Royal Mail commemorative stamps?

This month's posting shows a collection of Great Britain (GB) Christmas stamps -- both the modern self-adhesive types; and the bigger, older gummed types. (Proper Christmas stamps!) A couple of decades ago, I would have listed stamp collecting as one of my pastimes, but in the mid- to late-1990s I lost interest. I had been a collector of both Canadian and GB postage stamps. I suppose I had other things to fill my free time. I was also getting irritated by the more frequent issues, and the bigger sets of commemorative stamps. It felt as though Royal Mail in particular were exploiting the collectors.

Jump ahead to late 2016, and the postage stamp world looks a different place. Self-adhesive stamps for everyday use have replaced the ones that you had to lick, and any form of postage stamp on mail to the home is a fairly rare event. Except of course for Christmas, when people still trouble themselves to send cards and Season's Greetings. This is the only time of year that I receive stamps other than the usual definitives. Even then, they are mostly definitive-size Christmas stamps, so nothing really to catch the eye.

This got me thinking. Why does Royal Mail still apparently issue dozens of commemorative stamps if no-one, except for collectors, actually sees them? What is the point? (Apart from screwing more money out of collectors, of course, which the collectors themselves realise.) Why do these stamps never seem to be marketed to the general public? In the past, it was a way of drawing attention to notable events and people, or promoting something about (Great) Britain. Have the management decided that this publicity is an unnecessary cost?

It probably doesn't need an MBA to discover that stamp collecting as a hobby is not what it used to be, and the cash cow that it might be now is going to fade away in the next decade or two, as collectors drop off their perches. I get the feeling that little young blood is coming into the hobby -- I suspect that the likes of mobile phones and social media offer a more instant gratification.

While I am criticising Royal Mail, why is it that they cannot cancel a stamp and put a (legible) postmark on an envelope? Surely with modern technology it is easier than ever, but I receive a noticeable proportion of mail with uncancelled stamps. On the day of writing, I had a card delivered and the envelope was in pristine condition with no clue as to where it had come from or when it was posted.  What is the use of that! And yet, Royal Mail have developed devices on stamps to deter their re-use. (I appreciate the concerns about forgeries.) Wouldn't it be better to ensure that the stamps are properly cancelled (and postmarked) in the first place? Like it used to be done in days of yore?

Despite the criticisms, Royal Mail still do a good job of delivering post straight to my front door in all weathers -- and long may it continue. I will try to support the UK's postal system as best as I can, even though I probably only add to the woes at Christmastime...

Best Wishes for 2017 to everyone!