Is our Congress being "Privatized"? Sign my new petitionfor Congressional Reform
Consumer advocate RalphNader is condemning the U.S. Postal Service’s move to end Saturdaydeliveries. After 2 years, EdSchultz still is, as are many other Americans, when they finally learn thenasty details of this plan to eventually shut down the U.S. Post Office ---permanently and forever --- starting with Saturday deliveries.
The PostalAccountability and Enhancement Act of 2006 (PAEA) requires that the USPSpre-fund the next 75 years of retiree health benefits by 2016. It also forcesthe USPS to pre-fund retirement benefits for postal employees who have not yetbeen born.
No other public service or private business in the entire country was everyforced to operate like this.
Millions of customers -- rural, small business, elderly, disabled -- will allbe harmed. But private mail carriers like UPS and FedEx will have lesscompetition, thanks to their campaign donations made to both the Republicans andthe Democrats.
This is why campaign finance reform laws need to be enacted, and very soon,or we will see more of the same.
Since the enactment of PAEA, the USPS has lost $41 billion -- nearly 80% ofwhich can be attributed directly to PAEA pre-funding.
Congress created this mess and congress needs to fix it, but PostmasterGeneral Patrick Donahoe has no political courage. He lacks the"can-do" verve of our first Postmaster General, Benjamin Franklin.
Why has not ONE MEMBER in congress ever written a bill and brought it to thefloor for a straight up-and-down vote on reversing this lousy bill?
The Democrats are blaming the Republicans, but the Democrats controlled everybranch of government in 2009 and 2010, and could have fixed many things,including this travesty; but like many things, they didn't.
Instead, we got ObamaCare and a water-down version of Wall Streetreform...that's it.
Again, we are reminded, just like the previous congress, the current congressis happy to print gobs of money for Wall Street bankers, but there will be nosuch printing of anything useful for We the People.
On September 28, 2011 a White House petition was created to Preserve6 Day Mail Delivery:
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The White House Response to the Petition:
"Thank you for signing a petition about the U.S. Postal Service. Weappreciate your participation in the We the People platform on WhiteHouse.govand your concerns about the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) in a challenging economy.The Postal Service is vital to the Nation's commerce and communications, whichis why we must act quickly to make the changes necessary to ensure its viabilityfor years to come.
Postal volumes have dropped precipitously in recent years due to longer-runshifts in communication technologies and other economic factors. As a result,USPS accrued losses of $8.5 billion in 2010, and faced financial insolvency onSeptember 30th. Without reform it is forecast to sustain greater losses thisyear and next.
However, the Postal Service needs more than just short term financial relief atthis time; it needs a comprehensive plan for reform to ensure that it can beflexible and competitive in a changing marketplace. There are multiple ways toprovide relief and reform, but the Administration's proposal in The President'sPlan for Economic Growth and Job Creation represents a balanced approach forpostal workers, USPS, consumers, and taxpayers. (EDITOR'SNOTE: No tax dollars are used to fund the Post Office, and no mention is evermade in this response regarding the forced pre-funding of pensions.)
More specifically, the proposal includes a set of near-term financial reliefmeasures that will provide the Postal Service with the time necessary torestructure its operations and take advantage of flexibilities in the proposal,such as the ability to cooperate with state and local governments and modestpricing flexibility.
In the longer term, we are proposing to help the Postal Service reduce itsexcessive operating costs by providing the flexibility to gradually move to5-day delivery, beginning in 2013. Under USPS' plan for how it would use thisauthority, post offices would still remain open on Saturdays, Express Maildeliveries would still be made 7 days a week, post office box deliveries wouldstill be made on Saturdays, and USPS would continue to make Saturday deliveriesin the busy weeks leading up to the winter Holidays. These and other coststructuring actions will ensure that the Postal Service remains viable for themedium- and longer-term.
We believe USPS' financial situation demands such reforms and theAdministration's package includes provisions to reduce the impact for USPSworkers and customers. We share petitioners' concern for the health andviability of the USPS and developed this plan with the best interest of thisvital institution in mind.
As we work to get our Nation back on a sustainable fiscal path, theAdministration is making tough choices across the Federal government and askingeveryone to do their fair share. These shared sacrifices are not easy, buttogether with investments in our economic growth and job creation, they willmake us stronger and more competitive for the future."
Let's pre-fund congressional pensions andcongressional healthcare plans for the next 300 years, first, before wepay one more dime in congressional salaries or healthcare benefits to any memberof congress.
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