1 00:00:01,120 --> 00:00:04,280 Speaker 1: Welcome to you stuff you should know front House Stuff 2 00:00:04,280 --> 00:00:13,360 Speaker 1: Works dot com. Hey, and welcome to the podcast. Uh, 3 00:00:13,400 --> 00:00:16,279 Speaker 1: there's Charles W. Chuck Bryant. I'm Amy Goodman to the 4 00:00:16,360 --> 00:00:19,600 Speaker 1: Democracy Now the warrant Peace Report, Warrant Peace dot or, etcetera. 5 00:00:19,720 --> 00:00:23,280 Speaker 1: I'm Stephen. Jerry just said let's do this old school 6 00:00:23,400 --> 00:00:25,200 Speaker 1: right before she recorded, and I had no idea what 7 00:00:25,239 --> 00:00:31,360 Speaker 1: she meant. Yeah, yeah, you know, she's back. I thought 8 00:00:31,360 --> 00:00:33,320 Speaker 1: she meant, let's make it crappy in five minutes long, 9 00:00:34,200 --> 00:00:37,800 Speaker 1: and we need like little empty tin cans to speak. Dude, 10 00:00:38,000 --> 00:00:41,920 Speaker 1: make it sound right. How you doing, Jerry? That's great. 11 00:00:42,240 --> 00:00:44,279 Speaker 1: Jerry gave us the thumbs up. I know in our 12 00:00:44,320 --> 00:00:48,840 Speaker 1: new murder room. Um, Jerry is within our eyesight again 13 00:00:48,960 --> 00:00:51,440 Speaker 1: after a long layoff where she was not within our 14 00:00:51,640 --> 00:00:55,080 Speaker 1: range of viewing. I know, as it's kind of weird 15 00:00:55,080 --> 00:00:56,920 Speaker 1: because now I'm looking at you, but I can clearly 16 00:00:56,920 --> 00:00:59,840 Speaker 1: see my peripheral vision that she's on Facebook. She's way, 17 00:01:00,760 --> 00:01:04,360 Speaker 1: she's brusting her teeth, she's rearranging the severed human heads 18 00:01:04,360 --> 00:01:10,160 Speaker 1: that are in jars all around the place. That's creepy. Um. 19 00:01:10,280 --> 00:01:12,560 Speaker 1: Do you want to talk post office man? You want 20 00:01:12,600 --> 00:01:14,520 Speaker 1: to give the disclaimer that we're only talking about the 21 00:01:14,520 --> 00:01:18,640 Speaker 1: post Office in the US of a thin he just did. Okay, Um, 22 00:01:18,760 --> 00:01:20,280 Speaker 1: we don't know how it works in your country. No, 23 00:01:20,440 --> 00:01:22,880 Speaker 1: And actually it's probably not nearly as interesting as what's 24 00:01:22,880 --> 00:01:26,800 Speaker 1: going on with the US Postal Service the USPS, because 25 00:01:26,800 --> 00:01:28,160 Speaker 1: I don't know if you know this or not chucked, 26 00:01:28,160 --> 00:01:32,880 Speaker 1: but the USPS isn't a lot of trouble there. Yeah, 27 00:01:33,000 --> 00:01:35,399 Speaker 1: there's solvency that the amount of money that they have 28 00:01:35,520 --> 00:01:37,960 Speaker 1: to keep the lights on and keep everything going is 29 00:01:38,000 --> 00:01:40,319 Speaker 1: expected to run out in October of two thousand thirteen 30 00:01:40,440 --> 00:01:42,839 Speaker 1: if they don't do something. Yeah, that's this year. Yeah. 31 00:01:42,880 --> 00:01:46,720 Speaker 1: I think they lost sixteen billion dollars last year, Yes, 32 00:01:46,840 --> 00:01:50,680 Speaker 1: and five billion the year before. So that's a three 33 00:01:50,720 --> 00:01:53,360 Speaker 1: times as much money in a year. That's bad news. 34 00:01:53,480 --> 00:01:56,280 Speaker 1: Here's the caveat to that sixteen billion dollar loss, though 35 00:01:57,680 --> 00:02:01,680 Speaker 1: eleven billion of that was in pain. It's to uh 36 00:02:01,720 --> 00:02:06,720 Speaker 1: the future benefits of postal workers that have not yet 37 00:02:06,720 --> 00:02:10,200 Speaker 1: retired but well and the posts serve. The Postal Service 38 00:02:10,320 --> 00:02:13,480 Speaker 1: is the only federal agency of any sort that is 39 00:02:13,520 --> 00:02:17,360 Speaker 1: required to prepay its employees benefits for the future. In 40 00:02:17,400 --> 00:02:20,280 Speaker 1: two thousand and six, a lame de accession of Congress said, 41 00:02:20,400 --> 00:02:22,360 Speaker 1: you know what, you guys need to make sure that 42 00:02:22,400 --> 00:02:24,920 Speaker 1: your workers are taken care of. So you guys have 43 00:02:25,000 --> 00:02:28,160 Speaker 1: to start pre paying, um and over the next ten years. 44 00:02:28,520 --> 00:02:31,359 Speaker 1: And they have been, and they've been bleeding money. I mean, 45 00:02:31,360 --> 00:02:35,000 Speaker 1: like a sixteen billion dollar loss, but eleven billion of 46 00:02:35,000 --> 00:02:37,000 Speaker 1: it was to these future payments. I guess that would 47 00:02:37,000 --> 00:02:39,000 Speaker 1: make sense. Then then if you took out that eleven 48 00:02:39,040 --> 00:02:41,600 Speaker 1: they would just be about the same loss as before 49 00:02:42,240 --> 00:02:44,840 Speaker 1: a year. Right. But and that's a lot of money 50 00:02:44,840 --> 00:02:48,800 Speaker 1: to live it is. But um, they're figuring out ways 51 00:02:49,120 --> 00:02:51,200 Speaker 1: to make up for that extra loss, and one of 52 00:02:51,200 --> 00:02:53,320 Speaker 1: the big ones that's on the table now is cutting 53 00:02:53,360 --> 00:02:58,680 Speaker 1: out Saturday delivery. They figured they can recoup two billion 54 00:02:58,680 --> 00:03:02,040 Speaker 1: dollars a year doing that, so then they're down to three. 55 00:03:02,440 --> 00:03:05,040 Speaker 1: The thing is is the post the post office, it's 56 00:03:05,040 --> 00:03:07,560 Speaker 1: a part of the executive branch. Man it's all over 57 00:03:07,600 --> 00:03:10,440 Speaker 1: the place. It's a part of the executive branch. It's 58 00:03:10,440 --> 00:03:13,280 Speaker 1: a part of the federal government. But it gets zero 59 00:03:13,320 --> 00:03:16,000 Speaker 1: dollars in tax revenue. And it's also a thrill kill 60 00:03:16,080 --> 00:03:24,800 Speaker 1: cult exactly. That's the horrible secret of the year, right. Um, 61 00:03:24,840 --> 00:03:27,600 Speaker 1: So they get no money besides what they can make 62 00:03:27,760 --> 00:03:32,760 Speaker 1: off of their own revenue. Right, Um, so they get no, 63 00:03:33,040 --> 00:03:35,840 Speaker 1: but they get but they're also under the purview of 64 00:03:35,880 --> 00:03:39,200 Speaker 1: the federal the federal government. It's a weird, weird thing, 65 00:03:39,360 --> 00:03:42,040 Speaker 1: and they can't act without asking Congress. And Congress hasn't 66 00:03:42,080 --> 00:03:45,280 Speaker 1: exactly been forthcoming lately. Yet they haven't approved the Saturday thing. 67 00:03:45,240 --> 00:03:48,200 Speaker 1: And have they Congress. Here's the thing they've been trying 68 00:03:48,200 --> 00:03:50,320 Speaker 1: to get. Congress, you approve that forever. The Senate passed 69 00:03:50,360 --> 00:03:52,360 Speaker 1: a bill that said, after two years, we'll let you 70 00:03:52,400 --> 00:03:55,640 Speaker 1: cut out Saturday service, will give you eleven billion dollars 71 00:03:55,640 --> 00:03:58,920 Speaker 1: in over payments that you guys made towards the retirement stuff. 72 00:03:58,960 --> 00:04:00,800 Speaker 1: All the stuff back into the House, and the House 73 00:04:00,800 --> 00:04:03,840 Speaker 1: didn't do anything with it. Right, So you know the 74 00:04:03,880 --> 00:04:09,080 Speaker 1: fiscal cliff, Well, the US Congress passed the stop gap measure, 75 00:04:09,120 --> 00:04:13,520 Speaker 1: basically a federal budget that says, within this period, we're 76 00:04:13,560 --> 00:04:16,880 Speaker 1: still able to operate, right, And the USPS says, ha ha, 77 00:04:17,279 --> 00:04:20,680 Speaker 1: you didn't include our mandate from nineteen eight one that 78 00:04:20,800 --> 00:04:24,360 Speaker 1: we have to carry out Saturday service in that stopcap. 79 00:04:24,680 --> 00:04:28,560 Speaker 1: So technically, under current federal law, we don't have to 80 00:04:28,600 --> 00:04:31,200 Speaker 1: carry out Saturday service. And they're arguing it legally. So 81 00:04:31,240 --> 00:04:33,120 Speaker 1: they're just saying that's the loopholes are going to use 82 00:04:33,160 --> 00:04:39,039 Speaker 1: to shut down Saturday service, saying just packages. They're going 83 00:04:39,080 --> 00:04:41,760 Speaker 1: to deliver packages on Saturday. And here's a really good reason. 84 00:04:41,800 --> 00:04:46,680 Speaker 1: Express mail their revenues from packages of increased six over 85 00:04:46,680 --> 00:04:50,200 Speaker 1: the last ten years, whereas first class mail you know 86 00:04:50,320 --> 00:04:56,400 Speaker 1: letters have gone down I believe. So they're making all 87 00:04:56,520 --> 00:04:58,640 Speaker 1: almost all of their money because it's only forty five 88 00:04:58,680 --> 00:05:04,080 Speaker 1: cents to mail a letter from Florida to to Hawaii. Um. 89 00:05:04,160 --> 00:05:07,320 Speaker 1: But they make, however much shipping in the shipping game, 90 00:05:07,360 --> 00:05:09,200 Speaker 1: which is where they make all their money, which is 91 00:05:09,240 --> 00:05:11,920 Speaker 1: ironically the one place they don't have a monopoly as 92 00:05:11,920 --> 00:05:14,240 Speaker 1: far as the mail goes. I'm glad to see medicine 93 00:05:14,800 --> 00:05:17,359 Speaker 1: mail order medicine on that list to Express mail packages 94 00:05:17,400 --> 00:05:20,359 Speaker 1: in medicine, because at first I was like, who cares, 95 00:05:20,480 --> 00:05:23,520 Speaker 1: I don't need you don't yet. I don't need my 96 00:05:23,560 --> 00:05:26,960 Speaker 1: mail on a Saturday, right, but you you're medicine on 97 00:05:27,000 --> 00:05:30,440 Speaker 1: a Saturday. Well that's why they included that as a 98 00:05:30,560 --> 00:05:34,040 Speaker 1: you know something, they would still deliver and post offices 99 00:05:34,080 --> 00:05:36,000 Speaker 1: that are already open on Saturdays will still be open 100 00:05:36,040 --> 00:05:38,360 Speaker 1: on Saturdays. So if you want to go to your 101 00:05:38,600 --> 00:05:41,760 Speaker 1: PO box, maybe there'll be some mail, maybe there won't 102 00:05:41,800 --> 00:05:43,719 Speaker 1: be who knows. I bet you've had a PO box. 103 00:05:43,720 --> 00:05:46,840 Speaker 1: I've been thinking about this, haven't you have? You know, 104 00:05:47,160 --> 00:05:48,600 Speaker 1: you just struck me as a kind of person that 105 00:05:48,640 --> 00:05:51,160 Speaker 1: would have had a PO box at one point. You know, 106 00:05:51,520 --> 00:05:54,920 Speaker 1: that's where I get all my guns in the mail. So, UM, 107 00:05:55,040 --> 00:05:58,920 Speaker 1: I'm pretty worked up about this, as you can see. Um, 108 00:05:58,960 --> 00:06:01,160 Speaker 1: it's kind of interesting. Yeah, and who would have thought 109 00:06:01,160 --> 00:06:04,919 Speaker 1: that the postal service would ever be interesting? Uh? Sure, 110 00:06:04,960 --> 00:06:07,839 Speaker 1: I think parts of this are very interesting. Um. And 111 00:06:07,920 --> 00:06:09,560 Speaker 1: we would just want to go ahead and say hello 112 00:06:09,839 --> 00:06:13,160 Speaker 1: to all of our postal carriers out there that um 113 00:06:13,400 --> 00:06:16,320 Speaker 1: listen to our show who Who Won us over during 114 00:06:16,360 --> 00:06:18,479 Speaker 1: the Bush Era? Because we've got an emails from you 115 00:06:18,480 --> 00:06:22,279 Speaker 1: guys and gals. Yeah, including one of our favorite people 116 00:06:22,560 --> 00:06:27,520 Speaker 1: out there is a postal worker, Very Nostrin. Oh yeah, 117 00:06:27,720 --> 00:06:30,960 Speaker 1: is this one should really be a tribute to Van Nostros. 118 00:06:31,000 --> 00:06:34,200 Speaker 1: I didn't. He's a carrier. I'm he's always been kind 119 00:06:34,200 --> 00:06:36,159 Speaker 1: of cryptic about what he does. But I'm under the 120 00:06:36,200 --> 00:06:40,880 Speaker 1: distinct impression that he's employed by the Postal Service. Bangalore's 121 00:06:41,120 --> 00:06:45,680 Speaker 1: Van nostrin. This is for you. Um. But okay, so 122 00:06:46,000 --> 00:06:48,720 Speaker 1: let's talk about this. Let's talk about the Postal service. Man. 123 00:06:48,800 --> 00:06:54,000 Speaker 1: I'm all jazzed about the USPS. Dude, I'm glad you are. Um. So, 124 00:06:54,120 --> 00:06:58,040 Speaker 1: for a little while, even after the advent of electronic mail, 125 00:06:58,760 --> 00:07:02,040 Speaker 1: the postal evers is, the amount of mail they were 126 00:07:02,080 --> 00:07:05,599 Speaker 1: delivering was still increasing. As of two thousand seven, it 127 00:07:05,680 --> 00:07:09,360 Speaker 1: was on an upward trajectory. Sorry, two thousand six, right, 128 00:07:10,120 --> 00:07:13,400 Speaker 1: two d thirteen billion, one hundred and thirty seven million 129 00:07:13,440 --> 00:07:16,239 Speaker 1: pieces of mail that year. It's down to one sixty 130 00:07:16,280 --> 00:07:20,080 Speaker 1: seven now and then uh their when was this written? 131 00:07:20,120 --> 00:07:22,440 Speaker 1: Do you know? I think two thousand seven two? Okay, 132 00:07:22,440 --> 00:07:24,920 Speaker 1: So then they had seven hundred thousand employees. Now they 133 00:07:24,920 --> 00:07:27,960 Speaker 1: have about five hundred and eighty thousand. So they've been 134 00:07:28,160 --> 00:07:32,160 Speaker 1: in and trim the budget mode I think for the 135 00:07:32,160 --> 00:07:34,600 Speaker 1: past few years. Well, and the reason why. In two 136 00:07:34,640 --> 00:07:36,840 Speaker 1: thousand and six they also made seventy two point eight 137 00:07:36,840 --> 00:07:40,360 Speaker 1: billion dollars. I mean those stamps they add up, you know. Um. 138 00:07:40,400 --> 00:07:43,840 Speaker 1: In two thousand and eleven they made sixty six billion. Wow. 139 00:07:44,560 --> 00:07:47,880 Speaker 1: Not bad, yeah, but they're still losing a lot of money. 140 00:07:47,960 --> 00:07:51,760 Speaker 1: I mean that's what seven billion dollars in difference in 141 00:07:52,040 --> 00:07:56,200 Speaker 1: just five years. It's not good. It's not good. Um So, 142 00:07:56,240 --> 00:07:58,440 Speaker 1: where the where do all this come from? Chuck? It 143 00:07:58,520 --> 00:08:02,239 Speaker 1: came from back yonder day. You know. People have always 144 00:08:02,240 --> 00:08:06,640 Speaker 1: need to communicate, obviously from long distances, and uh in 145 00:08:06,800 --> 00:08:11,160 Speaker 1: sixteen thirty nine, Um, they you know, colonists here in 146 00:08:11,200 --> 00:08:13,480 Speaker 1: the in the New I guess they weren't United States yet, 147 00:08:13,560 --> 00:08:16,400 Speaker 1: but in the New World needed to get word back 148 00:08:16,400 --> 00:08:19,520 Speaker 1: to England occasionally and say things like, hey, quit bugging us, 149 00:08:19,560 --> 00:08:23,600 Speaker 1: or hey, sind it's more t and crumpets and um. 150 00:08:23,720 --> 00:08:27,600 Speaker 1: So the first official postal service was established in sixteen 151 00:08:27,640 --> 00:08:32,240 Speaker 1: thirty nine. UM. Richard Fairbank's tavern in Boston was the 152 00:08:32,280 --> 00:08:35,920 Speaker 1: official mail drop for overseas there in Massachusetts, and that 153 00:08:36,040 --> 00:08:38,160 Speaker 1: was the place to go if you wanted to mail something. Yeah, 154 00:08:38,200 --> 00:08:40,560 Speaker 1: and I couldn't find what happened or where it went 155 00:08:40,960 --> 00:08:44,679 Speaker 1: on the other side of the Atlantic. Probably I would 156 00:08:44,679 --> 00:08:46,839 Speaker 1: imagine then you just went to that pub and said, hey, 157 00:08:46,880 --> 00:08:48,720 Speaker 1: is there any mail? And they say no, and you 158 00:08:48,760 --> 00:08:51,080 Speaker 1: turn around and traveled the five miles back to your village. 159 00:08:51,320 --> 00:08:54,720 Speaker 1: So that was step one. Step two was about uh 160 00:08:54,800 --> 00:08:59,320 Speaker 1: forty some nine years later, six three William penn established 161 00:08:59,600 --> 00:09:03,040 Speaker 1: very thing. This person obviously, um, the first official post 162 00:09:03,120 --> 00:09:07,679 Speaker 1: office in Pennsylvania. You have his name after him, that's right, 163 00:09:08,960 --> 00:09:11,439 Speaker 1: And uh, I love this side note. Here in the South, 164 00:09:11,480 --> 00:09:15,160 Speaker 1: private messages were just sent between plantations, so they would 165 00:09:15,200 --> 00:09:17,280 Speaker 1: probably just give it to a slave and say carry 166 00:09:17,280 --> 00:09:20,280 Speaker 1: this over to that guy. Uh. And then flash forward 167 00:09:20,280 --> 00:09:24,560 Speaker 1: a little bit more. Um, the British crown gave a 168 00:09:24,559 --> 00:09:27,800 Speaker 1: man named Thomas Neil a twenty one year grant for 169 00:09:27,880 --> 00:09:31,280 Speaker 1: the postal service in the United States and he paid 170 00:09:31,480 --> 00:09:37,400 Speaker 1: um like seven seven shillings a year, so that's nothing, right, 171 00:09:37,720 --> 00:09:40,680 Speaker 1: he still died in debt, did he really? With the monopoly? 172 00:09:40,960 --> 00:09:43,000 Speaker 1: So the postal service has always been kind of tricky 173 00:09:43,000 --> 00:09:47,360 Speaker 1: to call money from. Interesting. So that continued until seventeen 174 00:09:47,400 --> 00:09:50,720 Speaker 1: seventy four, and a lot of big stuff was happening 175 00:09:50,760 --> 00:09:54,000 Speaker 1: around that time, like, Hey, we don't like you anymore 176 00:09:54,200 --> 00:09:58,080 Speaker 1: in England controlling us over here and taxing us, so 177 00:09:58,200 --> 00:10:02,360 Speaker 1: we're gonna start and established our own constitutional post office 178 00:10:02,800 --> 00:10:07,040 Speaker 1: for for any kind of mail going from anywhere, basically 179 00:10:07,080 --> 00:10:10,760 Speaker 1: intercolonial mail. Yeah. Yeah, it was was very cutting edge 180 00:10:10,760 --> 00:10:14,240 Speaker 1: at the sure and actually, um, you know that when 181 00:10:14,280 --> 00:10:16,760 Speaker 1: the British were carrying out the postal service on behalf 182 00:10:16,800 --> 00:10:19,640 Speaker 1: of the colonies. In the colonies, Um, there was a 183 00:10:19,679 --> 00:10:22,280 Speaker 1: guy named Benjamin Franklin who was appointed the postmaster of 184 00:10:22,280 --> 00:10:27,120 Speaker 1: Philadelphia and he actually killed it. As postmaster did he 185 00:10:27,240 --> 00:10:29,800 Speaker 1: like totally improved the roads. He said, like, we're gonna 186 00:10:29,800 --> 00:10:32,240 Speaker 1: start working like twenty four hours a day. We're gonna 187 00:10:32,240 --> 00:10:34,360 Speaker 1: have like lots of shifts. We're going to put up 188 00:10:34,480 --> 00:10:40,800 Speaker 1: milestones like the The postal service helped improve the connectedness 189 00:10:40,880 --> 00:10:43,440 Speaker 1: of the colonies thanks to him. So when the Continental 190 00:10:43,440 --> 00:10:46,200 Speaker 1: Congress said, hey, we want our own postal service, ben 191 00:10:46,240 --> 00:10:49,360 Speaker 1: Franklin became the first Postmaster General. And of course he 192 00:10:49,440 --> 00:10:51,640 Speaker 1: ran it like a tight ship. And he's one of 193 00:10:51,679 --> 00:10:53,800 Speaker 1: those dudes. I get a feeling if we could like 194 00:10:54,040 --> 00:10:56,520 Speaker 1: resurrect him and bring him out today, he could fix 195 00:10:56,520 --> 00:10:58,480 Speaker 1: what's going on in this country. Yeah, and he'd say 196 00:10:58,480 --> 00:11:02,440 Speaker 1: something pithy and ask for a glasses Sharry exactly. Um. 197 00:11:02,559 --> 00:11:05,439 Speaker 1: So this is to me when it gets super interesting. Uh, 198 00:11:05,640 --> 00:11:10,000 Speaker 1: was in the nineteenth century when westward expansion happened California 199 00:11:10,040 --> 00:11:11,960 Speaker 1: gold Rush. All of a sudden, we needed to get 200 00:11:12,040 --> 00:11:16,040 Speaker 1: stuff from the east coast to San Francisco. Let's say 201 00:11:16,400 --> 00:11:19,520 Speaker 1: so as quick as possible, right, what's crazy? As quick 202 00:11:19,559 --> 00:11:24,440 Speaker 1: as possible was to go down New York around Florida, Cribbean, yes, 203 00:11:24,880 --> 00:11:28,680 Speaker 1: like a steamship, uh, through the Caribbean, and then across 204 00:11:28,760 --> 00:11:34,400 Speaker 1: like Panama and then up on the Pacific side to California. 205 00:11:34,480 --> 00:11:36,680 Speaker 1: That was the fastest way to get mail for a while. Yeah. 206 00:11:36,679 --> 00:11:39,719 Speaker 1: And how long three to four weeks to send a 207 00:11:39,840 --> 00:11:42,480 Speaker 1: letter from the East Coast to the West coast. And 208 00:11:42,520 --> 00:11:45,839 Speaker 1: that's you know, the best case scenario, right, And that's 209 00:11:45,880 --> 00:11:49,320 Speaker 1: how that's what, that's how the US, the East coast 210 00:11:49,800 --> 00:11:52,839 Speaker 1: um communicated with the West Coast for a while until 211 00:11:52,880 --> 00:11:56,520 Speaker 1: some stage coach routes, routes were um, we're established. There 212 00:11:56,559 --> 00:11:58,360 Speaker 1: was a southern route and there was a central route, 213 00:11:58,720 --> 00:12:00,880 Speaker 1: and the southern route you could suposedly use a year 214 00:12:00,960 --> 00:12:03,320 Speaker 1: round because it's lovely down here. But then the central 215 00:12:03,360 --> 00:12:06,199 Speaker 1: route it was faster, but they said you can't use 216 00:12:06,280 --> 00:12:09,839 Speaker 1: that year round their storms. Yeah, and it also killed me. Man. 217 00:12:09,920 --> 00:12:11,640 Speaker 1: The way they used to name companies back then was 218 00:12:11,679 --> 00:12:15,200 Speaker 1: so like it made perfect sense. You basically just said 219 00:12:15,240 --> 00:12:19,439 Speaker 1: what you did. Like one the Pacific Mail Steamship Company 220 00:12:19,679 --> 00:12:21,679 Speaker 1: said we're going to carry your mail to the Pacific 221 00:12:21,679 --> 00:12:26,520 Speaker 1: by steamship, and then the Overland Mail Company like, well, 222 00:12:26,600 --> 00:12:29,600 Speaker 1: we're gonna do it overland, right, and so that's what 223 00:12:29,640 --> 00:12:32,040 Speaker 1: we're gonna call our company. So they got the contract 224 00:12:32,040 --> 00:12:35,480 Speaker 1: the Overland Mail Company um along the Southern Route. Took 225 00:12:35,480 --> 00:12:39,120 Speaker 1: about twenty five days, and then my favorite, one of 226 00:12:39,200 --> 00:12:42,960 Speaker 1: my favorite parts of American history was born, the Pony Express. Yeah, 227 00:12:43,040 --> 00:12:45,679 Speaker 1: and it's just so amazing, like the the idea that 228 00:12:45,720 --> 00:12:47,760 Speaker 1: they had to do this. It was a different company 229 00:12:47,800 --> 00:12:50,480 Speaker 1: that was competing. They wanted to get that contract away 230 00:12:50,480 --> 00:12:52,880 Speaker 1: from the Overland Company, right, the CEOC and p P, 231 00:12:53,200 --> 00:12:55,000 Speaker 1: and they said, you know what, we know the Central 232 00:12:55,040 --> 00:12:57,000 Speaker 1: Route shorter. We're gonna prove that we can use it 233 00:12:57,080 --> 00:12:59,240 Speaker 1: year round, and we're gonna set up something that it's 234 00:12:59,280 --> 00:13:01,400 Speaker 1: just gonna blow of this twenty five day thing out 235 00:13:01,440 --> 00:13:03,920 Speaker 1: of the water. And they set up the Pony Express 236 00:13:04,600 --> 00:13:08,200 Speaker 1: and they had stations what every ten twenty miles, and 237 00:13:08,280 --> 00:13:12,040 Speaker 1: a rider would ride from St. Joseph, Missouri to Sacramento 238 00:13:12,360 --> 00:13:15,320 Speaker 1: or be part of a line of riding. They go 239 00:13:15,360 --> 00:13:17,720 Speaker 1: about a hundred miles and then they change horses every 240 00:13:17,720 --> 00:13:20,360 Speaker 1: like ten or fifteen miles. Yes, so the same rider 241 00:13:20,400 --> 00:13:23,400 Speaker 1: would change horses because they rode. They average ten miles 242 00:13:23,440 --> 00:13:26,440 Speaker 1: an hour, which doesn't sound fast, but you got a 243 00:13:26,440 --> 00:13:29,199 Speaker 1: factor in like the Sierra Nevadas where they're just crawling 244 00:13:29,280 --> 00:13:33,440 Speaker 1: up these mountains. So these dudes were riding hard and 245 00:13:33,559 --> 00:13:37,000 Speaker 1: on flat ground. If they're averaging ten miles an hour, right, 246 00:13:37,600 --> 00:13:40,760 Speaker 1: and they're going twenty four hours a day, they're going 247 00:13:40,800 --> 00:13:44,800 Speaker 1: two thousand miles ten miles an hour, that's what twenty hours? 248 00:13:45,960 --> 00:13:49,040 Speaker 1: That's no, that's two hundred hours. So what is that 249 00:13:49,040 --> 00:13:51,840 Speaker 1: that's less than ten days. So that's that cuts that 250 00:13:52,000 --> 00:13:58,199 Speaker 1: over link company's rate by Yeah. There was always one 251 00:13:59,080 --> 00:14:01,520 Speaker 1: set of riders going east, one set going west. Yeah. 252 00:14:01,559 --> 00:14:05,480 Speaker 1: I think when you when you were relieved by another rider, Yeah, 253 00:14:05,559 --> 00:14:08,000 Speaker 1: you'd hang out at that station and wait for the 254 00:14:08,040 --> 00:14:10,000 Speaker 1: other for somebody to come the other way and then 255 00:14:10,000 --> 00:14:13,280 Speaker 1: relieve them. Yeah. They were paid really well at the time, 256 00:14:13,720 --> 00:14:16,559 Speaker 1: twenty five bucks a week, which at the time unskilled 257 00:14:16,600 --> 00:14:20,280 Speaker 1: labors made about a dollar a week. So um, and 258 00:14:20,560 --> 00:14:22,600 Speaker 1: did you read the first ad they ever put in. 259 00:14:23,440 --> 00:14:27,360 Speaker 1: I wanted young, skinny, wiry fellows not over eighteen, must 260 00:14:27,360 --> 00:14:31,040 Speaker 1: be expert riders, willing to risk death daily orphans preferred, 261 00:14:32,000 --> 00:14:35,680 Speaker 1: And that's maybe legend. But supposedly that's what it says. 262 00:14:35,720 --> 00:14:40,560 Speaker 1: But apparently they were young, little, light life, skinny kids, 263 00:14:40,680 --> 00:14:43,560 Speaker 1: because you know, you didn't want some big dude like 264 00:14:43,680 --> 00:14:45,600 Speaker 1: me up on a horse. The horse would be like, 265 00:14:46,480 --> 00:14:48,640 Speaker 1: I don't want to ride anymore. So they were like 266 00:14:48,680 --> 00:14:50,520 Speaker 1: these young boys, like I think the youngest one is 267 00:14:50,560 --> 00:14:55,480 Speaker 1: like fourteen. And supposedly Buffalo Bill Cody was a rider, 268 00:14:55,520 --> 00:15:00,840 Speaker 1: although people have disputed that. Now, Oh yeah, yeah, well 269 00:15:00,880 --> 00:15:03,160 Speaker 1: he's he's the stuff of a legend. Well he's by 270 00:15:03,160 --> 00:15:05,520 Speaker 1: far and away the most famous famous Pony Express writer, 271 00:15:05,600 --> 00:15:08,840 Speaker 1: if in fact he did. But anyway, so so think 272 00:15:08,880 --> 00:15:13,040 Speaker 1: about the amount of infrastructure built up along this central 273 00:15:13,120 --> 00:15:15,880 Speaker 1: route to have a station every ten or twenty miles. 274 00:15:16,080 --> 00:15:18,840 Speaker 1: You've got all these employees going. And they proved it. 275 00:15:18,880 --> 00:15:22,000 Speaker 1: They proved that the central route could be used year round, 276 00:15:23,040 --> 00:15:25,080 Speaker 1: and so they got the contract. Then right now, the 277 00:15:25,160 --> 00:15:28,080 Speaker 1: Overland Company got the contract to use it, to use 278 00:15:28,160 --> 00:15:30,320 Speaker 1: that same route that was already established, and the Pony 279 00:15:30,320 --> 00:15:32,920 Speaker 1: Express was like, you have to be kidding me. And 280 00:15:33,000 --> 00:15:35,040 Speaker 1: so the the U. S. Government said no, no, you 281 00:15:35,080 --> 00:15:37,440 Speaker 1: guys do half and then let the let the Overland 282 00:15:37,480 --> 00:15:39,760 Speaker 1: Company do the other half. Yeah, And they were mad 283 00:15:39,800 --> 00:15:42,840 Speaker 1: for about a year and a half and really angry. 284 00:15:42,960 --> 00:15:48,040 Speaker 1: And then the telegraph line was completed and everyone's like, oh, well, 285 00:15:48,080 --> 00:15:50,560 Speaker 1: I guess I guess we're all out of business now. Yeah, 286 00:15:50,680 --> 00:15:53,040 Speaker 1: that was it. Pony expressed the soul the Wells Fargo 287 00:15:53,080 --> 00:15:55,960 Speaker 1: and basically shut down. Yeah. I think the American Express 288 00:15:56,040 --> 00:15:59,400 Speaker 1: ended up branching out of Wells Fargo too. Like these 289 00:15:59,400 --> 00:16:01,840 Speaker 1: are old old companies, like these modern banks and credit 290 00:16:01,880 --> 00:16:05,240 Speaker 1: card companies. It's interesting how far they go back. But 291 00:16:05,320 --> 00:16:07,520 Speaker 1: think about that. Man. Even as far back as the 292 00:16:07,560 --> 00:16:13,200 Speaker 1: mid nineteenth century, new technology was putting mail delivery out 293 00:16:13,200 --> 00:16:16,120 Speaker 1: to pasture, and then mail delivery would evolve and like 294 00:16:16,160 --> 00:16:20,040 Speaker 1: figure out how to come back. That's pretty cool foreshadowing. 295 00:16:21,640 --> 00:16:23,960 Speaker 1: So this is a big jump forward to the mid 296 00:16:24,040 --> 00:16:28,440 Speaker 1: nineteen sixties. Yeah, a lot happened in between. Then it didn't. Actually, 297 00:16:28,520 --> 00:16:31,800 Speaker 1: we started to go move further and further out into 298 00:16:31,800 --> 00:16:34,560 Speaker 1: the suburbs. There's a huge population boom in the in 299 00:16:34,600 --> 00:16:38,120 Speaker 1: the post war era, and businesses started to realize the 300 00:16:38,320 --> 00:16:42,680 Speaker 1: value of direct mailing, and all these factors put together 301 00:16:42,760 --> 00:16:48,280 Speaker 1: meant that the postal service was totally overwhelmed completely because 302 00:16:48,280 --> 00:16:51,280 Speaker 1: it became such a big deal. Everyone was writing letters 303 00:16:51,440 --> 00:16:56,760 Speaker 1: and they were using the same old hand um, I 304 00:16:56,800 --> 00:17:02,680 Speaker 1: guess hand delivery methods, sorting methods, that's what it was. 305 00:17:02,760 --> 00:17:05,080 Speaker 1: They weren't automated at all, and they needed to be right. 306 00:17:05,200 --> 00:17:08,920 Speaker 1: And so there was a postal reform that that was undertaken. Yeah, 307 00:17:09,000 --> 00:17:12,720 Speaker 1: and this was in nineteen seventy one the Post Office Department. 308 00:17:13,720 --> 00:17:15,320 Speaker 1: And I didn't even know this. It was shortly after 309 00:17:15,359 --> 00:17:18,480 Speaker 1: I was born. We weren't the United States Postal Service 310 00:17:18,520 --> 00:17:23,240 Speaker 1: until nineteen one. That was when we officially became the USPS. UH, 311 00:17:23,280 --> 00:17:27,359 Speaker 1: it became an independent establishment. UM was no longer a 312 00:17:27,359 --> 00:17:29,919 Speaker 1: part of the cabinet of the federal government, but was 313 00:17:29,960 --> 00:17:33,120 Speaker 1: part of the executive branch and got the monopoly basically 314 00:17:33,119 --> 00:17:36,760 Speaker 1: to deliver mail, even though it was supposedly just a company. 315 00:17:36,920 --> 00:17:39,399 Speaker 1: And they and they re up the mandate from I 316 00:17:39,440 --> 00:17:43,480 Speaker 1: think seventeen ninety two that said, you, the Postal Service 317 00:17:43,560 --> 00:17:46,120 Speaker 1: is one of the most essential services of the federal government. 318 00:17:46,560 --> 00:17:49,280 Speaker 1: No person has cut off in this country. None shall 319 00:17:49,359 --> 00:17:52,800 Speaker 1: not get delivered exactly. Everyone's going to have a mailbox 320 00:17:52,840 --> 00:17:55,280 Speaker 1: and everyone's going to get mail to that mailbox every 321 00:17:55,359 --> 00:18:00,000 Speaker 1: day because we need to help keep intellectual freedom, UM 322 00:18:00,080 --> 00:18:04,040 Speaker 1: going and and and ideas in business and commerce going 323 00:18:04,200 --> 00:18:06,840 Speaker 1: all the time, and the Postal services, this federal agency 324 00:18:06,880 --> 00:18:08,680 Speaker 1: that carries that out, and that I'm sure that put 325 00:18:08,680 --> 00:18:10,840 Speaker 1: a financial burden on them when people started building in 326 00:18:10,840 --> 00:18:13,639 Speaker 1: these like especially rich people, when they started building in 327 00:18:13,680 --> 00:18:16,879 Speaker 1: these remote areas, because then all of a sudden he 328 00:18:16,880 --> 00:18:19,440 Speaker 1: had to add that to your route. Well there's it's 329 00:18:19,480 --> 00:18:22,040 Speaker 1: sixty miles up a mountain and it's the only house there's. 330 00:18:22,119 --> 00:18:25,040 Speaker 1: There's a guy who services the Grand Canyon. There's a 331 00:18:25,040 --> 00:18:26,879 Speaker 1: group of Indians that live at the bottom of the 332 00:18:26,880 --> 00:18:29,119 Speaker 1: Grand Canyon, and he has a donkey train that goes 333 00:18:29,160 --> 00:18:31,720 Speaker 1: down there every day with the mail. Really yeah, I 334 00:18:31,720 --> 00:18:33,879 Speaker 1: mean it's part of it's a federal mandate. You have 335 00:18:33,960 --> 00:18:36,480 Speaker 1: to be able to get mail. Everyone has a mailbox. 336 00:18:36,520 --> 00:18:39,159 Speaker 1: He's like, don't you guys use smoke signals? Come on, 337 00:18:39,920 --> 00:18:43,280 Speaker 1: they do. In fact, that actually wrote an article on 338 00:18:43,320 --> 00:18:46,160 Speaker 1: spoke singnals. Yeah. Yeah, I was gonna say we should 339 00:18:46,160 --> 00:18:48,480 Speaker 1: podcasts on it, but it's it's like super basic, is 340 00:18:48,480 --> 00:18:50,720 Speaker 1: there really it would be like a five minute podcast. Well, 341 00:18:50,760 --> 00:18:52,639 Speaker 1: we'll have to figure out some other way to use it. Agreed. 342 00:18:52,800 --> 00:18:57,280 Speaker 1: So that's interesting. Um, so do we cover going postal. 343 00:18:57,359 --> 00:18:58,760 Speaker 1: Now it was sort of just thrown in the middle 344 00:18:58,760 --> 00:19:01,320 Speaker 1: of this arm Yeah, really was. It was talking about 345 00:19:01,600 --> 00:19:04,720 Speaker 1: how packages are delivered, and all of a sudden, it says, 346 00:19:04,800 --> 00:19:07,920 Speaker 1: and then people started killing each other in nineteen six, 347 00:19:08,960 --> 00:19:13,080 Speaker 1: which is actually, um, the post office has the dubious 348 00:19:13,119 --> 00:19:16,720 Speaker 1: distinction of kicking off the workplace shooting trend in the 349 00:19:16,800 --> 00:19:18,800 Speaker 1: United States. Was that the first one as far as 350 00:19:18,840 --> 00:19:23,520 Speaker 1: I could tell. Alright, So nineteen six Edmond, Oklahoma, Patrick 351 00:19:23,600 --> 00:19:29,040 Speaker 1: Henry A. Cheryl killed fourteen co workers. UM. Nine Another 352 00:19:29,080 --> 00:19:33,919 Speaker 1: one happened, including a uh supervisor getting killed with a 353 00:19:33,960 --> 00:19:41,320 Speaker 1: samurai sword. UM. November nineteen Thomas McIlvaine shot and killed 354 00:19:41,359 --> 00:19:45,320 Speaker 1: four co workers, wounded five others, then shot himself, and 355 00:19:45,359 --> 00:19:48,640 Speaker 1: then nineteen and then in two thousand three two more 356 00:19:48,720 --> 00:19:53,040 Speaker 1: incidences of postal workers killing fellow postal workers. It was 357 00:19:53,080 --> 00:19:56,440 Speaker 1: like just between eighties six and ninety seven, forty people 358 00:19:56,520 --> 00:20:02,040 Speaker 1: died at postal at post offices from postal rampage and 359 00:20:02,080 --> 00:20:04,360 Speaker 1: gave birth to the term going postal, which is used 360 00:20:04,400 --> 00:20:08,280 Speaker 1: as vernacular for like just losing it basically. UM. And 361 00:20:08,320 --> 00:20:10,320 Speaker 1: if you're interested in that at all, there's a really 362 00:20:10,400 --> 00:20:13,160 Speaker 1: good documentary. I think it's on Netflix streaming right now 363 00:20:13,280 --> 00:20:16,479 Speaker 1: called um Murdered by Proxy, and it's all about the 364 00:20:16,520 --> 00:20:19,560 Speaker 1: postal shootings, like where they came from. There's a lot 365 00:20:19,600 --> 00:20:23,800 Speaker 1: of scrutiny at like the of the management techniques of 366 00:20:23,880 --> 00:20:26,160 Speaker 1: people at post offices, and there's got to be something 367 00:20:26,200 --> 00:20:28,200 Speaker 1: to it. I mean, oh yeah, if you watch, it's 368 00:20:28,240 --> 00:20:31,240 Speaker 1: like it was clearly how many other industries had that 369 00:20:31,320 --> 00:20:35,600 Speaker 1: many office shootings? You know, retail Actually, you're the homicide 370 00:20:35,640 --> 00:20:37,480 Speaker 1: rate is three times higher in retail than it is 371 00:20:37,520 --> 00:20:40,679 Speaker 1: at the post office. You don't say going retail, that 372 00:20:40,720 --> 00:20:42,520 Speaker 1: just means you're going shopping. Well, it's like drinking the 373 00:20:42,560 --> 00:20:44,800 Speaker 1: kool aid. They really drank flavor aid and it's right 374 00:20:45,200 --> 00:20:48,800 Speaker 1: kool aids someone with that distinction. Ah yeah, alright, so 375 00:20:48,840 --> 00:20:51,159 Speaker 1: that was going post Yeah, I mean we had to 376 00:20:51,160 --> 00:20:52,600 Speaker 1: mention it, but I don't want to dwell on it. 377 00:20:52,680 --> 00:20:54,639 Speaker 1: But it was weird in this article the way it 378 00:20:54,680 --> 00:20:57,200 Speaker 1: went right in the middle of this came up out 379 00:20:57,200 --> 00:20:59,760 Speaker 1: of nowhere. UM zip codes This is kind of cool. Yeah. 380 00:21:00,160 --> 00:21:04,520 Speaker 1: UM zip codes were introduced in nineteen sixty three and 381 00:21:04,560 --> 00:21:10,359 Speaker 1: then officially put in place in mandatory because just so 382 00:21:10,440 --> 00:21:14,120 Speaker 1: much mail going on you had to categorize it more specifically, right, 383 00:21:14,160 --> 00:21:16,680 Speaker 1: That was part of that, the post office being swamped. 384 00:21:16,680 --> 00:21:19,280 Speaker 1: This was the first step towards automation, was like a 385 00:21:19,359 --> 00:21:24,239 Speaker 1: standardized code. Well, they did have other ones, but it 386 00:21:24,280 --> 00:21:28,040 Speaker 1: was like one was New York City or something like that. 387 00:21:28,080 --> 00:21:30,359 Speaker 1: You know. Yeah, so ZIP this is just a nice 388 00:21:30,400 --> 00:21:34,639 Speaker 1: little cocktail party factoid stands for zone improvement plan. I 389 00:21:34,720 --> 00:21:36,760 Speaker 1: never knew that until I read this. Did you know 390 00:21:36,800 --> 00:21:39,639 Speaker 1: that I had before? But I had forgotten. Okay, so 391 00:21:39,640 --> 00:21:42,240 Speaker 1: it's his own improvement plan and it's uh here in 392 00:21:42,240 --> 00:21:44,320 Speaker 1: the United States at least, it's a five digit number 393 00:21:44,960 --> 00:21:47,840 Speaker 1: represents you know, a location obviously where you're trying to 394 00:21:47,880 --> 00:21:51,080 Speaker 1: send something and it now they have the ZIP code 395 00:21:51,080 --> 00:21:54,040 Speaker 1: plus four in some areas of like I guess major 396 00:21:54,160 --> 00:21:57,080 Speaker 1: urban areas have a little more specificity, right, they like 397 00:21:57,280 --> 00:21:59,560 Speaker 1: deliver it to your like they put it on your 398 00:21:59,600 --> 00:22:02,960 Speaker 1: stomach if you visit plus four. I think certain buildings 399 00:22:02,960 --> 00:22:04,879 Speaker 1: even will have their own plus four if it's a 400 00:22:04,880 --> 00:22:07,119 Speaker 1: big enough building, or if you get a lot of 401 00:22:07,119 --> 00:22:09,720 Speaker 1: mail as a person, is that what you're after is 402 00:22:09,760 --> 00:22:11,360 Speaker 1: a plus four for you? Well, it says that some 403 00:22:11,440 --> 00:22:14,640 Speaker 1: high volume mail receivers get in. I'm like, you know, 404 00:22:14,680 --> 00:22:17,479 Speaker 1: if it was cool mail. I'd love to get the mail. UM. 405 00:22:17,560 --> 00:22:20,320 Speaker 1: So the first digit there represents the state here in Georgia, 406 00:22:20,359 --> 00:22:24,200 Speaker 1: that's a three. UM. It increases as you move west, 407 00:22:24,640 --> 00:22:30,000 Speaker 1: and there are some states that share each digit, like two. Yeah, 408 00:22:30,080 --> 00:22:32,399 Speaker 1: it's taken up by a lot of states. There's the 409 00:22:32,440 --> 00:22:37,960 Speaker 1: district of Columbia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia. 410 00:22:37,640 --> 00:22:40,760 Speaker 1: Man all two's. I would be mad if I lived 411 00:22:40,760 --> 00:22:42,840 Speaker 1: in one of those states. So then you got the second, 412 00:22:42,880 --> 00:22:45,879 Speaker 1: third digits. Those are regions within the state. UM. The 413 00:22:45,960 --> 00:22:49,600 Speaker 1: first three of those create what's called the SCF code, 414 00:22:49,600 --> 00:22:54,199 Speaker 1: the sectional, center, facility, and UM. Then the fourth and 415 00:22:54,240 --> 00:22:58,240 Speaker 1: fifth digits are even more specific. Basically, it just hones 416 00:22:58,320 --> 00:23:01,600 Speaker 1: down as you go left to write until you've got 417 00:23:01,840 --> 00:23:05,920 Speaker 1: Josh Clark's house right, like this state, this section facility, 418 00:23:06,080 --> 00:23:10,480 Speaker 1: this UM, post office, this neighborhood. Yeah, and then this 419 00:23:10,720 --> 00:23:14,920 Speaker 1: maybe this building, this high volume mail receiver named cash Clark. 420 00:23:15,280 --> 00:23:17,800 Speaker 1: That's right. UM, So you've got the ZIP code that 421 00:23:17,840 --> 00:23:20,840 Speaker 1: allowed automation. And a little known fact is the US 422 00:23:20,880 --> 00:23:24,600 Speaker 1: Postal Service doesn't just handle a ton of the US's mail. 423 00:23:24,680 --> 00:23:27,520 Speaker 1: It handles of all of the mail in the world. 424 00:23:29,320 --> 00:23:32,639 Speaker 1: So before the zip code, this was really difficult. It 425 00:23:32,680 --> 00:23:35,480 Speaker 1: also went from if you're mailing something from New York 426 00:23:35,520 --> 00:23:40,040 Speaker 1: to San Francisco, it went through every distribution facility in 427 00:23:40,119 --> 00:23:44,320 Speaker 1: the country in between New York and San Francisco. Um 428 00:23:44,480 --> 00:23:48,520 Speaker 1: before it got there. Yes, now zip codes. Well, let's 429 00:23:48,520 --> 00:23:51,080 Speaker 1: talk about how what a letter does, and this is 430 00:23:51,119 --> 00:23:54,080 Speaker 1: all thanks to zip codes. So I write a little 431 00:23:54,080 --> 00:23:57,200 Speaker 1: love letter. I'm gonna mail it to Emily H which 432 00:23:57,240 --> 00:24:01,360 Speaker 1: is weird because we live together. Let's just be romantic. 433 00:24:01,400 --> 00:24:04,000 Speaker 1: That's actually a great example though, because you can mail 434 00:24:04,080 --> 00:24:07,520 Speaker 1: something from your mailbox to be delivered back to you. 435 00:24:07,800 --> 00:24:10,919 Speaker 1: I reckon, I've never done it. That's the that's the 436 00:24:10,920 --> 00:24:15,520 Speaker 1: the poor man's trademark I've heard about that is to 437 00:24:15,560 --> 00:24:20,640 Speaker 1: mail something to yourself into this. I think it depends 438 00:24:20,640 --> 00:24:23,720 Speaker 1: on the judge. Probably, Okay, So you put it in 439 00:24:23,760 --> 00:24:26,960 Speaker 1: your mailbox, postal carrier is gonna pick it up. They're 440 00:24:26,960 --> 00:24:29,440 Speaker 1: gonna take it to the post office. Um, they're gonna 441 00:24:29,480 --> 00:24:31,320 Speaker 1: put it on a truck, and then take that from 442 00:24:31,320 --> 00:24:34,679 Speaker 1: the post office to a processing plant where we have 443 00:24:34,680 --> 00:24:39,760 Speaker 1: our long awaited machines doing some sorting, shape and size. Yeah. Well, 444 00:24:39,880 --> 00:24:42,480 Speaker 1: first they sort everything out and make sure everything's facing 445 00:24:42,480 --> 00:24:48,160 Speaker 1: the right way up right, UM. And then the the 446 00:24:48,160 --> 00:24:52,439 Speaker 1: they packages, well, packages are put on one one belt 447 00:24:52,480 --> 00:24:54,639 Speaker 1: and then letters are put in another and there the 448 00:24:54,800 --> 00:24:57,960 Speaker 1: letters say, let's just stick with the letter that you wrote. Uh, 449 00:24:57,960 --> 00:25:00,280 Speaker 1: it's it goes into a slot so it's face seeing 450 00:25:00,359 --> 00:25:05,040 Speaker 1: upwards and upright if front words and upright. And then 451 00:25:05,080 --> 00:25:08,320 Speaker 1: they put a little barcode on the back of the 452 00:25:08,400 --> 00:25:12,080 Speaker 1: letter and uh, I think ultra violet inc. Yeah. Well, 453 00:25:12,119 --> 00:25:14,080 Speaker 1: first thing it does is it gets a postmark and 454 00:25:14,240 --> 00:25:18,359 Speaker 1: cancelation lines saying basically, you can't use the stamp again. Yeah, 455 00:25:18,640 --> 00:25:20,679 Speaker 1: don't even try it. Don't be cheap. We've seen the 456 00:25:20,680 --> 00:25:23,720 Speaker 1: white out tricks. We've seen doctoring up a stamp, which 457 00:25:23,760 --> 00:25:26,760 Speaker 1: is probably a federal offense. It is UM. And then 458 00:25:26,840 --> 00:25:29,280 Speaker 1: so after that the barcodes printed on the back of 459 00:25:29,280 --> 00:25:31,960 Speaker 1: the piece of mail. And then there's an optical scanner 460 00:25:32,000 --> 00:25:35,320 Speaker 1: that reads the address, which is pretty cool. And if 461 00:25:35,359 --> 00:25:39,879 Speaker 1: you if they're really really really accurate to UM, but 462 00:25:40,240 --> 00:25:43,159 Speaker 1: if your handwriting is terrible. They have a new system 463 00:25:43,200 --> 00:25:46,960 Speaker 1: now where the this UM conveyor belt takes a picture 464 00:25:47,280 --> 00:25:50,640 Speaker 1: of it, send emails a picture to a human being 465 00:25:50,640 --> 00:25:53,240 Speaker 1: at a computer who reads it. Is what I think. 466 00:25:53,280 --> 00:25:56,080 Speaker 1: It types it in and then it's so it stays 467 00:25:56,119 --> 00:25:58,200 Speaker 1: on the line. It doesn't have to come out any longer. 468 00:25:58,800 --> 00:26:02,439 Speaker 1: It's pretty much technology. Yeah. UM. And then so based 469 00:26:02,480 --> 00:26:05,639 Speaker 1: on this UM this address, including the zip code, it 470 00:26:05,760 --> 00:26:08,199 Speaker 1: prints a barcode at the bottom. If you look at 471 00:26:08,200 --> 00:26:10,360 Speaker 1: a letter, any letter you get has a little bar 472 00:26:10,400 --> 00:26:13,680 Speaker 1: code on it, and so that's what's red. That's right. 473 00:26:13,760 --> 00:26:16,480 Speaker 1: The thing on the back is invisible, I think, right, 474 00:26:16,880 --> 00:26:20,520 Speaker 1: it's fluorescent. This is just showing off we have invisible link. 475 00:26:21,240 --> 00:26:24,920 Speaker 1: Other processing machines then read those barcodes and then sort 476 00:26:24,960 --> 00:26:27,720 Speaker 1: them in their little bins according to zip code. And 477 00:26:27,760 --> 00:26:31,679 Speaker 1: it's just basically placing everything and what will eventually be 478 00:26:33,080 --> 00:26:35,480 Speaker 1: a trade that will be delivered back to a post 479 00:26:35,480 --> 00:26:40,040 Speaker 1: office or a sorting facility or does it go straight 480 00:26:40,080 --> 00:26:45,040 Speaker 1: to a post office? Um, it goes to another processing plant. Right, 481 00:26:45,080 --> 00:26:48,240 Speaker 1: So imagine each processing plan regional has a bunch of 482 00:26:48,280 --> 00:26:51,640 Speaker 1: mail coming in on trucks. Then it sorts and then 483 00:26:51,680 --> 00:26:54,600 Speaker 1: sends out and then based on its zip code that 484 00:26:54,640 --> 00:26:58,400 Speaker 1: it serves, UM it gets a bunch of flats from 485 00:26:58,440 --> 00:27:02,080 Speaker 1: other UM to atribution facilities. That's right. With that are 486 00:27:02,119 --> 00:27:05,320 Speaker 1: already according to the zip code. So let's say it's 487 00:27:05,400 --> 00:27:09,480 Speaker 1: getting a flat of mail by zip code. It then 488 00:27:09,520 --> 00:27:12,960 Speaker 1: also sorts through those, that's right, and it actually sorts 489 00:27:13,000 --> 00:27:19,360 Speaker 1: them into an individual carriers route in order, and that's 490 00:27:19,400 --> 00:27:22,199 Speaker 1: what's delivered to the post office. So it arrives at 491 00:27:22,240 --> 00:27:25,840 Speaker 1: the post office ready to go on the truck. Yes, okay, 492 00:27:25,920 --> 00:27:28,760 Speaker 1: And that doesn't mean that the postal worker doesn't have 493 00:27:28,840 --> 00:27:32,640 Speaker 1: much to do. They also still have like circulars, magazines, 494 00:27:32,800 --> 00:27:34,879 Speaker 1: bulk mail. They have to go through and put it 495 00:27:34,920 --> 00:27:39,760 Speaker 1: for every address where all that my recycling then basically yeah, 496 00:27:40,160 --> 00:27:43,399 Speaker 1: although the coupons. I'll remember our junk mail episode from 497 00:27:43,480 --> 00:27:46,240 Speaker 1: years and years back, and we've got so much from 498 00:27:46,240 --> 00:27:47,639 Speaker 1: people who are like no, no, no, you can't get 499 00:27:47,680 --> 00:27:49,720 Speaker 1: rid of junk mail, right, that's the only thing keep 500 00:27:49,720 --> 00:27:53,800 Speaker 1: in this in business. Um, So, if you're gonna address 501 00:27:53,800 --> 00:27:55,840 Speaker 1: a letter, there are a few guidelines. You know. You 502 00:27:55,880 --> 00:27:58,320 Speaker 1: gotta put your address legibly on the front. You gotta 503 00:27:58,320 --> 00:28:01,240 Speaker 1: put your little return address in upper left corner. Yeah, 504 00:28:01,280 --> 00:28:03,280 Speaker 1: on the front, don't put it on the back upper 505 00:28:03,359 --> 00:28:06,679 Speaker 1: left corner there. And don't use periods in commas, like 506 00:28:06,720 --> 00:28:08,879 Speaker 1: if you write p O box, it's not p period. 507 00:28:08,920 --> 00:28:14,159 Speaker 1: Oh period. Although that doesn't matter. Apparently it allows for 508 00:28:14,240 --> 00:28:17,399 Speaker 1: greater efficiency in reading your letter, maybe because I always 509 00:28:17,440 --> 00:28:20,199 Speaker 1: put like Atlanta comma g a period I do too, 510 00:28:20,240 --> 00:28:22,199 Speaker 1: and they still get there. But don't you wonder if 511 00:28:22,200 --> 00:28:25,399 Speaker 1: they get there like earlier? I don't know. Maybe, so 512 00:28:26,160 --> 00:28:29,600 Speaker 1: uh it is um. Supposedly you need to be able 513 00:28:29,640 --> 00:28:32,919 Speaker 1: to read the address at arms length, so don't write tiny, 514 00:28:33,560 --> 00:28:36,679 Speaker 1: and uh, don't write so big that they can't do 515 00:28:36,760 --> 00:28:39,720 Speaker 1: other things to the envelope like scan and stamp and 516 00:28:39,760 --> 00:28:43,360 Speaker 1: things like that. UM. And then you know, you gotta 517 00:28:43,360 --> 00:28:45,440 Speaker 1: put your return address because if something happens, you want 518 00:28:45,440 --> 00:28:48,120 Speaker 1: it to come back to you. Although I don't do 519 00:28:48,160 --> 00:28:49,720 Speaker 1: that much anymore, A lot of times I'll just put 520 00:28:49,720 --> 00:28:52,719 Speaker 1: like Atlanta, Georgia. Really you don't put your return address 521 00:28:52,760 --> 00:28:54,480 Speaker 1: on there. No, but I rarely mail things, and a 522 00:28:54,520 --> 00:28:56,040 Speaker 1: lot of times when I do, it's for work. So 523 00:28:56,080 --> 00:28:58,280 Speaker 1: I'll just put, you know, Atlanta, Georgia house to works 524 00:28:58,360 --> 00:29:01,040 Speaker 1: or something. And it's not the kind of thing that 525 00:29:01,120 --> 00:29:02,840 Speaker 1: if it doesn't come back to me, I would care 526 00:29:03,560 --> 00:29:06,080 Speaker 1: I've had some precious thing, I would put a Richard address. 527 00:29:06,120 --> 00:29:07,400 Speaker 1: I have a feeling that you're going to get some 528 00:29:07,480 --> 00:29:10,000 Speaker 1: email from postal carriers that are like, I hate people 529 00:29:10,080 --> 00:29:13,160 Speaker 1: like you because whether you care if it comes back 530 00:29:13,160 --> 00:29:14,640 Speaker 1: to you or not, I'm sure they have to get 531 00:29:14,680 --> 00:29:18,520 Speaker 1: it back to you. Uh. There's a lot of type 532 00:29:18,520 --> 00:29:22,280 Speaker 1: of delivery surfaces, we surfaces services. We won't go over here, 533 00:29:22,800 --> 00:29:24,880 Speaker 1: but I did want to say that media mail is 534 00:29:24,960 --> 00:29:28,840 Speaker 1: a great little ah trick, not a trick, but a 535 00:29:28,880 --> 00:29:32,760 Speaker 1: great tool if you're mailing things like books and door 536 00:29:33,520 --> 00:29:37,200 Speaker 1: DVDs because it's super cheap. But it takes a while. 537 00:29:37,400 --> 00:29:40,360 Speaker 1: But that's part of that mandate from that they want 538 00:29:40,400 --> 00:29:43,200 Speaker 1: to keep the intellectual juice of America flowing through the 539 00:29:43,240 --> 00:29:46,520 Speaker 1: postal service, so things like that, like creative stuff for 540 00:29:46,640 --> 00:29:51,120 Speaker 1: books or correspondence like and I think that's how if 541 00:29:51,160 --> 00:29:54,240 Speaker 1: you've ever ordered a book on Amazon for like two cents, 542 00:29:54,720 --> 00:29:56,200 Speaker 1: you're like, oh, how can they sell a book for 543 00:29:56,200 --> 00:29:59,880 Speaker 1: two cents, it's because they charge you like four for shipping, 544 00:30:00,520 --> 00:30:03,240 Speaker 1: and they probably pay like eight cents to mail it 545 00:30:03,360 --> 00:30:06,360 Speaker 1: with media mail. That's the greatest scam of the twenty 546 00:30:06,400 --> 00:30:08,479 Speaker 1: one century. Well not really. I mean they're making their 547 00:30:08,520 --> 00:30:11,920 Speaker 1: money via shipping instead of the book itself. But publishers 548 00:30:11,920 --> 00:30:14,320 Speaker 1: don't like it, of course, because they want to sell 549 00:30:14,360 --> 00:30:16,720 Speaker 1: their books new and not for two cents on Amazon. 550 00:30:18,280 --> 00:30:21,800 Speaker 1: So um, I think we said that the Postal Service 551 00:30:22,120 --> 00:30:26,520 Speaker 1: has a monopoly on delivering mail but not on delivering packages, right, 552 00:30:27,560 --> 00:30:30,760 Speaker 1: um so because they're kind of in competitive business against 553 00:30:30,760 --> 00:30:34,480 Speaker 1: like UPS and FedEx and DHL and all those guys. Um, 554 00:30:34,600 --> 00:30:38,200 Speaker 1: those guys have gone ahead and in and invested in 555 00:30:38,200 --> 00:30:42,040 Speaker 1: infrastructure of say like air delivery, air transportation of mail 556 00:30:42,400 --> 00:30:45,080 Speaker 1: and the U. The Postal Service has tried that before, 557 00:30:45,440 --> 00:30:48,360 Speaker 1: like they tried a guided missile in ninety three, which 558 00:30:48,400 --> 00:30:50,840 Speaker 1: they shot full of mail from a submarine to a 559 00:30:50,960 --> 00:30:55,120 Speaker 1: naval station in Florida. But it's just too expensive. So 560 00:30:55,200 --> 00:30:58,280 Speaker 1: the Postal Service said, hey, Ups, hey FedEx, you guys 561 00:30:58,320 --> 00:31:01,360 Speaker 1: have a bunch of plane, can we start putting our 562 00:31:01,440 --> 00:31:04,000 Speaker 1: mail on it? And they said sure for a few 563 00:31:04,000 --> 00:31:07,600 Speaker 1: billion dollars a year. And the Postal Service said great. 564 00:31:07,720 --> 00:31:11,720 Speaker 1: But at the same time they kind of, um they 565 00:31:11,760 --> 00:31:15,080 Speaker 1: stepped forward into the twenty first century by doing so. 566 00:31:16,520 --> 00:31:21,200 Speaker 1: And the Postal Service, having access to everyone's mailbox is 567 00:31:21,240 --> 00:31:24,160 Speaker 1: often tapped by UPS and FedEx deliver what's called in 568 00:31:24,200 --> 00:31:27,680 Speaker 1: the business the last mile. So a lot of times, 569 00:31:27,960 --> 00:31:30,760 Speaker 1: especially if you're a rural person, if you get something 570 00:31:30,760 --> 00:31:34,040 Speaker 1: from Amazon, it's it was shipped by UPS, but eventually 571 00:31:34,040 --> 00:31:36,760 Speaker 1: it made its way into your postal carriers route and 572 00:31:37,080 --> 00:31:39,760 Speaker 1: being delivered by the Postal service. Yeah, there's way more 573 00:31:39,920 --> 00:31:44,240 Speaker 1: mixing of package mailing than you would think. Um, it's 574 00:31:44,280 --> 00:31:47,080 Speaker 1: like a swinger party or something pretty much. Uh. And 575 00:31:47,160 --> 00:31:50,280 Speaker 1: part of that deal in two thousand one with FedEx was, Hey, 576 00:31:50,400 --> 00:31:54,600 Speaker 1: FedEx said, can we put our boxes at your post offices? 577 00:31:55,160 --> 00:31:59,280 Speaker 1: And they said sure for six million dollars. And they said, 578 00:32:00,000 --> 00:32:01,440 Speaker 1: you know, can we hit your ride on your plane? 579 00:32:01,520 --> 00:32:04,840 Speaker 1: They said sure for six point three billions over seven years. 580 00:32:05,280 --> 00:32:07,280 Speaker 1: But it's you know, seems like a good agreement. And 581 00:32:07,360 --> 00:32:11,280 Speaker 1: they did the same with UPS and uh, we scratch 582 00:32:11,280 --> 00:32:14,880 Speaker 1: our back, you scratch yours. We scratch your back, we'll 583 00:32:14,920 --> 00:32:19,400 Speaker 1: scratch yours. That works. Yeah, why didn't everybody scratch them back? 584 00:32:19,520 --> 00:32:22,680 Speaker 1: I don't know. Okay, Um, because it's hard to reach. 585 00:32:23,760 --> 00:32:26,960 Speaker 1: Uh So, if you realize that the Postal Service needs 586 00:32:26,960 --> 00:32:29,400 Speaker 1: a few billion extra dollars, you say, why are you 587 00:32:29,480 --> 00:32:33,320 Speaker 1: just up the postal rates? Yeah? Well, the federal government 588 00:32:33,400 --> 00:32:35,280 Speaker 1: keeps its thumb on that they want to make sure 589 00:32:35,320 --> 00:32:39,800 Speaker 1: that anybody who needs to mail a letter can do 590 00:32:39,880 --> 00:32:42,840 Speaker 1: so without great expense. Yeah, it's a big deal to 591 00:32:42,920 --> 00:32:45,080 Speaker 1: change the postal rate. Like it is, much more than 592 00:32:45,080 --> 00:32:46,640 Speaker 1: you would think, because the layman like me would just 593 00:32:46,640 --> 00:32:48,440 Speaker 1: be like, yeah, I just add a few cents. Who cares. Yeah, 594 00:32:48,440 --> 00:32:51,560 Speaker 1: it's the problem just printing those forever stamps. Genius idea. 595 00:32:51,560 --> 00:32:53,240 Speaker 1: You don't have to go back and reprint a bunch 596 00:32:53,280 --> 00:32:57,080 Speaker 1: with the amount. Great idea or the one cent. Remember 597 00:32:57,080 --> 00:33:00,800 Speaker 1: in Fargo when the Wade got the one center the ducks, Yeah, 598 00:33:00,840 --> 00:33:02,760 Speaker 1: and she was like, everyone needs the one sit whenever 599 00:33:02,800 --> 00:33:05,000 Speaker 1: they raise the rates. Yeah, he's like cool, Gee, I 600 00:33:05,000 --> 00:33:08,360 Speaker 1: didn't think about that. Um So, but yes, there's a 601 00:33:08,480 --> 00:33:12,520 Speaker 1: very long, protracted, difficult process of raising the postal rates. 602 00:33:12,560 --> 00:33:15,280 Speaker 1: It's not a very easy thing and it involves a 603 00:33:15,280 --> 00:33:18,320 Speaker 1: ton of bureaucracy. Should we get into that or just 604 00:33:18,520 --> 00:33:20,720 Speaker 1: leave it at that? It's up to you, man. I 605 00:33:20,760 --> 00:33:22,760 Speaker 1: think we should just leave it at that. Okay. So, 606 00:33:22,960 --> 00:33:25,680 Speaker 1: if you are going to mail something from your house, 607 00:33:25,760 --> 00:33:29,320 Speaker 1: you need your little mailbox, and I just installed mine 608 00:33:29,520 --> 00:33:31,959 Speaker 1: in what seemed like a sensible manner. I didn't realize 609 00:33:31,960 --> 00:33:35,240 Speaker 1: that there were actual rules. Um In fact, you were 610 00:33:35,280 --> 00:33:39,240 Speaker 1: supposed to contact the post office before installing your mailbox. 611 00:33:39,240 --> 00:33:41,880 Speaker 1: Which I had no idea. UM, to make sure it's 612 00:33:41,920 --> 00:33:45,360 Speaker 1: like the correct placement and height and so like the 613 00:33:45,800 --> 00:33:48,200 Speaker 1: post office person or the mail career, I don't have 614 00:33:48,200 --> 00:33:50,560 Speaker 1: to get out of the truck. Oh well they'll they'll 615 00:33:50,600 --> 00:33:54,360 Speaker 1: burn it down if it's not the specification. So you 616 00:33:54,400 --> 00:33:56,480 Speaker 1: want to contact the post office. I didn't, but I 617 00:33:56,480 --> 00:33:59,120 Speaker 1: guess I just luked out because um, they say generally 618 00:34:00,000 --> 00:34:03,440 Speaker 1: five inches from the road surface to the inside floor 619 00:34:03,480 --> 00:34:06,360 Speaker 1: of the mailbox or point of entry, and then set 620 00:34:06,400 --> 00:34:08,360 Speaker 1: back six to eight inches from the front face of 621 00:34:08,360 --> 00:34:11,600 Speaker 1: the curb or road edge to the mailbox door. I 622 00:34:11,640 --> 00:34:14,759 Speaker 1: guess I just got lucky then, because I get my mail, 623 00:34:16,000 --> 00:34:19,400 Speaker 1: you know, without any burning down here, or without a 624 00:34:19,440 --> 00:34:22,000 Speaker 1: post office spots box, which we talked about. They've been 625 00:34:22,040 --> 00:34:24,319 Speaker 1: around for a couple of hundred years. And that's if 626 00:34:24,360 --> 00:34:26,759 Speaker 1: you want to have a little key to your little 627 00:34:26,800 --> 00:34:28,960 Speaker 1: loan box in a post office and get your mail there, 628 00:34:29,360 --> 00:34:32,320 Speaker 1: you can certainly do that. It's handy if you're starting 629 00:34:32,320 --> 00:34:34,000 Speaker 1: out of business and you want to make people think 630 00:34:34,040 --> 00:34:37,239 Speaker 1: that you're not working out of your house. Um, you 631 00:34:37,280 --> 00:34:39,000 Speaker 1: can get a post office and say, look, I have 632 00:34:40,400 --> 00:34:44,520 Speaker 1: a PO box, which means I'm working out in my bedroom. 633 00:34:44,560 --> 00:34:46,680 Speaker 1: It's like code, I think, are you getting guns in 634 00:34:46,719 --> 00:34:49,560 Speaker 1: the mail? Is that what people do? I'm sure there's 635 00:34:49,600 --> 00:34:51,120 Speaker 1: a lot of people who try to get guns in 636 00:34:51,160 --> 00:34:54,879 Speaker 1: the mail in the p O boxes, okay. Or if 637 00:34:54,960 --> 00:34:57,520 Speaker 1: you um tend to move around a lot in the 638 00:34:57,560 --> 00:35:01,200 Speaker 1: same town and you don't want to worry about changing 639 00:35:01,239 --> 00:35:02,960 Speaker 1: your mail andfording your mail, you can always just get 640 00:35:03,000 --> 00:35:06,359 Speaker 1: a pilbox. So those are some reasons. Um, you want 641 00:35:06,360 --> 00:35:08,560 Speaker 1: to talk the future of the post office, if it's 642 00:35:08,600 --> 00:35:11,719 Speaker 1: around after October two, what is the future of the 643 00:35:11,719 --> 00:35:14,080 Speaker 1: post office? Well, there's a lot of stuff coming down 644 00:35:14,160 --> 00:35:18,960 Speaker 1: the pike. Um, there's the cancelation of Saturday mail this August. 645 00:35:19,000 --> 00:35:22,840 Speaker 1: They're really going hard after package delivery services now, trying 646 00:35:22,840 --> 00:35:24,840 Speaker 1: to oh with like the flat rates and stuff like that. 647 00:35:25,000 --> 00:35:28,239 Speaker 1: Just really like courting businesses to say, hey, consider us 648 00:35:28,239 --> 00:35:33,120 Speaker 1: instead of UPS or FedEx um and uh, especially with 649 00:35:33,280 --> 00:35:37,400 Speaker 1: prescription medicine because we have an aging population is going 650 00:35:37,440 --> 00:35:40,200 Speaker 1: to do nothing but increase in size, so you're gonna 651 00:35:40,239 --> 00:35:42,600 Speaker 1: need more prescriptions through the mail. So hey, let's get 652 00:35:42,600 --> 00:35:44,520 Speaker 1: into that. Yeah, and you can get stuff like that 653 00:35:44,640 --> 00:35:49,320 Speaker 1: certified and insured and uh signature delivery approved and stuff 654 00:35:49,360 --> 00:35:51,440 Speaker 1: like that. It's helpful. Part of the post office is 655 00:35:51,480 --> 00:35:55,560 Speaker 1: pledged that the your letter carrier won't take your medication 656 00:35:55,960 --> 00:36:00,160 Speaker 1: before delivering. It might hit you up for some right, um. 657 00:36:00,160 --> 00:36:02,800 Speaker 1: But there's also a line of clothing coming out postal 658 00:36:02,840 --> 00:36:06,680 Speaker 1: service line of clothing coming out, I'm not kidding, called rain, 659 00:36:06,719 --> 00:36:10,440 Speaker 1: heat or snow, and that's we almost didn't mention this. 660 00:36:11,040 --> 00:36:15,520 Speaker 1: So the postal services creed right, neither rain nor snow, 661 00:36:15,640 --> 00:36:19,320 Speaker 1: nor sleep, sleep nor hauling, rain nor sleep nor snow, 662 00:36:19,480 --> 00:36:23,400 Speaker 1: nor neither snow nor rain, nor heat nor gloom of 663 00:36:23,520 --> 00:36:26,440 Speaker 1: night stays these carriers from the swift completion of their 664 00:36:26,640 --> 00:36:30,800 Speaker 1: appointed rounds. And that's actually not the post Office's official model. 665 00:36:30,840 --> 00:36:33,279 Speaker 1: They don't have one, but it's been linked to them. 666 00:36:33,360 --> 00:36:36,840 Speaker 1: And it's actually an adaptation of something from Herodotus, the 667 00:36:36,960 --> 00:36:41,680 Speaker 1: Greek historian, who was making a comment about how the Persians, 668 00:36:41,800 --> 00:36:45,920 Speaker 1: even during their war and like five b c. They 669 00:36:45,920 --> 00:36:48,479 Speaker 1: were one of the first ones to establish a real 670 00:36:48,560 --> 00:36:52,520 Speaker 1: postal service, and even during war, the postal service didn't stop. 671 00:36:52,840 --> 00:36:57,440 Speaker 1: There were still documents being delivered, and Herodotus was commenting 672 00:36:57,520 --> 00:36:59,479 Speaker 1: on that, and that's where that came from. It should 673 00:36:59,480 --> 00:37:02,160 Speaker 1: include like or loss of limb. It did originally, like 674 00:37:02,200 --> 00:37:04,319 Speaker 1: that's an adaptation. It wasn't loss of limb, but it 675 00:37:04,360 --> 00:37:08,200 Speaker 1: was something like some sort of sicknesses befalling you. They 676 00:37:08,200 --> 00:37:11,879 Speaker 1: were putting the mail before themselves. The show must go on. Um. 677 00:37:11,960 --> 00:37:14,400 Speaker 1: So there's a line of clothing called the rain or 678 00:37:14,400 --> 00:37:17,680 Speaker 1: heat or snow um. And then um. They're also talking 679 00:37:17,719 --> 00:37:22,080 Speaker 1: about creating federal email addresses that you get at birth. 680 00:37:22,840 --> 00:37:25,399 Speaker 1: Just like you have a physical address, you would also 681 00:37:25,400 --> 00:37:27,760 Speaker 1: have an email address, but your email address is attached 682 00:37:27,840 --> 00:37:30,279 Speaker 1: to you rather than the physical location you live at. 683 00:37:31,040 --> 00:37:33,759 Speaker 1: And if you say, need to correspond with the I R. 684 00:37:33,920 --> 00:37:37,600 Speaker 1: S Or Social Security Administration something like that, you would 685 00:37:37,640 --> 00:37:42,760 Speaker 1: send like this very secure email through this Postal Services portal. 686 00:37:43,040 --> 00:37:45,560 Speaker 1: Everything else you could just use like you know, Gmail 687 00:37:45,640 --> 00:37:48,840 Speaker 1: or yeahoo or whatever for everyday stuff. But this is 688 00:37:48,880 --> 00:37:51,400 Speaker 1: like the big stuff, the really important stuff. And then 689 00:37:51,400 --> 00:37:54,120 Speaker 1: the postal service would also offer like a digital lock 690 00:37:54,239 --> 00:37:58,719 Speaker 1: box for um, the like like a will or your 691 00:37:58,760 --> 00:38:02,520 Speaker 1: medical records or something like that. Yeah, and listen as 692 00:38:02,600 --> 00:38:07,799 Speaker 1: every conspiracy uh person in the country now says in 693 00:38:07,840 --> 00:38:11,160 Speaker 1: a way, I want a federal email attached to my 694 00:38:11,280 --> 00:38:14,120 Speaker 1: name that I have to send things through. Yeah, Well 695 00:38:14,160 --> 00:38:16,560 Speaker 1: that's the number of the Beast. Obviously, I don't know 696 00:38:16,600 --> 00:38:17,960 Speaker 1: that I would want that either. I'm not a big 697 00:38:17,960 --> 00:38:20,680 Speaker 1: conspiracy guy. Oh, it's not that you have to send 698 00:38:20,680 --> 00:38:22,600 Speaker 1: it to that, it's that if you send it through that, 699 00:38:22,800 --> 00:38:25,560 Speaker 1: if somebody hijack cider reads it, they're going to be 700 00:38:25,560 --> 00:38:28,359 Speaker 1: in a lot more trouble federally speaking than they would 701 00:38:28,400 --> 00:38:30,840 Speaker 1: be if like they read your Gmail. Because isn't it 702 00:38:30,880 --> 00:38:34,600 Speaker 1: illegal to to open like a federal offense to get exactly? 703 00:38:34,640 --> 00:38:36,320 Speaker 1: And that's what this There's this guy who runs a 704 00:38:36,400 --> 00:38:38,919 Speaker 1: think tank for the Postal Service who's who's like, it's 705 00:38:38,920 --> 00:38:44,800 Speaker 1: not just about mailing documents, It's about protecting the connectedness 706 00:38:44,920 --> 00:38:47,560 Speaker 1: of the United States and Americans. So how do we 707 00:38:47,640 --> 00:38:49,680 Speaker 1: do that in a digital world? He's thinking about this. 708 00:38:50,440 --> 00:38:52,919 Speaker 1: So if you're even the least bit interested by this 709 00:38:53,040 --> 00:38:59,200 Speaker 1: episode that we just recorded, Um, there's an Esquire article called, 710 00:38:59,320 --> 00:39:04,880 Speaker 1: um doing piece do I didn't do? It's called do 711 00:39:04,920 --> 00:39:07,840 Speaker 1: We Really Want to Live Without the Post Office? And 712 00:39:07,840 --> 00:39:11,319 Speaker 1: it's by Jesse Lichtenstein, And um it is really good, man, 713 00:39:11,760 --> 00:39:15,480 Speaker 1: It's a really good overview of what does Jesse think, Uh, 714 00:39:15,640 --> 00:39:18,080 Speaker 1: we need he or she I think kind of leans 715 00:39:18,120 --> 00:39:20,000 Speaker 1: toward we need it and the more you start to 716 00:39:20,000 --> 00:39:22,440 Speaker 1: like read about it, the more this weird kind of 717 00:39:22,560 --> 00:39:26,840 Speaker 1: civic affection for the post office developed. And you know 718 00:39:27,280 --> 00:39:28,960 Speaker 1: where I'm like, yeah, I even't want to get rid 719 00:39:28,960 --> 00:39:31,200 Speaker 1: of the post office. Do you want the post office? 720 00:39:31,239 --> 00:39:33,680 Speaker 1: Who doesn't want the post office? It's kind of it 721 00:39:33,760 --> 00:39:36,759 Speaker 1: kind of develops. Yeah, I used to like, you know, 722 00:39:37,239 --> 00:39:39,200 Speaker 1: maybe it was a simpler day, or maybe the people 723 00:39:39,239 --> 00:39:42,680 Speaker 1: stuck with their routes longer. But I remember my postman 724 00:39:42,800 --> 00:39:45,600 Speaker 1: growing up. It was the same guy for years, and 725 00:39:45,640 --> 00:39:47,279 Speaker 1: we lived on We didn't live in a neighborhood. We 726 00:39:47,320 --> 00:39:49,880 Speaker 1: lived on a street in the woods with like six houses, 727 00:39:49,920 --> 00:39:51,920 Speaker 1: and so you know, I would run out and check 728 00:39:52,000 --> 00:39:54,000 Speaker 1: the mail and wave at him, and we would give 729 00:39:54,040 --> 00:39:56,600 Speaker 1: him like gifts at Christmas. And that's and now I 730 00:39:56,640 --> 00:39:59,240 Speaker 1: have no idea who my postal curious? Which is my fault? 731 00:39:59,280 --> 00:40:02,080 Speaker 1: I need to just go out there, I think you do. Yeah. 732 00:40:02,239 --> 00:40:06,240 Speaker 1: And also the Postal services responsible for the largest food 733 00:40:06,320 --> 00:40:09,560 Speaker 1: drive in the United States every year. Yeah, you know 734 00:40:09,640 --> 00:40:11,120 Speaker 1: that food drive where you like you just put like 735 00:40:11,160 --> 00:40:16,040 Speaker 1: canned food in your in your mailbox, in your postal 736 00:40:16,200 --> 00:40:17,920 Speaker 1: You can do that. Yeah, I've never heard of. It 737 00:40:18,239 --> 00:40:22,080 Speaker 1: hasn't been very well publicized. But it like at least 738 00:40:22,080 --> 00:40:24,719 Speaker 1: around here, I guess. But um, it's a huge food 739 00:40:24,800 --> 00:40:27,640 Speaker 1: drive or the very least postal carriers are taking and 740 00:40:27,719 --> 00:40:31,080 Speaker 1: eating cans of ravi for dinner like this is delicious. 741 00:40:31,120 --> 00:40:32,759 Speaker 1: I love this food drive. Yes, so don't just put 742 00:40:32,800 --> 00:40:34,560 Speaker 1: cans of food in your mailbox. Check in to when 743 00:40:34,560 --> 00:40:36,839 Speaker 1: that is supposed. That's got to be the worst day 744 00:40:36,840 --> 00:40:39,120 Speaker 1: of the year for letter carrier, my gosh. Yeah, can 745 00:40:39,160 --> 00:40:42,759 Speaker 1: you imagine it's a lot of weight. Yeah, Um, you 746 00:40:42,800 --> 00:40:47,239 Speaker 1: got anything else? No respect your post postal carrier. You 747 00:40:47,280 --> 00:40:49,239 Speaker 1: want everybody go out and meet their postal carry? Yeah, 748 00:40:49,280 --> 00:40:50,839 Speaker 1: why not give him a hug? Actually, don't do that. 749 00:40:50,880 --> 00:40:54,160 Speaker 1: They might make you or something. Yeah, but give him 750 00:40:54,200 --> 00:40:57,080 Speaker 1: a wave. Um. If you want to learn more about 751 00:40:57,160 --> 00:41:00,560 Speaker 1: the post office, you can type that word those words 752 00:41:00,560 --> 00:41:02,719 Speaker 1: into the search part house to works dot com and 753 00:41:03,040 --> 00:41:05,000 Speaker 1: be sure to check out the Esquire article too. It's 754 00:41:05,080 --> 00:41:08,160 Speaker 1: very cool. Um, and uh, I guess before we get 755 00:41:08,200 --> 00:41:10,040 Speaker 1: into that choke, you want to message from our sponsor. 756 00:41:10,360 --> 00:41:15,919 Speaker 1: Let's do that. Yeah, okay, and now it's listen to me, Josh. 757 00:41:16,000 --> 00:41:20,279 Speaker 1: I'm gonna call this uh um fan who thought we 758 00:41:20,280 --> 00:41:22,359 Speaker 1: were wrong and did a little research and we may 759 00:41:22,400 --> 00:41:26,120 Speaker 1: not be wrong after call. Yeah, that's a nice. We 760 00:41:26,160 --> 00:41:28,320 Speaker 1: had a bunch of filmmakers right in when we talked 761 00:41:28,360 --> 00:41:36,239 Speaker 1: about the um subliminal messages being inserted into movies in 762 00:41:36,239 --> 00:41:41,080 Speaker 1: the nineteen fifties by James Vickery, because we said it's 763 00:41:41,600 --> 00:41:44,160 Speaker 1: one three thousandth of a second or something, and a 764 00:41:44,160 --> 00:41:46,759 Speaker 1: bunch of filmmakers went, there's only twenty four frames per second, 765 00:41:47,120 --> 00:41:48,919 Speaker 1: so if you switched out one frame, it would only 766 00:41:48,920 --> 00:41:51,799 Speaker 1: be There's no way. There's no way, And where'd you 767 00:41:51,800 --> 00:41:53,799 Speaker 1: get this number? Would you get this number? I went 768 00:41:53,840 --> 00:41:55,600 Speaker 1: back and looked, and I was like, I mean, I 769 00:41:55,640 --> 00:41:59,520 Speaker 1: see this number in various places. But um, so we 770 00:41:59,600 --> 00:42:03,359 Speaker 1: got this email from Brian Henry that disputed this, and 771 00:42:03,400 --> 00:42:06,440 Speaker 1: then he wrote back with this, Hey, guys, looks like 772 00:42:06,440 --> 00:42:09,280 Speaker 1: a man spoken too soon. I was assuming that Vickery 773 00:42:09,400 --> 00:42:12,360 Speaker 1: was just changing the film itself, which would result in 774 00:42:12,400 --> 00:42:16,800 Speaker 1: the messages showing much slower in at the maximum second. 775 00:42:17,520 --> 00:42:19,920 Speaker 1: But I did some research and apparently he used something 776 00:42:19,960 --> 00:42:24,320 Speaker 1: called a uh I've never heard of this before, a 777 00:42:24,360 --> 00:42:30,640 Speaker 1: taches Stado scope. Catch you stop to to just the scope. 778 00:42:30,960 --> 00:42:34,319 Speaker 1: I think you got it to just the scope to 779 00:42:34,440 --> 00:42:37,200 Speaker 1: project the messages on the screen, not the movie projector. 780 00:42:37,600 --> 00:42:39,040 Speaker 1: He said, so this way he would have had a 781 00:42:39,040 --> 00:42:42,839 Speaker 1: lot more control over the speed of the messages. And um, 782 00:42:43,440 --> 00:42:45,319 Speaker 1: so to all the filmmakers out there who wrote in 783 00:42:45,360 --> 00:42:47,560 Speaker 1: and challenged this, I wrote back to a few that 784 00:42:47,640 --> 00:42:49,040 Speaker 1: was like, jeez, I don't know, man, I'm like, I'm 785 00:42:49,080 --> 00:42:51,359 Speaker 1: looking for it. Then they you know someone we're even 786 00:42:51,400 --> 00:42:53,680 Speaker 1: kind of snotty about, like I should research to the 787 00:42:53,760 --> 00:42:58,160 Speaker 1: more so apparently put that in your tescope and smoke it. 788 00:42:58,360 --> 00:43:01,560 Speaker 1: That's what I say. And that is from Ryan Henry. Yeah, 789 00:43:01,640 --> 00:43:05,000 Speaker 1: thanks for the research, you know, and being a good 790 00:43:05,000 --> 00:43:08,719 Speaker 1: guy saying hey, I was wrong because you were wrong. 791 00:43:08,760 --> 00:43:10,680 Speaker 1: He was. He was one of the nicer ones about it. Well, 792 00:43:10,680 --> 00:43:13,960 Speaker 1: thank you. Um, if you want to let us know 793 00:43:14,040 --> 00:43:16,920 Speaker 1: that you were wrong, even though you had told us 794 00:43:17,600 --> 00:43:21,399 Speaker 1: that we were wrong at first, I love those, um 795 00:43:21,480 --> 00:43:24,320 Speaker 1: you can tweet that to us at s y SK podcast. 796 00:43:24,360 --> 00:43:26,480 Speaker 1: You can join us on Facebook dot com slash stuff 797 00:43:26,480 --> 00:43:28,680 Speaker 1: you Should Know. You can send us an email to 798 00:43:28,840 --> 00:43:31,640 Speaker 1: Stuff Podcasts at Discovery dot com, and you can write 799 00:43:31,640 --> 00:43:34,720 Speaker 1: all over our website, which is called stuff you Should 800 00:43:34,760 --> 00:43:42,600 Speaker 1: Know dot com for more on this and thousands of 801 00:43:42,640 --> 00:43:52,399 Speaker 1: other topics. Is it how stuff works dot com,