Have you lost your Census?

Many months after making a perfect score on the Census test, I was finally hired as an enumerator. The first day of training week was total chaos. They were having a great deal of difficulty matching trainees to their trainers. If they can't keep track of their workers, how can they possibly deal with the entire US population? The rest of the week was pretty much a waste of time as my crew leader/teacher had not seen the information before. We had lots of questions and no answers.

We were given forms and a book of addresses. My first book went well. It was lower middle class neighborhoods with both English and Spanish speaking residents. My Spanish is okay as long as the other person wants to communicate . The biggest problem was the people who were never home. In those situations we were supposed to get as much information as possible from the neighbors. Fortunately for me, many of the neighbors were gossips and I was able to complete the book.

My next book was primarily Spanish speaking people in low income apartments and mobile homes. Locals warned me that there were many illegals and to be careful where I went and parked. My biggest problem in this area was "hiders". I could often hear people inside a residence, yet they wouldn't answer the door.

The Census is mandated by the U.S. Constitution and participation is required by law. I asked what the penalty was for refusal and was told that that there might be a $2500 fine although no one knew how it could be enforced. Our training book said we were allowed to do a maximum of three personal visits to each residence. This was the first rule that was thrown out. We were told to keep visiting the house and/or neighbors until the Census form was filled out. In other words, there would be no refusals because enumerators would keep returning until the information was received.

I had trouble getting Census information in an area of rundown fourplexes. There were lots of "hiders" and tightlipped neighbors. Over the course of my visits to the area, I noticed a smell build from a slight chemical odor to an overwhelming urine/ammonia stench and then disappear. I made jokes about my "meth lab" area until I looked "meth lab" up on the internet and realized I probably had one. Banging on the door of a smelly apartment with a large broken out window and big dog seemed kind of stupid after that. When I expressed my concern, I was told to "keep trying" and "talk to neighbors". I was also told that any negative information I turned in such as "possible meth lab", "angry illegals", etc, would be shredded and another enumerator would be sent. Getting the numbers was more important than an enumerator's safety. There are a lot of people who need jobs.

A lot of people want someone to yell at and I was a captive audience until the form was completed. The strangest encounter was with a person who was very unhappy about the Census counting everyone. She kept screaming about a democratic conspiracy to give everything away to illegals. What's sad about this is that Arizona stands to gain a congressional representative based on our population growth which is determined by the Census. We're counting illegals who can't vote in order to gain a representative who will most likely represent the views of the screaming woman.

Things went downhill from there. I counted squatters in boarded up structures and large numbers of people living in tiny quarters. In an old hotel that had been converted into an apartment complex for illegals, a woman told a large man to get me. I didn't stay long enough to translate the Spanish he was yelling. After that, I revisited the area when the men should have been at work. I almost caused a riot when screaming women came out from all over the apartment complex. I quickly left and never returned.

Arizona government's focus on "Immigration Control" has alienated many people. The bilingual members of my team were given desk jobs. One of them sometimes visited residences, but would not go out alone. The other enumerators spoke very little Spanish. Repeatedly sending non Spanish speakers into poor areas where many illegals are known to live is a recipe for disaster.  To make things worse, the Census form race question said that Hispanic origin is not a race and did not include any options for people of Hispanic origin.

As I progressed through the books, I realized I was being sent to residences where previous enumerators had failed. I was not given any information about the previous visits. I quit the Census when I was told that the most productive enumerators were going to be sent to the homeless/drug areas in south Phoenix.  I could have waited because most decisions were soon changed.  I was asked to do a survey about my supervisor at both the beginning and end of my Census job. The survey was done in pencil, had a place for my name, and was given to the person the survey was about. This survey method usually does not result in an accurate assessment.

Visit my site:  http://www.golio.net/FunnyPage.html

Arizona's Tourist Control

It seems like every move Arizona's state government makes is destined to hurt its number one industry--tourism. What most potential tourists know about Arizona is that it has the Grand Canyon, Sedona, hot weather, concealed weapons, lots of illegals, high sales tax, closed parks, closed rest stops, uneducated people, and police with confusing laws to enforce. I don't think this will encourage tourists, especially foreigners, to flock to Arizona.

Arizona politicians appear to be incapable of fixing Arizona's economic woes. What does a government do when it can't fix a problem? Distract the public! "Concealed Weapons" should have inspired more public response than it did, but "Immigration Control" managed to ignite the public on both sides of the issue. While it hasn't fixed Arizona's economic problem, it has been a successful distraction.

More on Arizona: http://www.golio.net/Arizona.html
Arizona State Parks:  http://www.golio.net/ArizonaStateParks.html