我爱邮票

邮资攀升，E-mail流行，这个年代愿意寄信的人还有多少？面对这样的挑战，邮政部门在邮票上可花了不少心思。现在他们使出的绝招是发行一种“Forever”邮票，买了它，就再也不用担心今后邮票涨价了。

New Stamp Is Good For Life

The cost of a mail stamp is going up another 2 cents on May 14,to41 cents. But the Postal Service is giving you an eternalhedgeagainst stamp inflation. Bill Whitaker has the story.

One of the most enduring images of mail delivery: thePonyExpress. Today the US Postal Service unveiled a new image: astampit hopes wont just endure but will stick around, well, thenamespeaks for itself.

This is the Forever stamp.

Thats center, forever. Rising postal rates will neverdiminishthe value of the stamp. When it goes on sale next month forthe newfirst-class rate of 41 cents, youll be able to mail aletter withthat stamp, no matter how high rates go in thefuture.

You buy this stamp, and 30 years from now, the price of astampis, lets say, 50 cents, you put this stamp on it, anditgoes.

A pretty good deal if postal rates keep climbing as theyhave,that is, unless you’re a philatelist, a stamp collector.Collectorslike Michael Dubasal say rare gems like this will go upinvalue.

And the Forever stamps? Never.

Still they’re the Post Offices latest attempt to keep yourmailcarrier from going the way of the pony express. So far,puttingcelebrities faces on stamps even letting you put your facesonstamps hasnt helped the post office lick the competition.

Why? Well, it took the pony express ten days to deliver aletterfrom Missouri to California. The postal service now, a coupleofdays. But with computers, just a matter of seconds.

I save a fortune in postage every month because of E-mail.

So the stamp could be seen as a bold statement of confidencebythe post office that neither snow, nor rain nor e-mail willstopmail carriers from making their rounds.

Bill Whitaker, CBS News, Los Angeles.