About a week without a working scanner, so I’ll revert to ranting, instead.

Peace, a Value for Humanity, so reads the legend used on the Portuguese stamps of this year’s EUROPA issue.

A very nice set of three stamps and three souvenir sheets as usual, one for mainland Portugal and another two for our Autonomous Regions of Madeira and Açores.

Image Credit: Facebook page of CTT Filatelia

But there’s something that….annoys me.

I know companies have to cover their costs and make money… such is the essence of the game, but I can’t help but feeling that  the issuing of EUROPA sets should almost be regarded as Public Service in what they intrinsically celebrate: the notion of an European Identity, a common ground for diverse and plural peoples and cultures, one of the most striking and uplifting ideas of modern history, a way of saying that utopia might one day come true, all in all A Value for Humanity…

... At 3 Euros a pop, for each souvenir sheet!

Usually CTT would issue the souvenir sheet with 2 stamps with the Europe 20g tariff, what made perfect sense.

If this practice had been followed this year, that would lead to a two stamp sheet with a price of 2,10 € but instead, CTT opted for a single stamp of a tariff that corresponds to nothing on their pricing table.  

The difference is that if the ancient practice would be followed, I'd be not only be able to mail 3 different friends with each complete set, thus helping out to  spread the ideia of Peace as a Value for Humanity  for much less than I now have to pay to mail just two other collectors....

This has happened before, and of course is but a way of increasing the philatelic desk revenues, which is debatable from our consumer side, but totally legitimate in what concerns the company’s management….but on this particular issue?  Especially regarding what it stands for, in the current international state of affairs?

Ethics, a Value for Humanity?