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Flags at Half-Mast

The Stamp Collecting Report. I'm Lloyd de Vries.

They're supposed to be the Postal Service's answer to the U-S Mint's State Quarters 
program: 60 stamps featuring the flags of the states, the territories and the District 
of Columbia.

"I think they're going to be a great boon to the hobby. I think they're going to help 
people become collectors."
RUNS :05

...said stamp collector and columnist John Hotchner, an advisor to the Postal Service, 
when I interviewed him last summer, after the stamps were announced. 

Stamp collectors had been pushing the Postal Service to come up with something like the 
quarters...and, at the same time, wanted more interesting subjects on the stamps that 
come in rolls -- and designs twice the width of normal roll, or coil, stamps.

And that's what the Postal Service came up with, said Dave Failor, the man in charge of 
the stamp program.

"Coils are a very popular format with our mail-use customers, so what we're hoping is 
that customers will want to buy some and save them, but also use them on their mail."
RUNS :09 

But there are some problems: Each roll has 10 different designs on it...5 of each flag. 
To buy just a certain state, you have to buy 9 others.

There hasn't been that much publicity or advertising for these stamps... and so far, I 
haven't seen any on MY mail.

Many U-S stamps don't come off the envelopes when soaked...which makes it hard to collect 
used stamps.

Oh, and an unused strip of ten of these stamps -- which is how many collectors like to 
save coil stamps -- is about 17-and-a-half inches in length -- MUCH too big for an album 
page.

Oh, well, it was a good attempt.

The first set is already out. The next of the 6 sets comes out in September.

I'm Lloyd de Vries of The Virtual Stamp Club. For more on stamps and stamps collecting, 
visit virtual-stamp-club-dot-com.

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[CBS Version]
Download this report as an MP3 sound file.

For broadcast on CBS Radio Network stations June 28-29, 2008:
 
Flags at Half-Mast

The Stamp Collecting Report. I'm Lloyd de Vries.  

They're supposed to be the Postal Service's answer to the U-S Mint's State Quarters 
program: 60 stamps featuring the flags of the states, the territories and the District 
of Columbia.

Stamp collectors had been pushing the Postal Service for something like the quarters, 
so the Postal Service came up with these rolls of stamps, said Dave Failor, the man in 
charge of the stamp program.

"Coils are a very popular format with our mail-use customers, so what we're hoping is 
that customers will want to buy some and save them, but also use them on their mail."
RUNS :09     

But there are some problems: Each roll has 10 different designs on it...5 of each flag. 
To buy just a certain state, you have to buy 9 others.

And a strip of ten of these stamps -- which is how many collectors like to save coil 
stamps -- is about 17-and-a-half inches in length -- MUCH too big for an album page.

Oh, well, it was a good attempt.
 
The first set is already out. The next of the 6 sets comes out in September.

And that's stamp collecting this week. I'm Lloyd de Vries, CBS News.

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