Did you happen to notice that the price of first-class postage went up by 1 cent recently -- from 44 cents to 45 cents?
If you didn't, it may be because, like millions of other Americans, you have been relying more on email and the Internet -- and less on slower, traditional stamp-and-envelope mail -- to pay bills and keep in touch with friends and family.
That shift to the Internet has cost the U.S. Postal Service billions of dollars in revenue, which has prompted the increase in stamp prices.
But even with that extra revenue, it's doubtful the Postal Service will be able to drop a current proposal to close potentially thousands of post offices nationwide, including Chattanooga facilities in Alton Park, East Brainerd and Highland Park.
We regret the jobs that will be lost, but propping up services that the American people simply are not using very much is no alternative.