De Post

Our mail is delivered 6 days a week by a guy on a bike. Same as in the U. S. (minus the bike). But that's where the similarities seem to end.

I've been reading about how the U. S. Postal Service is in financial trouble. A recent proposal is to axe Saturday mail delivery which would save $3 billion a year, but it seems that will only solve some of theproblems.

You may remember a previous blogpost or two about us receiving mail for the previous tenant of our house - Tom. Believe it or not, after nearly 2 years in this house, we still receive mail for him from time to time. That's because it's not FREE here in Belgium to have your mail forwarded.

But first . . . for a mere 44 cents, the USPS will deliver a letter anywhere in the country. Pick it up at your front door and take it to any house, on any street, in any state . . . for 44 cents.

In Belgium, it'll cost you 71 cents ($.97) to mail a letter within Belgium and €1.03 ($1.41) for a letter within the EU. That's equivalent to over 3x what it costs you to mail a letter from Louisiana to Texas. Every single letter. The USPS handles about 700 million pieces of mail each year . . . do the math.

And Belgium won't pick it up at your door either. We must take it to a postal box. I tried once clipping a letter we mistakenly received for Tom to our mailbox outside. I even wrote his new address on it. It stayed there for about a week until I finally threw it away. Delivery only. No pickup here.

And if you want to change your address:

In Belgium - if you move within Belgium: €20 for 4 months; if you move outside Belgium: €70 for 4 months

In the U.S. - FREE for 1 year

Using Belgium rates, this would cost $81 if you moved within your state or $288 if you moved to another state!

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What about holding your mail while on vacation:

In Belgium - it costs €15 for up to 30 days

In the U. S. - FREE for up to 30 days

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And the junk mail:

In Belgium - there is no requirement to deliver it and if you put a special sticker on your mailbox you won't get any

In the U.S. - the postal service is required to deliver it and there's nothing you can do about it

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And what about all the Non Profit organizations:

In Belgium - not an option

In the U. S. - they pay about half of standard postage rates

I'm sure even a rate hike wouldn't solve all the problems, but it does seem that we do expect a lot for 44 cents.