To the Readers' Forum:
Recently, The Post-Journal had an editorial by Mr. George F. Will, ''Mail It In, Privately.'' It was very interesting, however, it lacked the human touch. So, let me introduce you to Mr. Lysader Spooner. He lived from 1808 to 1889 and was recognized as the Thomas Jefferson of his time. His first great battle was taking on the U.S. Postal monopoly.
In the 1840s, he started the American Letter Mail Company. It opened offices in major cities, organized a network of steamships and railroads and hired people to get the mail to where it needed to be. His service was both faster and cheaper than the government's own. the government hated him and began to litigate against him. It dramatically lowered the price for its services and used public money to cover its losses. Soon Spooner was shut down and bankrupt. It's the same way the government shuts down private school, private currencies, private security, private roads, private companies that go against the central plan and anyone who stands up for freedom. From this one anecdote alone, you an see that the post office is hardly, a natural monopoly, something the government has to provide because free enterprise can't do it. It is a forced monopoly, one kept alive solely through laws and subsidies. If the post office closed its doors today, there would be hundreds of companies rushing in to fill the gap.
Rex Willard
Jamestown