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#1
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A question about postal stamps
Over the years I always just bought "any" stamp available
for my letters and bills that I mailed, but in the past two years, as I personally visited the post office more often, I became interested in buy different types of stamps. They are mostly all interesting .... they sure beat the standard flag stamp and that older flower stamp! Some recent favorites have been: *Clouds (and tornados) - sold out quickly in my area *Arctic Tundra *Art of the American Indian *Henry Mancini *American Heroes (3 firefighters at the WTC w/ flag) 45 cents each, they donate 8 cents for each stamp sold to the WTC families who need help. and just today I found a new Masterworks of Modern American Architecture which are B&W photos with color typestyles. They look really good. I was wondering .... do most people choose a variety of stamps ... or do most people just buy the American Flag, sold at most supermarkets? Also, what is/was you most favorite stamp? -Ben Carpenter Please excuse me if any groups are off topic. Thank you. |
#2
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Ben Carpenter wrote:
I was wondering .... do most people choose a variety of stamps ... or do most people just buy the American Flag, sold at most supermarkets? I buy them online, thru the USPS store - http://shop.usps.com/cgi-bin/vsbv/po...n_ssl/home.jsp |
#3
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There's lots to like about early US stamps,
esp for me, the paper stock on which they were printed. I find the early vignettes on the 3c pictorial issues very attractive, but my favourite stamp would be the "set" of US presidents When seen on an Album page/s, they really look rather stunning. http://cjoint.com/data/gecwux3to6.htm | Also, what is/was you most favorite stamp? | | -Ben Carpenter | | Please excuse me if any groups are off topic. Thank you. |
#4
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In article ,
Ben Carpenter wrote: Over the years I always just bought "any" stamp available for my letters and bills that I mailed, but in the past two years, as I personally visited the post office more often, I became interested in buy different types of stamps. They are mostly all interesting .... they sure beat the standard flag stamp and that older flower stamp! Some recent favorites have been: *Clouds (and tornados) - sold out quickly in my area *Arctic Tundra *Art of the American Indian *Henry Mancini *American Heroes (3 firefighters at the WTC w/ flag) 45 cents each, they donate 8 cents for each stamp sold to the WTC families who need help. and just today I found a new Masterworks of Modern American Architecture which are B&W photos with color typestyles. They look really good. I was wondering .... do most people choose a variety of stamps ... or do most people just buy the American Flag, sold at most supermarkets? Also, what is/was you most favorite stamp? Whatever type of first class stamp that gets dispensed from the stamp machine is fine with me. Makes no difference. As it is, I am using fewer stamps because I am paying most of my bills electronically. I really don't care what the appearance of postage stamps is because they all serve the same purpose for me, to allow me to send something through the mail. A first class stamp with a flower, a photo of Elvis, or whatever, does exactly the same thing for me. |
#5
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In a recent message Shawn Hearn wrote:
In article , Ben Carpenter wrote: Whatever type of first class stamp that gets dispensed from the stamp machine is fine with me. Makes no difference. As it is, I am using fewer stamps because I am paying most of my bills electronically. I really don't care what the appearance of postage stamps is because they all serve the same purpose for me, to allow me to send something through the mail. A first class stamp with a flower, a photo of Elvis, or whatever, does exactly the same thing for me. It may for you, but not necessarily the recipient. I always use commemoratives if at all posiible. -- Tony Clayton Coins of the UK : http://www.coinsoftheuk.info Sent using RISCOS on an Acorn Strong Arm RiscPC .... You've let the lawn go too far when it requires harvesting. |
#6
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Ben,
You have taken the first steps in becoming a stamp collector. Noticing that different stamps ARE 'cool' is the beginning. If you like these stamps, you might want to visit your local library and look at a couple of books about stamps and collecting. For most collectors, stamp collecting isn't about all those expensive stamps and getting all of the OLD stamps. Most of us collect what we like. As for which stamps are chosen for postal use, you'll probably find that most collectors prefer to use commemoratives. Those are the larger stamps like the ones you mentioned. They are always issued for only a short period of time and always represent a person, event, or some other memorable thing. Why do we like to use commemorative stamps for postage? I'm sure most if not all collectors would agree with me that we do it to promote and support our hobby. We promote the hobby by using commemorative stamps just so whoever receives the mail might notice the stamp and have an interest in it. We support the hobby by buying commemorative stamps instead of the common stamps known as deffinitives. This lets the Postal Service know that we are still here and that we appreciate their efforts in producing these tiny works of art. Again, if you had an interest in these stamps that you mentioned, follow through with that interest. There is literally a whole world of interesting stamps out there. |
#7
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No offense, but I find the different designs of stamps to be a PROBLEM with the Postal Service. The costs of creating and printing so many version of stamps are enormous to an organization whos expenses are already out of control. Can you imagine how much they could cut from costs and the price of first class postage if they printed ONE type of flag stamp and no other designs?? |
#8
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Ryan wrote:
No offense, but I find the different designs of stamps to be a PROBLEM with the Postal Service. The costs of creating and printing so many version of stamps are enormous to an organization whos expenses are already out of control. Can you imagine how much they could cut from costs and the price of first class postage if they printed ONE type of flag stamp and no other designs?? Stamp collectors probably subsidize a LOT of the postal services, why else would they print all those pretty stamps that never get used for postage? There are small countries whose entire economy is based on selling stamps to collectors. At least the collectors, unlike most lotto-ticket purchasers, actually get something for their money. -- Cheers, Bev ------------------------------------------------------------------- "We need to cut more slack for the stupid; after all, somebody has to populate the lower part of the bell curve." -- Dennis (evil) |
#9
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Ryan wrote:
No offense, but I find the different designs of stamps to be a PROBLEM with the Postal Service. The costs of creating and printing so many version of stamps are enormous to an organization whos expenses are already out of control. Can you imagine how much they could cut from costs and the price of first class postage if they printed ONE type of flag stamp and no other designs?? Probably zero. One reason for the U.S. Postal Service to create multiple designs of stamps is to appeal to collectors. Most of the 37 cents you pay for each first class stamp is attributable to the Postal Service's costs of delivering the mail, not to designing and printing the stamps. If a collector buys a sheet of 12 architecture stamps or 24 Chinese New Year stamps and keeps it in mint condition without using the stamps for mail, that's almost pure profit for the Postal Service. Keep in mind that there are collectors in other countries who buy U.S. stamps purely for collection purposes and not to use, just as some U.S. collectors purchase mint stamps from other countries. In some countries, issuing stamps for collectors is a major source of revenue for the country. This explains why places like Pitcairn Island have an active stamp issuance program, even though the population there consists of less than 50 people. Joshua Kreitzer |
#10
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On 3 Jun 2005 21:03:27 -0700, "Ryan" wrote:
No offense, but I find the different designs of stamps to be a PROBLEM with the Postal Service. The costs of creating and printing so many version of stamps are enormous to an organization whos expenses are already out of control. Can you imagine how much they could cut from costs and the price of first class postage if they printed ONE type of flag stamp and no other designs?? I'm pretty sure that they don't want to give up the extra income from selling to collectors. |
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