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Why the Post Office Gives Amazon Special Delivery
WSJ ^ | 07/13/2017 | Joseph Sandbulte

Posted on 07/13/2017 6:44:08 PM PDT by ForYourChildren

A Citigroup analysis finds each box gets a $1.46 subsidy. It’s like a gift card from Uncle Sam.

In my neighborhood, I frequently walk past “shop local” signs in the windows of struggling stores. Yet I don’t feel guilty ordering most of my family’s household goods on Amazon. In a world of fair competition, there will be winners and losers.

But when a mail truck pulls up filled to the top with Amazon boxes for my neighbors and me, I do feel some guilt. Like many close observers of the shipping business, I know a secret about the federal government’s relationship with Amazon: The U.S. Postal Service delivers the company’s boxes well below its own costs. Like an accelerant added to a fire, this subsidy is speeding up the collapse of traditional retailers in the U.S. and providing an unfair advantage for Amazon.

{..snip..}

(Excerpt) Read more at wsj.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: amazon; amazonusps; ecommerce; govtsubsidy; usps; uspsamazon
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To: usconservative

How far did that drone have to fly to your house?


41 posted on 07/13/2017 8:23:55 PM PDT by Karl Spooner
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To: Karl Spooner

“I must say that the postal system is getting better.”

I don’t see it. I took an 8-1/2” x 11” envelope into the post office on 6/20 and mailed it from AZ to MI. Mailed it regular mail - supposed to deliver in 3 to 5 business days. It hasn’t arrived yet.


42 posted on 07/13/2017 8:29:06 PM PDT by mouske
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To: Karl Spooner

not far, one of Amazon’s distribution centers is about 15 minutes south of where I live. Almost everything I order off Amazon now gets here same day/next day.


43 posted on 07/13/2017 8:34:10 PM PDT by usconservative (When The Ballot Box No Longer Counts, The Ammunition Box Does. (What's In Your Ammo Box?))
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To: Karl Spooner

BTW, the “same day” delivery option had a graphic of a drone next to it also. It appears Amazon’s telling their customers what’s arriving via drone now too.


44 posted on 07/13/2017 8:35:27 PM PDT by usconservative (When The Ballot Box No Longer Counts, The Ammunition Box Does. (What's In Your Ammo Box?))
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To: ForYourChildren
Aren't you glad you're subsidizing this guy???

Saw a post that said to the tune of like $1Ms/day.

45 posted on 07/13/2017 8:38:23 PM PDT by Jane Long (Praise God, from whom ALL blessings flow.)
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To: Insigne123; radiohead

Except that it is on you and the rest of us taxpayers for stupid government institutions...


Thank you. Amazing how folks (especially here) don’t realize that their TAX $$$$ are paying for this/all government programs.

Geeeeeeez mahneeeeez.


46 posted on 07/13/2017 8:44:11 PM PDT by Jane Long (Praise God, from whom ALL blessings flow.)
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To: ForYourChildren

To commenters who do not care how there packages are delivered:

USPS loses $5 billion dollars a year.

Guess who makes up the shortfall.


47 posted on 07/13/2017 8:46:25 PM PDT by joshua c (To disrupt the system, we must disrupt our lives)
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To: ForYourChildren

I stopped buying from amazon almost a year ago.
Also stopped using Facebook.

I won’t give clicks or money or further positive attention to those greedy people, same goes for starbucks, you can’t pay me enough to buy or put money in the pockets of any of them.


48 posted on 07/13/2017 8:56:45 PM PDT by b4me (If Jesus came to set us free, why are so many professed Believers still in chains?)
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To: Mears
The USPS delivers Amazon packages directly to the home.

Not to a lot of us they don't! Many postal customers, including my household do not warrant home delivery. We have to go down to a post office for all our mail. That includes Amazon packages.

49 posted on 07/13/2017 8:58:05 PM PDT by Ace's Dad (BTW, "Ace" is now Captain Ace. But only when I'm bragging about my airline pilot son!)
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To: Mears
The USPS delivers Amazon packages directly to the home.

Not to a lot of us they don't! Many postal customers, including my household do not warrant home delivery. We have to go down to a post office for all our mail. That includes Amazon packages.

50 posted on 07/13/2017 8:58:14 PM PDT by Ace's Dad (BTW, "Ace" is now Captain Ace. But only when I'm bragging about my airline pilot son!)
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To: b4me

Walmart has many of the same products as Amazon, with free, 2 day delivery.

Not sure how long, or if they can even compete with subsidized Amazon. Maybe Walmart should ask for the USPS “Amazon shipping rate” special.


51 posted on 07/13/2017 8:59:04 PM PDT by Jane Long (Praise God, from whom ALL blessings flow.)
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To: ChildOfThe60s
No amount of volume makes up for each package shipping at a loss. The loss only gets greater.

The article is behind a paywall so I can't see the math, but there is a difference between average cost and incremental cost. How much is the postage for the 1.6 million packages and how much extra does it cost to deliver them?

Imagine if it costs $7 to deliver one package and only $1 extra to deliver the second. If each sender pays $2, does that mean the second package lost the post office $2 = $2 postage - average package cost of $4? Or did the USPS profit $1 = $2 postage - $1 incremental cost? I have no idea without seeing the math.

52 posted on 07/13/2017 9:08:31 PM PDT by KarlInOhio (a government contract becomes virtually a substitute for intellectual curiosity - Pres. Eisenhower)
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To: SunTzuWu

“If I had a customer that shipped 1.6 million packages per day, I’d give them a discount too.”

and i imagine amazon pre-sorts the packages as well.

and no doubt amazon gets special discounts from fedex and ups too.


53 posted on 07/13/2017 9:10:29 PM PDT by catnipman ( Cat Nipman: Vote Republican in 2012 and only be called racist one more time!)
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To: b4me

I don’t fakebook or Starbucks, but Amazon gets gun parts, mower and engine parts to me in two days, and cheaper than Cheaper Than Dirt, which can take a couple weeks, if it isn’t BO’d.
That’s capitalism. Compete or join Blockbuster, go big or go home.


54 posted on 07/13/2017 9:10:33 PM PDT by tumblindice (America's founding fathers: all armed conservatives)
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To: 1_Rain_Drop

“Items on Prime are more expensive to cover the cost of the postage. “

everything i order is shipped Prime because I pay for Prime membership. So you’re claiming they’re jacking up the price for EVERYTHING I buy? I don’t think so. I’ve priced items both logged onto to amazon and not logged on, and the prices are the same whether amazon knows who i am or not.


55 posted on 07/13/2017 9:14:41 PM PDT by catnipman ( Cat Nipman: Vote Republican in 2012 and only be called racist one more time!)
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To: Mears

A lot of inconsistency. In my area there are no rural routes and some people are 40 miles from the Post Office and still have to go to the Post Office to get mail. To top it off our little Post Office was on the list of closures a couple years ago and those people would have had to go an additional 30 miles to get their mail. We fought closure, and were amazed we won, at least that round.

I still wonder why there are so many Post Offices (branches) so close together in cities. That doesn’t seem to be cost effective. Our mail that is Westbound is sent 100 miles East first to be sorted then sent the other way; that doesn’t seem cost effective either.


56 posted on 07/13/2017 9:23:16 PM PDT by Tammy8 (Please be a regular supporter of Free Republic !)
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To: ForYourChildren

“$2.33M dollars a day subsidy”

Bezos doesn’t mind adding to our nation’s debt just so long as he continues to get filthy rich.


57 posted on 07/13/2017 9:32:08 PM PDT by Carthego delenda est
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To: Tammy8

“I still wonder why there are so many Post Offices (branches) so close together in cities”

Population and business density has a lot to do with it.

I am virtually around the corner from my PO and there are four others that I could reach by car in 15 minutes.

.


58 posted on 07/13/2017 9:33:02 PM PDT by Mears
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To: joshua c

Taxpayers pay about the same amount of money to oil companies every year, too. Looks like some of you will have to stop driving your cars now : )


59 posted on 07/13/2017 9:37:30 PM PDT by Karl Spooner
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To: catnipman

I know if Walmart has it available from one of their stores they are cheaper than Amazon. They don’t come close to the selection that Amazon has though. But, you still can’t beat the Walmart warranty and free return shipping - completely hassle free. I have read many horror stories about Amazon in that regard and I would not buy anything major from Amazon because of that.


60 posted on 07/13/2017 10:17:42 PM PDT by Karl Spooner
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