Global postal union reaches deal to prevent 'nightmare' of US exit

[mysteryowl]

Source: The Guardian

The UN agency linking postal systems worldwide has agreed to reform its fee structure under a proposal by the United States that averted the Trump administration’s threat to leave the global network but may mean many consumers pay more.

The compromise deal was agreed by consensus on Wednesday at the Universal Postal Union’s emergency congress after two days of talks, with delegates standing to applaud.

The Trump administration served notice last October that it would leave in 12 months unless fee rates were changed so that importing countries did not lose money from distributing mail and packages from countries including China in the age of e-commerce.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/sep/25/un-universal-postal-union-mail-deal-trump

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How I see this, trump's bullying keeps being reinforced. It is tragic how he goes around threatening the world order.
He decides, all by himself, how things should be and expects the world to follow. Puke!

[oasis]

1. Kick. Gotta keep our eyes on how this unfolds.

[Igel]

2. I used to be in a fundie-style church.

Many people did things based not on what they thought was right, but in order to avoid doing the same things that those they thought wrong did.

In other words, instead of saying, "This here is bad, I won't do it, but that thing over there is good, so I will," they said, "Pete here is evil, and he does this thing, so it must be bad and I won't do it. He also does that thing over there, so it must also be bad." It amounted to outsourcing one's thinking--"Pete" decided that some of my peers would think moral. Instead of appeal to authority (a noted fallacy), it was basically an appeal to anti-authority. As though that improved its logical stature.

I thought that pretty foolish when I was 23.

I still think it's pretty foolish now that I'm 60.

Now it often looks like, "Trump likes it, Trump's evil, whatever he likes must be evil and opposed." The same game is played with Hitler and Stalin, to which my quip in the late '00s was, "Martha Stewart is like Hitler! They both used soup spoons!" Yet I'm reminded that Stalin liked little kids, and not just with mustard and onion.

In this case, it amounts to a US subsidy for Chinese companies sending merchandise into the US. It means US businesses lose business, while US businesses and those paying domestic shipping rates in the US--often US businesses--subsidize the Chinese companies. I haven't like this for years. Since before Trump it's been a minor issue lurking from time to time in the political underbrush. Many don't like being forced to subsidize US companies, why should they celebrate subsidizing Chinese companies?

[Eugene]

3. Because the world is bigger than the U.S.-China dispute.

The postal system is still a vital means of communications, especially for poorer countries, and they too, not just China, will pay more. Subsidizing the poorer may not make everyone happy, but it serves the greater good of keeping the world together.

[mwooldri]

4. End result is good. Means of achieving it certainly questionable.

Yes it will cost a Chinese sender more to mail something to the USA now. Yes the US recipient will have to pay more. However if the USPS was taking a huge loss on handling the mail coming in from China and sending it to where ever it needs to go in the USA then it's a good outcome. Though bullying by threatening a withdrawal from the UPU ... Could have used a bit more tact and diplomacy, but it is the Trump admin we're talking about here....

[mysteryowl]

6. Agreed.

[corbettkroehler]

7. Ditto! (n/t)

[PoliticAverse]

5. Good. The USPS shouldn't be subsidizing Chinese businesses. n/t

[NurseJackie]

8. Agreed.