Trump is wrong about Amazon on all counts By Rich Lowry

[mystery-ak]

Opinion
Trump is wrong about Amazon on all counts

By Rich Lowry

April 2, 2018 | 7:14pm | Updated

President Trump gets results. His attacks on Amazon have tanked the company’s stock.

It’s hard to think of a more pointlessly destructive act of presidential jawboning in our history. The online retailer is a jewel of our market economy that has delivered more choice and convenience at a lower cost.

The backdrop for Trump’s animosity is that Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post, which, like much of the major media, is unrelentingly hostile to the president. WaPo’s bias is nothing new, nor should it be taken out on the underlying business of its owner.

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https://nypost.com/2018/04/02/trump-is-wrong-about-amazon-on-all-counts/

[jmyrlefuller]

The online retailer is a jewel of our market economy that has delivered more choice and convenience at a lower cost.

Do you really want another company "too big to fail?"

[ABX]

Do you really want another company "too big to fail?"

The problem isn't that they have gotten so big because consumers overwhelmingly chose them and they made smart decisions.

The problem with 'too big to fail' is the attitude that the government should be involved in picking winners and losers.

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

I like Amazon. I like AWS, i like their prime service, i like their video service, i like alexa. I enjoy shopping there.

Why is Trump doing this? He's not just pointlessly attacking the company, he's pointlessly making himself look like a fool. For nothing.

[jpsb]

I like Amazon. I like AWS, i like their prime service, i like their video service, i like alexa. I enjoy shopping there.

Why is Trump doing this? He's not just pointlessly attacking the company, he's pointlessly making himself look like a fool. For nothing.

Trump does not like the fact that the US gov via USPS is subsidizing Amazon. I used to be a big
fan of Amazon, however the Washington Post changed my mind on that and now I try like hell to
never shop there. I use Ebay or Wallmart instead.

[andy58-in-nh]

I like Amazon. I like AWS, i like their prime service, i like their video service, i like alexa. I enjoy shopping there.

Why is Trump doing this? He's not just pointlessly attacking the company, he's pointlessly making himself look like a fool. For nothing.

Apparently, Donald Twitterhands just can't help himself.

[ABX]

Trump does not like the fact that the US gov via USPS is subsidizing Amazon. I used to be a big
fan of Amazon, however the Washington Post changed my mind on that and now I try like hell to
never shop there. I use Ebay or Wallmart instead.

They aren't subsidizing them. Trump has been lying about that. Yes, they negotiated bulk rates (as pretty much every large shipper does) but they are not subsidizing them.

http://www.gopbriefingroom.com/index.php/topic,310560.0.html

[jpsb]

They aren't subsidizing them. Trump has been lying about that. Yes, they negotiated bulk rates (as pretty much every large shipper does) but they are not subsidizing them.

http://www.gopbriefingroom.com/index.php/topic,310560.0.html

If the USPS is shipping for less than cost (losing money) then they are subsidizing them.

[ABX]

If the USPS is shipping for less than cost (losing money) then they are subsidizing them.

They aren't losing money, it is illegal for them to ship below their cost. (noted in that article)..

Trump completely lied about that. They are still profiting, they are just shipping at bulk rates.

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

If the USPS is shipping for less than cost (losing money) then they are subsidizing them.

I take it you've never heard of a loss leader?

[ABX]

If the USPS is shipping for less than cost (losing money) then they are subsidizing them.

Additional-

...The Postal Service is making money off package delivery for shippers like Amazon, while much of the money it is losing is due to a 2006 law which requires that it pre-fund future retirees’ health benefits, among other things.....

....But any losses from doing business with Amazon would not be taxpayer-covered, and the Postal Service is not currently losing money on package delivery anyway....

http://time.com/5226036/donald-trump-amazon-postal-service/

[Applewood]

If the USPS is shipping for less than cost (losing money) then they are subsidizing them.

Strange.  Trump lied to you about the recently passed "budget."  What makes you think he's telling the truth about Amazon and the postal service? 

You are being played  --  sucked into a reality TV presidency where nothing is as it seems.  When are Trump supporters going to wake up?

[ABX]

Strange.  Trump lied to you about the recently passed "budget."  What makes you think he's telling the truth about Amazon and the postal service? 

You are being played  --  sucked into a reality TV presidency where nothing is as it seems.  When are Trump supporters going to wake up?

So many were completely oblivious to the fact that in his most famous book, Trump brags about how good of a liar he is and it is a negotiating strategy. Instead, they give him bogus nicknames like 'Truth Teller Trump'.

[jmyrlefuller]

They aren't losing money, it is illegal for them to ship below their cost. (noted in that article)..

So why are they still doing it if it's illegal?

I will repeat: the fact that USPS loses money on Amazon packages was an established fact until Donald Trump repeated it, and now all of a sudden it has to be discredited.

[truth_seeker]

Trump does not like the fact that the US gov via USPS is subsidizing Amazon. I used to be a big
fan of Amazon, however the Washington Post changed my mind on that and now I try like hell to
never shop there. I use Ebay or Wallmart instead.

The USPS formula used to arrive at currently charged package rates is outdated, based on the old/wrong ratio of letter vs. package mail.

Amazon is enjoying a subsidy of about $1.46 per package.

[ABX]

So why are they still doing it if it's illegal?

I will repeat: the fact that USPS loses money on Amazon packages was an established fact until Donald Trump repeated it, and now all of a sudden it has to be discredited.

They aren't losing money. I've shown in link after link that USPS in fact, makes a profit on each package, they don't lose money. As I also pointed out yesterday, it wasn't 'all of a sudden' discredited. Our side was quick to call out this lie when Bernie Sanders used it.

[ABX]

USPS is actually booming in regards to shipping revenue, to the tune of $19 Billion dollars last year...

Packages and shipping are one area that's growing for the postal service, bringing in more than $19 billion in revenue last year even as volume of letters and magazines declined. In fact, its projected revenue growth "is driven entirely by increases in shipping and packages," the postal service said in its latest annual report....

Their losses are not from package delivery but a government requirement they pre-pay 75 years worth of retirees pensions and health-care costs..

The postal service has lost money for 11 straight years, mostly because of pension and health care costs. In 2017, the service lost $800 million on $69.7 billion operating revenue. Under a 2006 law, it must pre-fund 75 years' worth of retiree health benefits. Neither the government nor private companies are required to do that. (It has defaulted on those payments periodically, with the last one made in 2015).......

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/amazon-contract-usps-fact-checking-trump-tweets-amazon-post-office-03-31-2018/

[jmyrlefuller]

They aren't losing money. I've shown in link after link that USPS in fact, makes a profit on each package, they don't lose money. As I also pointed out yesterday, it wasn't 'all of a sudden' discredited. Our side was quick to call out this lie when Bernie Sanders used it.

The USPS has been losing money since 2005.

[ABX]

The USPS has been losing money since 2005.

As pointed out above, that's their overall loss due to the crappy requirement the government (see Democrats) made forcing them to prepay the next 75 years worth of retirees pensions and healthcare.

If you remove the pension/healthcare prepayment costs- they actually made $19 Billion in revenue off package shipping last year- a massive amount even for them.

Trump is lying about where the loss is coming from, it isn't from shipping and has nothing to do with Amazon- it is from the Democrats pension requirement for them.

[truth_seeker]

A loss is a loss. Government has their own accounting principles.

--One claims the loss is due to low rates. (too low on revenue line)

--Another claims the loss is due to covering pensions. (too high on costs line)

The result is a loss. A loss is a loss.

And the USPS is mandated to not do business, at a loss.

So now the discussion has movedfrom no loss, to proved loss. Like The Donald said.

Trump is a huge disruptor. He doesn't accept the usual pace of things. He wants it addressed now.

He pisses off forces that have stakes in the status quo.

Correcting the formula would result in higher package charges by the USPS to Amazon, and probably lower letter rates to such customers.

[truth_seeker]

Re. Pensions: Accounting principles require accruing costs, as the future benefit is earned. (not putting the cost accrual off until some future time)

That method and principle are the SAME for government and private sector BTW.

It is NOT some silly "democrat" thing. It is accounting principles, which they apparently don't teach anymore in certain grad business programs.

[ABX]

Re. Pensions: Accounting principles require accruing costs, as the future benefit is earned. (not putting the cost accrual off until some future time)

That method and principle are the SAME for government and private sector BTW.

It is NOT some silly "democrat" thing. It is accounting principles, which they apparently don't teach anymore in certain grad business programs.

Private companies and the government are not required by accounting principles to accrue 75 years worth. That was the 'silly democrat thing'
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/amazon-contract-usps-fact-checking-trump-tweets-amazon-post-office-03-31-2018/

According to standard accounting principles, companies are only required to accrue costs for their current retiree base.  This would be at most, one or two generations in the workforce.
https://www.actuary.org/pdf/pension/fundamentals_0704.pdf

The standards set for the USPS require that they accrue these costs for up to 5 additional generations- for retirees who haven't even been born yet, at that are employed by the system.

[DB]

The USPS formula used to arrive at currently charged package rates is outdated, based on the old/wrong ratio of letter vs. package mail.

Amazon is enjoying a subsidy of about $1.46 per package.

This crap is getting really annoying. The USPS/government sets pricing. Not the companies/people who use their services.

If the USPS is losing money on shipping packages then everyone who uses them is getting it below cost not just Amazon. Singling out Amazon is moronic.

It is up to the USPS to correct their pricing if that is an issue. And if it is, they've had plenty of time to do something about it.

Amazon is simply using the services offered - like everyone else that uses the USPS.

This twisting of simple fact is beyond disgusting. It is people with an agenda.

[DB]

If I were Amazon I'd give Trump a little economic lesson.

Amazon should cut way back on on USPS shipments and divert to other carriers.

If the USPS is really losing money on every package they'll save a huge amount of money. If not, well...

[txradioguy]

Why is Trump doing this? He's not just pointlessly attacking the company, he's pointlessly making himself look like a fool. For nothing.

@Weird Tolkienish Figure because Jeff Bezos owns the Washington Post as well...which has been particularly harsh...most time unreasonably so...in their coverage of Trump and his administration.

This really has less to do with Amazon and more to do with the WaPo...but Amazon is the cash cow that allows Bezos to keep the presses running at the Post...so that's where he aims his Twitter darts.