Census Bureau Ready to Start counting

It appears that folks at the US Census Bureau are feeling confident that they're going to get a good count in 2010.  Let's hope so.

Jesus is the reason for the Census?

In the 2000 Census, I was impressed by the publicity campaign the US Census Bureau used to promote participation.  For Latinos, they used well-known Chicano folk artists with catchy slogans: Es Nuestro futuro. Hágase contar (It's our future.  Make it Count).

This year the National Association of Latino Elected Officials (NALEO), have been distributing the poster on the left to more than 7,000 churches in an effort to raise awareness of the census among Hispanics. Most were printed in Spanish.

Luke 2:1-4 says Jesus was born during a census ordered by Caesar Augustus. Although historians question the accuracy of the account, Luke stated that everyone had to return to his ancestral town to be registered for taxes and that Joseph and Mary left Nazareth for Bethlehem.

Those of us who attended Sunday school are familiar with the story.   The problem is that some Christians think that it is inapproriate to use the image of Christ to advertise the Census.

The Census Bureau, which did not commission the poster, is staying out of the debate:

 "We work with people from all walks of life to get an accurate count, but we do not provide funding to partner organizations and play no role in the creation of material by private community groups," said Nick Kimball, a spokesman for the Commerce Department, which oversees the Census Bureau.

Census 2010: The Citizenship Question

Two republican senators (Vitter of LA and Bennett of UT) have proposed an amendment to a spending bill that will bar funds being used for the Census if it doesn't ask about a person's citizenship status. The measure would require a change that would cost millions of dollars--and a reprint of 425 million census questionnaires-- and possibly threaten the accuracy of the count.

This seems like one more GOP measure to waste money. Has anyone else noticed that they have no problem ignoring budgetary issues if they want to push a partisan issue like this?

On the upside, this type of political maneuvering could force congress to consider immigration reform sooner.
in reference to: Lawmakers Battle on Census Question - WSJ.com (view on Google Sidewiki)