Fun_People Archive
7 Apr
Fill Out the Census and Win Your Own Bureaucracy

Content-Type: text/plain
Mime-Version: 1.0 (NeXT Mail 3.3 v118.2)
From: Peter Langston <psl>
Date: Fri,  7 Apr 100 05:12:26 -0700
To: Fun_People
Precedence: bulk
Subject: Fill Out the Census and Win Your Own Bureaucracy

X-Lib-of-Cong-ISSN: 1098-7649  -=[ Fun_People ]=-
X-http://www.langston.com/psl-bin/Fun_People.cgi
From: Keith Sullivan <ksullivan@worldnet.att.net>

FILL OUT THE CENSUS AND WIN YOUR OWN BUREAUCRACY
By Dave Barry, The Miami Herald, April 2, 2000

Unless you are hiding in a drain pipe, by now you should have received your
census questionnaire from the federal government.

The census is a federal tradition dating back to 1790, when President
Washington ordered all citizens to form a line and count off by ones, thus
establishing that the U.S. population at that time was "eleventeen."  In
modern times, the census is taken by the Census Bureau every 10 years, as
required by the Constitution.  (For the other nine years, Census Bureau
employees play pinochle while remaining on Red Alert, in case the
Constitution suddenly changes.)

How important is the census to us today?  Here's a quote from a letter my
household received from Kenneth Prewitt, director of the Census Bureau:

"Huwag ninyong sasagutin ang Inggles na form na inyong tatanggapin sa
koreo."

I did not make this quote up.  More than half of Mr. Prewitt's letter to
my household is written in various foreign languages.  As far as I can
tell, in this particular quote Mr. Prewitt is saying:  "Anybody who gets
sausage and eggs on the census form will end up (something bad) in South
Korea."  This is not a threat that the federal government makes lightly.

Why is the census so important?  For one thing, it enables the government
to locate its citizens so it can administer programs to them.  The census
also determines our congressional representation, which is very important.
For example, in the 1990 census, a homeowner named Ward A. Frondflinger
Jr. of Lawrence, Kan., left his census form out on the dining-room table,
and unbeknownst to him, his children filled it out and mailed it in, with
the information that his household had 984 million members.  Today, the
Frondflingers are personally represented by 12 congresspersons and five
U.S. senators, and they have their own naval base.

Contrast their situation with that of North Dakota, which, because of poor
participation with the 1990 census, wound up reporting that it had a total
of only seven residents (the actual number is believed to be much closer
to nine).  As a result, today North Dakota has zero representatives in
Congress and may no longer even be part of the United States.  (Somebody
should go up there and check.)

So the "bottom line" is that it is in your best interest, as a citizen, to
fill out your census form.  Here's some information to help you:

Q. What kinds of questions does the census form ask?

A. Most citizens will receive the short form, which asks you only for basic
information that the government needs to administer programs to you, such
as your name, age, sex, race, weight and whether or not you wear thong
underwear.

Q. What if I get the long form?

A. You had better know something about calculus.

Q. Is my census information confidential?

A. Absolutely.  Nobody is allowed to see your personal census information
except federal employees and their friends.

Q. What are my choices regarding my race?

A. You may choose from any of the following federally approved races:
Black, White, Beige, Blush, Bisque, Asian, Latino, Caucasian, Person of
Color, African-American, Native American Indian, Spaniard, Original
Hawaiian, Asian Minor, Native Alaskan, Person of Density, Indian Indian
from India, Caucasian-Asian Hawaiian, Hispano-African-Alaskan Native Indian,
Ohioan, Native Hawaiian Tourist, Munchkin, Italian Samoan, Wisenheimer and
Presbyterian.  Or, if you prefer, you may invent your own race, and the
government will create a large bureaucracy to keep track of you.

Q. Why does the government need this information?

A. That is none of your business.

Q. I have an imaginary friend named Mr. Wookins.  Should I include him on
my census form?

A. Of course.  The federal government spends billions of dollars on
imaginary programs; these must be targeted to reach the people who really
need them.

Q. Is there a place on the census form where I can tell the government how
much I hate these stupid low-flow toilets?

A. The government has provided margins for this express purpose.

Q. What will happen to me if I fail to complete the census form?

A. In the words of Census Director Prewitt, "Matatanggap ninyo ang Tagalog
na census form sa loob ng dalawang linggo."

Q. Can he DO that?

A. Do not tempt him.

Copyright 2000 Miami Herald.  All rights reserved.
http://www.herald.com/content/archive/living/barry/1999/docs/april2.htm

© 2000 Peter Langston