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Tuesday, March 10, 2009

2010 Census: Do I have to fill it out?

There's been some buzz lately about the upcoming 2010 census.

There are some very good reasons to be extremely skeptical of the probing questions the census asks. First, let's look at what the Constitution says about the census:
Article I Section 2: The actual Enumeration shall be made within three Years after the first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law direct.

It's pretty simple. The federal government counts the number of citizens every ten years to apportion congressional representation to each state. However, the census has come to be an extremely probing process, asking for your name, age, race, and relationship status, among other things. And that's just the short form. The long form, which goes to a randomly selected set of people, asks 53 questions: everything from your income, how old your house is, and even what you use to heat your home. What does that have to do with apportioning members of congress? Good question.

There is a lot of resistance to answering these questions, and with good reason. One site I found, called Don't Trust the Census, makes a pretty good case for not filling out the probing questions. They point to research showing that census data was used in 1943 by the FDR administration to round up and put Japanese-Americans in concentration camps. So much for the census promise that "responses are confidential."

The main reason the Census Bureau cites for filling out the questions is to make sure that we get our share of the federal welfare state's booty:  "People who answer the census help their communities obtain federal and state funding and valuable information for planning schools, hospitals, roads, and more." Sure.

What to do? Well, federal law says that you can be fined $100 for not answering the census, but my research shows that the last people actually prosecuted for this were in 1973. The Census Bureau claims they've never prosecuted anyone for not filling out the form. I don't mind abiding by the constitution, so in 2000 I simply filled out the first question, asking how many people lived in my home, and I mailed it back. They sent one of their goons out to extract more from me, but I wasn't home, so they gave up. It was pretty simple.

Keep in mind that only 67% of the people responded to the 2000 census and no one was prosecuted for not responding.

Some additional links that popped up around the 2000 census:

55 comments:

  1. You raise a very legitimate point; I was recently made aware of abuses of Census data that occurred just in the last few years as part of the CAPPS II program (which is alarming given how many people have wrongly ended up on the terrorist watch list):

    http://www.pcworld.com/article/110614/feds_defend_datamining_plans.html
    http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-10-23-Watchlist_N.htm

    The worst part is that the Census went around to social service agencies to get them to beat the bushes to turn out people to be counted - and they assured them specifically that the data wouldn't be used by anyone other than the Census because that was one of their concerns (and then they turned around and handed it over to the intelligence agencies).

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  2. HA! I bet you were for the Patriot Act. It's okay for the government to listen in on your phone calls and read your e-mail. Just don't fill out that Census! Wouldn't want them to know that your house was built in 1989 or whatever!

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  3. Do you have any idea what you are talking about? No, as a matter of fact, I do not support the "PATRIOT" Act. I'm for small government across the board. The Census is an unnecessary intrusion and it has been abused in the past. I'll use your same uninformed methodology to insist that you support concentration camps for Japanese Americans.

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  4. I understand your point. census information is very public. So why couldn't other parts of the government access it. I am sure as long as you have the common sense to lie on questions like "do you know how to make a bomb" or "Have you ever committed a federal crime" you won't have any visits by anyone besides a census worker. like they would even ask those questions. If they are covering up for some underground super secret government plan by saying "this is to figure out how much money we get." Wouldn't they have questions about income and your car and stuff? I understand they would ask how much money you make and spend and how much stuff you have, you know, just to expose any fraud, stealing, or anything. It's not a big deal. Just scribble normal answers that won't get you in trouble and send it back. This is assuming you did something wrong. COnsidering you guys are worrying about it, i assume you might have. This is kindergarden stuff guys. Come on.

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  5. Legal Authority to Ask Intrusive Questions Not Present

    This Constitution and the Laws made in Pursuance thereof... shall be the
    supreme Law of the Land...all Judges shall be bound thereby...any Thing...to
    the Contrary notwithstanding.
    Article VI, Clause 2, of the Constitution of the United States of America
    (1789).

    The general rule is that an unconstitutional statute, though having the form
    and name of law, is in reality no law, but is wholly void. Unconstitutional
    law bears no power to enforce, it purports to settle as if it never existed,
    for unconstitutionality dates from the enactment of such a law and not such
    time as branded in an open court of law. It confers no rights; it imposes no
    duties; affords no protection; it creates no office; it is in legal
    contemplation, as inoperative as though it had never been passed. No courts
    are bound to uphold it and no persons are bound to obey it.
    16 Am Jur 256.

    The Fourth and Fifth Amendments were described in Boyd v. United States, 116
    U.S. 616, 630, as protection against all governmental invasions ....of the
    sanctity of a man's home and the privacies of life.'' We recently referred
    [381 U.S. 479, 485] in Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643, 656, to the Fourth
    Amendment as creating a ....right to privacy, no less important than any
    other right carefully and particularly reserved to the people.''
    GRISWOLD v. CONNECTICUT, 381 U.S. 479 (1965)
    Declaration To Make To Census Takers

    "I hereby affirm that the provisions of Title 13 ....requiring'' me to
    disclose my race, personal financial data, birthdate, or any other personal,
    private information to the Bureau of the Census, an agency of the United
    States government; constitutes an unreasonable, unwarranted search of my
    person, house, papers, and/or effects; and a governmental invasion of the
    sanctity of my home and the privacies of life. As such, these provisions
    violate the Fourth Amendment of the US Constitution, and are thus wholly
    void and I am not bound to obey them.

    I have completed the only those sections of the Census form pertaining to
    the Constitutionally-mandated actual enumeration, as follows:

    1. The actual number of people living at the address printed on the form,
    excluding untaxed Native Americans;
    2. Age of each person in accordance with US Const. Amendment XIV, Section 2.
    3. Sex of each person, in accordance with US Const. Amendment XIV, Section 2


    I have thus fulfilled my obligation to the attainment of the actual
    enumeration of the populace of the United States.

    Any fine or other sanction that is levied by any office or organization
    stemming from the unconstitutional provisions of Title 13 in connection with
    my response to this or any other Census-related questioning will be
    challenged in a court of law."

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  6. Print out a few of these and have them ready when the "goons" arrive.

    http://billstclair.com/blog/images/public-servant-questionnaire.pdf

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  7. If the census asked the right questions like - Do you speak english , and are you in this country legally? Maybe I could take them a little more seriously. But they are more interested in asking how much I make a year ,or do I have any firearms.( next they will be asking how many times a week I have sex) None of anyone's business.We are not on trial here!!!!!!!. However people living on my dime illegally , another story.

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  8. Census results are used to help fund each state appropriately, if you aren't being counted how will your state receive the money it needs to support you and your family? Also how will anyone know how many people live in your city or state? The 10 questions are very basic, and do not get very personal. We are all sworn to very strict confidentiality clauses we can be fined up to $250,000 and up to 5 years in prison if we give out any information. Census Workers only come around to verify that your house is where previous workers have said they are, to hand out census forms, to verify that previous workers have done the job they have claimed to do and eventually to help fill out the forms if there is some question to it. By law, the Census Bureau cannot share respondents' answers with anyone, including the IRS, FBI, CIA or any other government agency. If it happened in the past then whoever gave out the information should have been prosecuted in accordance to the law. The Census Bureau never:
    Asks for your full social security number
    Asks for money or a donation
    Sends requests on behalf of a political party
    Requests PIN codes, passwords or similar access information for credit cards, banks or other financial accounts. For more information see the sites below.
    http://www.census.gov/survey_participants/household_surveys/am_i_required_to_participate_in_this_household_survey.html
    http://2010.census.gov

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  9. Thank you, dear Census worker, for regurgitating the same Census talking points that we've all heard 1000 times.

    I simply ask the readers: do you trust the government?

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  10. I'll put how many people live in the home.

    They know twenty different ways and already have in their possesion all of the information in the other nine questions.

    This is about as stupid as wasting 45 million dollars in stolen taxpayer money to send me a letter stating I will be getting another letter in a week.

    This government is a joke, a fraud, and no longers listens to The American People.

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  11. I have been in the legal field for my entire life and I am here to tell you that you only are required to answer ONE question and that is how many are in your household! Besides this answer I have a point to make. According to the census bureau the following is law: "The law specifies no information, no answer you give to the census can go outside of the census," Groves said last month during an appearance in Evanston, Ill. "We just use your answer and accumulate them with everyone. No law enforcement at the state, local and federal level can have the information..................now, with that being said...even if you did not answer ANY of the questions, just HOW could they prosecute you if in fact none of your answers can be given or obtained by any law enforcement agency including the Federal Government?????? IF they were to try you could prosecute them for fraud!

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  12. to Census Worker. Since when it is the State's job to support me and my family with Federal Funds?

    "Census results are used to help fund each state appropriately, if you aren’t being counted how will your state receive the money it needs to support you and your family? "

    I guess you are one of the moochers.

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  13. Dear Census Worker: Here's a news flash: I don't want your damn money, and moreover, keep your hands off what is mine, and my neighbors. My federal taxes should be paying for national defense, not some crappy art in New York or San Francisco. You just want to know who lives where, so you can take MY money and give it to someone else. No thanks!

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  14. Dear Census Worker,
    You state:

    "if you aren’t being counted how will your state receive the money it needs to support you and your family?"

    This is not a communist country (yet), I support myself and my family. Your mentality that the state or government is responsible for taking care of us is the problem with Obama and this country.

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  15. I like the information that palerider gave and plan to print out a copy of that and mail it in with my partially completed census. I also appreciate Ron's response earlier today, and may even amend what limited information I was going to give based on that.

    Really, how are they going to come after you? According to palerider, probing to deep into one's personal life (which the short census form does - I just received mine in the mail today) is actually an unwarranted search by our government, and they are actually the ones in jeopardy, not the citizen.

    The Constitution protects the citizen, not the government!

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  16. You can't tell me that the IRS (Illegal Revenue Scalpers) can get access to this info. They can cut off your mail and internet privileges if they don't like what you say. If you are an illegal alien, they cannot ask for any personal information.
    We can be fined 5,000,00 for not tell them what they want to know. Our government has sold us out to Mexico and yet I'm supposed to support a government that has turned on me. I believe they call that treason.
    Yet if we turn on our government, (the one I fought for in Viet Nam for absolutely NO GOOD REASON, WE ARE TRAITORS.

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  17. Let me start by saying that I believe the whole Census issue is intrusive, and I intend to answer only the number of people in my household. BUT, knowing also that the Government can intrude into any aspect of my life, including internet activity, I wonder how many people freely give up all sorts of info to countless numbers of sites for various reasons, but then scream CONSTITUTION when the Census wants to know some of the same questions? I am not trying to be a jerk, but does that make sense to anyone else?

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  18. I have read everyones responses and i am proud to live shoulder-to-shoulder with you and call myself an American. I will do my duty as a concerned American and spread the word.

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  19. So by law all I have to answer is question #1, how many people are living in this house?

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  20. I just got the form in the mail.
    It looks obvious to me that only question number 1 (how many people in the house) is required to be answered. The rest look like optional disclosure items. Look at the form... The number one question is in a box by its self! It has a black box around it and has a darker blue background. Within the box it states the obvious.. "The Census must count every person living in the United States on April 1, 2010" Period. No where on the form does it say you must fill out the rest of the questions.

    Anyone else notice this?
    Are they protecting themselves in case you fill out the rest?

    I'm all for simply filling out question number one and mailing it back.
    How can we be sure we won't be bothered if we stop at question 1 ?

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  21. American, The Census Bureau Chief himself has made the statement on TV several times and in fact has shown the legal document that states the following: "NO Cenus information by law can be shown to any city, county, state or Federal law enforcement agency for 72 years" - Having been in the legal field all of my life what that means is they absolutely cannot arrest you or prosecute you if you do not fill out the rest simply because that would mean they would have had to show your form to some law enforcement agency and my friend all courts are law enforcement agencies and that would place them smack dab in the middle of a lawsuit for FRAUD and it would then be the Census Bureau that would have broken their own law. I hope that helps.

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  22. I applaud Census Worker from posting on this thread. I am sorry he/she hasn't stayed involved to help us to understand the "interesting" issues in the text they wrote - specifically the "if you aren’t being counted how will your state receive the money it needs to support you and your family?"

    While that's been addressed by others above, I think there's another question I've seen that raises my eyebrows and that's question number 10.

    "Does Person 1 sometimes live or stay somewhere else?" The answer choices seem logical except for "At a seasonal or second residence." I'm sure you've heard that our benevolent government is looking for ways to raise dollars to fund their financial black-hole projects and policies...compiling this kind os specific information will not help calculate the money my state will receive to support my family and I....no....it'll reveal the next money mine the govt. will target to pay for their lack of fiscal restraint.

    Also - what does my race have to do with the number of people living in my house on April 1, 2010? Black, white, Hispanic, Asian - one person is still one person regardless of race...or was this some attached bill that was attached to another bill that was secretly deemed through congress? It's so hard to know anymore....

    ALSO - what's to stop anyone from lying? That's more the norm these days....

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  23. If its a known fact that only 67% of the population filled out the census in 2000, then obviously the the population as a whole is being counted somewhere. Otherwise how would they know about the missing 33% percent? My bet is that in general the states are still getting the funding they need without the help of the census. The fact alone that statement even exists proves the census is worthless.

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  24. It also stands to reason that if 1 question is required whereas the rest are optional, it would be safe to assume the "protection" stops there. I would even be willing to bet that would hold water in court. The protection offers a nice little overall generic blanket of "security", but in reality could be ripped apart right there with that fact alone. There is a fine line, and it's not made known to the general public.

    If you were being questioned by police and gave the answers that were required of you, that's one thing. Once you start giving optional information...that is a whole other ball game.

    People have been wary of the census since it came into existence. Most of the negative feelings about the census were caused by the census itself in it's presentation. The overall clarity (or lack thereof) of the requirements/laws are still a source of distrust in the system, as it should be.

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  25. You can be sure that all the illegals will be filling out this form - maybe even adding a couple of people to it so that the state they are living in will get more of our tax dollars to support them and get more representation in Washington! There is something very wrong with this process. They should be counting only US legal citizens and what is with them counting college kids at school and not at their legal residence as stated on their driver's license?

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  26. I'm from the goverment and I'm here to helpMarch 18, 2010 at 12:07 PM

    Maybe the information they cannot share with anyone else is the number of people living at the house, since the rest is being offered for free when you fill up the rest of the form that is fair game to share with law enforcement, fatherland security, et all the alphabet soup agencies.

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  27. "if you aren’t being counted how will your state receive the money it needs to support you and your family?"

    Thank you "Census Worker" for this illuminating and idiotic statement. Are you now saying that the state is going to support me? I realize the goal of this administration is to crash our economy and make us all dependent upon the government but if I don't answer does that mean I have to support myself and my family as I have done my entire adult life? And on the flip side will my answers to the census guarantee me that I can now enjoy a life of leisure?
    Dumbass liberal.

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  28. I am 35 years old and have been growing more and more interested in the operations of the government (local and federal) since Clinton's second term. I have been listening to talk radio for over ten years and have had my eyes opened to the media left in the past couple years. We are watching history be made right now and I have to say, I am also in agreement with another who said I'm proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with you people. I am an American who loves our country so much and am finding myself in awe at the stomping on the Constitution of the United States. Most of these questions are none of their business!! Won't you all please just answer number 1, as will I and let's stand against the irresponsible spending of the governments!? It's not just DEMOCRATS either. Romney started the MASS HEALTH CARE DISASTER and he was Republican. (he says it wasn't all done his way, but whatever, the government ought to STOP trying to be a provider of services!!!) The current president hates the Constitution because as he said 'it does not specify what government should do only what it shouldn't' (paraphrase but you get the point.) As an American, I believe that if you don't like what the US Constitution states, then either move or try to change it! You aren't allowed to DO WHAT YOU WANT because you are the president! (I wonder how many voted for him and didn't realize the ANTI American we were voting for. I'm thinking impeachment could be coming if there isn't an up and down vote.)

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  29. I for one agree with ProAmerica above - I am sick and tired of this so-called president and would fully support impeachment proceedings. I am also sick and tired of things like special treatment for special states and giving extras to those states just to get a vote...isn't that called EXTORTION! What happened to the government being FOR THE PEOPLE and not for the states! Senators, Congressmen and even the President does not listen one bit to US, the people but rather they have their own agenda and they are willing to do whatever it takes to achieve their goal.

    It is time we STOP this madness of letting OUR government run roughshod over our people. It is time we step up and let our voices be heard. Things like spending millions if not billions of dollars on military equipment, sending it to police actions such as Vietnam, Korea, Iraq, Afganastan and more (YES, I said POLICE ACTIONS - because not one of those actions was a declared WAR - and I did 3 tours in Vietnam, so I believe I have a right to call it as it is) and then leaving most of that equipment there but of course blowing it up or putting a phosphorous grenade on the engine so it will melt to the ground!

    Giving grants to people to study the South American pissant and things like that are also just plain STUPID. Grants above a certain dollar amount should be voted on........ and I believe that serious matters such as abortion, gun control, and many other matters should be voted on by the PEOPLE and not by a congress or even the Supreme court.

    The Supreme court even recently did a really STUPID thing by allowing uncontrolled giving of gifts to presidential candidates and all that is going to accomplish is what it just did in this last election.....BUYING the presidency!

    This so-called president has now refused more applications for information under the Freedom of Information Act than Bush did in all of his 8 years and I did'nt like Bush so don't go there!

    We need to WAKE UP AMERICANS and get this CLOWN out of office before it is too late.

    I LOVE my country but this government and especially this so-called president is bordering on being communist. Mayby he should run for President of the Soviet Union as he would then probably fit right in!!!!!

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  30. To American on March 17th, 2010 :

    Having a graphics background, I noticed the same thing myself.

    "...Look at the form… The number one question is in a box by its self! It has a black box around it and has a darker blue background. Within the box it states the obvious.. “The Census must count every person living in the United States on April 1, 2010″ Period. No where on the form does it say you must fill out the rest of the questions."

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  31. First off the census is not what provides funds for my family it is my hard working husband. It is his tax dollars that goes towards funding for illegal immigrants and idiots that are to lazy to work. Why waste money on sending out census forms when you can turn that money around and already put it towards funding instead of useless pieces of paper. Does the census really count all the illegals living in this country? I think not! What a waste of time!!!!!

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  32. I answered: amount of people; no additional people; age; race; sometimes lives somewhere else. Nothing else!

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  33. Title 13

    Sec. 221. Refusal or neglect to answer questions; false answers

    (a) Whoever, being over eighteen years of age refuses or willfully neglects, when requested by the Secretary, or by any other authorized officer or employee of the Department of Commerce or bureau or agency thereof acting under the instructions of the Secretary or authorized officer, to answer, to the best of his knowledge, any of the questions on any schedule submitted to him in connection with any census or survey provided for by subchapters I, II, IV, and V of chapter 5 of this title, applying to himself or to the family to which he belongs or is related, or to the farm or farms of which he or his family is the occupant, shall be fined not more than $100.

    (b) Whoever, when answering questions described in subsection (a) of this section, and under the conditions or circumstances described in such subsection, willfully gives any answer that is false, shall be fined not more than $500. (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, no person shall be compelled to disclose information relative to his religious beliefs or to membership in a religious body.

    Based on the above information from the official census site itself, I will have my 13 year old son fill it out. Not 18, can't be prosecuted! ;)

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  34. Wow. You people have made out this census to be a tactic thought up by the current administration as some kind of conspiracy against us all. How do you come to that conclusion? The 10 basic questions on my form were simple - who lives here, who else lives here, blah, blah, blah. All info anyone googling could find out. You give more info on your tax return. You give more info to paypal. You give more info to anyone you give a check to.

    These questions are no more invasive than they have been in the past. In fact, there are less questions this year than 30 years ago.

    Again, I have to say WOW. You are some angry, angry people with some far out there distrust issues.

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  35. I just put mine in the mailbox. I did not have a chance to fill it out until just now, so I am not sure that they will get it by April 1,2010. But I did it when I had the chance and it is not as if I am being compensated for my time. I filled out the number of people in my house and on the race question, I wrote the word "American" for each person in the house. If the purpose of the census is really to simply conduct a head count in order to determine adequate funding and representation for my state (Michigan), that is all they need to know.


    P.S. No anger or trust issues here, just to busy EARNING a living to spend my time performing unnecessary tasks for the Government.

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  36. Hopefully someone is still reading this.

    I sent my form back the day I received it with question 1 - only - answered (i.e. the number of people).

    I received a post card reminder a week or so ago.

    Today, I received another census form, affirming that I must fill it out *or else* a census worker will be knocking in (*ahem* 'on') my door.

    Hmmm, what to do, what to do. I shall still be only returning the form with question 1 filled out.

    Oh, and this isn't about a conspiracy, or people necessarily out to 'get' us. There's a principle at stake: the government is becoming far more intrusive in our daily lives. Small evils we can tolerate, but the comes a time when one must take a stand.

    Please read the Declaration of Independence.

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  37. Hi Ocean Two,

    I am still watching this blog, I found it really interesting. I filled mine out the same way you did. I have not heard back yet but I am fully expecting to. My stance on someone coming to my door is this:

    If I did not invite you, you are not welcome.

    I will not take time I could be spending with my family or working for my own purposes, to answer a bunch of questions that I have no legitimate reason to answer.



    Then as you said, I will invite my unwanted guest to read the constitution if they would like further information on my responses.

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  38. It's None of Your BusinessApril 4, 2010 at 4:07 PM

    Dear "whatever",

    “You people have made out this census to be a tactic thought up by the current administration as some kind of conspiracy against us all. How do you come to that conclusion?”

    Wow. You people can read this blog and come up with some far out there accusations.
    WHERE in this thread has anyone said that the current administration thought up this year’s census? The census has been around for many previous administrations. You seem truly astonished to find that there are Americans that have "far out there distrust issues".
    Are you kidding me? How old are you? 10? Do you know anything at all about our government? Have you heard about the National Debt? Illegal immigration out of control? Rights violated? Oh, you don’t think Americans should be angry about things like these?
    WOW. You are some ignorant, ignorant people with some major passive issues.

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  39. You should not call the census takers goons. These are just your fellow citizens trying to make a little extra money. Many of them are doing this work after they get off from their full-time job. The people who are knocking on your door are going to lose their jobs as soon as the census is over. Its ok to criticize the people who created the document and the document itself, but you don't have to be rude to the poor guy that has to knock on your door.

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  40. I am a good American and proud of it and I did what all GOOD AMERICANS should do. i filled out #1 and thats it. the rest they already know

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  41. I get the big brother thing. I don't agree with it, but I get.

    I think the real value of the census is from a genological standpoint. Ask anyone who has researched their family history, they have used census records to trace their roots. I know it's not important to the conspiracy theorists, but to a large portion of the public, there is a valid reason for knowing more than just a number. Knowing race is an important identifier and having names of everyone in the house makes tracing the branches on your family tree a little more doable. Yes, birth, death and marriage records may supply the same info, but census records provide an insight to how your family lived, grew, and moved between birth and death.

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  42. This is a response to the post above the last one by Carl Bowman. You can put forth any argument you wish but the US Title Code does NOT trump the Constitution no matter who thinks it does. You are required by law to give the house count, your age, name, race, and gender and that is it. Your financials, if you rent/own your home, or any other private personal info. For those of you who don't like for you race to be given, oddly enough it is the laws from the civil rights advocates which is what requires you to answer to ensure you are being treated fairly. As far as the other personal info such as age, name, gender and such. They claim it is protected under federal law; but it is the federal government which is using the info so shall the federal government then punish itself? I don't see how the 4th amendment would apply here but the duty of the Federal government to take an enumeration of the population of the US shall be for the use of perscribing the disribution of Congressional seats and no other. It does state as the law allows. While we are on the subject of amendments Congress has added in pursuance of the census let us discuss the 14th amendment section 2 which is NOT US Title Code but US Constitutional Amendment which states:

    (Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons.)

    Therefore your duties perscribed under the jurisdiction of the United States Constitution are to provide Congress with a number of household to distribute seats. Know your rights as not only an American but a human being. You must answer the Census but you are only required to give an account of the number in your house. No US Title can repeal this process nor augment it. There is no amendment to the Constituion which requires you to answer more then that. No matter what the Supreme Court rules you are not in violation until the Congress repeals the 14th amendment and passes another to require the current questions to be answered in full.

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  43. Im not filling it out and I dont care how many people they send to my door; no one is getting in and no one is getting any answers.

    The government is bullcrap and it's not my job to help them in any way. Let them figure out another way to allocate money without disturbing me.

    I dont benefit from it anyway. Roads, schools? Who cares. I dont have children, dont want em. Let parents pay for private education. Not my problem.

    Roads? Come on. Our infrastructure is a disaster. No census is going to fix that & so the only way things get fixed is to count people? How about counting the traffic on the road on a daily/hourly basis. Thats the real way to correct the problem.

    Schools? We have a count of kids in school. So um duh... what does it matter what the census says?

    This is bullcrap and I refuse to cooperate. When the government promotes freedom for all citizens and we all have the same rights. When the church is out of our government then I will cooperate.When the Mormons are not given protected status as a religion, then I will cooperate. Until then..no way Jose.

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  44. One question I'm really hoping one of you guys could answer:

    When the workers come out to your home, do you have to let them in? Or can you answer the 1st question for them OUTSIDE of your home? Is it required by law that I let them into my home? That seems just as much of an intrusion, IMO, as some of the questions.

    Another posted said it best: "If I didn't invite you, you are not welcome."

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  45. I'd like to add: "...outside of your home or via the telephone."

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  46. in such Manner as they shall by Law direct. if actually read the law it goes into detail how the government can request or change the info they ask for. Its funny because everytime you fill out an application your giving more info then the government ask, corporations trade your info all day and scammers use it against you with out you knowing everyday. So if the government wants to ask a few ?'s that dont mean any hill of beans well here you go mr government. Btw when you refuse to answer the reason the census folks dont come back because they got the info from your neighbor after harrassing them thats why the neighbor gives you those looks and if not hello social media, hello the internet. never fails so just answer the questions because they get the info anyways and by not returning the envelope you are wasting tax dollars on them to come to u when dont answer your door you are still wasting money when u refuse to answer they will continue to get paid. so get a life take your head out of your rear. last not so the census worker knocks on the door and a lady answers she refuses to give info what is she watching Gleen Beck, true story.

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  47. I'm really "proud" to know that we have so many unpatriotic Americans in our country. Ever since Watergate and Vietnam the American public as a whole has been becoming more distrustful of the government and are becoming more independent. A little over half the Country votes and fill out the census.
    No wonder people are so upset at our country. The voices of Americans as a whole aren't being heard. If everyone voted and everyone filled out the census properly and timely then we would have a better say in government and our tax money could be better spent. It costs money, taxpayer money, to pay for a Census worker to come around and ask you to fill out the Census. All the questions they ask on the Census are beneficial.
    The government has all of your information anyway (Patriot law, drivers license, passport, etc.). The Census is required by law and is apart of how our government runs. I could go on and on about this but I would rather suggest that people do some critical research online and go to college and either audit Political Science classes or get credit for them and get a degree. The more educated a person is, the more they understand and participate in government. The ignorant are skeptical. So if you do not trust our government then I hope it's not just because Obama is President.
    People please stop being ignorant and naive. This is why the Founding fathers made the government a Republic because they knew the majority of Americans don't have the know it all to make intelligent decisions of how to run our government. And yes they are just as skeptical as most of you on the government. That's why they have so many checks and balances. As Americans we should be able to trust our government more than citizens of any other government out there! We have a "living" constitution that is the supreme law of the land. Countries such as England have no written constitution and the citizens have less rights than us. America is the greatest country out there but in order to make it better we all need to do our part as citizens!!

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  48. By the way Tom, Census workers by law are required NOT to ask or enter your home. They are normal American citizens people just like you and me who believe they have a responsibility as an American to help the government count every citizen out there and to make sure the questions are filled out. They understand and realize the importance of the Census. They have no ulterior motive. They are just doing what they think is right. Please treat them with respect as I am sure you would want to be treated that way.

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  49. JJI3 you sound like an Anarchist.
    Unfortunately Anarchy does not work. People are social and will always ban together and form bonds and with anarchy you're on your own. You make your own food, clothes etc. As a society and a Republic we pool our resources together which in turns makes us a stronger society. Instead of doing everything for yourself, you can do a specific job, such as plumbing or teaching, while someone else can make your clothes and produce food for you to eat. The concept of vacation and play came about because of the industrial revolution. Government started Unions and the 8 hour work day. This allowed people to play, have down time and find a purpose in their life. Without the government you would be having to survive each day by putting in hard work. Vacationing and playtime would be non existent. Now I know that you did not state you are an anarchist but you talk as if you can do whatever you want with no consequences. Our government is about protecting the rights of Every citizen and ensuring them all equal opportunity. The more intelligent a society gets the more progressive and liberal they become. Humans thrive on each other. Chimpanzees have the knowledge to make tools but they don't progress as a species because they don't have the brain development to pass knowledge along. Humans compound our knowledge. In other words we build ideas on top of ideas. Just because you don't have children doesn't mean you don't have to pay takes that go toward public education. You are hurting are species as a whole. Maybe I'm going off on a tangent but let me ad this. In order to receive benefits and protection form the government you need to do your part as a citizen. It's a trade off. We agree to give up some of our rights in order to gain protection and benefits form the government. It's called a social contract theory. If a country invades us, say North Korea, then the government is here to protect you. Without the government there to protect you, then you would be screwed if an invasion occurred! Stop being selfish, for the betterment of the human race and the citizens of the United States. You have freedoms and rights that many of the citizens of the world would die for.

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  50. Yet another Census WorkerJune 6, 2010 at 2:17 PM

    OMG there are so many of you out there that sound/are completely parinoid, it's because of people like you that Census Workers are hired in the first place. If you had just answered the questionair and mailed it back on time no one would have come to your home, no Census Workers would have to have been hired and trained, costing massive tax dollars!

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  51. If the real reason of the census is to allocate tax dollars then they could use the IRS database. It has all the info of those here legally and pying into the system.

    The real reason for the Census is to reallocate our money to those here illegally.

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  52. I am currently doing work for the census as a way to make some extra money, and I'm not sure how to feel about all these comments shared here. I will start with the obvious, though:

    1) I don't appreciate being referred to as a "goon," just because I work for the census and some of you happen to have a huge disgust for the process. It does not mean every agent of the census is equally as vile.

    2) There is definitely a purpose to the census, which does have benefits. I guess that can easily get lost in all of the controversy surrounding it.

    3) And unlike the "goons" you refer to, I actually inform people of the purpose and reason behind certain questions to actually ease their minds. Most importantly, I let them know what they are required to provide and what they are not required to provide. If people wish to give more than just a head count, that is fine. If not, I deal with the consequences as a result of that decision myself.

    I'm so ashamed to read how some people are actually referring to these citizens as goons of the census. For shame....

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  53. I'm in agreement with PD. In the days of horses and covered wagons or even the days of rooms filled with file cabinets the census would have been an easier way for the government to get it's information but in today's computerized world all of the required information is at the govenments fingertips, they just need someone smart enough to extrapulate and compile the data.

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  54. You're missing the point. If you give government an inch, they take a mile. You obviously missed the part about the Japanese Americans; they weren't exactly felons were they? Your point about tax evasion makes my point as to why we should put an end to the IRS, it invades personal privacy. Economic liberty and individual liberty are one in the same.

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  55. You are an IDIOT!!!...

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