ysamarasinghe


 * Name:** Yohann Samarasinghe
 * State:** Indiana
 * Political Party:** Moderate

The Senator I mostly agree with is Democratic Senator [|Greg Taylor]. To see his information page, click on his name. I agree with the Senator's pro-stance on "Advance America" issue which was created to better educate and inform Americans on how their government works and how they can make the change they want to see in it. I also agree on how the Senator mostly agreed with the state-wide ban on smoking in Indiana, but also on how he wants to change the exemptions in bill which allow smoking in taverns and pubs.

5 Interesting Facts about Indiana - Indiana has more than 11,000 local officials throughout the entire State - Indiana's capitol is Indianapolis - It was the nineteenth state admitted to the union on December 19, 1816 - Indiana's nickname is the "Hoosier State" - Indiana is one of the United States leading suppliers of Limestone

Facts Related to my Issues: - In 2009, 48.8% of all Hate Crimes were racially motivated, while 18.9% were religion bias, and 17.8% of all Hate Crimes were bias against sexual orientation. ( the last 14.5% were a mixture of many differently bias Hate Crimes) - In Indiana you do not need a permit to purchase and own a rifle, shotgun, or hand gun and don't need a permit to carry a rifle or shotgun. - Julian Assange, WikkiLeaks founder, is one of the world's major leaker of the United States secret documents. - Only one out of every three Hate Crime victims report the crime to the officials. - Guns are used 2.5 millions time a year for self-defense purposes.

The three issues that I find most interesting are Hate Crimes, Gun Control, and Government Secrecy. Hate Crimes- These are a relatively new topic in the U.S.. Hate Crimes are crimes carried out specifically against a person or group of people belonging to a specific race, sexual orientation, religion, or ethnic group. I believe if the government was to pass a Hate Crime Ordinance then most of these crimes would be deterred. Also in this ordinance if the consequences for these crimes were raised there would be less of them occurring and would limit and decrease the amount of discrimination in the U.S.

Gun Control - I personally believe that in the United States the qualifications for a man to own and use any sort of firearms is verry loose. One the one hand it said to be unconstitutional for the government to prevent a citizen from owning a gun. On the other, currently, there are masses of citizens who abuse this right in gangs and for the purpose of harming others.

Government Secrecy- Government secrecy is a very debatable issue; one aspect is that the people have the right to know what is occurring in the government, throughout the country, and around the world, but others think that, for the safety of the country, certain information should not be released to the public. Information like this would include Military plans, Presidential Information, and other information that are valuably kept safe.

My bill was Gun control. This bill added limitations on who could possess guns and created a database for all gun owners in the USA. I support this bill because it makes the u.s. safer without, in my opinion, violating the second amendment. By raising the standards of gun control, there would be less gun related crimes and deaths in America because only more responsible people could own or possess guns.

Bibliography:


 * "Current Issues." // Welcome to the American Counseling Association //. Web. .
 * "Hate Crimes: Overview." // ABC-CLIO //. Web. .
 * "Gun Control: Overview." // ABC-CLIO //. Web. .
 * "Government Secrecy: Overview." // ABC-CLIO //. Web. .
 * "Indiana: History, Geography, Population, and State Facts — Infoplease.com." // Infoplease: Encyclopedia, Almanac, Atlas, Biographies, Dictionary, Thesaurus. Free Online Reference, Research & Homework Help. — Infoplease.com //. Web. .
 * Legislators, NameFind Your. "Indiana Senate Democratic Caucus: Senator Greg Taylor - MY BIOGRAPHY." // IN.gov: Home //. Web. .
 * // Welcome to the American Counseling Association //. Web. .
 * Agresti, James D. "Gun Control." // Just Facts.com //. Web. .
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 32px;">"Hate Crime Statistics, 2009." // FBI — Federal Bureau of Investigation Homepage //. Web. <http://www2.fbi.gov/ucr/hc2009/index.html>.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 32px;">"Factbox: Some Facts about WikiLeaks | Reuters." // Business & Financial News, Breaking US & International News | Reuters.com //. 28 Nov. 2010. Web. <http://www.reuters.com/article/2010/11/28/us-wikileaks-usa-factbox-idUSTRE6AR1OZ20101128>.