United States Postal Service creed
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The United States Postal Service has no official creed or motto. Often falsely cited as such, "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds" is an inscription on the James Farley Post Office in New York City, derived from a quote from Herodotus' Histories (8.98), referring to the ancient courier service of the Persian Empire:
- It is said that as many days as there are in the whole journey, so many are the men and horses that stand along the road, each horse and man at the interval of a day’s journey; and these are stayed neither by snow nor rain nor heat nor darkness from accomplishing their appointed course with all speed. (trans. A.D. Godley 1924)
In 2001, the USPS created a television commercial edited to Carly Simon's song, "Let the River Run."[1] The commercial, which ran after the September 11, 2001, attacks and the anthrax mailings, featured no voice over, only the following text interspersed on title cards:
- We are mothers and fathers. And sons and daughters. Who every day go about our lives with duty, honor and pride. And neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night, nor the winds of change, nor a nation challenged, will stay us from the swift completion of our appointed rounds. Ever.[2]
The "creed" is also quoted in the lyrics of the 1981 Laurie Anderson single, "O Superman,"[3] and in the 1997 movie The Postman (film), starring Kevin Costner.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.usps.com/memotomailers/_pdf/dec01.pdf
- ^ USPS - Neither snow, nor rain ... nor a nation challenged - USPS TV Spot
- ^ "Laurie Anderson's 'O Superman' - the Song". BBC. 2002-01-02. http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/plain/A874758. Retrieved 2008-01-23.
- ^ "The Postman Script". http://www.script-o-rama.com/movie_scripts/p/postman-script-transcript-kevin-costner.html.
