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Microsoft Promotions Turn Up in USPS Offices
Several readers, like this Anonymous Coward, have written with links to a letter from Cliff Crouch on macintouch.com. "I stumbled across this letter submitted to a web site I frequent. Apparently Microsoft has promotional displays with free WindowsXP promotional software in U.S. Post Offices."
You're simply naive. Last time I checked advertising was legal, even for Microsoft.
- adam
From the Site
United States Postal Service
The Post Office Department was transformed into the United States Postal Service, an independent establishment of the executive branch of the Government of the United States. The mission of the Postal Service remained the same, as stated in Title 39 of the U.S. Code: "The Postal Service shall have as its basic function the obligation to provide postal services to bind the Nation together through the personal, educational, literary, and business correspondence of the people. It shall provide prompt, reliable, and efficient services to patrons in all areas and shall render postal services to all communities."
Because, sometimes they just have to touch the stove.
-YY1
Actually, the Postal Service is wholly owned by the Government, but run as a private corporation. The Federal Government is the only shareholder, and thus elects the board, etc. etc. Government corporations are not at all uncommon....many cities and school divisions (colleges, too) operate exactly the same way.
Freelinuxcd.org could put your burned copies to much better use.
I've had enough abrasive sigs. Kittens are cute and fuzzy.
The post office is the sole official physical presence of the U.S. federal government countrywide.
Where do you go to "register" for the Selective Service (the draft)? The post office.
Where do you go to get federal tax forms? The post office is required to supply them.
Sure, some municipalities may have an FBI or ATF branch office, or even a Secret Service office, but the USPS is the main federal presence in EVERY town. It is the face of the US Government for most.
One simple rule for its versus it's
> it's not in any official government document whatsoever.
So I assume that you don't consider rulings of the U.S. Supreme Court to be "official government documents"...
"The [First] Amendment's purpose... was to create a complete and permanent separation of the spheres of religious activity and civil authority by comprehensively forbidding every form of public aid or support for religion." U.S. Supreme Court, Reynolds v. United States (1879)
-- Don't Tase me, bro!
Sounds like government to me, warts and all.
Prevent email address forgery. Publish SPF records for y
The full clause is:
Reasonable people from Jefferson on have interpreted that to mean two things: first, that the government cannot promote or support any religion, and second, as you say, that the government cannot ban or discriminate any religion. Like much of the Constitution, the First Amendment is a masterpiece of balance. Freedom of and freedom from religion are inseparable.
Any other interpretation is not only unreasonable, but ahistorical -- remember that the people who wrote the Constitution had rather graphic examples of the horrors of state-supported religion within living memory. These days, at least in the US, we've largely forgotten how dangerous it can be.
The correlation between ignorance of statistics and using "correlation is not causation" as an argument is close to 1.
-
Success Sells.
So it may get worse; there may be Microsoft ads on USPS trucks next.For over 200 years, the United States Postal Service is the brand that has been built on trust and service.
Now we're selling our unique space. Think of us as your Multi-channel Communications Service. Marketers can get the visibility and reach through the Postal Ad Network.
Place your big message on our trucks, collection boxes and even in our postal facilities. Or small space ads on our stamp packages and banner ads on our website.
There's opposition to the USPS selling out like this.
Technically, the USPS is a corporation wholly owned by the US government, but not actually part of it.
It's been this way since July 1, 1971 since the passage of the Postal Reorganization Act. Prior to then, the Postmaster General was a Presidential Cabinet level position (might come in handy if you ever make it onto the Millionaire show.)
Some other changes:
- Operational authority vested in a Board of Governors and Postal Service executive management, rather than in Congress.
-Authority to issue public bonds to finance postal buildings and mechanization.
-Direct collective bargaining between representatives of management and the unions.
-A new rate-setting procedure, built around an independent Postal Rate Commission.
(If you're really interested, check out a bit of history on the USPS.)
Entrepreneur : (noun), French for "unemployed"
The post office is not really part of the government, but rather a business run to support an important country function.
Governments frequently set up organisations to do things which are eseential for their territory (and it's economy) to operate effectivly. Even if they superficially appear to be businesses the rules they operate under may be different. e.g. not having to maximise profit for shareholders, exemptions from planning laws, etc.