The US postal service appears to have created a new database that is going in to common use by most businesses. All valid addresses in the US are catalogued there. And there appear to be at least two levels of addresses found there.
I’ll explain. I get all of my mail from a private mail box service. All mail sent to my home gets “Return to Sender”. That’s how I set things up. When I make purchases online, I can enter the address of the mail box service company as my shipping and billing address. That general address to the mail box store has a suite number in it as a part of the general business address of the mail box service company. Therefore, I have to use a personal mail box (PMB number) in the second address line as a means to identify which box my mail should be delivered to. Increasingly, I am getting error messages with suggestions of valid addresses that I can pick from when I enter my mailing address online. None of those suggestions allow anything extra like my PMB number, in any part of the address. Typically, my added PMB number turns red with a warning that it is not valid. So clearly, some database is in use that lists, all addresses everywhere that are considered to be valid and that doesn’t allow for anything that is not already in that database. Over time, in many cases (more often over time) I can’t put the PMB number in to address input fields. So I have to rely on the people who sort the mail, to remember my name and which box my mail goes in.
Also, occasionally I do business with the Federal Government. They have told me that my private mail box address is not a valid address for their purposes and that they need a “real” business address. I have made the arguement that my private mail box address is a valid business address. They have told me outright that private mail box addresses are not considered to be valid for their purposes and that they require a “real” business address (frusterating that they get to decide what the definition of “real” is when it comes to my business).
So first, someone has catalogued every address everywhere and have decided that any address that is not in their database exactly as they show it, is not valid. In addition, this database tracks which addresses are at private mail box services, so that for certain purposes, other businesses and the government can chose to not do business with those private mail box addresses.
Also, I hate the political junk mail. Since I don’t use my home address to receive any mail what-so-ever, the only way to get my voting ballots is to regester my voting address at my private mail box. So technically, the state can toss out my ballot after it is cast, because they do not allow private mail box addresses. And, the state only allows people to vote if and only if you subject yourself to relentless political junk mail as the voting season approaches. If they can’t send you junk mail, then you don’t get a ballot. There is no way to opt-out of the political junk mail while keeping your ability to vote. You are forced to give your mailing address to every political candidate as a valid address through which they can harass you. The state gives them your address whether or not you want them to. The only way to opt out is to not register to vote. I will never look at a political postcard and decide from the information on that card, to change my vote.
So clearly, business and government is cataloging every corner of the world in which you might possibly choose to be anonymous, or to establish a wall behind which you might choose to hide your identity as they routinely assault your right to not share your private information or to simply avoid being harassed by people you don’t want to hear from.
