A Forever Plan

Approaching an election in which absentee voting will be more prevalent than ever, it’s a disturbing thought that the U.S. Postal Service could struggle to keep up with the volume of mail-in ballots.

Americans’ online shopping habit already had been growing every year before the pandemic, but lockdowns and businesses temporarily moving to online only have caused package volume to skyrocket. The USPS reports that the increases “drove substantial increases in workhour and operating expenses.” At the same time, the regular mail — letters — has declined.

As voters and as people who care about the future sustainability of the Postal Service, there are two things to do. First, give e-commerce orders a rest until after the election. (Maybe patronize local businesses instead of Amazon for a change?) Give the Postal Service some breathing room before the election to catch up and get delivery times back to where they were pre-COVID.

Second, buy stamps — and then don’t use them. For now. The Postal Service needs an influx of cash now, and Congress and the president have been withholding. Lay out the cash for stamps now, and hold off on using them until holiday card writing season — after mail-in balloting is complete.

The USPS created the “forever stamp” in 2007, a magical stamp that is adequate postage in perpetuity for a first-class letter of regular weight and size. It is one of the surest investments one can make, and is inflation-proof.

Meanwhile, a philatelist will tell you that certain rare and desirable stamps will one day far exceed their original price. Order online and get them on your mailbox, with free shipping, in a day or two: stamps commemorating Bugs Bunny, Scooby-Doo, Women’s Suffrage, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Diwali, the Mayflower, hip-hop, the Great Outdoors, the Harlem Renaissance, American Gardens, Arnold Palmer, Sally Ride, orchids, Black heritage, Halloween, dinosaurs, military working dogs, Purple Heart, the moon landing, frogs, Little Mo, George H.W. Bush, John F. Kennedy, Hot Wheels. That’s not even a comprehensive list of forever stamps currently available.

Let’s save the Postal Service — forever.