The U.S. Postal Service is cutting jobs across the country, including in our part of the world. We're left to wonder what it all means.

And by the way, the official interpretation aside, 19 "positions" that no longer exist or that are moved to another city 40 miles away do count as job cuts in St. Joseph. If that seems harsh, then it's a reminder that it's a harsh world we live in right now.

The Postal Service pays well, and we'll miss those incomes when it comes to tallying sales tax receipts at the local groceries, restaurants and bowling alleys. We might also miss the level of service to which we have become accustomed. At the minimum, some things will be different.

We have noticed for months now that some mail routes apparently have been consolidated. Delivery at times has slipped from morning to afternoon, and from afternoon to early evening. Mail carriers have confided that the work is more demanding these days. And at least one former carrier says his recent retirement didn't come a moment too soon.

The Postal Service could lose $2 billion this year and possible $2 billion next year unless it makes changes, Postmaster General John Potter told a St. Louis convention crowd Monday. Mail volumes are down 5.5 percent from last year and fuel prices are at historic highs.

The service is fighting back by continuing to add to its large fleet of alternative-fuel vehicles. It also continues to invest in labor-saving technologies - sometimes to the detriment of postal "service." And, yes, the price of stamps will go up again next year as the work force is further reduced.

The danger for the Postal Service and the public is focusing on the wrong things: We will miss the jobs and salaries that came with them, but the bigger concern is that the service will decline or costs to users will rise to the point that the entire franchise is placed at risk.