Census, Schmensus

The Constitution calls on the government to conduct a Census every 10 years to determine how many people we should have in the House of Representatives—period.

But in 200 years, the Census has morphed into much more than a head count. The government is now interested in everything from disabilities to employment to income. It wants to know how many rooms your house has, when it was built, where you get your water, what your utilities cost, how you financed your home, and how many cars, telephones, and bathrooms you have. Answering the Census is not an option; it's the law.

But why does Washington need to know all this? The government's answer: The Census will determine how nearly $200 billion in federal loot will be distributed.

Apparently, the government sees Americans with their hands outstretched, anxious to receive anything they can from the nanny state. I don't know about you, but I think I'd rather they didn't take so much away from me in the first place.

With good reason, millions of Americans are letting their representatives in Congress know they don't like the intrusiveness of the year 2000 Census one bit.