Posted on 09/03/2014 6:05:13 PM PDT by ROCKLOBSTER
It was just about dark, I was at the kitchen table when the dog barked, headlights were coming up my driveway. I went outside to see who it was...he was a stranger.
He announced that he was from the Census Bureau and wondered if this was a good time for a 40 minute interview. He proceeded to tell me all about the Census, how it established demographical statistics and how I was required by law to answer the questions.
I told him two people live here and we are American Citizens, and that I would tell him nothing more. He said he doesn't make the rules, the politicians do, and the Census isn't political. I replied that is was and asked him why it was now being run by the White House...he denied it.
He claimed all information is "confidential" I said, just ask the NSA, they already know everything about me, have you heard about the NSA scandal? (No.) I said, all information with the IRS is supposed to be confidential, and they are sharing it with political organizations. He said "I don't work for the IRS." I told him, "I don't care, people don't trust the federal government."
Then he told me it's all about money, and we print the money that everyone uses. I said, it is the medium of exchange, but we could use gold just as well. And it's none of your business.
He repeated that it's required by law that I answer the questions. I asked, what is going to happen am I going to jail if I don't? He said; "No, this isn't criminal, it's civil."
I asked, so you are going to file a civil suit against me if I don't comply? He said, "I didn't say that." I asked, "Well just what are you saying?"
He said, "It could cost you money" and that's all I can say." I said, "Who told you that? By what authority can you violate my right to privacy and fine me if I don't comply?" He replied, "It's federal law."
I said, "Do you know what the Constitution does?" He answered, "It authorizes the census." I told him, "It limits what the federal government can and can't do, and it doesn't say you can come on my property and cross examine me."
He said, "I work for you."
I was wild..."I've told you all I'm going to tell you, and if you claim you work for me, I'm telling you we're done." and pointed towards the road.
He left. The whole ordeal took about 30 minutes.
Has anyone here had a similar experience with a tenacious census taker? I'd say don't engage them in the yard, and for God's sake don't let them in the house.
Not to worry. I got ID frauded about 12 years ago. All they needed was my name and address from the phone book.
They made a phony check and wrote it to a Walmart in Charlotte. The police called me and asked me if I wrote it.
I told him I've never been there in my life and had no account in that bank. Filled out an affidavit of fraud.
My thoughts on being enumerated aside, methinks taking the opportunity to be an enumerator (or voting site assistant, or draft board member, etc) is actually a very good idea for right-wingers. These are Constitutionally established activities (however badly/maliciously implemented), and it behooves us to be a part thereof - if for no other reasons than to simply observe the real process, and to state Constitutional views on the subject to other workers & managers.
Wow, Rock! This guy sounds like a typical stupid liberal.
Never heard of the NSA spying? Did he sleep through Snowden et al? Bet you he isn’t even aware of the IRS denying non-profit status to any group to the right of Ted Kennedy, nor knew anything about Lois Lerner and her missing hard drive, thinks Obama is just swell, and thinks Republicans are too right-wing nowadays. Oh yeah, and probably thinks Sarah Palin is stupid.
Then again, all of THAT could be a result of driveby media bias, too. Bring this up again on the Sunday thread...
Oh, and I think you did a GREAT job replying to him and standing firm. If you need a hunert bucks, Larri, I got it raght here for ya!
LOL!
Me too but there’s only so much room on the house before it starts to get confusing.
My “There’s Nothing Here Worth Dying For” sign is almost too faded to read, now, so maybe....;]
There are people who are allowed on your property, even with the “no trespassing” signs. And yes, if you tell them to leave, they have to leave. But they can come back. And no, I’m not talking about the police.
And you all know that with a “no trespassing” sign, first you have to tell them to leave. If they return (above exception), THEN they are trespassing and you should call the police or take whatever action you feel is responsible, always with the law in mind.
The difference between what was on there and what’s on there now is just crazy.
Back then, how many people, how many bathrooms, what race are you just about summed it up.
Now, it’s *pages* long and too damn nosy.
*Most* of my enumerators were just there to fulfill unemployment/welfare obligations or to earn an easy wage.
There were not many right wingers.
Thanks.
He was mostly trying to sell his right to interview me, and not taking "no" for an answer...he never actually asked any questions.
I never threated him, but told him repeatedly that two people lived here and that's all I was going to tell him.
I was still smokin' when I went over to the neighbors and delivered a tirade, telling them what just happened. They were aghast and thanked me for the heads up. I could hear them all PO'd talking to each other in the kitchen as I walk back home.
laughed until the tears rolled down my cheeks.....
Thank you for the reminder. I read that years ago and laughed until I cried.
I would have thought census activity wasn’t expected for another five years.
We only answered two or three of our questions this past census and we never had a follow up letter or visit.
From what I’ve read, they have nothing to back gathering more than the most basic “number of residents” questions. If they kept showing up, I’d smile and say, “sue me.” There no authority for personal questions by any census worker and you’ll find no one ever gets fined.
Same thing here but I'm not polite to them and do cause them grief. Over 50 years I've come to know exactly how far I can go without getting a 'threatening behavior' or 'disorderly conduct' charge.
Public Servant’s Questionnaire
Basically, it ties them up in bureaucratic knots by making them comply with the laws that protect US. They usually get frustrated to the point they just leave, but the added bonus is you have ALL their info in the event they become total jerks.
You handled it well.
I had a series of increasingly intrusive contacts with the Census Bureau, beginning in Dec 2013. Finally I emailed my state Representative about it, as he’s a member of Oath Keepers and extremely conservative. I was subsequently contacted by his office, and told that they would be following up on what I had told them. I never heard from them after this, but I never heard from the Census Bureau again either. Here’s what I sent my Representative:
Dear Representative XXXX,
My name is XXXXXX. I am one of your constituents, living in XXXXXXX.
I am writing to you to express my concern regarding recent contacts I have had from the US Census Bureau, and to ask your opinion and advice in this matter.
In December 2013 I received a letter from DHHS, advising me that I had been selected to participate in a survey for the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). The letter advised me that a Census Bureau interviewer would be coming to my home to ask me some questions that would require approximately one hour of my time. The letter further advised me that my participation was voluntary. There was a phone number on the letter that I could call for more information. I verified online that this is a legitimate survey and that the letter I received is legitimate.
I called the number on the letter and advised the person I spoke with (Marie) that I understood my survey participation was voluntary. I advised her that I declined to participate in the survey and asked that no one come to my home. She said that wasn’t a problem, and while I was still on the phone with her, she found my address in her survey database, found the name and email address of the field supervisor connected to my area, and forwarded a written message that I declined to be surveyed.
About 4 weeks later I found an envelope from the US Census Bureau taped to the front door of my home. On the front of the envelope was the handwritten message “Sorry I missed you. Please call.” Inside the envelope was a brochure titled “How the National Health Interview Survey Keeps Your Information Strictly Confidential.” Also in the envelope was a business card with the field representative’s name and the phone number for the Los Angeles Regional Office of the US Census Bureau. (XXXXXX 800-XXX-XXXX)
I called the phone number on the card and spoke with the gentleman who answered the phone. I reiterated that I had already called this number a month earlier to notify the Census Bureau that I declined to participate in this survey and to not have anyone come to my home. This gentleman said he understood, and that he would transfer me directly to the phone mail box of the field supervisor and that I should leave this message on that voice mail. He said that, in the event I was disconnected during the transfer, that I could call the field supervisor at his direct line – (XXXXX 818-XXX-XXXX). I was transferred without issue, and the recorded greeting on the voice mail box was from the expected person, XXXX XXXX. I left my message about declining to participate in the survey, not to have anyone else come to my home, along with my name and telephone number should he have any questions.
This past Thursday night (Feb 13th) at 6:30 PM my doorbell rang. As I went to the door to answer it, I saw a flashlight shining through the frosted glass of my front door. When I turned on the porch light, the flashlight was turned off. I opened the door, and said “Hello” to a middle-aged lady who was standing on my doorstep. As I stood in my doorway, she introduced herself as XXXX XXXX from the US Census Bureau here to administer the National Health Interview Survey. I replied quietly but firmly that “Yes, I received a letter from them in December. I called and told them I’m not participating, and not to send anyone to my home. An interviewer left a note on my door about 2 weeks ago saying she was sorry she missed me when she came to administer the survey. I called again and said again that I don’t want to participate and not to send anyone to my home.” The lady on my doorstep said “Good, I’m at the right house. I thought it was your neighbor’s house first, but their driveway was icy, and then I thought I might be at the wrong house.” She then asked, “Can I come in?” and started forward as though she simply assumed I would say yes, and that I would move aside for her to enter my home. I said in a quiet but firm voice, “No.” She stopped her forward motion and then began a nervous-sounding, fast-paced patter that almost seemed as though she was talking to herself. It went something like this: “Oh, you got the letter in December and called them and told them you didn’t want to be interviewed. Then someone came to your house and you called them again. I told her that’s not right. You were perfectly polite, and that’s not right. I’m sorry your dog is upset…” (Indeed, my little dog, blocked in the next room was barking his head off the whole time she was here). I said, “Yes, he gets agitated when someone he doesn’t know is at the front door…” I intended that as her cue to leave, but she just kept standing there talking to herself, paraphrasing “I don’t even have your name or phone number in your case file and your neighbor’s driveway is icy and I was afraid to drive up it…” All the while my little dog continued with his loud barking and she showed no indication of leaving. Finally I interrupted her mid-sentence and said “I have been polite, but I’m running out of patience. Can I have your business card so I can call them again and tell them not to send anyone to my house.” She said “Oh, don’t do that!” She proceeded to take a business card and write some phone numbers on the back of it which she said were her field supervisor’s numbers. She handed me the card and then kept talking, showing no indication that she was leaving. Finally I said, “I have to go now” and began to close the door. At that point she stopped talking and walked away. (Her business card says XXXX XXXX – US Census Bureau – 800-XXX-XXXX)
One hour later, at 7:30 PM, my phone rang. I didn’t recognize the number on caller ID and let the answering machine pick it up. It was this same lady. She identified herself again and said, “I should have talked to your neighbor, but their driveway was icy and I was afraid to drive up it. I was wondering if you could tell me if they’re living there, or do they just live there in the summer? Do you have their phone number so I can call them? I know sometimes neighbors give their phone numbers in case of emergencies, like a fire or something. Can you give me their phone number? I would very much appreciate it if you would call me.” Not only was that a very intrusive request for information about my neighbor, but this same woman had just told me an hour earlier on my front doorstep that she didn’t have MY phone number in her case file, and now here she was calling me.
Of course, I didn’t call her back. I did check the phone numbers she had written on the back of her business card an hour earlier, the numbers she said were for her field supervisor. The name she wrote is XXXX XXXX, phone number XXX-XXX-XXXX. I googled that phone number and it is for “XXXXX Consulting”, a management consulting company located in XXXXXXXXXX.
At this point, I have not called anyone about these latest intrusions by the Census Bureau. I’m almost fearful of doing so. Where is the departmental oversight if the one you call to make repeated complaints to is the same department responsible for the repeated intrusions? With the first intrusion, I chalked it up to bureaucratic incompetence, but now it’s taken on a slightly more sinister air, at least to me. If I continue complaining to them, am I going to suddenly find myself being audited by the IRS? Visited by the FBI?
Representative XXXX, I am an lady who lives alone. I have only myself to rely on for my personal safety and the protection of my civil rights. These intrusions have begun to frighten me. Knowing that you are an advocate of limited government, for controlling government overreach, and for safeguarding our Constitutional right to be secure in our persons and property, I thought to ask you for your opinion and your advice. What do you make of all of this? Who, if anyone, should I call to complain about this and to be assured that it will not happen anymore?
Thank you very much for taking the time to read this; I know it was lengthy and detailed. I look forward to your reply.
Best Regards,
XXXX
Mine went on for several months - the phone calls, the visits. It was the American Community Survey. The questions were quite invasive.
I never answered one phone call or answered the door. They would call several times a day for a month or two. They get very insistent that it’s the law, you must do it, yada, yada, yada. As far as I know they’ve never fined anyone. If they did, it might lead to a class action law suit.....they just want to intimidate people into answering.
Mark is right...don’t lie. I just wouldn’t answer.
That is one of the best stories, ever.
Even more so because my friend, who has a large pack of Ibizan Hounds, regularly is given whole deer by the local hunters and her dogs “take up residence” until the carcass is stripped bare...even the Pugs
Dogs.
Gotta love ‘em.
;]
Thank you so much. That has to be poison to a bureaucRAT.
The census always publicizes the ten-year census widely, and for that American Community Survey earlier this year, they sent me a notice that I would be receiving the census questionaire about a week before I received it. It seems they publicize and give advanced notice so people will be expecting their questionaires.
Did this “census taker” make any mention of forms having been sent out previously?
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