Stand Up and Be Counted, Or Else...

You'll be fined 1000 pounds and prosecuted as a criminal by the good people at the census enforcement people. Overreact much?

That's right, it's census time here in the UK so we must all dutifully complete the form we received in the post or suffer the very dire consequences. I don't mind so much, and I understand the need behind census-taking, but some of these questions are way beyond the line of comfort; the ACLU would have a freaking field day with some of these questions.

First off, the questionnaire focuses on an exact date - March 27, 2011. They want to know who was in your house overnight that night, visitors and all. I'm absolutely serious.

Some other invasive questions:

• Are you in good health? Do you support anyone who isn't in good health?
• Do you have a job? How many hours do you work a week? Where is your job? If you're unemployed, are you looking for a job?
• Where were you born? What religion are you?
• List all of the passports that you hold.
• What kind of education do you have?

I have a question for the census questionnaire people: Are you criminally insane? Who asks these kinds of questions in a census?! I've only recently gotten used to the CCTV cameras everywhere, but this just strikes me as bureaucracy run amok. But that doesn't mean I didn't fill it out - I don't have an extra 1000 quid laying around folks!