According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, rural communities are hopping mad at the U.S. Postal Service. The reason? They’re not getting their mail — well, at least not without a long delay, sometimes several weeks. In Silverthorne, Colorado, Christmas cards started arriving in February. Residents of Crested Butte, Colorado, are banding together to explore their options under the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2006, which, according to the Journal, “requires the U.S. Postal Service to provide service across the nation.”
I’ve got a better idea: Let’s just abolish the Postal Service and rely on the free market for the delivery of first-class mail.
The Postal Service is a classic example of a monopoly. The law gives it the exclusive privilege of delivering first-class mail. If anyone in the private sector tries to compete, the Justice Department immediately secures an injunction from a federal judge ordering the competitor to shut down his operation.
It shouldn’t surprise anyone that the Postal Service’s operations are shoddy and third-class. That’s one of the main characteristics of monopolies.
Moreover, keep in mind that this is a socialist economic enterprise, one owned and operated by the government. We all know that socialism produces the worst of everything.
On the other hand, the free market produces the best of everything. It would do the same in the delivery of first-class mail. Let’s abolish the Postal Service and replace it with the free market. At least then, everyone would get his Christmas cards at Christmas.