Re: usps.gov

["Aaron Swartz" <xx@aaronsw.com>]

> i went down this slope with Robert Cook at Metaweb, who wanted the same
> data.
>
> The bad news is this is not nearly as clearcut as most things just because
> USPS really is not (necessarily) the government.  They are like Amtrak.

Wikipedia says otherwise: "The USPS is often mistaken for a
government-owned corporation (e.g., Amtrak), but as noted above is
legally defined as an "independent establishment of the executive
branch of the Government of the United States," (39 U.S.C. § 201) as
it is wholly owned by the government and controlled by the
Presidential appointees and the Postmaster General. As a
quasi-governmental agency, it has many special privileges, including
sovereign immunity, eminent domain powers, powers to negotiate postal
treaties with foreign nations, and an exclusive legal right to deliver
first-class and third-class mail. Indeed, in 2004, the U.S. Supreme
Court ruled that the USPS was not a government-owned corporation and
therefore could not be sued under the Sherman Antitrust Act.[2]"
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USPS#Governance_and_organization)

So it sounds like we've got the Supreme Court on our side. Also, even
if they weren't a government agency, this is strictly factual data and
thus can't be copyrighted under _Feist_.

I'll put it up if you don't want to, but I don't see any legal issues.