Interesting. Just remember that it's only as good as the information supplied on the census form. Not everyone fills in all that extra information. We just supply the mandatory information on the first page which is basically name, address, and how many people are living in the household. We're surrounded by water and fishing is big. Yet, they only have us at .8 for farm/fishing/forestry. We have fishing, potatoe farms, and all the vineyards. So, this figure is way off; and some of the other ones are also.
Well, nothing is going to be perfect. These are the best statistics available, and are taken as officially valid. I like the Census, but the Census system should be tweaked a bit, to reflect modern society and the many diverse families represented here in America. Also, the Census system needs to try to be more thorough in it's statistics-gathering techniques.
But, on the flip side, Americans really need to fill out the Census forms as honestly and accurately as possible, so that the information provided is counted. People not filling out the information contained in the longer forms, should not then gripe if the statistics seem less-than-inclusive or representative of the actual information of a region or state.
A census is simply a head count, nothing more. All the other added questions are just for "The Man" to gather more personal information on us; and, I for one, am not going to let him stick his nose into our business so easily. Maybe, other people don't mind being so open and forthcoming with all their personal information, but we're not. Just remember the next time you fill one out, it's just for purposes of counting population; and you are only required to fill only that information out on the first page.
If you thought my post was a gripe, then you misinterpreted it. I was merely posting information on the census for those who may not have known this.
