It probably is mainly intended to ensure that people aren't lying about what's in their packages just to get the lowest rate, yes. That doesn't make searching (and yes, I consider opening up a package and looking through its contents a "search") every Media Mail package reasonable.
Also, in an environment in which Americans' financial records and library borrowing habits (!) can be reviewed by government officials without either a warrant or the need for notice even after the fact, and given that the sender must provide their name when sending a package... yeah, the implications of this policy, even on a limited basis (some but not all post offices) are disturbing to say the least. Librarians aren't even allowed to disclose whether Homeland Security has asked to review any of the records in their libraries; how much do you want to bet that postal employees are expected to report it if they open up someone's package and find, say, passages from the Koran? (It's an Islamic belief that the Koran should only be read in its original Arabic for religious purposes, though of course translations are made into many languages for other reasons.)
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2004-05-24 09:35 pm (UTC)Also, in an environment in which Americans' financial records and library borrowing habits (!) can be reviewed by government officials without either a warrant or the need for notice even after the fact, and given that the sender must provide their name when sending a package... yeah, the implications of this policy, even on a limited basis (some but not all post offices) are disturbing to say the least. Librarians aren't even allowed to disclose whether Homeland Security has asked to review any of the records in their libraries; how much do you want to bet that postal employees are expected to report it if they open up someone's package and find, say, passages from the Koran? (It's an Islamic belief that the Koran should only be read in its original Arabic for religious purposes, though of course translations are made into many languages for other reasons.)