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On This Date: Irish spring game had different outcomes in 1990 for WVC stars

124919546_web1_Pacific-Coast-Highway

Coping with Corona: Hoping to drive the PCH again

I agree with the guest editorial &ldquo;Postal carriers need a stimulus too.&rdquo;
				It&rsquo;s unfortunate that the USPS did not get a better deal from the stimulus package considering that the USPS usually does not receive one dime in taxpayer subsidies, but like its private competitors, must conduct its business funded entirely by income from its own operations.
				The truth is that many conservative think tanks have for years been pushing to privatize the Postal Service, an American institution which has, after all, been around since the time of George Washington.
				By 2006, the Postal Service had such a large surplus of funds that they were planning to invest in a whole new fleet of electric vehicles. This apparently bothered the Republican-led Congress so much that they passed poison pill legislation forcing the Postal Service to prepay its retiree healthcare benefits for 50 years in advance, something no other government agency nor private corporation does.
				This means the USPS is forced to fully fund the benefits of future employees who aren&rsquo;t even born yet! This law costs the Postal Service $5 billion a year and was meant to eventually bankrupt the Postal Service so it could be privatized for profit.
				Now with the COVID-19 situation greatly reducing the volume of mail, the USPS will be in trouble unless it too is seriously bailed out. Democrats in Congress tried to include an amount of money which would truly help the Postal Service, but the Republicans labeled this as a Democratic goodie unnecessarily tacked on to the stimulus bill.
				It&rsquo;s time to remove the burden of forcing the Postal Service to prefund its retiree benefits so far in advance and help this American institution survive this crisis with a generous bailout.
				After all, if you think you&rsquo;ll be able to mail a letter for 55 cents after a for-profit company replaces the Postal Service, think again!
				Marshall Rumbaugh
				Wilkes-Barre

Your view: Don’t let the GOP kill the Postal Service