Mailbox

My tenant leaves my rent check in my mailbox (usually late) and I never know when it is in there I am not comfortable with this person going into my mailbox When told it was illegal, the response I received was "I’ve never heard of that"

Yes, it’s illegal. That’s why newspaper carriers don’t put newspapers in your mailbox.

Congress adopted the mailbox restriction in 1934 to protect postal revenue by preventing delivery of unstamped matter to mailboxes, which reportedly was having a considerable impact on postal revenues. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the mailbox restriction in 1981. The Court also found that mailboxes are an essential part of national mail delivery and that postal customers agree to abide by laws and regulations that apply to their mailboxes in exchange for the Postal Service agreeing to deliver and pick up mail in them.

I am not very computer saavy so bear with me on what may be a dumb question.
The people who create and send out viruses, Trojans, etc – what’s their reason for doing this? I can understand if it’s a financial thing ; attempting to gain access to credit card numbers, trying to break into some banks $, etc.
But if its done purely for malicious reasons…is this just a kind of "cyber vandalism"? Is this the computer equivalent of kids out breaking windows and smashing rural mailboxes with baseball bats? Do they get some satisfaction from knowing they have f**ked up other folks computers? Is it a way to take out their anger like a kid who shoots out the windows of new cars in a dealers lot with a BB gun?
I’ve read that it’s an ego thing with many hackers. A kind of oneupmanship with their peers/rivals – bragging rights for who hacked into some big system. They’re not necessarily trying to steal anything, they just want to boast.
Please to enlighten me!

First, I’ll address spyware. Spyware, most of the time, is used to try to get you to give up some personal info, like SS # or credit card numbers or passwords for purely financial gain. Nothing malicious in their intent concerning your machine, only your cash. Viruses, on the other hand, are usually, but not always, directed at your machine to either cripple it, take over control of it, use it as a gateway for illegal activity that can only be traced back to you, or other malicious reasons. Some virus authors are, as you alluded to, just in it for kicks and bragging rights. They either get a kick out of rubbing Microsofts’ face in the doo-doo, or brag about how they broke into the Pentagon system, or some other childish reason. For some, it’s a power trip. They revel in the fact that they defeated some sophisticated security system that some company bragged could not be broken. Much like the Tylenol scandal of a few years back, some virus authors just want to control some anonymous person, or people, without ever being caught. Some people need a hobby or a jail cell……

I see them for $70, but I was looking for a $5 or lower option

Maybe it’s a good idea to read your news online, instead of a paper? Seems like a lot of money to me when you can easily read it online too.

We have a community of 14 townhomes in Mountain View, CA wondering if anyone is aware of the policy/process of moving away from community mailboxes in a townhome to having individual mail boxes for each unit.

You cannot
The postal service puts them there like that because it is a more efficient way to deliver the mail.
I guess you could ask your local postmaster, but don’t hold your breath that they will change it and the guy will enjoy walking to each house when he can go to one main place and put the mail in.
Cluster boxes are the norm for most newer developments.

I reported my mail stolen to the sheriff’s Dept. and the postal service. A package stolen from my mailbox was found open and empty at the end of the road. I alerted several neighbors & the same suspects’ descriptions kept surfacing. One was even seen walking down the street in the past with an armful of mail, opening and tossing it on the side of the road! The responding deputy said that they cannot just knock on this kid’s door; that would be harrassment. Ha. The postal deliverer and the local P.O. both say it is out of their hands once delivered. When I challenged them, asking why they didn’t encourage victims to fill out a detailed report for postal inspection, the response was less than favorable. It is a case for neighborhood watch at this point. Everyone says install a surveillance camera. Get real people. Think of the logistics. It would have to be a pretty sophisticated operation in order not to devote my days to it! A locking box or PO box is the answer. And a rigged package.
I have never so much as looked cross-eyed at anyone in my neighborhood. I was not individually targeted. The mail was taken from boxes all down my street and an adjacent neighborhood that day. There are specific teen-aged people who have been seen tampering with boxes in the past. One was seen ripping open mail and discarding on the side of the road. I was a tad dismayed when one answerer assumed that I was to blame for this situation. I certainly don’t deserve to be called the insulting names he put in his answer.
I spoke to the postal delivery woman already about leaving a slip for a package from now on. There are no boxes available at my P.O. currently, but we have researched locking mailboxes. I had much better luck with the inspection office, than calling 1800ASKUSPS. If this happens to you, call 1-877-876-2455 (postal inspector). There is also a form online at www.USPS.com/postalinspectors. Now with a little good karma, I’m hoping that the items in the package from my mom will show up!

Forget the knuckleheads working behind the desk at the Post Office. They are typical, lazy, unionized civil servants. Practically worthless.

You need to get in touch with the Postal Police. These are the law enforcement professionals who deal with such crimes. Interfering with postal service is a felony in many cases.

not that I’m aware of (although there might be) – but if you call the local post office & tell them where you are, they should be able to tell you where the closest box is.

In 2008, I was charged with speeding and "failure to keep right" in rural New York. A court date was scheduled, but when I arrived, the building was closed, locked, and dark. I waited 45 minutes, placed a polite note in their mailbox asking to be contacted as soon as possible, and never heard anything for a year and a half. Now, I have received a "Failure to Comply" notice in the mail. Is this sufficient grounds for the ticket to be thrown out?

Generally, if the court house is closed on your last court date, then the day gets moved to the next day the court is open. If you show up to the courthouse and explain your situation they might cut you some slack, but they probably won’t be happy that a year and a half has passed since then.

I have a parcel post usps package. Am I allowed to put it in the public mailbox to ship it out, or do I have to walk all the way to the post office?

The 13 oz rule only applies to anything that is put in the mailbox that weights more than 13 oz with postage.

So yes if you can fit your parcel post package into a mailbox with a printed postage that would be just fine.

You can also choose free parcel pickup for the next day.

I returned one game earlier in the day and another later on both different mailboxes. I only recieved a confimation email only about one game but haven’t recieved one about the other. Is there something wrong?

I know with netflix that you sometimes receive movies from two different locations! Like for me the closest Netflix location is in Raleigh, NC but I have received movies from Ohio before. It’s possibly that your other game may have actually had to go further to be received…something you might not have looked at because you aren’t used to that happening. Give it a couple more days and it will probably arrive.

Yes three options
1) Wait till mail person comes and opens box, then you take lock off either clipped in or has threaded nut
2) Pick lock
3) Drill out key way and open lock and door and then remove lock