U.S. Census offers to help

I received a letter from Mr. Kenneth Prewitt today. Mr. Prewitt is the Director of the U.S. Bureau of the Census. He wanted me to be sure and fill out my U.S. Census form when I receive it in the mail next week.

I have no intention of completing this form. When it arrives, I will simply discard it. And when they knock on my door to interrogate me, I will eagerly assert my right to refuse to speak to them.

Mr. Prewitt and other federal bureaucrats obviously disagree with uncooperative citizens like me. They want people like us to go along with their sacred federal programs.

These federal bureaucrats want us to remain dependent on their powers in Washington, D.C. More federal funding simply creates a greater demand for the services of Mr. Prewitt and his bureaucratic sort.

“Official census counts are used to distribute government funds to communities and states for highways, schools, health facilities, and many other programs you and your neighbors need,” says Mr. Prewitt. You see, already he is telling each of us what we need–and, indeed, much more specifically and significantly, what we need from highly compensated bureaucrats like him in Washington. In other words, he wants us to help him help us. Forget about helping ourselves; the federal government is there for us–there to service our every need. All we need to do is identify ourselves as the willing political customers of the socialized welfare state. Mr.
Prewitt is there to help.

“Without a complete, accurate census,” cautions Mr. Prewitt, “your community may not receive its fair share.” Fair share? Fair share of what? The federal pie? Well, where did this ‘fair share’ come from? Quite obviously, from the tax dollars of others.

I think what Mr. Prewitt is saying is that the income and assets of other Americans are subject to government expropriation, looting and redistribution. I think what Mr. Prewitt is suggesting is that individuals do not have a prima facie property right to the fruits of their own labor. I believe Prewitt’s statement clearly implies that the federal government should infringe upon our natural liberties and allocate private resources in true centralizedfashion. In fact, it sounds a lot like the despicable Marxist doctrine of “from each according to his ability, to each according to his need.”

But Prewitt does not stop there. In addition to offering federal government handouts in the form of schools, highways, and so forth, he also offers census jobs as well. “You can help in another way too,” says Prewitt. “We are hiring temporary workers throughout the United States to help complete the census.” Very ingenious indeed.

I leave you now with some words of wisdom from former President Ronald Reagan: “The nine most frightening words in the English language are: ‘I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.” Let us also never forget that “a government big enough to give us everything we need is also big enough to take away everything we have.”