US Post Office Going Bust

Once again, I need to post on how poorly the U. S. Postal Service has become in delivery of the mail. There are pluses and minuses in this, so hang in there for a few moments while I explain:

1. I have no problem with the cost of a First Class stamp. To send a letter across the country for 46 cents is a bargain in my book. Even if the price increases just about every year, it's still a bargain. Of course, many now use e-mail since we can be more likely to know it actually reaches the other party than we can by regular mail. And it takes seconds instead of two or three or sometimes 5 days.

2. The postal service does a splendid job in getting all those junk mailers to your mailbox on time. You know, those crappy newspaper-like pieces of junk that you either have to trash or recycle. The bulk mailers dream because they get reduced rates while your postage stamp keeps rising in cost. The postal service says bulk mailers keep them in business. So, if that's true, and most of us dislike the seemingly tons of crap mail we get monthly, maybe this dissolution issue isn't that bad after all.

3. The costs keep rising on Priority Mail packages, yet I get more misdirected packages than ever. Recently, I have had packages make it all the way across the United States to California, only to end up being sent to cities east of where they should have gone, when the address is clear on the package. That's incompetent #1. I know the routes are sorted by Incompetent #2 at the next post office but really, the mail person who puts it on the truck for delivery can't read and see it's the wrong city, so they carry it around all day? That's Incompetent #3. Then, they simply show no delivery update late at night, no transfer to the right post office by the next morning, nothing. So who knows where the package is now! When will the package arrive? Who knows. A day late, two days? Good question.

4. Example: Package shipped from Santa Ana to San Diego. Gets sent from Santa Ana to another post office north of there and then to Santa Clarita. Goes through Santa Clarita apparently twice and finally comes back south after two additional days. This should have been a one day shipment that took four days. More incompetence, but the Postal Service can blame it on either automated handling or incompetence. Guess which one they will choose?

5. I shipped a large envelope to New Hampshire and it went round and round at the same post office, coming up on the tracking system for 5 days as processed and then processed again and again. Finally after several phone calls (The offices neatly hide their numbers so you have to call an 800 number to be placed in touch) they were able to release it from its' carousel prison and the recipient got it over a week late. Great service.

6. When our usual carrier, who is excellent, is not on duty, the route is split among a group of other carriers to handle. Thus outgoing packages sit in the heat for ten hours awaiting pickup, since it seems the team of 6 extra carriers can't do what one carrier usually does, pick up by noon every day. Add some extra work to their schedule and the whole system breaks down, mail is picked up at least 6 hours later than usual. I wonder what the Easter candy looks like after that extra heat soak?

7. There are commercials on television sponsored by the National Letter Carriers about not letting the Postal Service stop Saturday delivery. A bit self-serving, don't you think? Same with businesses. Maybe if there was some efficiency in mail services and delivery, the Postal Service wouldn't be in the shape it is? Maybe if they didn't piss off those who ship regularly with them, and make us want to ship with another source, they could also improve their revenue stream?

8. The Postal Service whines about going bankrupt. Just like the automakers did, they want a bailout. But, don't expect any bailout of the Postal Service to ever be paid back. Because it will always be a losing proposition. The USPS couldn't possibly raise rates enough to keep themselves afloat, as businesses will continue to turn to lower cost shippers such as FedEx and UPS, among others. Businesses whine over possible lack of 6 day delivery but they could do fine in most cases with four days. Let them pay for special services such as 5 or 6 day delivery. Cut residential delivery to 3 days a week. Billions could be saved right there with little inconvenience to consumers.We don't need junk mail and magazines daily and most people now do their banking on line. Federal checks now require direct deposit, so no whining from federal benefits recipients about their checks being late either.

9. Rates charged are exorbitant for larger packages, forcing loyal customers to other services for many shipments. As an example, I shipped three boxes to Pennsylvania and Oklahoma and compared rates for three day delivery between my home ZIP code for USPS, FedEx and USPS for each piece. For three day service to Oklahoma, the USPS wanted $47.29 for one 12 lb box and FedEx charged $22.00. The second package the USPS wanted $28.84 Parcel Post, FedEx Ground shipped for $10.00. The third box, USPS wanted $20.20 Parcel Post and FedEx Ground shipped for $10.23. Less than half the price and arrived on time. Why pay over $50 more for USPS service?

I support the USPS and have for years. But it's growing tiresome having shipments misrouted and the same old lame excuses. The local post office apologizes but they usually are the scapegoat for a much bigger problem. Incompetency all along the line. Failure to force workers to perform. Those that do good work seem to be vilified and those that don't slide their way to a nice retirement.

I worked for the postal service 50 years ago. It was a wasteful service back then and I can only imagine how much that wastefulness has multiplied over all these years. If it is even anything like it was back then, no bailout will help, this year or any other. They are driving a vehicle that is far overdue for the crusher and the unions, I would guess, are driving it into the jaws of the shredder at breakneck speed. Unlike the automakers, the postal service has little new to offer or sell, no new glitzy models, no new speeds to thrill, not even a new found competence to razzle dazzle the old customers. Just the same old promise to deliver in rain, sleet, maybe in snow, and if the carrier can find the right house, or if the mail isn't misdirected. Quasi-governmental never works.  

Just as a point...here;'s a recent timeline of mishandling.....

	Priority Mail®	Delivery status not updated	March 27, 2013, 10:49 pm		Expected Delivery By: March 27, 2013 USPS Tracking / Delivery Confirmation™
			Out for Delivery	March 27, 2013, 8:49 am	EL CAJON, CA 92020
			Sorting Complete	March 27, 2013, 8:39 am	EL CAJON, CA 92020
			Arrival at Post Office	March 27, 2013, 5:26 am	EL CAJON, CA 92020
			Depart USPS Sort Facility	March 27, 2013	SAN DIEGO, CA 92199
			Processed through USPS Sort Facility	March 27, 2013, 12:31 am	SAN DIEGO, CA 92199
			Depart USPS Sort Facility	March 26, 2013	OPA LOCKA, FL 33054
			Processed at USPS Origin Sort Facility	March 26, 2013, 3:32 am	OPA LOCKA, FL 33054
			Dispatched to Sort Facility	March 25, 2013, 6:22 pm	MIAMI, FL 33193
			Acceptance	March 25, 2013, 1:27 pm	MIAMI, FL 33193
			Electronic Shipping Info Received

  Shipper busts his butt to get it out on time and then...it gets misrouted.  Nothing like time sensitive service. Not from the USPS.

BMW and the Low Voltage Saga

I've probably bought more cars in my lifetime than most people. Not bragging by any means, just the truth. I love cars, and change vehicles pretty often. Couple that with driving new police vehicles all the time, company cars and having a pretty free say in what I want to drive as a personal vehicle (as long as the payments don't kill me) it's been a ride with way over half a hundred or so vehicles in the garage since age 17.

Some have been pretty hot cars, like the Dodge Challenger Hemi, the 1966 and 2005 GTO's, Mustang Mach 1 the 69 RoadRunner, 92 Corvette, and others I can't remember. Oh yeah, the 59 Studebaker with the supercharged engine from a 63 Avanti. Plus a host of others. The point being, I am a motor head and know a bit about cars, buying, repairing and selling. And racing too.

Today's vehicles are sophisticated and unlike the iron of old, more difficult to work on. No longer controlled by a coil and distributor or a magneto and distributor combo, the plethora of computer based modules makes your head spin. And let one go out of whack and you have a dead vehicle; one that many times begs only to be repaired by a high priced dealer mechanic with tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of tools. Even that doesn't help when the dealers themselves only can tell you a tale of woe...

Two recent vehicle purchases were high line BMW's, 535imodels, one a 2011 535xiGT all wheel drive and the other a 2010 535iGT rear wheel drive. Each of them beautiful cars in their own right, but plagued with electrical gremlins that couldn't be solved by the dealers. The batteries drain faster than they can be recharged by the vehicles. If you don't drive enough daily, the batteries go dead. And before they do, the vehicles start reacting in all sorts of strange ways, such as the light control modules failing, meaning your directional signals (one or more) fail and your adaptive headlights fail along with their vertical aiming. You will be advised the vehicle will "not restart if stopped", that "the battery in your key fob is dead", "the key fob is not in the vehicle", that "the differential in your xDrive vehicle has failed and must be taken to the dealer immediately", and "the vehicle is overheating" on a cold day when it's been driven only a few miles and the engine temperature gauge says it's still cold. And that's only the beginning of the electronic repertoire the computer may have in store for you on some lonely road in the middle of nowhere..

BMW will take your car for three days and charge your battery for 8 hours numerous times but not replace the battery, since their service protocol is not to replace the battery unless it's truly dead. They will simply say it's "low voltage" and send you on your way, only to have the same problems shortly after. Then they take your car for three days again and do the same dance as their equipment finds nothing wrong but the same low voltage condition.

In exasperation, I sold my 2011 BMW simply because the dealers could not fix the problems permanently. Almost a $70,000 car that was so over-engineered that their solution is to plug in a battery charger at night to keep the battery charged.

On the 2010, I had to do my own diagnostics to find something was draining the battery faster than it could be charged while it was running. It was at the dealers for three days and after being given (finally after much discussion) a new battery, the vehicle malfunctioned 15 minutes away from the dealership en route home. We received a battery charger and I discovered it would not accept a full charge (new battery, remember?) it was not remaining charged and that when started, the vehicle was draining faster than charging. Upon returning to the dealer they kept it for two and a half days more to find the light control module had failed but had o order one in. Again, the advice: Use a battery charger when the vehicle is not in use. Search the Internet for hundreds f the same stories on the BMW forums and BMW won't fix the basic problem.

IF I WANTED A FREAKIN' ELECTRIC CAR WITH A CHARGING CORD

 I WOULD HAVE BOUGHT ONE!  

 

Two days after we got the BMW back, we turned it in on a Land Rover. Not that we don't expect to have some issues down the road with any car, but electrical issues is not one we've heard plaque the Land Rover. Actually, we bought two, so I'll write a blog entry on how they stack up against the BMW's. Hey, if you have to make payments, you ought to at least be able to drive the vehicle, right? 

More Offshore Call Centers!

OMG! and WTF? Your credit information by the big three credit reporting companies is being handled offshore?

Folks, I just had an experience where I had to call both TransUnion and Experian for information regarding my accounts. In both cases I was connected to an offshore call center in either India or the Philippines where the people spoke poor English and were either barely able to assist me or totally unable to understand and assist me at all.

In one case, the woman was able to assist me after some time elapsed. It was nerve wracking to realize that she had the details of my entire life in front of her and she was not even located in the USA.

In the second case, the man on the phone was totally useless. I clearly explained several times I needed assistance at the time of the call and all he could do was tell me to put my request in writing and sent it to Experian. His ability to explain why he could not assist me was overshadowed by his inability to comprehend why I needed his assistance in the first place. Broken English and a poor attitude. And this idiot has control over my most important information? Yet some cretin credit card company wanting to send you junk mail for a pre-approved card can request it and get it easily because they simply pay a fee. Really nice. And they don't even have to talk to these dimwits!

So, if you think your credit information is safe and locked up somewhere, don't feel so secure. Because somewhere overseas, some idiot has access to every bit of it. And with the push of a computer key can screw your life up, all because the credit reporting company that is so "trusted" by hundreds of millions of people, are such cheap bastards that they have to use offshore labor instead of employing Americans in need of jobs.

And you wonder why we're slowly sinking down the tubes? Oh yeah, that goes along with "Press 1 for English"!

Tired of Sales Calls? AARP Sells Your Phone Number!

That retirees organization that so many retirees are now finding out is so far left winged that it can't fly straight has hit upon yet another way to screw the aging populace. It's selling your information.

Yes, you read that right, the AARP is selling your name, address and phone number to vendors of items that fit in with senior mobility and health care. How do I know this? Because today, I received a call from a walk-in bathtub company trying to sell me their products.

When I told the representative I was on a no-call list and they had no right to be calling me, and explained the fine they were incurring by doing so, and that I also have a phone trap that does collect their number, she panicked and called a supervisor to the phone.

The supervisor apologized profusely and promised to take me off their lists, etc. When I demanded to know how they obtained not only my number but my name, she stammered that they were calling on behalf of ...the AARP! And they were simply offering safety and mobility assistance to people who fall into certain age groups. She couldn't tell me what age group or demographics thet were, but I was really angry to think once again, the AARP is screwing seniors to make a buck off their backs.

Wake up, seniors. The AARP is not a helping organization. They want money and power but are not using it to help you! They line their pockets with money from endorsements of various types of insurance and advertising and now they're selling your information, or giving it away and getting paid a royalty on sales. Either way it should be criminal to do so.

Don't trust the AARP. They want to give you the warm fuzzies, but so would peeing in a dark blue wool suit. Quickly it cools off and you feel very uncomfortable. My relationship with the AARP has long cooled off and I don't even have a blue suit!

Check out the Alliance for Retired Americans http://www.retiredamericans.org/

and the Association for Mature American Citizens http://amac.us/

as alternatives to AARP.

AARP is a BILLION dollar company. Interesting that their expenses almost replicate their revenue. Hmm..pretty big executive paychecks out there...

From Guidestar:
Annual Revenue & Expenses

Fiscal Year Starting: Jan 01, 2011
Fiscal Year Ending: Dec 31, 2011

Revenue

Total Revenue	$1,224,437,632

Expenses

Total Expenses	$1,165,244,846

People Control

Once again, the liberals are out to blame the guns instead of the idiots who do heinous things with them. Not once do they blame the 400 horsepower vehicle for killing a bus load of people, but rightfully blame the driver. So why is it they don't do the same with guns? There is no hue and cry to remove all high horsepower cars from the streets after a teen drives his vehicle recklessly and kills four or five of his friends. Nor is there screaming to remove teens from behind the wheels of such automobiles. Why? Because to do so would be highly unpopular with the voters and , honestly, folks, it's all about votes.

If anyone believes the mushrooming of legislative activity against guns is really a gun violence issue, there's some waterfront property in Arizona you need to grab up quick before the next California earthquake. Sure, there is much concern about a school shooting, and anyone who would not be concerned and condemn such a dastardly deed is, in my opinion, a fool. But, that said, the hysteria that spreads across the nation to ban certain types of weapons, high capacity magazines and other anti-gun moves is simply a smoke-screen that the gun control people are hiding behind to press forward an agenda they have had for years. That is to disarm the American public and take away the Second Amendment rights of the American citizen.

What is truly frightening is that the government officials are well protected by armed guards and Secret Service. Obama and his family will receive lifetime Secret Service protection. Police and Sheriff's Departments are undermanned and underfunded so where does that leave the ordinary citizen when they call 911? A sitting duck while responders answer other calls and they are in the queue waiting for what could be hours for response from police. In fact, in some areas, you actually get a response from 911 that the line is busy and to call back later! (I personally have had that happen in California when I wanted to report an accident I witnessed) Great. Your home is being broken into and nobody is coming to help. The intruder has a gun and you, being a good citizen believing in gun control do not. While you are dying on the floor and your wife and daughter are being raped and then killed, the police are a long ways away. Too late for that gun now isn't it?

And, did all the laws that are not being enforced keep the intruder from getting a gun? He could have stolen it, bought it on the streets, or obtained it in many ways. Maybe it's one of the guns that Attorney General Eric Holder let go across the border into Mexico in the Fast And Furious operation that has made its way back into the US? One of those already killed a Border Patrol Agent. (And no, Holder isn't being held accountable for his actions as is not Hillary Clinton for her screw ups either...)

Problem is, the government does not enforce the laws currently on the books. Hell, I just read that numerous states don't keep the mentally ill from buying a gun in the first place! WTF? Some states have such stringent checks that you actually feel like a criminal to buy a gun; others are so loose it's damn near criminal to allow a gun to be bought. The rules need to be tightened up so here is a standardized methodology across the board for purchasing a firearm. Same in all states and municipalities. Concealed weapons permits standards should also be standardized and citizens with clear backgrounds following a vigorous check should not be denied a permit at the whim of a politically charged law enforcement agency or officer, as happens all too often. I have personally witnessed situations where "friends" of the issuing official get permits where other qualified people do not. Perhaps that has changed but I would bet in some jurisdictions it has not.

Bottom line, is don't vilify the piece of cold steel or the automobile or whatever is involved in the incident. Vilify the person behind the attacks. Place all available resources into stopping criminals from obtaining weapons while allowing law abiding citizens to have the weapons they want. The tactic seems to be "let's penalize everyone so we can catch a few" which equates to the old "the beatings will continue until morale improves" logic. Beating gun owners isn't the way to achieve a safer society.

Beating the criminal element and making it more difficult for them to obtain a weapon is a good start, but realize all the gun laws won't keep illegal guns off the streets. It will make it more difficult for the legal citizen to obtain a firearm, but the criminal will still obtain one. Out of the trunk of a car, in a dark alley, somewhere, there will always be a gun for sale at the right price.

As a nation, we mourn for the children, adults and their families in Newtown, Aurora and elsewhere. Those were horrible acts of deranged people. But it was the people, not the gun that pulled the trigger. Focus on that. The lunatics could have made a bomb and done mass damage and we wouldn't want to ban propane tanks or fertilizer or whatever they made the bomb from.

Finally, I don't own an assault weapon or a high capacity magazine, so I am writing this without a self-serving purpose. Just to ask that people look at the real issue...people are the problem and unless we recognize that, all the knee-jerk reactions and new laws won't help. Like all the cell phone laws didn't help stop people talking on their phones while driving and texting laws didn't help stop texting while driving. People don't obey those simple laws until a tragedy strikes, and the government won't raise the fines high enough so that it really hurts to get caught. So blame it on lack of enforcement.

And, by the way, why were the guns not in a locked approved gun safe in Newtown? Or doesn't Connecticut require that as many other states do? Just a thought....

The Shady Dealings of the AARP

By Pat Boone and Jim Martin

Courtesy of the 60 Plus Association     November 20, 2010

http://60plus.org/

For many years, the AARP was a trusted voice of seniors across America. We believed, and rightly so, they were operating in our best interest, representing the issues and concerns of elderly Americans in Washington and across the 50 states. But sadly, those days are long in the past, distant memories as faded as scrapbook photos locked in an attic.

Today, the AARP is nothing more than an insurance conglomerate and lobbying behemoth, with annual revenues in excess of $400 million. Given the tremendous amount of revenue AARP generates selling health insurance, representing seniors has taken a back seat to having a seat at the table with Washington’s deal-makers. The bottom line is AARP gladly lines its pockets from sweetheart deals, while selling their own members down the river. AARP betrays seniors for the almighty dollar. The proof we offer for that assertion are the recently discovered emails where AARP members spoke out strongly against the so-called Affordable Care Act.

While AARP continues to maintain the charade they are a neutral party in the healthcare debate, they were instrumental partners with the White House and Democratic National Committee (DNC) in working behind the scenes to pass the Obamacare legislation that America’s seniors overwhelmingly oppose. When AARP switchboards lit-up with their members calling in to oppose Obamacare by a score of 14 to 1, did they care? Fat chance.

According to emails unearthed by Chairman Fred Upton’s (R-MI) Energy and Commerce Committee, AARP executives said they needed to “change the messaging.” To AARP, the problem wasn’t the bill itself, it was the marketing. They further refused the Administration’s invitation to advocate publicly for Obamacare, stating in secret memos, “polling shows we are more influential when we are seen as independent.” So AARP hides behind its good name while pushing for a healthcare overhaul that will reap it billions. How shameful.

With AARP standing to gain over $1 billion in additional revenues over 10 years with the passage of Obamacare, they put their insurance business and the almighty dollar first, and seniors were merely props for the stage show. The over $700 billion Obamacare cuts from Medicare is going to cause seniors to have to reach deeper into their wallets to make up the difference, and the AARP is only too happy to be the recipient of this windfall.

Typically membership organizations follow the wishes of their members, but AARP clearly has no interest in serving the seniors who pay their membership dues and buy their insurance products. AARP describes themselves as a “nonprofit, nonpartisan organization…that helps people 50+ have independence, choice and control in ways that are beneficial to them and society as a whole.” So why did they lobby to stop Medigap reform which would have saved seniors an average of $400 per year? Perhaps because AARP stands to gain nearly $3 billion.

As noted by Senator Jim DeMint’s recent investigation into AARP’s political activities, AARP currently dominates the Medigap market, yet thanks to their support for Obamacare, they received a waiver from the requirement that insurance companies can’t discriminate against pre-existing conditions. You read that right; as a reward for helping to pass Obamacare, AARP gets a pass on covering pre-existing conditions, which benefits them to the tune of billions while costing seniors more.

AARP’s once-sterling reputation is all but gone as it has enriched itself by helping to slash Medicare and provided a big assist in the push for the passage of Obamacare. Now American seniors are left with the prospect of losing Medicare Advantage and facing the rationing of healthcare services.

American seniors should see the AARP for what it is. At one time AARP may have truly acted in the best interests of American seniors, but now is an annex of the Democrat party engaging in underhanded money-grubbing tactics that sell-out its members. In the big picture it is nothing more than another special interest group pushing for flawed healthcare policies to fill its own coffers. The AARP is no more an advocate for the best interests of seniors than is a fox an advocate for the best interests of chickens.

It is time for America’s seniors to look at AARP and its recent advocacy with a critical eye. American seniors deserve better than flawed policies resulting from back room dealing and ‘non-partisan’ advocacy and lobbying from an organization that is anything but neutral. A full investigation into their myriad of money-making activities is certainly warranted, as is an end to their privileged reputation in Washington, and in the minds and hearts of America’s seniors.

Music legend Pat Boone is the national spokesman for the 60 Plus Association, of which Jim Martin is the founder and chairman.

Upcoming Socialist America

The last election leaves me pondering what more damage can be done before we turn totally socialist in this country? How far must we turn left before we go communist with the current leadership taking us down a path of ruin from which there will be no return?

The politicians in Washington, and many states along with them, seem hell bent on taking as much as possible from the so-called middle class and giving it to the have-nots; those not willing to pursue a living, and standing at the door with their hand out. The "I'm entitled" class grows larger and larger and those who feel that way have done absolutely nothing to gain an entitlement. No work, no service to their country, absolutely nothing but take up space on this planet and complain that what they get is not enough.

Oh, add in pro-creation as many continue to have illegitimate children by the numbers, and refuse to remember or name the "baby daddy" as that could somehow affect the amount of welfare, WIC, and other free gimmes they receive if the "baby daddy" were found and ordered to pay. Of course, from what my research elicits, even if found, most never pay the amounts adjudicated due, many are already incarcerated, and others are already living with the mother surreptitiously, but being claimed as missing and unknown. Yet, the taxpayers are paying for this.

Medicare and MediCal or whatever your state wants to call it is all on you, the taxpayer. You pay for the medical care of the welfare and indigents who won't work. Okay, if someone cannot legitimately work due to a real medical disability, that's reasonable. But again, research shows so a great number of cases where the disability may not be justified and the person can do some sort of work. Complicity runs rampant in the system yet it just grinds on. There are not enough investigators to make a dent in the fraud in the system, and we're paying for it.

Illegal immigration also makes a huge dent in your wallet. Just ask about the Section 1011 Form that the local hospital fills out for care to illegals in the Emergency Room or as an inpatient. No signing or anything. Check the box, admission signs and the bill goes to the U.S. Government for the illegals care. You try that if you go to the Emergency Room or the hospital without insurance. You'll get hounded until hell freezes over, have your wages garnished, placed in collection, etc. Why? Because you're an American and here legally!  Check it out here:
http://www.cms.gov/Medicare/CMS-Forms/CMS-Forms/downloads/cms10130a.pdf

Things will be getting worse. Doesn't matter whether you're a Republican or a Democrat at this stage. You all need to pray to someone higher than the tower in Washington to help us out of this mess. I predict we'll se a recession again bigger than the recent one (I think we're still in it) and plants will close in record numbers. By 2016 we'll be on the skids so bad that we may never get out. The two parties will be at each others throats and won't accomplish much due to their constant fighting. They coin new phrases like "fiscal cliff:" to describe their self-made messes and love to create drama like a cheap soap opear on the taxpayers billions.

Hang on for the ride, folks, because you'll need a good seat belt and maybe even a three point harness for this one. And, a hard hat and safety goggles might not hurt either.