.comment-link {margin-left:.6em;}

Chasing The American Dream

January 05, 2006

MY 2 CENTS

So the USPS is raising the price of a stamp from 37 cents to 39 cents apparently so the post office can make a $3.1 billion escrow payment required by Congress. I find it interesting that I haven’t heard many complaints about it. No watercooler chatter at work, no picket lines, no protests, no Geraldo Rivera, and no Anderson Cooper running down the story. Heck, it’s only two cents, right?

But you know me, my mind works differently. I look at it this way. The price of stamps is being jacked up 5.4%. To me, that’s a big number. Here’s how I equate it. At $2.50 a gallon, gas would cost me $2.64. My $200 utilities would cost me $211. My $183 car payment would go up $10 for a quick $120 a year. My $1200 monthly rent would cost me $1265 or another $780 a year. What if I wanted to buy or lease a new car? A $20,000 car would now cost me $21,080. How bout a house? Can’t get anything around here for less than $250,000. Well, that little 5.4% bump would cost me an extra $13,500.

5.4% is a big number, people. The last postal increase was back in 2002 when stamps went from 34 cents to 37 cents, a whopping 8.8% increase. I’m not gonna do the math again, but can you imagine? Listen, 2 cents may not seem like much but someone should take a closer look at this. Plus, there are more increases, too. Registered mail is going up from $7.50 to $12.75. A 70% increase??? I read the post office made $68.9 BILLION last year and spent $65.8 billion. They *MADE* $3.1 BILLION and now they need help. Dontcha feel sorry for them? Hey, you know what? I’m getting killed in taxes and need to buy a house. I need help to make the payments. Can you please raise my salary 5.4%?

12 Comments:

  • I admit i skimmed the part with the math. My mind is on overload today. My quota just doubled and numbers can be a scary thing in sales. I digress, with everyone paying bills electronicly and less people buying stamps it's inevitable. In another 5 years it will cost you a buck to mail something. Of course by then the dollar will have depriciated so much you won't think about it.

    By Blogger Sass, at 4:51 PM, January 05, 2006  

  • Funny... everything is going up.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 5:52 PM, January 05, 2006  

  • You are preaching to the choir over here!

    We just got our energy bill today that took the most recent rate hike into effect and I have been trying to avoid hyper-ventillation all day!

    By Blogger Mrs. Architect, at 6:30 PM, January 05, 2006  

  • I love your mathematically-inclined mind! :)

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 8:15 PM, January 05, 2006  

  • I didn't even realize that the price of stamps was going up until yesterday, when I was at the post office.

    2 cents seems somewhat hefty to me. Thanks for doing the math for me so that I can properly bitch about it. ;)

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 10:38 PM, January 05, 2006  

  • Funny, A. Wouldn't you like to delve into it, ESSF? PAF, how bout the FPL rate hikes here after the hurricane? Sass, you're one smart cookie.

    By Blogger Plantation, at 1:23 AM, January 06, 2006  

  • I was under the impression, from a reliable source-a PO employee and my mom, that the cost of a stamp doesn't even cover what it costs to deliver it. That they make money on other things.

    By Blogger Miss Scarlet, at 11:22 AM, January 06, 2006  

  • If you do all of your banking and bill-paying, thank you notes, birthday cards, and other correspondence online, you never have to worry about the cost of a stamp. (I'm thinking that online holiday cards are a FABULOUS idea for next year!)

    By Blogger Denise, at 2:27 PM, January 06, 2006  

  • Is a 5% raise unreasonable over a three to four year period?

    Happy New Year PT! Sorry I've been out of it for awhile.

    By Blogger PepGiraffe, at 2:32 AM, January 07, 2006  

  • I imagine people use mail a lot less than they used to. As Denise said, you can do almost anything online. If you're really desperate you can fax.
    I suppose it's a bit of a supply and demand issue, but I'd be curious to know the actual cost of mailing a letter.

    By Blogger Gatsby, at 4:14 PM, January 08, 2006  

  • It's a huge deal for my company - a direct mail business. For the direct mail industry, it could mean a million dollar difference in a year.

    We raised our prices this year to account for the increase in postage as well as other expenses.

    By Blogger Queen Helene, at 9:44 PM, January 18, 2006  

  • There is alot of debate whether you can Make Easy Money Online and with so many scams out there it is bound to be a little bit dishearting!

    So are there any legit ways to Make Easy Money Online?

    Well, Yes you will be glad to know there are legit ways to Make Easy Money Online the only thing is all of them require hard work!

    I know there are websites out there that claim you can become a millionaire overnight but if you think about it this is just not plausible!

    That said with a bit of work on your part you will be suprised how easy it is to Make Easy Money Online and you should start off by searchnig for more info on Google and maybe join a few groups with like minded people!

    If you really want to know how to Make Easy Money Online I would suggest investing in this manual, but only if you are serious as they will give you the keys to the door but you must open it so to speak!

    One guide I would recommend that was created by an internet marketing genius, Carael Knight that made it big is called "How To Get Rich Selling Information Through Classified Ads"!

    For more info on MajorEnteprise and how you can start to Make Easy Money Online, click the link below:

    Make Easy Money Online

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 1:58 PM, March 19, 2007  

Post a Comment

<< Home