Going postal! Care to join me?

On May 14, the United States Postal Service is going to raise its rates. The price of a regular first class postage stamp will increase a few pennies.  The price of its Priority Flat Rate Box will increase from $8.10 to $9.15.  That's 13%.

But who cares, right?

Anyone who cares about our soldiers, that's who.

The Priority Flat Rate Box is the only (somewhat) affordable service that the family, friends, and other supporters of our soldiers can use to send them a number of things many of them desperately need: toothpaste, deodorant, shampoo, sunscreen, pop-top canned goods, microwaveable soups. All of these items are heavy. Fill a medium-sized box with these items and see how much it will cost you to send it to an APO address via regular surface mail. The postage is much more than the cost of the items themselves.

Think about what it's like to be stuck far from home, working 12-hour shifts in triple-digit weather and filthy conditions, with very limited food choices and little to do during your rare hours off, feeling forgotten, and not knowing when it is all going to end. Some days, little packages from home are all that keep our soldiers going.

So...I'm going postal. Care to join me?

But...whatever can we Kossacks do?

Four things:

1. Send a soldier a package.

2. Organize a group to send packages to soldiers.

3. Get the word out.

4. Lobby to get Priority Flat Rate mailings to APO addresses excluded from the rate increase.

OK, I'm in! But...how do we do this?

Patience, little hoppin' Kossacks, patience. This is a heads-up.  All will be revealed to you in due time. Right now, I'm collecting information, putting together a website, preparing a flyer and sample letters to appropriate parties.  In the meantime...

If you want to send a package to a soldier, swing by your local post office and pick up a Priority Flat Rate Box, Priority mailing label, and customs form 2976-A.  If I have my way, in a week or so, post offices all over the country are going to start running short on these materials.

Think about how you can reach out.  Who ya gonna call?  What listservs do you belong to?  What about local groups...Democratic clubs, church groups, civic organizations? Do your kids belong to a scout troop?  This is an action that any group, large or small, can participate in and feel good about. And it won't be very hard to do, either. What about your employer? Would they send out (or let you send out) an email to all of your coworkers, asking them to please send a package to a soldier? Would they let you organize something at work?

Put on your thinking caps, Kossacks. Start your engines. Fasten your seatbelts. And stay tuned!