy hours this lazy Federal employee has, so the website can reflect the actual times they work.

So, I get home and we make another appointment for this morning. We also need a photo taken, which the USPS website says can be done at this location. Get there, and this lazy bum says he doesn't do pictures at all.

I'm done. I hate this organization. Fire them all and hire people who want to do the stupid job. I don't care if the current admin tries to gut this place; they deserve the hate they get.

What's funny is that Lysander Spooner (a nineteenth century abolitionist left libertarian) tried to start a private postal service (kind of like 1800s version of FedEx), but the Federal government shut him down.

 

[Tidewater]

Like with many government employees, the Sword of Damocles (termination for inefficiency) does not hang over postal employees. It is extremely difficult to terminate a federal employee.
One illustrative anecdote on the other side is that equation. Amazon prides itself on hiring veterans. But it turns out career military guys have a bad track record working at Amazon. The work is too demanding, the pace of work too breathless. They tend to not last long and end up quitting after a while. In the private business world, the Sword of Damocles does hang over employees.

 

[TIDE-HSV]

Over the 40 years I've been at this address, We've had uncommonly good luck with carriers and even with their subs. One long-term carrier originally lived far out to the north (Hazel Green, for those familiar with HSV), but moved up here and retired for medical reasons. He recently passed, mourned by all, the entire mountain community. The only problem with him was that, unless you had 20 minutes to burn, you didn't want his bringing a package to the door. Once, after he'd told me that USPS tracked them every minute, I asked if he wouldn't get into trouble, talking so long. He said he'd get a phone call after 10 minutes, but he didn't give a damn. We had one clinker for about 5 years, who refused to memorize names, only numbers, causing many mis-deliveries. He told my neighbor he had service-related disabilities adding up to more than 100%, all mental. And he used that to leverage the job with USPS and also to get this very desirable route. (It's popular among carriers because it's so much cooler than the valley routes.)

 

[TIDE-HSV]

Like with many government employees, the Sword of Damocles (termination for inefficiency) does not hang over postal employees. It is extremely difficult to terminate a federal employee.
One illustrative anecdote on the other side is that equation. Amazon prides itself on hiring veterans. But it turns out career military guys have a bad track record working at Amazon. The work is too demanding, the pace of work too breathless. They tend to not last long and end up quitting after a while. In the private business world, the Sword of Damocles does hang over employees.

See my post about our weird vet carrier...

 

[4Q Basket Case]

Where are you supposed to find an AAA office? Staples and Office Depot take passport photos, as does the Mailboxes store. I'm sure there are plenty of places that do as well.

They're in most decent-sized cities. Even Tuscaloosa has one.

If you don't live in a place that has a AAA nearby, from the posts above, it looks like there are lots of other options.

The point is that USPS is no longer the only game in town for passport photos.

And yeah, Tidewater, I didn't know about Mr. Spooner's attempt in the 1800s, but I do remember that UPS and FedEx had some legal troubles early on for similar reasons.

 

[CrimsonJazz]

If Amazon didn't still use the USPS, I wouldn't have a use for them at all. I pay literally all my bills online; the only mail I get are adverts and circulars that I don't even look at.

 

[Its On A Slab]

Well, since he didn't go, there's stilll a removal from office the Blues owe the Reds




My condolences.



And that's why it's estimated that about 1/7 of the Sanders vote went to Trump and made him President.

Btw, you know what never gets mentioned when everyone looks at 2016?
1) Sanders beat Hillary in Michigan (barely, but he did)
2) Sanders beat Hillary in Wisconsin (by 13.5 points)

Had Hillary beaten Trump in those two states - even without PA - she would have beaten him in the Electoral College.

Everyone fixates on the 3 states, but it was 2 she lost in the primaries that had she won, she'd have been President.

If Amazon didn't still use the USPS, I wouldn't have a use for them at all. I pay literally all my bills online; the only mail I get are adverts and circulars that I don't even look at.

My wife keeps all that useless junk mail, refusing to throw anything away for weeks. Hates it when I dump the 99.99% of the daily mail in recycling.

On more than one occasion, I've had a late bill notice due to this "efficiency". Buried in that pile of extended warranty and internet provider ads.

 

[CrimsonJazz]

My wife keeps all that useless junk mail, refusing to throw anything away for weeks. Hates it when I dump the 99.99% of the daily mail in recycling.

On more than one occasion, I've had a late bill notice due to this "efficiency". Buried in that pile of extended warranty and internet provider ads.

This right here is exactly why I go paperless. It's better for the environment and I don't have to worry about a bill getting lost.

 

[mdb-tpet]

This is exactly what some in the GOP have been working toward for decades. Starve a formerly great agency of resources until it's nearly non-functional, then swoop in with a private equity group to purchase the agency at bargain basement prices. Then slowly increase the cost of the products until the new owners are filthy rich.

 

[CrimsonJazz]

This is exactly what some in the GOP have been working toward for decades. Starve a formerly great agency of resources until it's nearly non-functional, then swoop in with a private equity group to purchase the agency at bargain basement prices. Then slowly increase the cost of the products until the new owners are filthy rich.

No, their revenue has continued to slide due to declines in first class and marketing mail. From 2015-2024, they have lost $78.7 B. The demand continues to drop, but the office is failing to adjust. Frankly, the best thing for it would be for a corporation who knows how to NOT lose their asses to take over. The obvious problem here is that I can't imagine anyone wanting to take over with all the pre-funded retiree healthcare costs they would be stuck with, not to mention a union almost as crooked as the NEA. Nope, don't look for corporate America to bail out this loser. Someone might prove me wrong one day, but I doubt it's anytime soon.

 

[Its On A Slab]

This right here is exactly why I go paperless. It's better for the environment and I don't have to worry about a bill getting lost.

Yeah, I am paperless for the most part. It's the random new bills, medical, etc.

I think my practice of only keeping the essential mail trumps keeping piles of useless crap to go thru.

 

[75thru79]

I too have had numerous problems with the USPS, mainly the delivery times around the holidays, but they are stuck between a rock and a hard place. Unlike UPS and Fedex, they can't just decide not to serve the unprofitable routes. They have to serve every house, pretty much every day, by law.

 

[BamaFanatJSU]

If Amazon didn't still use the USPS, I wouldn't have a use for them at all. I pay literally all my bills online; the only mail I get are adverts and circulars that I don't even look at.

This. 100%. The only things we get in the mail that aren't junk are Prime boxes.

That said, at least my USPS carrier gets my house right. The same can't be said for virtually all of the Walmart Delivery drivers that service our neighborhood.

 

[CrimsonNagus]

They ended up going to Walgreens to get a photo and went back to the post office to finish the paperwork.

I'm still amazed that this guy only works 3 days a week (according to the employee I got mad at last week), and yet the website lets you book appointments for six days a week. Just ask IT to block the days he doesn't work. Instead, they just slap a note on the door, assuming that fixes the inconveniences of people driving out thinking they have an appointment.

I've got to turn in my passport paperwork in the next month or so, and I've decided to give the circuit court office a chance to suck. Not going back to USPS.

 

[VirginiaTide57]

I own a printing company and I’ve been mailing all sorts of materials for 38 years. God knows the USPS is not perfect, and I don’t know their efficiency rate or deliverability stats, but sometimes UPS or FEDEX are not much better. It all hinges on that individual who touches your mail, and they don’t hire the best and the brightest. But to get a sense of how the mail travels, I suggest visiting a sorting facility. It’s mind blowing to see mail sorted at 40,000 pieces an hour . . . taking into consideration the hand writing on some letters.
The two organizations I want excellence are the medical profession and airline pilots. With everyone else I just hope for “good” service.