A very interesting article from the NY Times on the Postal Service and the internet. It seems like only a few years ago commentators derided the USPS as “snail mail.” Yet while the shipment of letters and cards through the stamp monopoly have declined, packages actually increased. This is mainly due to ecommerce sites like amazon.com and eBay. Alas, it would be great if private companies were able to compete and ship packages in the same manner, instead of having to focus on “express” mail services a la FedEx, UPS, and a host of smaller companies. Instead of the internet killing off this ugly state monopoly, it’s actually proved to be a major influx of money. Yet the lines remain long and service remains unfriendly.