AOW_9_Gr910_NGSSS The U.S. Census: Why Our Numbers Matter
I still bear the mental scars of a question on a philosophy exam in college
that left me whimpering at its wicked simplicity: "Could the number two change its
properties?" I'd been raised to think numbers were as close to reliable as anything could
be, so clean and clear and immune to argument. Some are odd, some round, some lucky,
but three will always be one less than four.
This is the season when we are reminded that you can safely and reliably count just
about anything other than people. Census comes from the Latin censere, which, tellingly,
does not mean count so much as estimate, and 2,500 years ago in Rome, people were
already squirrelly about being estimated. The penalty for refusing to reveal how many
people were in your household, how many slaves, how much livestock, was forfeiting it
all and becoming a slave yourself. The Bible tells the story of God getting so mad at King
David for ordering a census (granted, it was because Satan had talked him into it) that He
sent a plague that killed 70,000 people in three days.
David's plague may have deterred census takers for many years, but when the
Founding Fathers invented American democracy, they realized that if you are going to
have government by the people, you need to know who and where they are. The founders
stuck a Census requirement in the Constitution so that every 10 years, the young, stretchy
country would recalculate which states got how many lawmakers. They worried that a
state might try to inflate its population to increase its representation, so they cleverly
arranged that the first Census would also be used to spread around the costs of the
Revolution. In 1790, 650 federal marshals on horseback began going house to house. It
cost $45,000 and took a year and a half to count 3.9 million people.
Two hundred twenty years later, lawmakers are so unpopular, it's a wonder people
fight over the means of getting more of them — except that nowadays about $400 billion
per year in federal aid follows the Census numbers, for everything from jobs to bridges to
schools, so this really matters.
Of course, there would be more money to spread around if it didn't cost so much to
count us in the first place: about $15 billion, according to some estimates. That includes
$338 million for ads in 28 languages, a Census-sponsored NASCAR entry, hiring Marie
Osmond to do outreach on QVC, $2.5 million for a Super Bowl ad and spots on Spanish
radio and soap operas and Dora the Explorer. The ads are meant to boost the response
rate, since any household that doesn't mail back its form gets visited by a Census worker,
another pricey line item. In all, it will work out to about $49 per person, which makes you
wonder whether the government should have just sent an e-mail instead of a packet that
looks like junk mail. (How about spending a little more money on design?) But the
Census officials worried about privacy, so the increasingly irrelevant post office, whose
volume dropped 13% last year, gets a spring boost.
Why would anyone not want to be counted? Illegal immigrants fear exposure,
despite laws forbidding any court or agency from seeing the information; indiscreet
Secondary Reading High School, Supplemental Articles 910, December 13, 2011 1 AOW_9_Gr910_NGSSS Census workers can be fined up to $250,000. Minnesota Representative Michele
Bachmann warned that during World War II, Census data was shared with the FBI "at the
request of President Roosevelt, and that's how the Japanese were rounded up ... I'm not
saying that that's what the Administration is planning to do," she said, but nonetheless she
vowed that she'll state how many people are in her household and nothing more. Since
participation is mandatory, this puts her in danger of committing a misdemeanor and
being subject to a $5,000 fine.
Bachmann may think the Census is too intrusive; I just wish it were more so. As
long as we're spending all this money to reach so many people, imagine what we could
find out. Which do you favor, Leno or Letterman? Smooth or chunky? Faith or works?
Liberty or equality? As it is, we had little to argue over in my house. This year's is one of
the shortest forms in history, and it is aggressively uninteresting; our dry cleaners demand
more information before they'll do home delivery. The trickiest part for us was to name
what used to be known as the head of household, now designated "Person 1." My
husband and younger daughter filled out the form together and decided that I would be
Person 1.
It made me feel that I counted. But there was no way, surveying my household,
that I could choose who would be Person 2 — unless, of course, the number two
somehow could change its properties.
Source: Nancy Gibbs/Time Magazine 4.5.10
Secondary Reading High School, Supplemental Articles 910, December 13, 2011 2 AOW_9_Gr910_NGSSS The U.S. Census: Why Our Numbers Matter 1.
Which statement best describes the author’s opinion of the Census?
A.
B.
C.
D.
2.
What is one major reason that participation in the Census is important?
A.
B.
C.
D.
3.
Federal Aid from Census counts provides funding for jobs and schools.
The Census cost a lot of money to produce.
It makes Americans feel important.
It tracks illegal immigrants.
Which pair of words from the passage is most opposite in meaning?
A.
B.
C.
D.
4.
The United States marketed a brilliant Ad campaign to boost Census
numbers.
The Census costs an exorbitant amount of money and for the cost should
provide more information.
The Census is unfair for people who wish to remain anonymous.
The history of the Census has always raised suspicions of intrusiveness.
Inflate, Increase
Estimate, Count
Irrelevant, Important
Argue, Aggressive
What can you conclude about Michelle Bachmann’s views on the Census
Count from the following excerpt:
“She vowed that she’ll state how many people are in her household and
nothing more.”
A.
B.
C.
D.
5.
Bachmann is afraid that the Government will find household secrets.
Bachmann believes the Census information can be used in a negative
way.
Bachmann is planning to lie on her Census form.
Bachmann has secrets she is afraid will be revealed through the Census.
How could state’s benefit from an inflated Census count?
A.
B.
C.
D.
There would be an increase in Census officials visiting the state.
More money would be spread around.
Illegal immigrants would be deported.
An inflated population count would raise state representation in
Congress.
Secondary Reading High School, Supplemental Articles 910, December 13, 2011 3 AOW_9_Gr910_NGSSS AOW 9 ANSWER KEY 1.B (LA.910.1.7.2) 2.A (LA.910.1.7.3) 3.C (LA.910.1.6.8) 4.B (LA.910.1.7.3) 5.D (LA.910.1.7.3) Secondary Reading High School, Supplemental Articles 910, December 13, 2011 4