Changing The World The Old Fashion Way
Something just occurred to me in all of my haste to finally exploit the stock market system of this country. I can have a greater impact on my standard of living by buying stocks in the companies that have a direct impact on my profession. For example, if all postal employees, (between 700,000 and 800,000,) would all invest in RR Donelly, and ADVO, we could have a vote in the direction of the company and their policies. You heard me, we then become voting members on their decisions. OK, I don’t pretend to fully understand how that works just yet, but I put it to you, my fellow employees, that a greater power than the union, is the stockholders! Help me out here and educate me and our fellows and sisters in the benefits of being an owner in the countries greatest assets. So far I have opened a Scottrade account and have invested @$500.00 of stocks. I plan to work on that, and begin studying Bob Brinkers Market Timer. Just know that ADVO, is now under a different company name than it was last week. Valassis bought out ADVO, (http://sev.prnewswire.com/advertising/20070302/CLF10202032007-1.html ) so you won’t see any activity under the ADVO stock symbol anymore. Keep me posted and I will keep you posted…
Our Standard Of Living
Much controversy over collection boxes at the Postal Service has many up in arms. In spite of the fact that the USPS has virtually the lowest postage rates rates in the world, everyone is whining about rate increases. Cash-cows have a way of mooing in the wind. (Don’t ask me what that means.)
Congress and the postal boards have whittled away the standard of living, both working and retirement of the postal worker to the point of removing quality of life for the average rank and file laborer in order to keep direct marketers happy.
How can someone recommend a job to someone job hunting when conditions have deteriorated to the point of having no quality of life in retirement without finding a job at Walmart as a greeter so dismal, (If you qualify after taking the bodily beating that repetitive stress takes on carpal tunnel and back, shoulder, neck and hips from casing and delivering mail for the number of years it takes to receive retirement?)
Sounds like an easy job, but you try casing 600 magazines per hour, plus over 1000 letters per hour, delivering parcels and special classes of mail as Fed Ex, UPS and DHL do, remembering ebay and other online company’s depend on cheap rates from the postal service to survive.
I, as a carrier, can take a whopping 30 minutes rest per day, that is it! The rest of the time I’m working to the pace I mentioned before for as long as it takes to process 8 hours of mail or more per day.
Now that management has automated tools at their beckon call, they can load level mail, (make sure I have next weeks ads, this week to fill any open spots in the day that were not figured into the contractual way I am suppose to be paid.) They will say that is “undertime”, “deadtime”, or some other meaningless terminology to garner sympathy from the public, but, they have breached their word by doing so.
http://www.engadget.com/2007/03/09/usps-goes-postal-with-r2d2-mailboxes/