Our postal system is under attack, and we need to speak out to save it
Sometime in my early youth I began collecting postage stamps. I’d cut them off the envelopes and soak them to remove the paper. My dad started bringing envelopes home from the office. Others, mostly relatives, learned about my interest and supplied more stamps, sometimes including exotic images from faraway places.
Studying stamps opened windows for me to the geography, people and histories of many nations. And I am an art collector since wonderful miniature art is often found on stamps.
Through stamp collecting I learned that certain things we see as essentially American are in fact universally celebrated. In 1976 most nations issued stamps commemorating the American Revolution, which is actually regarded elsewhere as a great human achievement. The same goes for Apollo 11, commemorated on stamps issued throughout the world as a great step for all mankind, and President Kennedy’s assassination, regarded as a global tragedy.
Not surprisingly, collecting stamps has led to a lifetime interest in the postal system itself. Our U.S. Postal Service began before there was a United States. Founded by Benjamin Franklin, its purpose was to create a reliable communication system and an informed citizenry in the 13 colonies.
The postal system was explicitly identified in the U.S. Constitution as a federal responsibility. Congress soon established what we now call the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) and through various political eras and service changes, the USPS has continued and expanded. In the 1840s, stamps (prepaid postage) were introduced. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, the universal postal service was introduced, including rural free delivery.
The mandate that the USPS provide universal service at a reasonable price has played a vital role in unifying Americans of all areas and persuasions. Wherever you live, you have postal service available. Really, it’s a miracle that you can put a 55-cent stamp on an envelope and professionals will deliver that letter anywhere within the USPS system, including to some overseas Americans.
And, for only $1.20, you can send a letter to anywhere in the world. That’s because since 1874 the nations of the world have been linked through the Universal Postal Union, providing reliable and inexpensive postal delivery worldwide, from Antarctica to Zambia, Vanuatu to Malta.
For months, many businesses have been shut and we have been living in isolation, greatly limiting our away-from-home activities. But not the postal service. Six days a week my letter carrier faithfully drives down the road, delivering mail and packages. No work from home for postal workers!
But, unfortunately, the USPS is under significant financial stress. The shutdown has greatly reduced the volume of commercial mail which means reduced revenue while expenses have stayed about the same. The USPS needs federal support funding just as much as any other threatened business. But it’s also different – it’s our business.
Some federal politicians (mostly Republicans), seeking to take advantage of the emergency, refuse to consider support funding and want the USPS to fail and be replaced by competing private businesses. Can you imagine that? Our postal system, a vital part of our identity as a unified nation, under attack.
The House of Representatives’ most recent coronavirus relief bill includes funding to keep the USPS alive, but the Senate is balking. We need to let our elected federal officials know we want our USPS to remain strong and continue to be an important part of our everyday lives.
And finally, these stay-at-home times are ideal for a young person to begin the wonderful life-long hobby of stamp collecting. The USPS has beginning stamp collecting kits and almost any stamp collector would be happy to provide guidance and, possibly, a beginner’s stamp album and stamps.
George Walter is the Nisqually Indian Tribe’s environmental program manager and is a member of The Olympian’s 2020 Board of Contributors. He may be reached at gwalter5665@gmail.com