CNN Access: Even Santa cautious with mail

(CNN) -- For years, Jack James has volunteered his time to answer letters to Santa Claus from children across the country, and he's going to do it again. But this season, he'll be wearing rubber gloves and a surgical mask, a result of the recent scare from anthrax-contaminated letters.

CNN's Jack Cafferty spoke to James, who was in Orlando, Florida, and John Nolan, the deputy postmaster general in Washington, about holiday mail.

CNN: Given the fact that a lot of the letters to Santa fit the handwriting profile of the anthrax letters that came to Washington -- rather crudely printed, no return address, et cetera -- are you nervous about doing this? Why wouldn't you just take a pass this year?

JAMES: Well, I'm not really nervous anymore. It seems that the post office, it has got things under control. However, I am using rubber gloves and a mask to open the letters.

CNN: What do the kids want this year? Have you seen any of the early letters?

JAMES: Well, the same old stuff. The girls still want Barbies. The boys want Pokemon cards and Pokemon items, and other than that it's the same.

CNN: You've been doing this for a long time -- 33 years -- answering these kids' letters. And some of them -- I mean, doing the news here in New York City, we would every year do stories about these. Some of these kids, they just break your heart. They've got nothing and these letters are very emotional and tug at your heartstrings. Can you give us a sense of the kind of -- perhaps for want of a better word -- desperate lives some of these young children are facing?

JAMES: Well, some of them are. I received two, what I call hard-luck letters so far this year. But I have volunteers that usually take care of them.

CNN: Let me ask John Nolan, who is the deputy postmaster general. I remember they would have programs here at the New York post office where New Yorkers could write in, or call in, and get one of these letters and kind of fulfill the Christmas wish. Is that something that people in the country can do this year?

NOLAN: Yes, I was postmaster in New York a number of years ago and we always looked forward to Operation Santa Claus every year. And that is continuing. We've got plenty of volunteers who are very eager to carry on the magic of this holiday season.

CNN: What kind of holiday season are you looking at, in light of everything that's happened, in terms of not only trying to guarantee the safety of the mail that you deliver, but the volume of cards and letters compared to years past?

NOLAN: Well, we're very hopeful that the volume is going to be extremely heavy, that people recognize now more than ever, you need to stay in touch with family and friends, and greeting cards and other correspondence are a great way to do that. And around the holiday, whatever holiday it is you're celebrating, it is a magical time, and it's time to be in touch. So if people are sending their cards and letters and packages, we're ready to help them, and to carry out that magic.

CNN: What's being done to guarantee the safety of the mail that's being delivered?

NOLAN: Well, there are number of things. First of all, keep in mind that there are only four letters that have contained the anthrax out of the 30 billion that we've handled, and that has been weeks and weeks ago now. So we're being very vigilant in our locations to spot things that look unusual.

People like Santa Claus who handle an awful lot of mail -- they don't know the sender -- obviously have a different set of circumstances than individuals like you or me receiving mail. ... It's a lot easier for us than it is for Santa. He's got a tough job.

I think the things that we've recommended to people about washing your hands several times a day -- whether you're handling mail or not, and certainly when you're handling mail, it's a good idea. And just take a look at who sent you the mail and whether it looks unusual.

CNN: What do you see in terms of rates next year? The Postal Service has endured tremendous expense related to the anthrax scare and the closing of facilities and decontamination, et cetera. There are deficits being talked about for the Postal Service going into 2002. Where do you see postal rates going?

NOLAN: Well, we had already filed for a new rate increase on September 10, actually, and so the plan is that rates would go into effect sometime next year.

And we have had a tough time financially. There's no doubt about it -- declining volumes in certain areas because of the economy, and then hit by the terrorist attacks. It has not been easy, but we're very hopeful that the volume will turn around. We're working, obviously, with the administration and the Congress about the costs involved in providing that homeland security for mail.

We are part of the universal structure in this country to foster communication. And so we're working with the administration and Congress about what is right for us to be funded by the country as a whole, instead of just the rate payers, and that will all get settled out in the near future.