Why I love the US Postal Service Commentary:

I have found that low expectations are the key to happiness in life, which brings me to the US Postal Service. I know that the Postal Service isn’t perfect. When my mother writes to her sister in Austria the letters are sometimes sent to the land of the kangaroo. But it could be a lot worse.

When I lived in Peru I had to schlep down to the post office and bribe officials whenever I received packages. And when I studied in India, I was surprised when my mother sent me a little dress and coloring set for my birthday. She hadn’t, of course; someone in the local post office had done a switcharoo.

Despite the occasional hiccup, the Postal Service is an unsung marvel of our civilization that we take for granted. We all grumble about the new rate hike, but for just 37 cents, you can send a letter from anywhere to anyone in the country. If we privatized the Postal Service – and there are many who want to – do you think a private company would charge you more if you lived in Wibaux, Montana, than if you lived in Manhattan? I think they would. And people criticize the Postal Service for operating at a loss in recent times, but are governments about profit or providing equal access to services worth paying for?

I know the Postal Service can be rough about the edges. Our letter carrier here in Washington, DC, never acknowledges my friendly wave as he takes a shortcut to our front door through my wife’s flowerbed. But I don’t complain – I won’t be receiving flowery dresses and crayons from this guy; he isn’t going to steal my checks to the power company or pilfer my autographed Ozzie Osbourne poster I bought on Ebay. US Postal workers cherish the sanctity of the mail and I don’t care if they deliver without a smile.

The next time you complain about service at your local post office, remember that the US Postal Service oversees more than 800,000 employees and delivered over 207 billion pieces of mail in 2001. A government bureaucracy that provides universal service and a system so trustworthy we’ve nothing to complain about but long lines and surly employees exceeds my expectations every day.