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@ABScientist it would have to be sent via a private delivery service (in the same way you can still send telegrams long after they have been ceased just about everywhere in the world)

@alex @vfrmedia god dammit people

@brennen @alex @matt

I was speaking to a work colleague originally from Zimbabwe a few years ago, she told me post had also been suspended in her area for some years (long enough that her own children of junior school age had never seen a letter or a postman) and that there wasn't a post office in their area (Zimbabwe does still have a public postal service, but it may well now be confined to urban areas). They do however have same level mobile Internet connectivity as many Western nations..

@vfrmedia @brennen @matt Yeah, back in 2006 I heard the same thing about some regions in Africa. They simply skipped the copper wire phase of telecommunication and went straight to mobile (including all the cool payment options). Here in Switzerland it's already difficult to find post offices. The number keeps shrinking. But to then drop it entirely... Oof. I guess I still like to get bills and stuff by snail mail. Dating myself, I guess.

@alex @brennen @matt in Britain post offices in towns are way smaller than before, and in rural areas increasingly combined with village shops. They remain popular for sending parcels (either from local online sellers or returns from online shopping), but now offer services from many other companies than the privatised Royal Mail. At work we only send paper bills to seniors (most of our clients) and even many of them now want the bills sent via email..

@vfrmedia @alex @matt it looks like the US has lost around 4000 post offices, down to ~26000, in my lifetime:

https://about.usps.com/who/profile/history/pieces-of-mail-since-1789.htm

it's still a fixture of life here, particularly in small towns, but it's been under attack for a long time. the way things are going i won't be surprised if it's entirely destroyed before long.