MADISON, Wis., Dec. 7 (UPI) -- The Pentagon is asking the general public not to send unsolicited mail, care packages or donations to U.S. armed forces during the holidays.
An avalanche of goods and gifts collected by well-meaning individuals and groups for American troops in Iraq and Afghanistan is overwhelming the limited mail delivery system. Often unsolicited packages wind up baking in the desert sun or buried in landfills.
The Wisconsin National Guard said it received so much lip balm it ended up burying it unopened after trying to give it away. Unsolicited items pose major liability and security concerns.
"There's only so much postal space," Lt. Col Timothy Donovan, spokesman for the Wisconsin Army and Air National Guard in Madison, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "The care packages may be well-intentioned, but it competes for the same space that gets a letter from a little girl to her dad."
Packages from family members and friends addressed to specific solders are welcome.
