Ok so this is going to be long and I don't do TL:DR so either read this or shut the fuck up.
On Monday I got a typed flyer in my mailbox from my mailman that has been with USPS for 25 years. He explained that today was his last day of employment with the post office because of how Amazon is going to be handled.
A while back there was a bid put in to have Amazon prime shipments delivered on Sundays. Well that sounds great you say right? Always more to the story and that is what this is about.
Well when my postman started it was agreed he didn't work on Sundays which for him was great as he is religious....like super religious and such. Which to me is fine dude never pushed that on anyone or at least me. Dude is the Need Flanders of post office in PA.
The postmaster over him said he was going to be written up each time he failed to show on Sunday. Well he tried to explain his position and to me it is valid and been that way since I have known him at least.
Doesn't matter to them and for that he attempted to give his two weeks. Well his postmaster said then you will be here this Sunday or you are terminated......well obviously he won't be so today is his last day.
This is a growing problem of America and consumerism going forward people. Small ripples now will become big waves in the future I promise. We have already lost many family owned businesses here were I live and the hardware store will soon go.
Don't believe how places like Amazon are fucking the world? Go into a GameStop and look around. It doesn't have many games in it. Looks like a hottopic took a shit in there with all the garbage that isn't games litters the floor.
Maybe I am just being that old man with a cane and reading more into shit than I should, but I don't feel I really am with this.
My question for you is with you save that little bit of time to buy from Amazon and drive that knife deeper into the community you live in, or will you get out of your house and at the very least try to find it within your local area and perhaps keep that money working for you?
I know that it is impossible to boycott the USPS as it is a fixture of America.....I can limit my interactions with them and I assure you I will find the alternative way as often as I can, but Amazon?
Never again. Just never and I canceled my memebership to them and will not be renewing it.
To play Devil's Advocate against my own point, it could be seen as a reaction of income discrepancy in modern times. Average earned income has not kept pace with inflation of the dollar and inflation of cost of living. Consider the average city-dwelling American. They work a 40 hour week for less than 100k (if they are lucky enough for that). Chances are, to avoid an unreasonable commute, they live within 60-30 minutes of their job. This will translate to a higher rent unless they choose to live somewhere further away or in an area which does not fully meet their standards for a reasonable dwelling (read: slums/shitty apartment). Likely, the rent will be high. If they are lucky enough to possess a vehicle then chances are that they are leasing it, which is another monthly payment. Add in student loans, basic necessities, eating out on occasion, and suddenly you must watch your funds. Since it is not reasonable for these people to not pay their loans, debts, etc, they save where they can. This means Amazon fills a need in their lives, albeit at the cost of the local community which must in turn raise prices to compensate for lost business. This produces a cycle of economic failure for smaller businesses who are consumer facing.
I have lived in a major city and I have lived in a rural area. By far, it was must easier and cheaper to live in a rural area. Everything cost less but many things were not as easily accessible. In this age of information, accessibility and ease are the key concepts which govern peoples lives. Forced economic conditions give rise to uncomfortable scenarios, such as the death of local businesses at the hands of industry giants. Those economic giants are more adept at handling the needs of the many than local businesses, unfortunately.
The biggest downside to all of this is that I worry we will end up living in a dystopian future in which companies dictate every aspect of our lives, from goods to laws. I fail to see a positive aspect to this continuing trend and try as we might, even the best of us are prone to seeking the best deals from unscrupulous vendors from time to time. Are we really reversing this trend or merely mitigating it? Is there even a way to pull back to local suppliers and shun the global consumer market? I am unsure and nervous at the prospect. Would the cure be worse than the disease at this point in history? There are far too many uncomfortable questions which lie down this road of conceptual thought.