[Hoot Gibson]

Hoot, what has happened in other countries is that Universal service has been eliminated. You are 100% correct, selling off the USPS will put it into private hands that requires those companies to make a profit. Which means, companies will focus on business only in the major metropolitan's. That leaves the rural ares where no one will touch. Even UPS now no longer delivers into several locations across the country. UPS now uses the USPS to deliver to those areas, which is a perfect example of how it will work.

As for the USPS being able to freely increase prices, that is not correct. The USPS can only increase postage based on CPI-U. In 1996, Congress past Postal Reform that regulated the USPS pricing model to the CPI. Why has there not been postage increases in the last two years??? CPI was at or below zero in both instances.

So, if you take the monopoly away from the USPS but you continue to mandate Universal Service, you force them to compete with companies that will only delivery to Urban areas, leaving the USPS with the tremendously more costly Rural responsibilities.

In the past, when the USPS has run large deficits, Congress has stepped in to authorize rate increases. Whether they do that this time or not, the comfort of having Uncle Sam behind them has undoubtedly has contributed heavily to its current situation. In many parts of the country, the USPS has been nothing but a social laboratory where workers have been hired based on little more than skin color.

I don't think that it would be necessary or good business for a company to end universal service but customers who live in isolated areas need to pay a premium if they want mail delivered to their door. Otherwise, people who live on mountain tops can make a weekly or monthly trip to town to pick up their mail. The business model of charging a flat rate for postage, regardless of the delivery cost has never made any sense.