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Post by Icctrombone on Aug 14, 2020 13:43:23 GMT -5
Green rabbits lives matter.
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Post by Prince Hal on Aug 14, 2020 16:37:37 GMT -5
I was trying to convey (poorly), that there are area-specific issues on top of the general slowdown. I don't know how the mail is running in other areas. I do know that every non-Amazon package I have had for the past six weeks has taken noticeably longer, and even when they follow the same path, once I get the update that the package has left Dallas and is headed to the next facility (and that facility is Shreveport) if it's Amazon it is here the following day or day after that, and if it's not Amazon it'll be at least two weeks. And it is always a mail carrier bringing them. My understading was Amazon isn't using local facilities just the distibution/hubs (not sure what they're called). Okay. UPS, Fedex and Amazon drop off pallets of parcels to our station every work day. The truth is that the USPS delivers to every mailing address every day. Every neighborhood. None of the other delivery services do that nor want to do that. I also see that parcels are taking longer to get to their destination. A few months ago, it was explained to me that some facilities were closed because of the people calling in sick and parcels were being rerouted. But next time you get a first class parcel or priority parcel, look at the postmark. Those are arriving quickly as far as I can see. Yet another reason the USPS is the biggest bargain in the world. Thanks for everything you do, icc! |
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Post by Icctrombone on Aug 14, 2020 17:43:33 GMT -5
Thanks PH. I wasn't trying to toot my own horn...  |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 14, 2020 18:05:53 GMT -5
Thanks PH. I wasn't trying to toot my own horn... I had this discussion about Royal Mail - and how people’s perception of its price is all relative. A first-class stamp here costs 70 pence. Now, if I want to post a letter to a woman 3/4 of a mile away, 70 pence might seem high. However, if I want to post it from my home to an an address in the Shetlands, that’s a journey that is nearly 600 miles. 70 pence in that case is a bargain! I visited the Outer Hebrides years ago. I saw some Royal Mail vans. And I saw them when I visited the south coast of England. It reminded me of how ubiquitous postal workers are. Although we don’t give it much thought, it’s damn impressive that I can put a letter in a postbox (there is a postbox right by my home) - and posties will get that letter to wherever it needs to go, whether it be my aunt 11 miles away or the Shetlands. All I have to do is put it in an envelope and affix a stamp to it. Wow! I don’t like to get political, but some rules are meant to be broken. The US president doesn’t know the value of the USPS (I guess he sees everything via monetary terms). Here in the UK, none of our parties have ever appreciated Royal Mail. They take it for granted. The people take it for granted. But here’s the challenge: if the USPS and Royal Mail went on strike for four weeks, well by the end of week one, the masses would be begging - begging - for them to return. Some I have spoken to have mentioned competitors. Yes, Whistl and UPS (to name two) are perfect if you want to send an exercise bike to someone in another town. For the big stuff, they work. But Whistl and UPS would have zero interest in delivering (even if they could) a letter to John Smith who lives in a rural part of Wales. The universal service that USPS and Royal Mail provide is a good one. And one we’d miss. On a final note, I don’t have a link to hand, but the NEW YORKER did some good articles about the USPS recently, touching on some points I’ve raised. |
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Roquefort Raider
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Modus omnibus in rebus
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Aug 14, 2020 18:09:14 GMT -5
Here in the UK, Royal Mail is an underrated and undervalued service. Like the US, they have a requirement to deliver to every address, from Cornish cities to the Shetlands. No other courier could or would do that. However, some couriers, such as Whistl, do drop off parcels and letters at Royal Mail depots. People will only miss Royal Mail and the USPS once they’re gone. And ignorant oafs in elected offices have never really cared about such services, I guess they aren’t “glamorous” enough to warrant any kind of lobbying, nor are there any votes in defending such vital and under-appreciated services. It’s a shame. I am always amazed when buying a book from someone in the U.K... It always arrives here faster than if it had been shipped from my own province! |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 14, 2020 18:13:13 GMT -5
Incidentally, Royal Mail were fined £1.5m recently by OFCOM for failing to deliver 93% of mail the day after it was posted (in 2019).
I’m not sure how we benefit from a great postal institution being fined. Where does the money go? No doubt into politicians’ greedy hands. But the 93% is a target. A target, by definition, is an objective by which we direct our energy. It isn’t a “contract” set in stone. Quite frankly, Royal Mail handle such a huge volume of post that I think the 93% target is a pipe dream. Still, some idiot politician no doubt created this rule - and it means they get fined.
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Post by Prince Hal on Aug 14, 2020 20:27:49 GMT -5
Thanks PH. I wasn't trying to toot my own horn... Never crossed my mind that you were. I know how hard you work; my brother delivered mail for 20+ years, and he realized what a vital part he played in the lives of the people on his route. I am sick of certain people who say that privatization is some kind of magic solution for improving services paid for by the government, from schools to prisons to the military to the post office. All they’re interested in us tax cuts and exploiting privatization for their ungodly profits. And yeah, I’m looking at Erik Prince, Dick Cheney, Betsy DeVos and every other grifter like them. You’re worth the whole pack of them, to quote Nick Carraway. |
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Post by EdoBosnar on Aug 15, 2020 3:57:05 GMT -5
The first job I had out of college was in the shipping & receiving department of a mid-size software design firm in San Jose, CA. We did a lot of business with several private couriers and the USPS. Nothing convinced me more that privatizing the post office, or abolishing it and handing over its services to companies like FedEx, DHL, etc. would be anything but disastrous.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 15, 2020 5:35:10 GMT -5
With privatisation, there have been some in history that seemed logical (thinking of the UK). British Airways and Rolls-Royce, to name two, were run by the government. An airline and car manufacturer should not, in my view, be run by the government.
But some privatisations sucked. Politicians became obsessed with it. They seemed to forget that a private entity’s first loyalty can be to the shareholders, profit margins, etc. Some things should be run with a public service ethos, e.g. our railways, Royal Mail, etc.
I also fear a fully-privatised Royal Mail would cherry pick the best things. Deliveries to businesses within a busy city centre? Sure! Aunt Dorothy on a remote farm in Wales? Not so much.
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Post by beccabear67 on Aug 15, 2020 13:05:03 GMT -5
Holland privatized/outsourced their mail in the mid 1990s. A German company handles a lot or all of it I think right now according to my uncle there. There used to be profiles of royalty on the stamps but I don't know if it was ever a 'Royal Mail' there. I do have some ginger biscuits made by appointment to the King of Sweden on hand just now though.  |
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Post by brutalis on Aug 15, 2020 18:48:12 GMT -5
Begun my Saturday television ritual of the last several years now. Local PBS channel 4p to 5p for Lawrence Welk (started with the bubble master over 20 years ago) as began to enjoy every Saturday when taking my grandfather to visit grandma in the nursing home with Alzheimers. Every Saturday for nearly 7 years we all 3 shared dinner while watching Welk until they passed away.
Since earlier this year now watch Circle HD free air channel from 5p to 6p with OPRY to enjoy their weekly new episode airing live from the Grand Old Opry.
Back to local PBS subchannel which airs from radio and on TV from 6p to 7p for REEL MUSIC. Every week one hour of movie music themes. Sometimes an hour focus on a specific composer like Horn, Williams, Korngold et. Other nights like next 2 weeks with focus on themes like Western's, Science Fiction. Superheroes, War etc.
End the night with MeTV 7p to 9p watching Svengoolie for classic horror and science fiction movies with Sven's jokes and gags. I have managed to record over 27 DVD's of 3 to 6 movies on each DVD. OH THE JOY!
A Saturday ritual when I drive all sorts of happiness with things that remind me there is more good in the world than the bad even with Covid, riots, self isolation and being unemployed at the moment. A special night spent recharging the mind, body, soul and heart.
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Post by Batflunkie on Aug 15, 2020 18:59:54 GMT -5
I remember growing up, I would spend the weekends at my grand parents house with my cousin Aaron. We would watch Monster Jam (which in hindsight was an absolute bore), and Roller Jam and then my grandfather would torture us with Bull Riding and occasionally, Grand Old Opry
Later in life while looking after my Grandfather in his final years, we would watch reruns of Sanford and Son & Hee Haw. I loved the music in Hee Haw but absolutely detested the jokes.
I would also listen to Praise Home Companion on occasion
PBS also has their own version of Svengoolie now that they've completely and unfortunately dropped MST3K from their late night schedule, Nightmare Theatre. I'm not sure if it's available on every station, but all the episodes are on youtube
I was also fond of watching Morgus The Magnificent on Saturdays on Fox in New Orleans. He was a mad scientist of the "higher order" who conducted experiments to better mankind from an old Ice House
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Post by beccabear67 on Aug 16, 2020 0:32:19 GMT -5
I remember one set of grandparents watched Lawrence Welk and The Porter Wagoner Show religiously, they were even into the whole Dolly vs. her predecessor drama and then her leaving to go solo. I just looked at the hair-dos and false eyelashes an inch long, plus sometimes catastrophic rhinestone costumes and cringed. The other grandparents, the Dutch ones, liked to watch Roller Derby and The Newlywed Game. I never did understand Roller Derby.
Shows I get the biggest nostalgia buzz from would be Match Game with Gene Rayburn and The Gong Show with Chuck Barris, I'd watch other '70s game shows if they were on like Beat The Clock, Joker's Wild, Truth Or Consequences, especially with old ads included for Janitor In A Drum, Future Floor Wax, Mister Coffee, Timex watches. Canadian game show Definition I would also watch a lot, and Reach For The Top when it was on, it was seasonal involving schools. Alex Trebek used to host it.
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Post by hondobrode on Aug 17, 2020 11:53:42 GMT -5
One of my younger brothers called me last night saying he has had all the symptoms of Covid starting Friday.
He told me a couple of weeks ago that one of his neighbors informed him that his son came down with it.
Getting tested today.
Fingers crossed.
Asking for your positive thoughts.
Thanks
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Post by brutalis on Aug 17, 2020 12:06:49 GMT -5
One of my younger brothers called me last night saying he has had all the symptoms of Covid starting Friday. He told me a couple of weeks ago that one of his neighbors informed him that his son came down with it. Getting tested today. Fingers crossed. Asking for your positive thoughts. Thanks Thoughts prayers & hope for your brother Hondo. Proof that that no matter all the precautions we take, something random or simple will still occur. Be safe as you can be everyone and take nothing for granted in these problematic days! |
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