Is there some magic invisible force field that stops you from doing it? 1. Take other person's mail 2. Open trash can 3. Drop mail in trash can I think if you follow those instructions, it should work.
^^ :grin: Good stuff. Thank you for explaining the ability and process of how to throw away "something" in the trash, whether it's mail or anything else. (And that one bit about "Take other person's mail" anything sounds like theft, sir). Shall I remind everyone that the opening post went to further question "Can I legally start throwing the letters away?"... so... I looked up what legally the US Postal Service wrote about it, and they said "NO" based on their "Frequently Asked Questions", which will further explain what to do with mis-delivered mail.
Is this any better? But, back on topic... Is it okay to move other people's email to my trash folder and let them be automatically expunged 7 days later?
You can forward their mail to me. Especially if it looks like it could be a Social Security check. I will return the mail for you.
I was merely responding to your assertion that the OP would hear from the Federal Government if he threw that mail away. Obviously, no one from the Federal Government would contact him because they would never find out he was doing it, and if they did find out, they wouldn't think it was worth pursuing. So, following the rigor you are known for, I pointed out that your assertion was FALSE. The rest of your response is an attempt to justify yourself by expanding what I meant to things I did not say. But, I will oblige you anyway. I believe a law that is not enforced is an unjust law and should not be obeyed. I think the OP is morally in the right for ignoring the law because they do not -- and cannot -- enforce it. If the OP is prosecuted under this unjust law, I'd call it legal persecution (though that probably won't help him any). As for throwing away someone's "belongings," I don't think that carries any moral weight either. The OP has already made a good faith effort to fix the postal troubles. The intended recipient apparently has put no effort into it himself, when he could have more easily (and effectively) filled out a Change of Address form. I say, morally, that recipient has forfeited his right to these "belongings" by taking no care to ensure his receipt of them. Why should the OP continue to bear the burden for his neglect? If anyone should be punished by the feds, it should be the rude individual who failed to fill out a Change of Address form and caused the OP's mailbox to be filled with his unwanted mail. (However, taking and keeping mail sent to someone else in your mailbox -- like a box of steaks or a set of copper containers -- is morally suspect. Even if the intended recipient deserves to miss out because of his neglect, the unintended recipient shouldn't stand to profit.)
I think that correctly handling misaddressed mail is just one of the responsibilities you get when you have your own mailbox. Technically, your mailbox and it's contents belong to the government and no one is permitted to tamper with the mail. You can't open other people's mail and you shouldn't be tossing it out, either. Much of the mail will not be missed. But if it were your mail that was being thrown out you could be missing signs that someone is using your credit line, refund checks and other items that can easily be forwarded to you. At the very least, when something is returned to the party that sent it they know you never received it. Then you don't have to argue with them that you never received your $150 shipment of steaks they are trying to bill you for.
^ OK, now I'm hungry for a steak. Where did I "expand"? I just asked if that was your rationale. If he continues to get someone else's mail, he should continue to do what the U.S. Postal Service requests: ... why are you saying "The OP has already made a good faith effort to fix the postal troubles"? I mean, there is no "at the third try, throw it away" instruction in there, man. He should continue to give it back to the Post Office or the mail person. Why is that difficult to do? Let the post office handle it. No?
Let the post office handle it? The post office is asking the OP to handle it by giving him someone else's mail and then asking him to jump through hoops to give it back. How long should a citizen be at the call of the US Postal Service? If he tells the Post Office once, twice, three times, seven times, thirteen times, that this recipient does not live at that address and they continue to deliver his mail there, are you really obliged (morally) to keep up with this charade of a process that the USPS has established? I would love to see a prosecution for destruction of mail like this. I'd like to see if a jury of 12 people can really hand down a guilty verdict after they hear testimony about a guy who already tried "please forward," "return to sender," put his name in his mailbox, talked to his postman and the postmaster before finally giving up and throwing someone's magazine subscription offer in the trash.
I move a lot, once every two years or so, so I am on both sides of this scenario... i wonder often if my mail is being thrown away, but if you officially forward your address the post office will eventually get it to the correct address. I don't know how long the USPS forwards mail though... another thing I wonder, do they always "Return To Sender" every time we leave incorrect mail in our boxes? luckily the last tenant who lived in my unit before me moved downstairs, so i can slip her mail underneath her door...
