>>>>"If you think about it UPS and FedEx are doing just fine...it's the post office that's always having problems."
>>>>http://www.breitbart.tv/obama-its-the-post-office-thats-always-having-problems/
>>>>
>>>>I couldn't have said it better myself...wait...I believe I've made this exact point several times before.
>>>>
>>>>Anyhow, now that He's caught up to my page I assume He'll stop all this talk of a government plan.
>>>>
>>>>Holding my breath...
>>>
>>>The reason the post office has problems is they are required to serve everyone. FedEx makes money because they can cater to only those who are willing to pay extra for extra service. If FedEx were required to deliver packages for everyone in the country for a relative pittance they would have problems, too.
>>
>>That's the point! The "pittance" charged is dictated not by the market but by politicians, as a result the USPS is bankrupt every year. The private sector would do a better job, but they are price-fixed out of the market.
>
>You are aware the USPS is in the private sector, right? It ceased being a government agency some time ago (20 years?). Granted, it is more heavily regulated than most parts of the private sector.

It's both. You might find this article enlightening:

http://usgovinfo.about.com/od/consumerawareness/a/uspsabout.htm

and:

It is legally defined as an "independent establishment of the executive branch of the Government of the United States," (39 U.S.C. § 201) and is wholly owned by the government and controlled by the Presidential appointees and the Postmaster General. As a quasi-governmental agency, it has many special privileges, including sovereign immunity, eminent domain powers, powers to negotiate postal treaties with foreign nations, and an exclusive legal right to deliver first-class and third-class mail.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Postal_Service