The Post Office Made Me Do It

The Post Office Made Me Do It

Should I start off a perfectly good year with complaining?  Thirteen days have gone by and I haven’t written a word about things that have been bugging the heck out of me.  But the U.S. Post Office, that bastion of reliability and good old American know how, has provided the spur that has goaded my angry horse to a stampede of vitriol.  How’s that for a metaphor?

One week ago I went to the post office with a package that I wanted to send fairly quickly to my sister up in the North Country.  So I paid the big bucks, twenty one of them, to get what is called on the receipt, 2-day Priority Service.  Today, seven days later, the package – according to the young postal clerk who had the misfortune to say “May I help the next person in line?” when I was next up – might get delivered.  This young lady told me that the “2-day” part of the deal was just a goal, something the folks at the post office strive for, not a guaranteed reality.  So I let go with a little rant about service and cost and government subsidies to a failed quasi-business.  The poor little clerk stood there and took all that unnecessary anger, apologizing whenever she could get a word in, and smiling through the whole oration.  My fellow postal customers, about fifteen or twenty of them, applauded at the end.  I think they were applauding either the young lady’s tact or the fact that I was finished.  They couldn't have been applauding my rude and boorish outburst.

But then why shouldn't we have rude and boorish outbursts once in a while?  We pay for service at the post office.  We pay, as taxpayers, to keep the institution going even though it constantly fails in its mission.  They spend millions of dollars every year telling us how much better they’re doing and how our satisfaction is their main concern.  But they still can’t deliver on their promises.  Which brings to mind that whole issue of promises broken and lies told by folks who work in the government, particularly those elected to high office.  The ones elected to lower office are probably a little less susceptible to the lying and deceiving malady since they live closer to their constituencies.  Well maybe not, if we look at the boneheads we elect in Delaware.

Friends you know I’m not the brightest fellow in the blogosphere.  And the intricacies of complex legislation are often beyond my simple understanding.  Some of my less conservative friends point out the errors in my reasoning process on a regular basis.  Some of them even use charts and statistics provided by very reputable agencies and organizations to prove their points.  I, on the other hand, have only my ability to read and to make judgments based on common sense and gut feelings.  Of course there is a wide gap between what my friends hold to be the best way to make progress in the world and what I believe to be true.  We will never fully agree.  I try to understand their viewpoints but I must admit that I struggle.

For instance I've looked at statistics regarding the new Affordable Health Care Act.  The proponents of this ambitious program cite numbers supporting early successes.  Other people cite a different set of statistics that demonstrate the high costs and early failure of the new system.  What is a simple mind supposed to do when faced with these contradictions, both made in good faith?  Or are they?  I’m afraid I looked at a whole lot of the promises made by the Proponent in Chief as he pushed, prodded, promised, promoted and badgered this program into existence.  But friends, the guy lied.  I've heard the lies.  I've heard the excuses for the lies, I've heard the backpedaling and prevarications about the lies.  I've heard the man’s minions go out and lie for him.  If we can’t believe the person most responsible for this mess then why would I believe the statistics that his side puts forth in support of his lies?  Or are both sides lying?  In that case I've got to look elsewhere for information.

Yep, I had to find some anecdotal evidence of my own.  So I listened to what my cousin’s son said about his costs going up under the new program.  Then I talked to my neighbor about how his workplace insurance is now gone and an equal replacement policy will cost him nearly four times as much this year.  Next I talked to a person I know who works for the federal government and he isn't seeing any change at all.  Then I talked to some folks who got insurance through a trade organization but the carrier is cancelling all of their policies and they've got to go to the “marketplace” to get replacements.  Every one of them will be paying much more for their policies.  In truth, I have not yet found a single instance of someone who is satisfied with the changes they've had to go through to get health insurance under this new program.  Maybe there are thousands of previously uninsured folks who now have insurance and who also get government subsidies for the premiums.  I haven’t met any.  And honestly, I’m not all that thrilled to be subsidizing, via taxes, insurance premiums for some folks while others are being treated so shabbily by this program.

Well, you all get my drift.  I won’t even go into the lies about the NSA and Benghazi and the IRS issues.  Nor will I discuss the hypocrisy of elected officials who still can’t seem to live under the laws that they write or who complain about the pain of poor people and the middle class as they enjoy government subsidized vacations around the world.  Nope.  Won’t go into all that.  And I certainly won’t point any fingers at those wealthy entertainment types that love to tell us how we need to help the downtrodden as they’re getting fitted for clothes they wear once that cost more than an average teacher’s monthly salary.  And it would never be fitting for me to complain about a Congress that completely ignores past promises to military members and cuts veterans’ benefits while giving themselves annual pay raises.  There’s so much I can’t talk about, isn't there?

Okay liberal friends, have at me.  I’m sure you’ll find much to disagree with and your arguments will be deeply rooted in esoteric philosophical ideas and ideals.  That’s good.  But honestly friends, shouldn't we start looking for people to put in office who can actually tell the truth, all the time, about everything?  I for one believe that we can handle the truth.

Sorry for this rant.  You can blame the post office.  Now have a fine day.