Usually they seem to be overjoyed when they get 'a proper letter' instead of the usual mix of spelling errors and mumbled telephone messages. The writing of personal letters has been in decline since the widespread use of telephones, faxes and now email. However the volume of mail handled here in Britain by the Royal Mail is at an all time high. More people now have bank accounts and PCs. This generates more and more mail through internet shopping, credit card correspondence etc.
Technology is here to stay.
E-mail has brought the world closer together. The US postal service exists to provide a service for people, not the other way around. If the directors of the US postal service had any sense they would have ensured they played a crucial role in the development of new information technologies such as e-mail from the beginning. The postal service will always have a place in the national infrastructure due to its ability to transport items as well as words. Until some clever bod invents a way to email a box of chocolates or a ten pound note there will always be a place for 'snail mail'.