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Amazon Opposes Plan To End Saturday Mail Delivery
theodp writes "Online retailer giant Amazon.com has come out against a US Postal Service proposal to end Saturday service, part of efforts to address the USPS budget deficit. 'Amazon's customers have come to appreciate and expect Saturday delivery,' explained Amazon VP Paul Misener. 'If the five-day delivery proposal is not withdrawn,' he added, 'we ask that Congress ensure that Saturday delivery be maintained.' In the past, Amazon has argued that it should not have to help support public services in states in which it has no physical presence." The article adds, "Interestingly, online DVD service Netflix is backing the plan to end Saturday mail delivery, arguing that a 'well functioning' Postal Service is more important than 'maintaining current delivery frequency.'"
It's generally their junk mail drop with just flyers and other non-addressed answers.
And just have alternating days. That way one postal worker can take care of two routes. Let's face it, mail is only going to decrease. So let them do M-W-F on Route 1 and T-Th-Sa on Route 2, and flip that the next week. Express mail can be an exception. Priority mail not so much, depending on logistics.
The USPS has been good to me and my internet business, so I'd prefer them to do well in return. IMO, this is the only way to really future proof the service. People will bitch but the rest of society just has to adapt, imo.
I would prefer to see them drop say Thursday deliveries and deliver Mon-Wed, Fri-Sat.
If Amazon wants Saturday delivery for its clients then it can continue to offer it using third parties like FedEx. That is what happens in the UK - you get letters six days a week but only parcels five days a week; if you want parcels on a Saturday then you have to pay a private company to do the delivery which Amazon EU/UK offers.
Most of the products I buy from Amazon COULD fit comfortably in a mailbox, but they come in a box about three times bigger than it needs to be. I ordered a map update for my Magellan GPS, it was on an SD card. It came in a SD card caddy, in an envelope, in a big fucking cardboard box. You know, kind of like getting software licenses from HP. And it's a $50 product, it's not like it deserves a big box based on value.
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
The level of service at the post office compared to UPS and Fedex is shockingly bad. Whenever I go into a UPS store there is little to no line.
I disagree. Any time I've ever had to use UPS I've gotten nothing but terrible service. Anywhere from boxes that look like someone was using them as punching bags (and the stuff inside being broken or damaged in some way), to packages being lost and delayed and the fact that they are too incompetent to just hold a package at the office so you can pick it up.
UPS isn't going to come to your house on a rural route in the backwoods of Kentucky and pick up a piece of shit you wrote, and put it on an airplane to Wyoming for $.44 . (credit to Jon Stewart for that quote). A properly functioning, reliable service that serves 100% of all residents everywhere is vital to a modern economy. Our post office is so good that the legal system considers proof of mailing (not delivery) as proof of service. Live in italy or mexico for 6 months, and you'll get some perspective.
We're one of those quick turnaround people. With a 6-day week, we can get a DVD on Wednesday, stick it in the mail Thursday, and get the next on on Saturday. This gives us the weekend to watch that movie and we put it in the mail on Monday, which then gives us another DVD on Wednesday. It's a great routine -- exactly 2 DVD's a week on the same days and one of them to watch every weekend. Taking out Saturday would certainly change things.
If they want to make USPS more profitable, eliminate all the discounts for bulk/junk mail and make them pay first class rates.
Go back to your order, and leave packing feedback. Amazon has a nice form letting you vent about ridiculously-sized boxes.
Ever since they began collecting that data, I've noticed that my Amazon orders do seem to come in more appropriately-sized boxes (although they do still occasionally go ridiculously overboard). Their Frustration Free Packaging initiative is also great for consumers and the environment alike.
-- If you try to fail and succeed, which have you done? - Uli's moose
You mean more mail on Monday?
With Saturday delivery:
-On Friday, a particular drop box is emptied.
-On Saturday, it becomes 50% full by the time the USPS empties it again.
-On Monday, it has again become 50% full by the time the USPS empties it.
Without Saturday deliveries, between the Friday and Monday cleanout, the box has become 100% full. So from that particular drop box, there was a 100% increase in mail on Monday.
"I'm not sure I like the fugnutish tone you used in your post!" -RogL (608926)-
Of course, I'm for the apt tax replacing all this bullshit anyway, no loopholes.
I'll read your link later, but as of now, the Fair Tax seems the best option - tax on what you spend, not on what you earn.
www.fairtax.org
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." ~Thomas Jefferson
I could be mistaken, but I believe the last time I looked at one of those blue drop boxes near me, Sunday was not listed as a pickup day for that box. So it's reasonable to assume that if they dropped Saturday deliveries, they might also drop Saturday pickups from those drop boxes.
"I'm not sure I like the fugnutish tone you used in your post!" -RogL (608926)-
The USPS is running a huge deficit and dropping Saturday delivery does not fix the problem.
The problem is falling revenue and too many employees.
Dave Barnes 9 breweries within walking distance of my house
Some of us non-Sabbath-Keepers find Saturday delivery useful and productive. I've had problems with delivery drivers (particularly the pinheads from the USPS) over-ruling my request for packages to be left on the porch when no one is home, and causing delays in production due to untimely delivery. On Saturdays I stand a better chance of stopping them before they leave with my stuff.
They feared that it could be used to suppress protest or support unpopular rule.
That's nothing. When Blockbuster Online first started... $18 / month Get 3 DVDs in the mail on Monday morning. "Watch" them, and head to Blockbuster on Monday evening. At Blockbuster, turn them in and get 3 DVDs from the store (free). Get 3 DVDs in the mail on Wednesday morning. "Watch" them, and head to Blockbuster on Wednesday evening. At Blockbuster, turn them in and get 3 DVDs from the store (free). Also turn in the 3 DVDs you got from the store on Monday. ...
Plus they gave you coupons each month for a free game or movie rental. And coupons for cheap popcorn and candy.
Came out to about 76 DVDs a month.
It was less than a quarter per DVD.
I had a large, used, Origin 2000 server shipped strapped to a plastic palate delivered via DHL. I swear it had been tipped over, (nearly impossible as it weighs like 300 pounds and is a very evenly weight distributed square)- all the rails were crushed, and there were dents in the top. Its a freaking palate with several inches of clearance inside the palate edges to product. How hard can it be to keep it from getting damaged.
I've also had UPS send me servers that look like they were sat on and/or drop kicked across the country. Forget drop shipping, you get drop kicking.
Uhm, they are paying for Saturday delivery. By paying the USPS for delivery.
Why should Amazon pay for police or firefighters in states where they don't have a business presence?
Because Amazon wouldn't be paying sales tax. They are just collecting tax from the customers on behalf of the state. It's the customers who are paying for services in their local area. Amazon doesn't have a problem with collecting taxes because they think they shouldn't have to pay for services, since sales taxes are always passed on to the customer. Amazon has a problem with it because not collecting sales tax gives them a huge (upwards of 10% in some areas) price advantage over local retailers.
The article states that, overall, two thirds of corporations don't pay income taxes, meaning that large corporations are actually better at paying taxes than other corporations.
Those corporations barely make any money - they are created mostly for legal reasons. How are they going to pay taxes?
Claiming that large corporations don't pay taxes because of loopholes and sheltering schemes is patently false.
That's a parroted statement from the conservative think tank mentioned in the article, which has every reason to continue the charade about "net losses." Take a look at a more recent article:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/16/AR2009011602602.html
Most of America's largest publicly traded corporations -- including several that are receiving billions of dollars from U.S. taxpayers to finance their recovery -- have set up offshore operations that could help them avoid paying U.S. taxes on their profits, a government study released yesterday found.
American International Group, Bank of America, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley are among the companies that are getting bailed out by U.S. taxpayers while having subsidiaries in locations where they can avoid paying U.S. taxes, according to the Government Accountability Office.
Of the 100 largest public companies, 83 do business in tax-haven hotspots like the Cayman Islands, Bermuda and the British Virgin Islands, where they can move their income into tax-free accounts. ...The Treasury estimates that it loses $100 billion a year in tax revenue as a result of companies shipping their income off shore, and congressional leaders are vowing to introduce legislation forcing big companies to pay full freight.
The GAO did not independently review company transactions to see if the companies purposely created tax-haven businesses to avoid U.S. taxes. But it said that historically, offshore subsidiaries are used for reducing tax costs and shielding transactions from public view.
So, 83% of the Fortune 100 does a lot of business in "tax-haven hotspots.. historically used for reducing tax costs and shielding transactions from public view." Interested in evading US taxes through loopholes? You can even go shopping for holding companies: http://www.lowtax.net/
Kudos on reinforcing your biases through sheer repetition of lies. Oh, and the credulity! I'll bet you're never out of stock of that, eh?