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Just a thought… t

By Staff | Aug 16, 2012

It is frustrating to work hard on a newspaper, get it done, printed, and dropped off at the post office on Friday mornings every week and have subscribers call on Monday and ask where their papers are.

I have no beef with our local post office employees. They are hard working people and we work well together. They mail the papers on time from Rugby.

My gripe is with the U.S. Postal Service, who decided to close regional mailing centers and consolidate. I am told that the mail, including our newspapers, gets sent out east before coming back to this area to be delivered. Common sense will tell people that taking the long route doesn’t work.

That’s why they are not landing in subscribers’ mailboxes in a timely manner. By the time subscribers receive the papers, the news is old.

We don’t see much of a change in our subscribers list or we haven’t recently. However, I expect that since no one wants to read a weekly paper a week late, there may be some repercussions in the form of dropped subscriptions sooner rather than later.

Of course, it is not our fault, our hands are tied once those bundles of newspapers are delivered to the post office, but the result for the subscribers is the same. No newspaper.

People can still get their newspapers from the newsstands around town because those papers are never mailed. They are faithfully put in the stands every Saturday morning, early, by Dale Niewoehner.

This isn’t as convenient as having it delivered to one’s home and it costs a few cents more per copy (subscribers get a break in cost). However, if a person wants his/her newspaper as early as possible, buying it from the newsstand is the route to go.

I am hoping that subscribers will ride out this recent wave in the hopes of a better solution. We may have to bring back paper boys and girls to deliver.

In the meantime, for obvious reasons, our office manager, Paige, is hoping people don’t kill the messenger.

Don’t pick on the local post office employees, either. It is out of their hands, as well.

If one wants to do something constructive, write a note to the U.S. Postal Service and ask what can be done to solve this problem. Postmaster, United States Postal Service Headquarters, Washington, DC. 20260.