Some folks are bothered a bit by a couple of trends in the taking of the Census; yes, the one being taken right now.
First is the letter householders are getting in the mail to alert them that they are about to get an official Census form to fill out. It's a bit expensive, but there is nothing wrong with sending out this little teaser. Response rates go up when people are advised that the real thing is on its way. That means fewer, more expensive personal Census worker visits later.
The more troubling problem, rather, is the admonition written in the letter (and in many of the radio ads for the Census) that "Results from the 2010 Census will be used to help each community get its fair share of government funds for highways, schools, health facilities, and many other programs you and your neighbors need. Without a complete and accurate census, your community may not receive its fair share."
This language apparently is meant to motivate people who have a self-interest in getting in on as many government programs as they can. In some eyes, at least, it tends to present the government as a giant warehouse of goodies that will be dispensed only if enough people in "your community" fill out the Census forms.
True, there is a danger that certain minority and impoverished persons will ignore the Census unless they can see some benefit, and the "fair share" argument is supposed to address that. I doubt that the argument carries much weight, actually.
Indeed, I wonder if the self-interest argument doesn't invite a backlash of sorts from some people who think that government hands out too many goodies already. I have heard of folks who are going to refuse to answer the Census, or only answer the basic head count question, because they object to the seemingly meddlesome nature of the forms and the utilitarian appeal of "fair share". Remember, a lot of citizens in Nebraska and Louisiana, for example, didn't much appreciate their senators cutting special deals for health care legislation. Their attitude was, don't try to bribe me with my own money.
I am sure that Census officials really don't want to get involved in the current battle over the size and scope of government.
In any case, there are two over-riding and valid reasons to answer the Census. First, it is your patriotic and legal duty, one of the few functions of the federal government specifically mandated in the Constitution. It is hallowed by age and law. It is an integral part of representative democracy, by which members of Congress are apportioned and seats in state and local government are redistricted.
The second reason is that without the Census many of the other numbers that society counts on--conservatives or liberals alike--would be compromised, especially economic data pertaining to everything from employment to housing. The private sector as well as the government needs an accurate Census. This has been true for literally two centuries.
So it is important to answer the Census. Just ignore the appeals to self-interest--real or contrived. Let answering the Census be one of the real, if small, satisfactions of living in this great and free country.
