The U.S. Postal Service predicts they will lose $7 billion this fiscal year. Maybe it was just a tad bit late, but they came up with a plan to only deliver mail five days a week to save money.

I am fine with five days a week mail delivery. If I need something delivered somewhere and want to make sure it gets there on time, I use FedEx.

It’s a typical business decision by the USPS – cut back where you can to save some bucks. Sadly, the USPS needs a lot more of these cost cutting measures or we may see them go the way of the Pony Express.

The Montana Congressional delegation, at least Senator Jon Tester and Congressman Denny Rehberg, have said no to this plan mostly citing the need for six-day delivery in rural areas.

They are wrong for opposing the five-day per week plan. Their blocking of this plan will mean more drastic cuts down the road, like the closing of more Post Offices, much higher rates, etc.

Maybe privatization is the answer?

Ultimately, it’s probably more about votes than anything: Tester lost almost all rural counties in the 2006 election (even his own home county), so I see his reasoning for opposing the plan and gaining favor in the rural areas, and Rehberg’s bread and butter is the rural vote.

Sadly, in the House and the Senate there are 533 other politicians with the same Not In My Back Yard (NIMBY) mentality on the myriad of issues that comes before them – and nothing much gets done.

So, it will be interesting to read about Senator Tester’s and Congressman Rehberg’s plan to save the Pony Express U.S. Postal Service.