Neither snow nor rain nor heat... [craponomics]

Back in 2001 (after September 11th and the anthrax mailings), The United States Postal Service ran an ad campaign quoting a translation of Herodotus' Histories which has often been falsely attributed to the USPS creed and went as follows:

We are mothers and fathers. And sons and daughters. Who every day go about our lives with duty, honor and pride. And neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night, nor the winds of change, nor a nation challenged, will stay us from the swift completion of our appointed rounds. Ever.

Terrible weather may not stop the mail from being delivered, but according to the USPS, one force seems to be able to halt the courier's work... The economy. The USPS is now discussing cutting down their delivery schedule from the typical six-day model (Monday - Saturday) to a five-day model.

I think its interesting that the Postal Service is blaming the economy for the downturn in demand. With competitive rates from parcel carriers such as UPS and FedEx (but with better tracking options and automatic insurance) and the widespread use of the internet, it seems to me as if the USPS has ran its course much like the Pony Express. With e-mail, electronic banking, fax machines, and the aforementioned couriers; I honestly haven't "mailed" anything in quite some time. (But someone still needs to deliver your magazine subscriptions.)

Side note: The USPS seems to have taken down the link to their TV campaign from their website.

Also for the record, the USPS is not a government agency, they are simply an independent private corporation protected and heavily regulated by the federal government.