Postal Service Snake Shipping Poll

[ballbreeder]

As a mailman/ball python breeder, the question has come to me many times, "Why doesn't the postal service ship snakes?" The best answer I could come up with is that Benjamin Franklin, the first Post Master General, decided not to allow snake shipping. In my opinion, that’s not a great answer. Interestingly enough, I cannot find any regulations, other than posters at the post office, that state "no snakes" or "no reptiles". I will be attempting to use the postal service for snake shipments in the future, because, like ups and fed ex, it seem that it is up to the discretion of the local Post Master/Manager.

My question is: Would it be detrimental or profitable for the postal service or the herp community if the postal service OPENLY shipped reptiles?

Here are two sides of that coin:

Given the current controversy of shipping snakes state to state (I know it shouldn't even be a controversy), openly announcing that the postal service would ship these animals may cause an up rise and an awareness of the controversy itself, and may make people who are (for no reason) afraid of snakes or snake haters come out against, both the postal service, and the herp community, in turn, pushing legislation through that bands inter-state travel of certain snakes and also driving the postal service's bottom line even farther in debt.

or

Would it be a great move for the postal service, tapping into a multi-billion dollar industry. Given that the postal service provides the least expensive shipping on anything. That, coupled with more competition with UPS and Fed Ex, would drive down the cost of shipping snakes, which would make more people willing to purchase snakes, driving the herp community's profits up, and allowing more people to get into the herp trade.

I don't think it would be helpful for one and not the other, or hurtful for one and not the other, but there are four poll options any way, just to see what your opinions are.