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I've gotten a few FReepmails asking for email services recommendations and I don't have the technical background to either warn against or recommend such services. One FReeper said Google is soon going to implement facial recognition or thumbprint ID etc. - is there anything out there still 'reasonably' private and not shifting to biometrics...yet? PS: Yes, I'm logged in. ;D

… Across the country, residents and businesses have been reporting widespread slowdowns in mail and package delivery by the U.S. Postal Service. The delays have become so persistent that members of Congress have gotten involved, urging the Postal Service to drastically correct course and raising concern about what impact the disruptions could have on mail-in ballots in the upcoming election. The delays appear to largely stem from a new system the Postal Service began rolling out last fall that will eventually funnel all the nation’s letters and packages through a consolidated network of 60 regional distribution centers — similar to...

Our 15-year-old son Noah is a baseball player. Baseball gear today can be quite expensive. A new (and sometimes even used!) quality bat or glove alone can easily cost several hundred dollars. For many years now, we’ve used Christmas and Noah’s birthday to provide him with a new bat or glove based on what he most wants or needs. If it’s not gift-giving time and Noah wants an expensive baseball item, he typically either waits or uses his own money (maybe with a little help from us) to purchase the item. If it’s the latter, Noah will often look for...

Several neighborhoods in San Francisco and Oakland had the most postal worker robberies in California in 2023, according to data from the U.S. Postal Service. According to the data analyzed by ABC7, about 61% of the 145 reported postal robberies across the state last year happened in the Bay Area. Robberies of postal carriers and drivers have increased across the country in recent years. Thieves, often armed with guns or other weapons, have stolen mail carriers’ master keys to gain access to large groups of mailboxes. The robberies have become an increasing concern since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic...

Here's the 2nd video. Remember, it's from 2020 - but still applies today

When it comes to mailing letters, many people do it by dropping their envelopes in the United States Postal Service's blue collection bins placed in neighborhoods across America. However, the USPS is now warning would-be mailers that those blue boxes might not be the safest option. In a press release, the Postal Service explained that unfortunately, the collection bins have become very attractive to thieves looking to steal identities or checks, especially at specific times and on specific days. The agency stated, "The biggest variable enticing these criminals to steal are customers depositing mail into blue collection boxes after the...

Ballots are mailed out to every registered voter in California for every election. After ballots are mailed out, voters can fill out, sign, and return their ballot by mail and track the ballot’s progress online. Registered voters can track their ballots online as part of the “Where’s My Ballot?” tool offered by the California Secretary of State. The service is available in every county and allows voters to get notified when their ballot is mailed, received and counted. Voters can receive their notifications through email, text or voice calls. Voters can also see their history of previous mail ballots they...

Something screwy happened in the Nevada primary, and it utterly destroys the claim that the 2020 election was the most fair and secure in history. Because of the COVID pandemic, a whopping 43% of the votes cast in the 2020 election were mail-in ballots. Many governors unilaterally (and illegally) changed election laws to make this happen, and anyone who challenged the safety and security of mail-in voting was deemed a conspiracy theorist. We've covered the problems of mail-in voting in the past, and it seems things haven't improved. Now, Nevada residents are learning that they voted in the state primary...

Before a single vote was cast, the 2020 election was baked into the cake. America’s political and media establishment were not going to let what happened to them in 2016 happen again. ... TIME Magazine - “The Secret History of the Shadow Campaign That Saved the 2020 Election” which describes a vast effort by a network of partisan political operatives, union leaders, and business titans to create a mail ballot “revolution” to oust Trump... a plan hatched by a highly motivated and well-funded few to undermine American democracy as we know it. Yet, it is not well understood exactly what...

More than 20% of voters who used mail-in ballots in 2020 admit they participated in at least one form of election fraud.A new national telephone and online survey by Rasmussen Reports and The Heartland Institute finds that 21% of Likely U.S. voters who voted by absentee or mail-in ballot in the 2020 election say they filled out a ballot, in part or in full, on behalf of a friend or family member, such as a spouse or child, while 78% say they didn’t. (To see survey question wording, click here.)Thirty percent (30%) of those surveyed said they voted by absentee...

Anyone else having problems receiving USPS packages, or UPS/FedEx items? During the past few weeks I have had several mailed/shipped items take bizarre turns in routing which has created delays in receiving. I guess watching shipments is front and center these days.

ALBANY – Declaring that the right to vote is “under attack” by Republican Legislatures across the United States, Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a package of bills on Wednesday seeking to expand that right in New York. The most sweeping will allow any registered voter in the state to cast an early ballot by mail. To do so, voters would have to first fill out an application requesting a mail ballot from their local Board of Elections. At a news conference in New York City, Hochul said the law will allow busy, working people to cast ballots that otherwise would...

A Quebec woman was sentenced to 22 years in prison Thursday after sending letters containing ricin to former President Trump in 2020. Pascale Ferrier, 55, pleaded guilty in January to making ricin in her home and mailing Trump and eight Texas law enforcement officials threatening letters laced with it. The toxin is made from waste material left over from processing castor beans. She faced a charge of prohibitions with respect to biological weapons in Washington, D.C., and eight counts of the same charge in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas. She agreed to have the Texas...

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit decided Wednesday that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) must restore the safeguards to chemical abortion drugs used to end the life of a human baby. The federal appeals court’s decision came after it found that the federal government, under former President Barack Obama’s administration, improperly loosened regulations on the abortion drugs in 2016 to make it easier for women to access the drugs. The three judge panel said it was not lawful for the FDA to allow women to take the abortion drug mifepristone later during pregnancy (up to 10...

You'll soon have to pay more to mail a letter, as the United States Postal Service (USPS) is raising the cost of its Forever First-Class stamps in July. Starting July 9, the cost of a Forever stamp, or mailing a one-ounce letter, will increase from 63 cents to 66 cents. Other mail services will also increase. Here's a full breakdown. —Mailing a one-ounce letter — increase from 63 cents to 66 cents. —Mailing a metered one-ounce letter — an increase from 60 cents to 63 cents. —The price of a postcard — increases from 48 cents to 51 cents. —One-ounce...

ATLANTA -- After years of criticizing mail voting and so-called ballot harvesting as ripe for fraud, Republicans at the top of the party want to change course. They are poised to launch aggressive get-out-the-vote campaigns for 2024 that employ just those strategies, attempting to match the emphasis on early voting Democrats have used for years to lock in many of their supporters well ahead of Election Day. The goal is to persuade voters who support GOP candidates that early voting techniques are secure and to make sure they are able to return their ballots in time to be counted, thus...

Out-of-control crime in the Democrat-run city of Seattle forced the United States Postal Service (USPS) to pause deliveries to an entire zip code for a week. Around 900 residents in the 98118 zip code did not receive their mail as delivery services were halted due to mail theft and 'equipment security concerns'. They were told to pick up their mail from the local post office and stood in long queues of up to an hour while delivery services were paused for a week before UPS lifted the ban on Tuesday. Thieves had stolen a master key which is used by...

A federal jury convicted a Salt Lake City woman and former postal worker Wednesday for delaying and destroying immigration mail. During her time working the night shift as an express mail clerk at the USPS Processing and Delivery Center in Salt Lake City, Diana K. Molyneux was responsible for sorting and processing express and priority mail. After immigration mail from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services went missing in the fall of 2017, Molyneux's coworkers reported to supervisors that they found the mail in places it wasn't supposed to be, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a news release....

We all want uninterrupted postal service, but that's just not always possible. The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) has a responsibility to ensure the safety of its employees, customers, and our mail. And sometimes, that means operations can't proceed normally. Over time, we have seen the Postal Service suspend deliveries because of aggressive animals, and close post offices in the midst of natural disasters. Now, the agency been forced to suspend services in six different states. If you were planning to head to the post office anytime soon, you may need to change your plans depending on where you live. The...

The Chicago mayoral election could be one of the most tightly-contested races in recent memory, and officials say that a large number of mail-in ballots could help to determine the final outcome. According to the Chicago Board of Elections, more than 200,000 mail-in ballot applications have been received so far during the election season, with just under 140,000 ballots still yet to be turned in as Election Day nears on Feb. 28. So when exactly will the CBOE be able to start counting those mail-in ballots? According to an update from a spokesperson for the CBOE, any mail-in ballots that...