Below is a pamplet I wrote for the Auburn University Libertarians. It is a rewrite and expansion of the “Goin’ Postal on the U.S. Postal Service” blog I wrote a few weeks ago. I thought I would post it.
Goin’ Postal on the Postal Service
The United States Postal Service recently announced that, on May 14, the first-class postage rate will be increased from 39 cents to 41 cents. Admittedly, the cost of a postage stamp is inexpensive when compared to other goods people regularly purchase, such as gas, a meal at a decent restaurant, or a movie. You might even find the price of a postage stamp so low that it is hardly worth noticing an increase; if this is the case, then you are probably curious about our reason for protesting the postal service. First, the question that should be asked is not whether the price of postage stamps is low but whether it could be lower. We claim that it could be lower; why we think so leads us to what we believe is the greater issue.
Imagine that you took a weekly trip to Atlanta. I need mail delivered to Atlanta each week, and since you make a weekly trip, we work out a deal where I pay you to deliver my mail when you are in Atlanta. Do you think you are engaging in illegal behavior? You might be surprised, even shocked, to discover that you are breaking the law and are subject to up to a $500 dollar fine and up to six months in jail! Is this law just?
We believe it is not! The Private Express Statutes of the Code of the Federal Regulations create a legal monopoly on mail carrying by the United States Postal Service. With few exceptions, it is illegal for anyone other than the USPS to deliver letters within U.S. One exception allows third-party carriers such as FedEx to deliver “extremely urgent” letters; however, these carriers are not allowed to charge below a certain rate for the mail delivery, ensuring that the prices are kept higher than they would be otherwise. Despite these restrictions, the USPS has lost 90% of the overnight mail delivery service to third-party carriers. Obviously, customers prefer these other carriers: why not allow them to carry all kinds of mail?
There are often outcries from groups claiming that some businesses, e.g. Microsoft or Exxon-Mobile, are monopolies and should be punished by the government. Why is there no outcry to end a monopoly on mail delivery? How many companies in the U.S. can have their competitors fined and jailed for competing with them? Until these groups demand that the government end its monopoly on mail delivery, it seem inconsistent for them to attack companies they perceive to be monopolies.
To those who doubt that ending the USPS’s monopoly would affect postage rates, a history lesson is due. The 19th century abolitionist Lysander Spooner, in addition to his tireless fight for the abolishment of slavery, fought the unjust monopoly the USPS had upon mail delivery. He started the American Letter Mail Company, which had routes between Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore. He charged less than a third of what the USPS charged. Through his fight with the postal service, Spooner forced the USPS to reduce their rates to 3 cents from previous, non-uniform rates that ranged between 19 and 25 cents between the cities of the New England. The 3-cent postage rate not only applied to New England, but to the whole country! Though Spooner was eventually pushed forced out of business by new laws enacted by Congress to protect the government’s monopoly on mail carrying, his example is noteworthy! It is time that we stand up to an injustice of the government that affects all of our lives! Help us do everything we can to end the monopoly, e.g., speaking out, civil disobedience, informing others, and contacting our representatives.
-Auburn University Libertarians
Tags: Anarcho-capitalism, Current Events, Economics, Libertarianism, Politics
September 4, 2007 at 2:24 pm |
Okay I will play the game, of course I have to admit I have not read all of your blog, just some. I would ask you this, who would take over such an operation of this size? If you think that it could be done cheaper through private sector business why is it after many countries who have privatized their mail delivery are not cheaper. The US Postal Service currently has the cheapest postage. Another question, other than the method you describe as being illegal how would it get to its destination? The Post Office who once had airplanes started using commercial planes to keep prices down.
Since reorganizing in 1971 and subsidation ended in the 80’s the Postal Service has to reinvest profits into the service. I have not had one problem in my lifetime of mailing items (item never made it). You would also be surprised how many items are addressed incorrectly yet somehow make it to their destination. I would say that the majority of issues today are related to management’s inability to properly manage the operation.
September 8, 2007 at 5:34 pm |
I do not know what “game” you are referring to, but you have made errors in your response. I did not argue that one company would take over the whole postal service; instead, I advocate that the law preventing competition with the postal service be revoked. If they are, then companies that can compete against the USPS can do so. (In addition, the USPS should not receive any government funding, for that would distort the competition, and the funding could only come through taxing or printing money, which are unjust methods.)
Second, you say that the USPS has the cheapest service, even when compared with other postal services, some of which are privatized. First, most of the time when people refer to an industry being privatized, it is not truly privatized, e.g. the California energy market. Second, I did not claim that the USPS has more expensive service; I also did not claim that a country with privatized mail services would have cheaper postal service than countries that did not have privatized mail services; instead, I merely claim that postal service in a country would be cheaper if there was complete free trade instead of a market that was not completely free.
I also did not claim that the USPS is incompetent. Instead, I think that the competition that would arise in a free market would make the service more efficient and convenient.
January 15, 2008 at 6:25 pm |
[...] Untouchable Monopoly USPS Monopoly Makes No Sense USPS Monopoly Pamphlet Is it Time to Privatize the Postal Service? USPS, Competitors Square off at [...]
December 3, 2008 at 12:40 pm |
As you must well know all agencies not run by the government are incompetent. Your thinking is incredulous and wrong.
September 10, 2009 at 4:54 pm |
Sure, the PO has the lowest rates, but do you know that service is not guaranteed?
You pay 44 cents for a PROMISE to deliver your letter.
So when your First Class mail gets lost, well, bummer…
I’ve been in the US only 7 years and have stories to tell. Mail lost, misdelivered, not delivered, returned as undeliverable for no reason.
All the other (more expensive) services are sort of competitive vs UPS and FedEX, but only because USPS sued them and prohibits them from sending anything else than really urgent or oversized items (which cost a lot anyway)
Do you know that you are breaking the law if you are sending something via UPS or FedEx when you could send it by USPS. Get ready for an audit from the United States Postal Inspection Service (like Amazon, Equifax)
As long as USPS is using federal law to leverage its position on the market, we will never know what the true cost of mail delivery is.