Bush Admin. wants to privatize the post office.

[Postman]

Get ready for cutbacks in service, price increases, and more people out of work. Great job George!

July 31, 2003
For Immediate Release
Contact: Sally Davidow 202-842-4250


Postal Commission Report Serves Advertising Mailers At Public's Expense, APWU President Charges

Burrus Calls Recommendations ‘Seriously Flawed’




Noting that the final report of the President's Commission on the U.S. Postal Service is “seriously flawed,” American Postal Workers Union President William Burrus promised a vigorous campaign to ensure that its recommendations do not become law.

“The report endorses a drastic overhaul of the nation's mail system,” Burrus said. “There commendations are intended to serve only the needs of the big advertising mailers, at the expense of the American people.”

“The report proposes giving the Postal Service unfettered authority to close ‘low activity’ post offices without first seeking citizen involvement,” he said. “This power to close local post offices would be a disaster for small businesses and for rural America.”

“The commission would give broad authority to a politically-appointed Postal Regulatory Board to set postage rates, define the scope of universal service, amend the postal monopoly, define and adjust universal service, set wages and benefits, and review and act on complaints,” Burrus said. “The commission would give the board unprecedented authority, with no accountability,” he said.

The commission's recommendations stand in “stark contrast to the expressed will of the American public,” the APWU president said. Burrus pointed to a nationwide survey – conducted on behalf of the commission – that found: “Americans have an overwhelmingly favorable view of the United States Postal Service.” Three out of four respondents to the survey conducted just two months ago said the USPS required only minor changes or that it works “extremely well as is.”

“The commission seems to have embraced the view of some in the mailing industry that ‘the American public is complacently, blissfully ignorant,’” Burrus said.

The panel's final report also contains numerous anti-worker proposals, Burrus noted. “The recommendations on collective bargaining are fundamentally dishonest,” he said. “The commission purports to improve the process, but proposes changes that would destroy it. The commission would empower the politically-appointed regulatory board with the authority to unilaterally determine appropriate compensation levels and impose them on existing and future employees.

“And, in spite of the sacrifices postal employees made during the anthrax terrorist attacks, the commission would deny postal employees their rights as federal employees, severing them from federal health benefit, retirement, and workers’ compensation programs,” Burrus said.

“The report is seriously flawed. The nation's mail system is not broken, and no one outside of Washington seems to think that it is,” Burrus said. “Despite the sluggish economy, total mail volume has increased, and the Postal Service is projecting a surplus of $4.5 billion this fiscal year. There simply is no need for the sort of radical reform this commission is advocating.

“The special postal commission has ill-served its president and the American people.”

The APWU is the nation's largest postal union, representing more than 330,000 postal workers in the Clerk, Maintenance and Motor Vehicle Crafts.

[alfredo]

1. the mailcarriers I talked to today

are livid. Bush wants his robber barons to loot the post office too.

[JackSwift]

2. We alreadly have private postal services

in FedEx, UPS, AirProre, etc. They all cost about 10 times as much and require you to be there to sign for your mail. Sounds like a union busting move to me.

[Karenina]

3. "Privatize" the profits

"Socialize" the costs. Same MO.

[wryter2000]

4. Define the scope of universal service???!!!

WTF don't they understand about "universal"?

This sucks, big time. I don't know much about the rest of you guys, but as a writer I deal with the USPS all the time. They do a damned wonderful job. What are these *ssh*les thinking?

[RobertSeattle]

5. This crap comes around about once a decade

It part of the right wing mantra - but find me anyone else who can send a 1 ounce letter across the country for 37 cents.

If it isn't broken, don't fix it - and George - don't try to break it so you can "fix it".

[thermodynamic]

10. He'll try to fix it, but ruin it in the process

Just like he's done to America.

[patdem]

6. The ENTIRE purpose of a government mail service

is that ALL got served...those that had much mail and those that had little....ONLY a NON PROFIT organization can deliver mail to (excuse the language) bum fuck egypt!!! That was the ENTIRE resason for the government to deliver the mail and not a private carrier!

This is NOT good!

[Qutzupalotl]

23. Rural America will be hardest hit

if they really close POs without public hearing or notice. That's where Bush's strongest base of support is, in those out of the way places. He's shooting himself in the foot. And no, I don't want to see it happen.

[RummyTheDummy]

30. And that's why it will never happen.

NT

[izzie]

33. FDR did this and put power all over the US and who got it?

We pay very high cost and stockholders get the profits. No corp would have put power into the country, it cost to much. Too little profits from it. Interesting that in parts of NH and Me they have some co-op that sell power and the people who have this power pay 1/4 of what we do on big companies power. How do they do that? Maybr we should sell off the army but then it is doing the bidding of the corp. now.

[thermodynamic]

7. So the internet, UPS, FedEx, Airborne Express, etc, aren't enough?

People already bitch and complain about high postal prices. We've all seen what happens when industries turn private - and you said it yourself; quality drops and prices go up.

Another reason to move to Canada, boy does George really wants people to leave the US?

[hang a left]

8. I think we should all copy this article

and flyer every post office in our areas.

[TennesseeWalker]

9. Let the asshole keep doing this kind of stuff.

There are a LOT of government workers...and the USPS is actually pretty doggone efficient and affordable. He's overreaching, and he's going to lose.

Gore in 2004

[blondeatlast]

11. Let's privatize the White House!

Damn, turn your head for a minute and you're too late.

It's been renamed the Halliburton House.

[SharonAnn]

45. Let's outsource the White House and the Cabinet

Executives and politicans are much cheaper in other countries and even better educated!

If we limit to English speaking countries, there's still a lot to choose from: England, Ireland, Scotland, Australia, Phillippines, Belize.

If we open up more than that there's: India, China, Taiwan, Malaysia, etc.

[wryter2000]

12. On second thought...

Maybe they can export the postal service jobs to India.

:wtf:

[TheDonkey]

13. Anti-US Post office is a bad reselection platform!!!

LMAO!!! OK Georgie, go and privatize the US post office. It would blow my mind how badly that would go over in the press and public.

[Melsky]

14. Yup, this would really hurt my business

“The report proposes giving the Postal Service unfettered authority to close ‘low activity’ post offices without first seeking citizen involvement,” he said. “This power to close local post offices would be a disaster for small businesses and for rural America.”

As if I didn't have enough stuff to worry about! This sickens me.

Can anyone think of a privatized government function that works as good or better than when it was public? I can't.

[hotphlash]

15. I was raised by two parents with their careers spent in the post office.

If that piece of sh*% Motherf$(*^&^% Bush does something that affects their livelihoods...well, I can't say what...but it will consist of more than an unpleasant letter.



TO THE SECRET SERVICE....THIS IS NOT A THREAT ON THE pRESIDENT! REPEAT! THIS IS NOT N-O-T A THREAT ON THE PRESIDENT! I MEAN HIM NO PHYSICAL HARM! JUST ELECTORAL HARM!


:tinfoilhat:

[gristy]

16. This little idea is SUCH a bad idea

I think it is going to last about as long as the Policy Analysis Market.

But it won't be forgotten. Not by a long shot.

The arrogance of these guys is just beyond belief. It is no longer each day they top themselves. They top themselves each friggin HOUR.

[Festivito]

17. How much will filing complaints cost us when private...

Now, at least, they have to listen a little. Once a private monopoly, they can save money by listening to no one - especially US.

[Isome]

18. The bottom line is...

They grouse about big government, then turn around and make proposals to expand it.

Once again, the cheap labor conservatives are contradicting themselves.

[robbedvoter]

19. Next: police, FBI, CIA - Carlyle will be very busy soon

They want to make it official: US givernment - a subsidiary of the Carlyle industries.

[shirlden]

20. Let's be fair!!

You all have to realize that those little 37 cent stamps add up to a lot of money......and Halliburton is not getting their share of it. Only through privatization will Carlyle and the rest of the BFEE be able to get some of that filthy lucre. Man, they just cannot stand to see a nickel pass hands that they don't get 4 cents of it.
I have a few family members active and retired from the post office. Sure they make good pay and have decent benefits, but I can assure you they have worked their butts off for the post office. Just leave it alone....you Cheap Labor Cons.

[ElementaryPenguin]

21. Cheap Labor Party at it again!!

Privatize this, Chimp!!! :hurts:

[AnnabelLee]

22. Union-busting, plain & simple

Brought to you by the Cheap Labor Conservatives.:mad:

[Astarho]

24. Didn't Canada try this?

I remember about ten years ago I was there and everyone there was bitching about it.

[Abe Linkman]

25. U.S. Congress may be next. Hey, why not?

And, why stop with the Congress. What about the Federal Courts? As a compromise, rather than "buying" lifetime appointments, you could limit them, and in a gesture of goodwill, dedicate the winning bid offer money to the United Negro College Fund. The check could be presented each year when Trent Lott makes his annual address to the NAACP.

[flpoljunkie]

26. The Bush/Repug privatization scheme/screw the workers and

give the work to their business cronies who will then contribute to their campaigns!

It is what Jeb has done in Florida!

[Arbustosux]

27. I wonder which one of his buddies

he would sell the PO to??

and at what discount price?

and without any bidding process (ala Halliburton)

[Yupster]

28. Will we ever see a day

when there is no postal delivery. Instead everyone just gets their mail from e-mail type futuristic things, and a package service.

I wonder how far we are from that day.

It seems so wasteful to have ???1/2 a million??? trucks running around every day burning gas and clogging the roads. The main things I get from the mail are bills and junk. Both of those could be handled over the computer.

I wonder if 50 years from now...

[jpgray]

32. This post was sarcastic, right? "Clogging the roads"? LOL (nt)

.

[mclam]

39. No

We're missing the most important part of the equation here- Bush is doing this as a favor to all his campaign donors who make money sending junk mail to befuddled old ladies. There's a major industry built up around the postal system that isn't going to want to go bye-bye just because everyone pays their bills, does their business and talks to their friends on-line.
We'll always have mailboxes and a postal system if for no other reason than keeping Publisher's Clearinghouse in business.

[oasis]

29. Various delivery services will have access to our mailboxes.

Some will be of the "fly by night" variety as contracts will be going out right and left to new services springing up.

As it stands at present, only the U.S. postal service has a key to open our security gates and apartment/condo mailboxes. What a mess when each delivery service gets an access key.

[izzie]

31. Interesting I must say.

I am waiting for them to move into the water works. They have some place but wait to you have to go to a place like Enron to get water and what it will cost. Now they have pick up graveyards, and how you die. And they are starting to buy up parks. I will not be around in another 20 years but people should wake up to what this will mean. Yes as the man wrote the party is over.You are living in a dream world if you think Corp. are going to run this for the good of the people. It is going to be for the good of the stockholders. Look at clear cutting in Maine. A lot of Maine woods are owned buy Europe corp. What the hell do they care what happens in Maine.

[Noordam]

34. Bushie lost a couple more voters :)

Yes the postal service ppl are Union, BUT that does not mean they all vote Democratic. There are Freepers in the Post Office. BUT if you start attacking their JOBS they can and will change who they vote for.

Drip Drip Drip a lost Repug voter Drip Drip Drip

[BlueJazz]

35. Yeah, there's nothing I want more than some...

...person making Minimum Wage with no benefits in charge of bringing me important mail every day.
If this crap ever came to pass you would see many Christmas Cards "Get Lost" every season. (there might be money in this one!)
Also during the heavy mail times of the year, a lot of it would wind up in dumpsters. (Dam, I'll never get this shit delivered in time for my date tonight!)

Another birdbrain idea from a birdbrain Republican.

[JanMichael]

36. Just another attack on Unions that will enrich a few and screw the rest.

Bravo!

Assholes one and all.

[oasis]

37. kick

:kick:

[opihimoimoi]

38. We should Privatize the Presidency too, might make us better off

Good job.... stay

Bad job,.....fired

[ButterflyBlood]

40. ha ha, talk about idiocy

luckily this won't gain him many votes

[greekspeak]

41. Privitization of Everything

Why in hell does EVERYTHING have to be privatized. This buzzword is too innocuous to really convey the consequences. It is nothing but a scheme to enrich the rich. The rich just cant seem to get rich enough. So they fire. And cut. And horde. And favor themsleves. Balony.

My argument is that it is TOO PRIVATIZED the way it is. It needs more government control. My grandad carried the mail. He proudly wore his uniform. He had nothing to say about the hard work he did on his route, but had plenty to say about the relationships he had built on his route. Postage was reasonable. Mail was delivered in a timely fashion. Now, they just pack someone in a car to dump mail off. In my present location, I have not seen the same mail person more than twice. The mail gets here after 6:00 some evenings. They let it sit outside in the rain and get wet. I even saw one carrier drop mail on the ground and leave it there. Many carriers wear t-shirts and have no pride in their appearence. Before I left home last month, I had much the same service; the carrier that deliverd the mail most actually threw a package at me. And the price keeps going up!

I say, get that service back under full government control. Teach carriers to have pride in their work. Teach them the importance of the burden with which they have been entrusted. Teach them to be prompt and efficient. But DON'T threaten to fire them and cut benefits so some rich people can get richer.

[LoZoccolo]

42. Part of what's funny about this...

...is that they usually try to make the case that privatization saves taxpayers money. How are they going to try to make this argument when /the post office doesn't take taxpayer money/?

It's funny though; this is kind of a smoking gun on the general allegiance of this administration. This is an issue where big business benefits /without/ there being an attendant "benefit" to the taxpayer.

[lumpy]

43. The damn Repub bastards have wanted to privatize

the USPS all along. Of course it would take that little Jackass to get the ball rolling. This really gravels me, the postal service is the best bargain around. Where else can you get a letter delivered in 2 days for 37cents and a friendly smile from the postman.

[FloridaPat]

44. He has to have a Constitutional ammendment

for this one. According to the Consitution, the government provides mail service, only.