Elect fiscally responsible candidates? Why don't you just campaign for Martians while you're at it?

Wow, how timely. A few of us were just talking about the stupidity of this yesterday.

Send me a letter to tell me you're sending me a letter. How stupid do they think the American people are, anyway?

This was my reaction too, until I read what Mike Madden had to say over at Salon.com. He maintains the letters will actually help the bottom line, the way advertising pays off for businesses.

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2010/03/10/census/index.html:

"Yes, printing and mailing letters advising people that the Census forms are on their way is expensive. But as Census officials must be getting tired of pointing out, every 1 percent increase in return rates actually saves $85 million later this year. Because when people don't send their forms in, the government has to send an interviewer out to talk to the households in person. Ten years ago, letters like the one that went out this week increased Census participation by 6 percent. Which would translate to a $510 million savings -- and there's no way it costs that much to send out the letter."

Oops, bad URL. Let me try again.

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2010/03/10/census/index.html

I've heard that some people have gotten mailed multiple notices that the census is coming.

On my way to work this morning, I had this thought that the US Treasury has become a multi-trillion dollar money laundering scheme disassociating spending from taxation. On the radio this morning, someone was talking about a suggested local loan program which wouldn't put the taxpayers on the hook because the funds would come from federal grants. Apparently, the disassociation is working. Federal money comes from printing presses, not taxpayers, right?

It gets worse. My husband recently sent an inquiry to the government and received a letter informing him that they had receieved his letter but had not yet read it. We were told he'd also be informed when they got around to reading it (nothing yet on that front), and then would receive a third piece of correspondance with an answer to his question (when is anybody's guess). We could have done with just the one letter, thanks. Or maybe an email.

Send me a letter to tell me you're sending me a letter. How stupid do they think the American people are, anyway?

Ever Drive around Phoenix?

3 & 1/4 miles before your exit there is a sign warning you. Why they cant just leave it at 3 and drop the 1/4 I'll never understand - just think of how much money you can save on that alone.

2 & 1/4 miles there is another sign, and another at 1 & 1/4.

Then once the exit lane forms there is a big sign that lets you know you are in an exit lane and the exit it 3/4 of a mile away. There is another reminder at 1/4 of a mile. Then just as the exit lane branches down the off ramp there is ONE MORE FUCKING SIGN, apparently to remind you you have exited the highway.

DO we really need SIX FUCKING SIGNS for every single goddamn exit.

Its a retorichal quesion I know, apperently even that isnt enough, you wouldnt beleive the number of people who still miss the exit and cut across the gravel and brush between the highway and the lower part of the offramp. OR thenumber of people how drive straight into that last sign

Anecdotal evidence of anything, including government waste, is often easily rebuttable but many examples spur a deeper look which might uncover a better solution.

Why do we collect census information the way we do?

Couldn't the government send a letter that invites us to a website to complete the survey, saving the cost of printing, mailing and data entry?

People interact with the government in a variety of ways throughout their lives and each of these interactions could provide sufficient data for the census.

I like to encourage people to vote, I think once you start doing it you develop a desire to know what you're voting for.

Yes, there is some percentage of the population that is "off the grid", but I would argue that the percentage of people that don't have a drivers license, state ID, pay taxes, vote, have a passport, attend school (or whatever form of government interaction would be sufficient to count them) is less than the population that the current model misses and it would be cheaper as we are already doing it.

I also think that drawing data from several sources would probably result in a better count than the traditional once a decade model currently used.

I think I'll be off the grid from now on. Too many people know too much about me already.

My friend's son's school has Census shirts. You know, for all of those elementary school students that aren't filling out the Census forms in a timely manner.

I've found it interesting that the Census Bureau has changed its approach this time around. Ten years ago, there was a lot of mention in the communications that "you're required to do this under penalty...", blah, blah.

This time around, I've heard nothing at all about penalties. This time, it's been 100% about responding in order to get your and your town's share of federal goodies.

There's no doubt that this appeal to people's greed will work better than the appeal to fear did before. But it's all the same to me -- my census form will state how many adult U.S. citizens reside at this address -- nothing more. That's all they need to allow the census to be used for its constitutional purposes.

I salivate over all Census records!

They are your eternal gift to all future historians.
So please fill in absolutely everything in the greatest, most incontinent, detail possible. Thank you:)

Some quickie factoids: yes, individuals are technically safe from any info being used against them by snooping gov't agencies. No, it hasn't always been so - no surprise there! Yes, people have always been nervous about the Census - moving to lurk with distant relatives - going abroad, even going camping for the duration! - that's been going on for centuries.

What's a "jerkwad"?

What's a "jerkwad"?

Posted by: just asking

Based on the entomology of the base words forming the new word it would be logical to assume a jerkwad is a wad that appears when one jerks

Ah, I see. Thanks for clearing that up, luljp!

>>Based on the entomology of the base words forming...

TONS of people make that mistake, luljp. Here's the trick a kind teacher gave me ages ago (the bolded part is all you need to remember whenever you dither over which to use..)

"Entomology is the study of insects, like ants (“ant” looks like “ent-”) but etymology is the study of the history of words (from Greek, originally meaning “the true meaning of words”)."

I didn't get a letter... I guess I don't count. *sniff*

Don't cry, Nicole, you'll get one sooner rather than later; I just got mine today.

Regarding the census itself, here is the best suggestion I have seen yet:

Fully one-quarter of the space on this year's form is taken up with questions of race and ethnicity, which are clearly illegitimate and none of the government's business (despite the New York Times' assurances to the contrary on today's editorial page). So until we succeed in building the needed wall of separation between race and state, I have a proposal. Question 9 on the census form asks "What is Person 1's race?" (and so on, for other members of the household). My initial impulse was simply to misidentify my race so as to throw a monkey wrench into the statistics; I had fun doing this on the personal-information form my college required every semester, where I was a Puerto Rican Muslim one semester, and a Samoan Buddhist the next. But lying in this constitutionally mandated process is wrong. Really — don't do it.

Instead, we should answer Question 9 by checking the last option — "Some other race" — and writing in "American." It's a truthful answer but at the same time is a way for ordinary citizens to express their rejection of unconstitutional racial classification schemes. In fact, "American" was the plurality ancestry selection for respondents to the 2000 census in four states and several hundred counties.

So remember: Question 9 — "Some other race" — "American". Pass it on.

Regarding the census itself, here is the best suggestion I have seen yet ...

Now with improved, actual, linkageness.

Well, the postal service needs the revenue...

I do see good in encouraging folks to do their constitutional duties. More so than the mailings and robo-calls I am getting from my health insurance provider encouraging me to contact my representatives in support of their interests! How is my health being served by this type of expenditure of my health care dollar? C'est la vie, at least my credit union bundles useful information with my statements.

hey skipper-I answered 'human' race. It isn't any of their business. They will just use all of the demographic data to justify directing our tax dollars to some 'need' they perceive that we have. I answered both own & owe and own & don't owe just because that too is none of their business.

To Hey Skipper: Damnit. Just bloody damnit all to hell. Your suggestion, and I do like it a lot, is a few hours too late. Er....for me. But it is an excellent suggestion and one I would have availed myself of had I read this before dropping the damn envelope in the box earlier.

While all of that race and whatnot data may be interesting getting enough people to just answer "American" would be very very nice. Apologies to the US for failing in that regard.

Hmm. Waste? We're training against arc flash vulnerabilities at SRS, based on an electrical system we don't have.

Anywhere on site.

ju2144:

You have proved yourself smarter than I by a factor of at least two.

The race section of the census form contains the following: *box* Some other race--Print race

I suppose one could just print 'race' like it says to do.

They try to dumb these forms down to the lowest common denominator. I think the 6th grade reading level is the goal.

What does the law say we have to give them at a minimum?

I suppose one could just print 'race' like it says to do.

Make that three times.

Got the letter, haven't received my census yet. I hate the letter that says I will be getting a letter, but then I am one of those people that actually opens all their mail. It doesn't cost me too much time and I don't miss stuff.

etymology is the study of the history of words (from Greek, originally meaning “the true meaning of words”)."

I once did a Christopher Durang piece for a Forensics (or speech team, or debate team, whatever you wish to call it) tournament that talked about the etymology of the words "drama" and "theater." One of my judges thought that etymology was the study of insects and gave me a bad rank because my piece didn't make sense. The piece also starts out "Dear theatergoers" and she wrote on my sheet "What are you doing? Are you writing a letter?" I have never since forgotten the difference between entomology and etymology. Stupid judge.

Did the Skipper thing. (Checked with a friend first to be sure I'll have company in prison.)

I got mine! I was very dissapointed, I thought they were going to ask for all sorts of info like religion and income. But they only wanted my age and race.

Where do they get that info if not from the census?

@NicoleK: Statistical sampling from the long form, which is randomly distributed to every n-th person.

No, I don't care to find out what n is.

*****Instead, we should answer Question 9 by checking the last option — "Some other race" — and writing in "American." It's a truthful answer but at the same time is a way for ordinary citizens to express their rejection of unconstitutional racial classification schemes. In fact, "American" was the plurality ancestry selection for respondents to the 2000 census in four states and several hundred counties.*****

Damnit, I WISH I'd seen this yesterday!

I will definitely keep it in mind in the future, though.

> I thought they were going to ask for all sorts
> of info like religion and income.

I remember there when there were all sorts of questions: "Do you have a flush toilet?" and things like that. Now it's all about skin color. I hope in some future generation, they'll ask if you pay taxes. Not if you have deductions; if you pay taxes.

This will likely offend someone - but I laughed.
(Census humor!)

http://www.iranican.com/blog/?p=1055

I checked 'white' and 'other' and in 'other' I put 'human'. Now watch. I'll be the one getting the phone call. Jody, that was a funny video, thanks for sharing! o.O

in 2000, all I did was fill in the number of people in residence and mail it back in. They didn't need to know anything else on there. The Census is to be used for apportionment of the House of Representatives, not as a general demographic analysis tool.

Flynne, surely you did not give them your phone number??

Flynne, surely you did not give them your phone number??

No I didn't, but I'm in the phone book, and since they have the address....

o.O

I was feeling generous, so I gave them my name and age, but they'll have to find the phone number and DOB. Hell they already have that information anyhow since it's on the form I filed with the IRS for an EIN.

Oh, and Race: American. Until we get to the point where everyone decides to answer that way, Dr. King's work remains unfinished.