I'm not sure a regular USPS stamp would be appropriate for the Beirut Veterans, but I'm not sure Zazzle is the solution either. Perhaps there should be something in between? That got me to thinking.

What if the USPS issued limited edition stamps for special causes or events? These limited edition stamps could be much like the pictorial postmarks as found in the Postal Bulletin - local postmarks that commemorate everything from watermelon festivals to local historical anniversaries. However, these limited edition stamps that I am proposing would honor or commemorate stuff a little farther up the ladder, for example Super Bowls, All Star games, conventions (Comic-Con, etc.), and other causes such as the Campaign to Honor Nisei Veterans. Such stamps could probably be distributed locally, for example in a special edition promotion of 100,000 stamps commemorating a Super Bowl. Besides getting a lot of special interest groups seeking stamps off their backs, the USPS could perhaps reinvigorate stamp collecting a bit since such stamps would be collectibles (some more rare than others), and as collectibles, it would be like printing money, since many of these special edition stamps would end up in a drawer somewhere and never used for postage.

Such stamps wouldn't be sold nationally with the regular stamp offerings and most would be printed in batches of perhaps 10,000 to 100,000. These stamps could be sponsored by companies, events or communities. Just off the top of my head, I can envision stamps sponsored by Coca-Cola, stamps that honor athletic events or happenings (such as the famous Landon Donovan goal in the World Cup), and stamps that honor local events (such as the 2010 State Fair of Texas).

On an additional note, perhaps such stamps could be used to raise funds for special causes. Just a few thoughts.