this post was submitted on 10 Sep 2026

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submitted 2 weeks ago by The_Picard_Maneuver@lemmy.world to c/memes@lemmy.world

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[–] ricecake@sh.itjust.works 234 points 2 weeks ago (6 children)

I honestly think it's kinda sweet how it worked to be honest.
People showed up, gave their kid postage, and told the clerk they were mailing them. Clerk was confused for a minute, and then conceded that there was nothing technically forbidden about that. Kid hops on the scale, postage is correct, and the kid waits behind the counter until the trip to train, where they ride with the operator.

Basically people gently gaming the system and the people involved saying "you're technically correct" and then looking after a random child.
They only stopped it because they decided you can't operate a train and keep a kid safe at the same time, and weight is not a great way to price childcare.

[–] panda_abyss@lemmy.ca 128 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (1 children)

Yeah, I actually think these types of thing are a healthy thing for society.

The fact some parents were like “I can’t afford a train ticket” and some postal workers just went with it is great.

[–] HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world 9 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

i mean, some parents are currently like "i can only afford one plane ticket" and just have to hope the adult their kid gets sat by is safe. it kind of feels the same way.

[–] Buddahriffic@lemmy.world 11 points 2 weeks ago

Going through the postal service might have been safer than other forms of travel because there would have been more explicit exchanges of custody. Like put a kid on a passenger train and they could just get off and get lost before getting on a connecting train and who knows what happened to them? They arrived on train A but never got on train B.

Whereas with mail, the kid becomes the operator's responsibility. If the kid is handed over to the operator to ride train A but then is nowhere to be found at the destination, then that operator is the prime suspect. Or the operator hands the kid off to the next operator in the journey and the kid is now their responsibility.

And even if you have a babysitter, passenger stations are going to be a lot more crowded than cargo stations, so keeping track of a kid will be a lot easier, plus the driver is the babysitter for the postal service, so they won't miss their train or take the wrong one by accident (unless they are routed incorrectly lol).

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[–] mattyroses@lemmy.today 12 points 2 weeks ago (3 children)

and weight is not a great way to price childcare.

I'd like to hear your solution then!

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[–] TomMasz@piefed.social 84 points 2 weeks ago (5 children)

My wife's grandfather worked for the post office in a rural area and delivered live chicks to farms. With enough postage you could mail just about anything.

[–] Theatomictruth@lemmy.dbzer0.com 56 points 2 weeks ago (7 children)

You can still mail order live chicks

[–] Aqivex@fedinsfw.app 20 points 2 weeks ago (3 children)

Not only that, USPS is the only "major" carrier who will do so.

[–] ricecake@sh.itjust.works 18 points 2 weeks ago

It's funny to put major in quotes. If you look at shipping volumes then USPS is really the only major carrier. Since they have to deliver everywhere they deliver something like 120 billion things a year, where the second is like...7 billion.

[–] oscarmeyer82@lemmy.world 9 points 2 weeks ago

Unfortunately this looks to be another area where a previously functioning service is no longer being provided at the same level of quality.

Stitched video of two small poultry producers discussing recent poor experiences with recieving chick via mail. https://youtube.com/shorts/dcGOdro04uE

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[–] LifeInMultipleChoice@lemmy.dbzer0.com 18 points 2 weeks ago

Yeah they are quite hardy. Have ordered on 2 seperate occasions, all arrive healthy. When a chick is born they essentially consume the yolk which will allow them to go a couple days without needing food/water. Being a live shipment you usually pick it up at the post office, so it doesn't have to get trucked around all day. (Also meaning you can grab them as soon as they are supposed to be there and get them all settled in under a heat source and food/water quickly).

[–] Agent641@lemmy.world 15 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

And bees, and crickets. Different boxes tho

[–] prettybunnys@piefed.social 7 points 2 weeks ago

Ladybugs too

[–] boonhet@lemmy.zip 8 points 2 weeks ago

I read your comment before the one you replied to and my mind certainly went somewhere other then farms

[–] chahn.chris@piefed.social 7 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

While it may seem kind of weird I’ve raised about 100 chickens that came via the mail.

I haven’t lost any of these and they all lived a great life outside on the farm.

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[–] AmyAye@nord.pub 7 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

And boxes of spiders.

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[–] AviAdi@lemmy.world 23 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Imagine having chick trafficking on your resume.

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[–] kestrel7_7@lemmy.world 7 points 2 weeks ago

It’s still pretty common to mail live bees (nuclear colonies).

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[–] YaDownWitCPP@lemmy.world 57 points 2 weeks ago (3 children)

With FedEx the child would be neither living or breathing when it arrived.

[–] Agent641@lemmy.world 35 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Ring camera video of driver yeeting child out the door of the truck and 20 feet to the porch

[–] spankinspinach@sh.itjust.works 25 points 2 weeks ago (3 children)

Literally watched an amazon driver do this the other day.

*I feel it's important to clarify I mean with a package, not a child

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[–] empireOfLove2@lemmy.dbzer0.com 10 points 2 weeks ago

DHL the kid would be delivered two counties away to the wrong address and then they would refuse to take your calls when you try to figure out where it got dropped off.

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[–] Garbagio@lemmy.zip 41 points 2 weeks ago (3 children)

Miss me with the pro-privatized corporate slop. Where my public service homies at?

[–] BeMoreCareful@lemmy.world 7 points 2 weeks ago

bUt IMagINe if ApPlE rAn THe POsT oFfIce

[–] HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world 6 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

tryna ship more humans

[–] Garbagio@lemmy.zip 5 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Buddy, kids fly supervised all the time. What's the difference between the USPS and Delta? Take my 8 year old to the desk agent, they escort him to the gate, employees on the plane watch him, then an agent at the destination escorts him to grandpa. Let me know if I'm describing USPS or Delta.

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[–] Skyrmir@lemmy.world 29 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

It's the living and breathing part the others have a problem with.

[–] SaharaMaleikuhm@feddit.org 7 points 2 weeks ago

The stiff ones are a lot less noisy.

[–] JayDee@lemmy.world 29 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

Here's some context. Context

I do love that these postmen also just staight-up posed for photos with the babies they were carrying. Staight up the same shit we'd do now.

Also this seems like the exact kind of child endangerment that would happen in a Ghibli film.

[–] Imgonnatrythis@sh.itjust.works 27 points 2 weeks ago

Still would use over fedex

[–] carrylex@lemmy.world 24 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

Context

Tbf most of the other companies were not around back then (100 years ago) so maybe they would have also shipped kids (for profit)...

[–] chiliedogg@lemmy.world 7 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

It was only domestic shipping.

The US also had a history of shipping people as cargo across the ocean for profit.

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[–] lightnsfw@reddthat.com 17 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Where the kids safe and healthy when they arrived?

[–] HobbitFoot@thelemmy.club 20 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Generally yes.

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[–] Limonene@lemmy.world 17 points 2 weeks ago (4 children)

Nothing sent by DHL, UPS or Fedex is mail.

[–] HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world 9 points 2 weeks ago

yeah they're parcel services, not mail services

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[–] W3dd1e@lemmy.zip 17 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

People weren’t using enough stamps.

It’s fine when the baby is shipped but then it grows and it doesn’t have enough stamps for the weight at delivery.

[–] monotremata@lemmy.ca 15 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Reminds me of Futurama. "You're under arrest for child cruelty, child endangerment, depriving children of food, selling children AS food, and misrepresenting the weight of livestock!"

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[–] remon@ani.social 15 points 2 weeks ago (3 children)

You can still mail bees!

[–] OakTree@lemmy.zip 7 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

I was working at a UPS sorting facility when a box of live snakes broke open. That was a fun day

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[–] Theatomictruth@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 points 2 weeks ago

I’ve also received live worms and chickens via post

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[–] percent@infosec.pub 14 points 2 weeks ago (5 children)

Fun fact: USPS still ships livestock

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[–] Pudutr0n@lemmy.world 14 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

They were breathing when they stamped em.

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[–] Batman@lemmy.world 12 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

Just knowing about FedEx and the shit they pull, if they did ship a kid you'd never hear about it.

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[–] outlawcarl@fedinsfw.app 11 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Royal mail posted more....

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[–] Egonallanon@feddit.uk 9 points 2 weeks ago

Postie just casually dropkicking a child into the bush when you're not in.

[–] Eq0@literature.cafe 9 points 2 weeks ago

I had heard about it and by now I’m just surprised it was only 7…

[–] Tollana1234567@lemmy.today 9 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

now the GOP is trying to USPS to discredit mail in ballots.

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[–] huppakee@lemmy.world 6 points 2 weeks ago

Didn't know they delivered to Epstein Island /jk

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