Lately, I’ve been seeing a lot of pleas to #SaveTheUSPS. I couldn’t agree more.
I have fond memories of the postal service; from writing letters to Campbell’s Soup Company for a school project when I was 8 to sending the first sonogram of my son to my parents when they lived in South Korea. Nobody delivers like the USPS.
But with all the threats to our democracy and now with the very real COVID-19 threat to our lives, it’s hard to find the will and the way to save our beloved post office.
Still, the USPS delivers for me, so I feel obliged to try.
If you’re like me, you’ve abandoned pen to paper writing for emails and writing and mailing checks to online bill pay. It’s convenient and time saving. But an online birthday card does not quite hold the same allure as those thick, crisp Hallmark cards you get in the mail from your grandma. And nothing says thank you better than those tiny handwritten notes about how much you loved the lead crystal vase your Aunt Sylvie sent as a wedding present. But I digress.
The USPS is more than a way to get those warm fuzzies to and from old relatives. It’s vital to our economy and our Democracy. Small business relies on the economical nature of the USPS to advertise and attract new customers. Candidates rely on that same economic benefit to talk to those of us who can’t afford or won’t use internet and cable TV. And in the age of COVID, it is even more important.
Since the appearance of COVID every campaign, commercial or political, has gone digital in the name of social distancing. Door knocking and face-to-face communication has been suspended. But what about those people that digital content left behind? Well, they have the United States Postal Service to keep them in the loop.
Which brings me to my suggestion. Let’s support both the USPS and Democracy! I propose that we all buy stamps online and donate them to our favorite campaigns. The USPS will benefit from our renewed patronage. The campaigns can use them for thank you cards and Get Out The Vote postcards. I asked a bunch of candidates, and they all agreed that stamps would be a very useful donation.
So I humbly submit to you: why not help both our noble USPS and our favorite candidates for office? Aunt Sylvie and Democracy will thank you for it.
