On Tue, 18 Feb 2025 07:56:23 -0600, AMuzi <
am@yellowjersey.org> wrote:
On 2/18/2025 5:49 AM, Shadow wrote:
....
Here in Brazil the postal service was run by the State. Cheap
and fast. Quite amazing, considering most Brazilians are practically
illiterate and it's very hard to read the addresses on the envelopes.
Plus the size of Brazil. Routing is done by postal code. When you post
it, the computer program determined the route(it was so efficient it
was probably another TK invention). For example a parcel posted here
to Rio de Janeiro would go from my town to an intermediate point, then
to Sao Paulo, then to Rio de Janeiro. Since postal vans run the routes
at least once a day, it would take 2-3 days to Rio.
"Express" mail same thing, hitching a ride on airlines or even
military planes that happened to be going near that remote Amazon
village.
I remember in Lula's first term some 20 years ago a "simple
letter" was around 1 U$ cent to anywhere in Brazil (called a "social
letter" because it produced no profit for the postal service, but
allowed poor people to write to relatives).
Then came Temer and Bolsonaro, bribed to privatize the
services. They imposed "voluntary" retirement for the employees that
had stable jobs, outsourced practically all the postmen at 1/4 of the
salary, and actually mandated that letters and parcels be retained in
warehouses and only delivered at the legal limit (2 weeks for cheap
post). Did I say cheap post? LOL, taxes (tariffs) doubled, in some
cases tripled, and there is no longer a "simple letter". Cheapest is
around 3 dollars.
All this to "prove" that State-run is "bad" and should be
destroyed.
They didn't manage to privatize due to public outcry, but
numerous private firms entered the market attracted by the high
tariffs.
Some things which are manufactured here are not worth buying
because of the postal tariffs. Like tennis shoes, cost around US$ 6
but you'll pay U$ 5 for the post.
Bike-related, I put off buying things for my bike until
there's enough to justify paying the post.
Thefts, which were practically unheard of are now quite
common. You would have to be crazy to risk a stable well-paying job by
stealing. Now that postmen are outsourced, have no workers rights and
really miserable pay theft has become a problem. They don't really
care if they are fired.
Some things are better left to the State. Like postal
services, medicine, education, police services, jails, water,
electricity and roads/trains. LOL.
[]'s
>
Brasil Post has to operate in the same world of
technological change, labor interests and costs (direct and
administrative) as every other postal system:
>
https://www2.gwu.edu/~ibi/minerva/Fall2000/Edson.Oliveira.Sr.pdf
>
Every country's Post has experienced dramatic change with a
wide range of new systems and policies from inspired to
shambolic and all that will continue, everywhere, not just
in Brasil.
From your article(the author WAS a lobbyist for US
multinationals, he now posts that if the postal service is privatized
prices will increase, and "non-profitable addresses" will no longer
receive letters and parcels:
//
The quality pattern of the Brazilian Post is very high, one of the
greatest in the world in terms of speed in sending letters and
parcels. The basic standard is 1 day from the postage to delivery
between capitals of states, 1 day between capitals to
countryside cities in the same state (or vice versa), 2 days between
the capitals from a state to the countryside cities in other states
(or vice versa) and 3 days between countryside cities from a state to
countryside cities in other states. This is amazing! And this with
performance indexes upper than 94% for all mail in this stated period,
and the other 6% are delivered until 1 day more for almost the
totality. The standard of quality is very challenging because
of the continental size of the country. Brazil is bigger than
the United States less Alaska. And all this with one of the
cheapest rates in the world, in average less than US$ 0.20!
Brazilian Enterprise of Post and Telegraphs is today one of
the institutions in Brazil that the population trusts more, with
bigger indexes than even family and firefighters. Certainly, this
result was just possible with much effort and professionalism
of all involved in the process.
//
And it generated a PROFIT!!!!!
That was in 1999, when FHC (the ultra-right wing coupist
president) decided to privatize the post and fire the workers.
However, he didn't convince the population, elections were in
2002 and so was NOT privatized. It continued to be owned by the State
2003-2010 (Lula's Presidency).
[]'s
PS FHC managed to privatize telecoms. We now have two
providers, one from Mexico and one from Italy, and not "dozens to
choose from" like he promised. Tariffs increased over 600% OVER
INFLATION in just one year, and they are a cartel. Prices usually go
up on the same day.
The CIA listed Brazil's State telecom as one of the best in
the world before privatization. It is now the most expensive, and
around 1/3 of our territory no longer have phones (either cell or
fixed). A mess .....
Another PS Telemarketing woke me up 3x last night between 2am
and 3:30. Aparently it's profitable for the telecom companies .... but
very annoying.
-- Don't be evil - Google 2004We have a new policy - Google 2012Google Fuchsia - 2021
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