In Support of the United States Postal Service

Editorial by G. Moritz, Editor of the Garretson Gazette

I just want to take a minute to make absolutely clear my stance on the Postal Service. The US Postal Service is an essential service, enshrined in the Constitution of the United States. It is essential, sacrosanct and I value it beyond any measurable means.

The mail is an essential function of our society. Without it, I would have to change how I did business fundamentally, if I could even run my business. Honestly, I don’t think I could run my business at all without the Post Office. Though I have a few virtual customers, the vast, vast majority are home delivered by US Mail. Without the US Mail, I would be out of business. This puts aside the fact that most bills (both paid to and accounts received) are transported by US Mail. To conceive of regular business without the USPS, would be to entertain a ridiculous fallacy.

Which is why when I see the Post Office taking flak on the national stage (and this is not the first time it’s happened in recent history) it makes me upset.

If the goal amid this pandemic is to try to get things back to normal, then defunding, interfering or budget-cutting the Post Office or the services it provides is the wrong way to do it. Likewise, to not support it during an election when the only way many of our citizens can vote safely is by mail, is simply criminal.

In South Dakota, I worry less about this. Our Post Offices and local governances are ethical and respect the rule of law. Our local Postal workers have, at every turn, found ways to do more with less, and I applaud them every day. Our local postal staff are knowledgeable, skilled and hardworking. Amid this pandemic, I would also like to call them what they are, brave and stalwart patriots. For rural South Dakotans I know that the mail is essential in normal times, and even more so in today’s environment. That’s not even speaking to the fact that there are people who rely on their mail to deliver medical supplies and prescriptions to their homes. People who could die without the US Mail.

I urge you to call or write our congressmen. Tell them the US Post office is sacrosanct. Ask them to leave it alone, or better yet, improve its funding and service capabilities.

Just before we went to press Tuesday night, we received an email from Postmaster General Louis DeJoy assuring that the USPS is “up to the challenge” this November and that he will hold off any efficiency or large changes to how the mail operates until after the election to “... avoid even the appearance of any impact on election mail.”

I do think that is the right choice. So I guess we’ll see.