LOL just talked to a friend who is working for the census

[proud2BlibKansan]

She was telling me about people who are refusing to give her their info. One guy went off on her, complaining about her wasting his tax dollars. He claimed there was no law that said he had to do this. She told him yes there is a indeed a law and you can be fined up to $250,000 for refusing to comply. Then he said well it's unconstitutional. And she cited the part of the constitution that mandates the census.

Then she thanked him for wasting tax payer dollars that were paying her to come knock on his door since he refused to fill out the census form that came in the mail. And she told him how much she was being paid an hour to waste his time standing at his door and talking to him.

He filled out the form.

:rofl:

My friend isn't very political so I told her about Michelle Bachman telling folks to refuse to do the census. So she said she was hoping she got a neighborhood full of Bachman fans cause she would make more money that way. I told her to look for those yellow flags and tea party bumper stickers. She about died laughing.

[nadinbrzezinski]

1. Tell her to be careful

some of those goons have guns though.

[DebJ]

2. As a family history researcher, I'm upset the census has so

LITTLE information. I have immensely enjoyed looking at the lives of my ancestors through information found on the older census data. I am eagerly anticipating the release of the 1940 census in 2012 to find more. This current census won't tell future generations squat (72 years from now).

[madinmaryland]

11. I have found the census's to have invaluble information. Yes, the one

this year seemed to be pretty limited in the information submitted.

I wish the 1890 census had not been destroyed. There is a lot of information from that census that would have been really helpful to me.

[DebJ]

23. That's for sure! So many times I've sighed over that one! n/t

[ProgressiveProfessor]

13. There will be many other sources availble for the late 20th/early 21st centuries

And while you find the data useful, I am not sure we should have to support your enjoyment. Collect what the law reasonably requires and move on. The old long form was more than a little intrusive. Even this year's demographic data was questionable in my opinion. Have to wonder how much of it was monkey wrenched.

[DebJ]

24. I don't think my great-great grandparents would object to me

finding out about their lives. Presuming, of course, they know I am doing that, as they've been gone for more than half a century. And it seems most DUers wouldn't believe in an afterlife anyway....

[eridani]

22. It's worse than you think. They want to get rid of the paper after the data is all entered.

Since paper is the only true archival material, this will be a disaster for anyone interested in family history. We need to really start screaming about this.

[Cresent City Kid]

3. If only

What if these anti-census nuts were turned away at the voting booth in November?

"I'm sorry, sir, according to our records you don't exist."

[laconicsax]

5. +1

[laconicsax]

4. She's wrong.

I've been working with the Census off and on for over a year now and the $250,000 fine is if for a Census employee who shares any personal data about a household being enumerated.

The law that requires participation is in Title 13 U.S.C Chapter 7 §221 and all it says is that if you refuse to participate, you can be fined up to $100.

[proud2BlibKansan]

6. Well don't tell that guy

:rofl:

[laconicsax]

12. I've wanted to tell that to a few people.

Her secret's safe with me (and the whole Internet).

[HughMoran]

7. That's funny

She's a real character. :)

[Joe Bacon]

8. Don't count them

If they refuse to participate, don't count them. Then when Michelle Bachman loses her congressional seat, they have nobody but themselves to blame.

[Scuba]

21. +1

[Hugabear]

9. For a group of people who cling to the Constitution so tightly, they sure don't know what's in it

I've had to physically show people the section of the Constitution that authorizes the Census. The Constitution does not mandate how to conduct the Census - it specifically states that Congress can determine how they want to conduct it. I've also had to point out that this year's Census is one of the least intrusive in history. You can find the questions for every Census going back to 1790 online.

[DebJ]

25. every census that is more than 72 years old... n/t

[TreasonousBastard]

10. If only it were so easy. There are a dozen or so surveys at any one time, and...

people seem to be getting more uppity about them.

Today I saw someone who said "Yes, I got the ACS forms in the mail, and I threw them right in the trash. It's nobody's business, and certainly not the government's."

The conversation went straight downhill from there.

Some surveys, like Housing, take a good hour or so and when they get antsy it starts to get ugly.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

14. Bless her...I hate dealing with people

Everyone should have to have a job dealing with people at least once. Maybe people would stop being so assy to each other then.

Do tell her to be careful. Some of those people are crazy

[lpbk2713]

15. Your friend is a better person than I.

I couldn't do that job for more than a few days. I have no patience with willful ignorance.
I'd be telling those assholes to stop listening to the RW Hatemonger Media.

[proteus_lives]

16. I work for the Census too, you get weirdos sometimes.

A real pain in the ass is dealing with leasing offices and landlords.

[laconicsax]

17. Did your LCO give you an access letter?

We got an access letter from our Regional Director explaining the legal requirement to participate. It's in 13 USC 223:

Refusal, by owners, proprietors, etc., to assist census employees

Whoever, being the owner, proprietor, manager, superintendent, or agent of any hotel, apartment house, boarding or lodging house, tenement, or other building, refuses or willfully neglects, when requested by the Secretary or by any other officer or employee of the Department of Commerce or bureau or agency thereof, acting under the instructions of the Secretary, to furnish the names of the occupants of such premises, or to give free ingress thereto and egress therefrom to any duly accredited representative of such Department or bureau or agency thereof, so as to permit the collection of statistics with respect to any census provided for in subchapters I and II of chapter 5 of this title, or any survey authorized by subchapter IV or V of such chapter insofar as such survey relates to any of the subjects for which censuses are provided by such subchapters I and II, including, when relevant to the census or survey being taken or made, the proper and correct enumeration of all persons having their usual place of abode in such premises, shall be fined not more than $500.

[proteus_lives]

18. No, but I've heard of them.

But we weren't lucky enough to get them.

[laconicsax]

20. We had to constantly bug our office for a month before we got them.

The first version looked like something a schoolkid typed up in word and just printed out, including an incorrect citation and no letterhead.

The odd thing is that previous operations had access letters that actually address most of the objections that landlords, etc have. Why they didn't just keep using those I have no idea.

[charlie]

19. No fill out census, no gummint schwag

No gummint schwag makes teabagger even more teabaggy.

Gummint steal! Gummint give money to taco vendor! Hulk SMASH!