Postal misconceptions

As a retired postal employee, I read with interest and concern the March 22 column by William F. Shughart II in the Trib [“Privatize the postal service”]. Most of the column is correct and hits the nail on the head, but he is wrong when he describes “the hemorrhaging of taxpayer funds.” The U.S. Postal Service is not funded by taxpayer funds but only by revenue collected. Shughart should get his facts straight before writing wrong information to the public. 

Also, postal service employees are under the same retirement system as other federal employees, and their pensions are paid from the same fund as all other government retirees. The Office of Personnel Management controls and distributes this fund, not the USPS. 

At least the postal service generates revenue to pay its employees and contributes to the retirement fund, while all other government agencies rely solely on taxpayer funds to pay employees and cover their benefits. 

There are a lot of problems in the USPS, and changes must be made soon — starting with the overstaffed, overpaid top layer of the organization. Unfortunately, when cuts are made, they always seems to be at the delivery and customer-service level. Nevertheless, a column in the local paper cannot even begin to cover all the issues.

Sherrie Neill

Waco

Limited government

I am insulted by the president and Congress for their blatant disregard for the consent of the governed. I am outraged by their casual dismissal of the U.S. Constitution. I am sickened by their lack of concern for the massive spending. I am dismayed that anyone would want to move us further away from our founding principles of limited republican government and closer to a government that is socialistic in nature and not predicated on the consent of the governed.

The health care reform bill is unconstitutional. Congress has absolutely no authority to mandate that any citizen of these United States be coerced to purchase any product, service or good. Only the states should have the authority to enact matters related to health care into law. This is through reserve powers allowed through the 10th Amendment of the Constitution, which reads: The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.

I have written to Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, supporting Texas’ part in a lawsuit with other states based on the grounds that Congress has reached way beyond its authority as enumerated in the Constitution.

Let’s restore our form of government to its proper form: limited government based on the consent of the governed.

Daryl Colyer

Lorena

Grateful for feast

The board of directors and staff of Caritas of Waco are extremely grateful to Waco and McLennan County citizens and businesses for supporting our March 4 Feast of Caring. We depend heavily upon the contributions we receive through this annual event. This support helps us carry out our mission and ministry of providing emergency services to those in need.

Buddy Edwards

Caritas executive director

Waco