Half a croissant, on a plate, with a sign in front of it saying '50c'
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Postal Scratch

Sell sheets of postage stamps covered with scratch-off opaque latex.
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US Domestic postal rates just went up to 37¢ for first class one ounce mail.

You know the drill: Buy “special rate” stamps that make up the difference from 34¢ to 37¢ (cute red star this time), buy some 3¢ stamps or 4¢ stamps if you're still updating the 33¢ stamps in your desk. I used to be able to use two 17¢ stamps to make the class, but now the best I can do is to overpay with two second ounce 20¢ stamps. Stop the insanity.

Just sell sheets and books of stamps -- period. You won't be able to read the stamps because the sheets are covered in scratch-away latex like used on lottery tickets. The stamps come in full ounce, half ounce, and quarter ounce denominations and are randomly placed on the sheets so that you don't know if you're holding a quarter/half/whole stamp until you scratch off its face.

Instead of selling 100 stamps for $37.00, sell 100 for $18.50. I'll leave the beancounters to figure your odds of doubling your money, but there would be a possibility of that. Also, the door would be open for a government run lottery -- every 150,000th stamp pays a free sheet of stamps.

reensure, Jun 13 2002

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       The stamps on my desk don't have a price on them, just a class, because its the price of the stamp that goes up (in theory), and not the cost to deliver the package (in theory).
[ sctld ], Jun 13 2002
  

       think I am right in saying, you can buy 27p stamps with a class on them and stamps with the amount presumably for mixing and matching for packets etc.
po, Jun 13 2002
  

       Scratch off government run lotto is Baked in most parts of the US. You'd just need to authorize the Post Office to sell the tickets, rather than messing with the stamps.   

       Also, for stamps, it would be more appropriate if the face value/prize became visible when you licked them.
DrCurry, Jun 13 2002
  

       HeHe, yeah . . . it would.
reensure, Jun 14 2002
  

       A single stamp is now 42 cents and still the government has not discovered the solution to the problem of ever increasing cost of posting a letter.   

       This item reminds me that the post office did not invent the internet.   

       el dueno
el dueno, May 22 2008
  

       no. it's a scam that you let your government get away with.   

       like [sctid] said (i think), you should be able to buy a bulk of service-class stamps, not $$$ stamps, so you would buy say 10 "normal letter delivery" stamps for whatever they go for at that particular time, then use them whenever you felt the need, without having to purchase supplementary stamps.
FlyingToaster, May 22 2008
  
      
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