Witness to Logic

[Dips]

Mr. Dips often goes to the post office to send off coin shipments from his job at the coin shop. He stood in line behind somebody arguing with the clerk about the "forever" stamps.

The "forever" stamps have the word "forever" stamped on them instead of an actual postage amount. They came out right before the price to post a first class letter went from 41 cents to 42 cents. If you bought them when a first class stamp cost 41 cents, you would pay 41 cents apeice for each stamp. And the stamp would still work to post a first class letter even after the price went up to 42 cents.

This was witnessed by Mr. Dips just before the price change:

Customer: I need a book of stamps.

Clerk: That's $8.20 (for a book of 20).

Customer: Wait! Why does it say "forever" instead of "41 cents?"

Clerk: [explains the concept, see my explanation above]

Customer: Oh! I'll take two books!

Clerk: OK. That will be $16.40.

Customer: So these will work even after the price of a stamp goes up to 42 cents?

Clerk: Yes.

Customer: How long will they be good for?

Clerk: Forever. No matter how much the price of first class stamp goes up, those stamps will be good as long as you have them.

Customer: Wait! What happens when I run out of these stamps in a month or two?

Clerk: You...would probably buy more.

Customer: How much would that cost me?

Clerk: The price of a first class stamp will be 42 cents at that time. That's what you would pay.

Customer: So they really aren't "forever" are they?

And, his point made, he stomped out leaving lots of amused confusion in his wake.

[Chanlin]

Sure when the party you sent your letter to is done they will send the empty envelope back to you so you can peel off the stamp and reuse it and thus your stamps will be good forever

[Boozy]

Wait...

...what?

[nekoro]

I'm currently doing customer service for the Postal Service, and I loathe those stamps. For precisely that reason.

[FenigDurak]

I go to a private university and I've had to explain numerous times that the whole point to the Forever stamp was to eliminate the need to buy one and two cent stamps for future postage increases. I can't even begin to tell you how frustrating it is to be paying what I am for tuition to go to class with a horde of kids who are just so out of touch with reality that they can't figure out something so basic as a stamp.

[marasbaras]

I'm with FenigDurak ... it is almost definitley to alleviate the need for 1- and 2-cent stamps and the HUGE RUSHES that occur during increases.

I like the idea. Just print a stamp that says "First Class - 1 oz" on the stamp.

[Samaliel]

Sure when the party you sent your letter to is done they will send the empty envelope back to you so you can peel off the stamp and reuse it and thus your stamps will be good forever

This is a fraud, and they'd be in trouble if they did that. I'd love to see that.

I go to a private university and I've had to explain numerous times that the whole point to the Forever stamp was to eliminate the need to buy one and two cent stamps for future postage increases. I can't even begin to tell you how frustrating it is to be paying what I am for tuition to go to class with a horde of kids who are just so out of touch with reality that they can't figure out something so basic as a stamp.

We issued our first Permanent Validity Stamps in 2001 and it was quite welcome, because of the upcoming switch from franc (FRF) to euro (EUR).

This whole topic about stamps make me thinks about Going Postal and Making Money from the Discworld series. Some people seem to be no brighter than the average Morporkian street man, which I find quite sad.

[Apathy]

No, sir, "forever usable" does not mean "infinite supply." I'm sorry.

[smileyeagle1021]

I'm currently doing customer service for the Postal Service, and I loathe those stamps. For precisely that reason.

if it makes you feel better you have at least one person who gets it and is a huge fan

I love being able to at any time buy stamps and know that 2 weeks from now I won't have to buy more stamps just to be able to use my first stamps.

[Sedorna]

This is a fraud, and they'd be in trouble if they did that. I'd love to see that.

Not to mention that the post office puts wavy lines through used stamps, thus insuring they can't be reused.

[JustADude]

Not to mention that the post office puts wavy lines through used stamps, thus insuring they can't be reused.

Which, for those that call it something else or just never found out, is what is called a "Post Mark", since it is a mark made to indicate that a letter has been 'posted', and should be moved forward through the delivery process.

This mark also includes the date of posting, which is why there's the big rush on the Post Office on the final day to file taxes, since all the procrastinators wait until then and need to get them in before they start using the next day's date on the mail.