Free Republic

It was reported the other day on an inside page of the Pioneer Press, and without nearly enough fanfare, that more than six out of 10 women who give birth in their early 20s are unmarried. That is census data, from census demographers, from the very government that then becomes responsible for many, if not most, of those unmarried women and children. If that isn't an astonishing statistic, it should be. Why, to any logical person's way of thinking, it explains everything in terms of government at all levels bloating out of control. Supposing that even angels might fear to...

I cannot sit silently after reading “Census Calling on Kaua`i” (April 29, 2013). The article is counter to my personal experience and I feel compelled to share my experience with you. In the article the statements made by Mr. Gene Henry of the American Community Survey are counter to fact. This is not a letter representing one party or another. It is not an attempt to sway you to opt out of the American Community Survey. It is simply a recitation of fact. In 2010 my wife and I received a letter demanding that we participate in the ACS. The...

The issue of "who's minding the kids" is now taking back seat to "who is having the kids." The just-released Census Bureau Report, "Social and Economic Characteristics of Currently Unmarried Women With a Recent Birth, 2011," (SECCUM) describes for the first time the demographic details of non-marital childbearing -- and it is not a pretty picture. The report reveals dramatic increases in non-marital births and is the first Census Bureau report showing the relationship of non-marital births to geographic variations and educational attainment. It is depressing yet unsurprising that with median age of women at first marriage approaching 27 years...

I just received a Census form (yes I know it is 2013)and I am wondering just how much information I need to give the government. I thought that the Census was required every 10 years. Why are they now asking MORE questions? They want name, age, marital status, race, type of house, when built, how many rooms, how many bedrooms, computers, what kind of internet service, utility usage, monthly rent... the list goes on. My question to all you Constitutional Scholars: How much information am I REQUIRED to give?

First time I've tried initiating a post, hope I'm doing this correctly (apologies if I am not!). I have received an American Housing Survey Worksheet in the mail from the U.S. Department of Commerce (second census I've had in two years) asking for very private information (how much I pay in utilities, total real estate costs, how much I put down to purchase my home, how much I still owe, etc.). I am really getting upset by these intrusions. Is it legally expedient for me to answer these questions? I feel that my civil liberties are being invaded. I do...

What parts of America have been growing during these years of sluggish economic growth?Answers come from comparing the Census Bureau’s just-released estimates of metropolitan-area populations in July 2012 with the results of the census conducted in 2010.The focus here is on the 51 metro areas with populations of more than 1 million, where 55 percent of Americans live — most of them, of course, not in central cities but in suburbs and exurbs.Two growth champs stick out — Austin and Raleigh. A half-century ago, neither of them amounted to much.The counties now in metro Austin had 300,000 people in...

What parts of America have been growing during these years of sluggish economic growth? Answers come from comparing the Census Bureau's just-released estimates of metropolitan area populations in July 2012 with the results of the Census conducted in 2010. The focus here is on the 51 metro areas with populations of more than 1 million where 55 percent of Americans live, most of them of course not in central cities but in suburbs and exurbs. Two growth champs stick out -- Austin and Raleigh. A half-century ago, neither of them amounted to much. The counties now in metro Austin had...

A record number of U.S. counties -- more than 1 in 3 -- are now dying off, hit by an aging population and weakened local economies that are spurring young adults to seek jobs and build families elsewhere. New 2012 census estimates released Thursday highlight the population shifts as the U.S. encounters its most sluggish growth levels since the Great Depression. The areas of natural decrease stretch from industrial areas near Pittsburgh and Cleveland to the vineyards outside San Francisco to the rural areas of east Texas and the Great Plains. A common theme is a waning local economy, such...

WASHINGTON — After more than a century, the Census Bureau is dropping its use of the word "Negro" to describe black Americans in surveys. Instead of the term that came into use during the Jim Crow era of racial segregation, census forms will use the more modern labels "black" or "African-American". The change will take effect next year when the Census Bureau distributes its annual American Community Survey to more than 3.5 million U.S. households, Nicholas Jones, chief of the bureau's racial statistics branch, said in an interview.

I received this in the mail the other day. The front of the envelope reads: "U.S. Census Bureau Form Enclosed. YOUR RESPONSE IS REQUIRED BY LAW. Please complete and return by February 12, 2013. I knew the Census is part of the Constitution but a business census? They have pages and pages of forms they want filled out. They want to know how many employees, all my financial numbers, (sales and types services and products offered). First, is this Constitutional? Second, doesn't the IRS have most of this information already?

PHOENIX -- Members of the Independent Redistricting Commission want a federal court to block them from being questioned about the legislative maps they drew. In legal papers filed in U.S. District Court, attorneys for the five commissioners said their actions are protected by "legislative privilege," a legal concept that generally prevents lawmakers from being questioned or sued about how they reached a decision. And they want a three-judge panel hearing the case to preclude lawyers for the challengers, from being allowed to ask them about it in pretrial depositions. But Joe Kanefield, one of the commission's attorneys, said this is...

Islam is the fastest growing religion in England and Wales, according to new census data. The number of people identifying with no religion nearly doubled over the last decade while the percentage of people who call themselves Christians has dropped to 59 percent, down from 72 percent 10 years ago. The Muslim Council of Britain was pleased with the new data, saying Muslims were playing a “significant part in increasing diversity in Britain.” Of the roughly 56.07 million people counted in the census, 33.24 million described themselves as “Christian” while 2.7 million identified as Muslims, an increase from 3.0 percent...

There has been a huge 13 percent drop in the number of people in Britain identifying themselves as Christian, according to new data released from the 2011 Census. The shocking statistics reveal that the number of Christians has fallen from 37 million to 33 million since 2001. Christians now make up only 59 percent of the population, as opposed to 72 percent in 2001. Meanwhile, the number of Muslims has risen from 1.5 million to 2.7 million - or 5 percent of the population - while the number of people describing themselves as having no religion rose by 10 percent...

Five of the Top 10 wealthiest counties in the United States are in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area--within commuting distance for the thousands of federal government workers, lobbyists, lawyers, defense contractors, think-tank experts and political operatives who work in and around the nation’s capital. The five counties have median household incomes that are roughly double the national median of $50,502. Loudoun County, Va., which lies to the north and west of the District of Columbia, topped the list in 2011, with a median family income of $119,525, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates (SAIPE),...

White people will no longer make up a majority of Americans by 2043, according to new census projections, part of a historic shift that is already reshaping the nation's schools, workforce and electorate. The official projection, released Wednesday by the Census Bureau, now places the tipping point for the white majority a year later than previous estimates, which were made before the impact of the recent economic downturn was fully known. America continues to grow and become more diverse due to higher birth rates among minorities, particularly for Hispanics who entered the U.S. at the height of the immigration boom...

As the din of America’s falling headfirst over the fiscal cliff reverberates across the nation, the Obama administration is quietly killing a key economic metric that tells how, and how many, people are voting with their feet. Since 1991 the Internal Revenue Service has been compiling statistics on filers’ addresses, which the agency’s Statistics of Income division uses to show who is moving into and out of every county and state in the nation. As you’d expect, the IRS also knows the aggregate income levels of those who move. So the movements of the most fundamental productive components of the...

WASHINGTON (CBSDC/AP) – As President Barack Obama is set to begin his second term, new statistics on America’s poverty rate indicate that nearly 50 million Americans, more than 16 percent of the population, are struggling to survive. New figures released by the Census Bureau this week found a spike in poverty numbers last year, going from 49 million in 2010 to 49.7 million last year. The numbers may come as a surprise to Congress, which estimated in September that the poverty rate would drop to 46.2 million. One of the most startling findings showed that almost 20 percent of American...

Barack Obama is set to begin his second term, new statistics on America’s poverty rate indicate that nearly 50 million Americans, more than 16 percent of the population, are struggling to survive. New figures released by the Census Bureau this week found a spike in poverty numbers last year, going from 49 million in 2010 to 49.7 million last year. The numbers may come as a surprise to Congress, which estimated in September that the poverty rate would drop to 46.2 million.

The U.S. Census, always seeking ways to go above and beyond its constitutional role of counting the number of people in the United States, may be planning to ask questions regarding sexual orientation in the 2020 Census community survey.

Has anyone else received this survey in the mail in the last month?Allegedly it's from the census bureau and dept of commerce. The form asks very intrusive personal questions such as: "What time do you go to work? What time do you return from work? How much income do you earn?". I had never heard of this survey before so I didn't respond. A stranger showed up at my door and has left a couple of notes asking me to contact him to complete the survey. Get this - this alleged Government worker even contacted my HOA's Management Co and...