The census taker was Japanese-American (has relevance later.)
Census taker: Hello sir, I'm from the census. Is this [insert my address]?
Me: Yes
Census taker: I need to fill out this census form for your household. It'll take about 30 minutes (long form.)
Me: We already filled out all the required questions and mailed in the form.
Census taker: Oh, you already filled one out?
Me: Yeah. I filled in just the constitutionally required information, which is how many people live in the house.
Census taker: So you don't want to answer any of the other questions?
Me: No.
Census taker: Would you mind telling me why?
Me: There is only one question that is constitutionally authorized. I'm not required to give any more information, nor do I want to. I'm not comfortable giving all that personal and financial information.
Census taker: All the answers are strictly confidential. Do you know about the Privacy Act?
Me: Yes I do. I also know that during World War Two, census records were used to help round up Japanese-American citizens to take them off to the internment camps.
Census taker: [displaying "I never thought of it that way before" look] Ok, thanks for your time.
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"Anyone feel like saluting the flag which the strutting ATF and FBI gleefully raised over the smoldering crematorium of Waco, back in April of ‘93?" -Vin Suprynowicz
Census taker: Hello sir, I'm from the census. Is this [insert my address]?
Me: Yes
Census taker: I need to fill out this census form for your household. It'll take about 30 minutes (long form.)
Me: We already filled out all the required questions and mailed in the form.
Census taker: Oh, you already filled one out?
Me: Yeah. I filled in just the constitutionally required information, which is how many people live in the house.
Census taker: So you don't want to answer any of the other questions?
Me: No.
Census taker: Would you mind telling me why?
Me: There is only one question that is constitutionally authorized. I'm not required to give any more information, nor do I want to. I'm not comfortable giving all that personal and financial information.
Census taker: All the answers are strictly confidential. Do you know about the Privacy Act?
Me: Yes I do. I also know that during World War Two, census records were used to help round up Japanese-American citizens to take them off to the internment camps.
Census taker: [displaying "I never thought of it that way before" look] Ok, thanks for your time.
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"Anyone feel like saluting the flag which the strutting ATF and FBI gleefully raised over the smoldering crematorium of Waco, back in April of ‘93?" -Vin Suprynowicz