MKuryshev

__MKuryshev State __: Louisiana __Political Party__: Republican __Congressperson most like me__: Rodney Alexander []

__5 Interesting facts about Louisiana:__

1. Louisiana has the tallest capital building in the U.S.A. 2. Baton Rouge, Louisiana hosted the 1983 Special Olympics 3. Louisiana was named in honor of King Louis XIV 4. Louisiana is the only state without counties (It instead has parishes) 5. Louisiana is known as the crawfish capital of the world

__5 Important facts about Louisiana that relate to the issues that interest me__:

1. Louisiana spends an average amount on homeland security comared to other states 2. Louisiana is 5th in consumption of the nation's oil 3. Louisiana spends almost no money on renewable energy 4. Louisiana is the only state where the overall economy dropped last year 5. Louisiana also has the largest below poverty level in the U.S.A.

__Most Important:__ National Defense The Foreign Policy Environment and Energy

1. National Defense I believe the national defense is the major issue that needs fixing. I believe we should greatly focus on stopping terrorism and anything similar because if we can, then I believe everything will improve. Many lives could also be saved in the future. What is most improtant to a democracy? I believe the people are, and if people are dieing for no reason then what's the point? Is the economy killing us? No. Is global warming killing us at the moment? No. Can having a poor national defense kill us? Yes. It's always better to be safe than sorry, and if we're not safe, then we WILL be sorry. There are many things that need to be focused on and the national defense is definitely a top priority.

2. The Foreign Policy I believe that the current foreign policy is simply more than we can handle. Although the U.S.A. should help other countries in times of need, I believe that we are helping others too much. I don't mean to offend anyone by saying this, but we have started fights and wars to protect other countries and their people. I understand we should help out, but if we are fighting someone to help someone else, then are we really helping anyone? It doesn't seem that way to me. We should help others in their times of need, but we simply overdo it most of the times.

3. Environment and Energy This one is plain and simple. We should continue the way we are going with the environment and energy issues that are coming up. People are on the right path towards going green while all kinds of people are figuring out ways to help the environment even more. I believe that the issues with fossil fuels, animal and plant endangerment, and habitat destruction are all huge, but I also believe they could have multiple solutions which can be found. The main thing is that time, not money, fixes problems and if people continue working diligently, then we will find the solutions to these and all of the issues that are important to us.  HB20: This bill is known as “Protect, Reduce, Progress”, and I believe this bill should be sponsored because its goal is to reduce and control one of the nation’s major problems at this time. Everyone knows about the oil spill on the coast of Louisiana right now and wants to stop it, and with this bill in effect, there will be a near guarantee of no more oil spills and less oil will be wasted so the government spends less money on foreign oil. This bill will make oil containers that won’t spill and will also force companies to replace all of their rigs once they are not good enough to pass by safely. This bill will also add an extra fee towards all people who spend more oil than the limit, which will be placed in the future. I believe this bill is great because the fee will be high, but no people will have to make drastic changes with oil usage because there will be time between the bill’s passing and the time the bill goes into effect, so people will not get into financial trouble. In fact, the bill will save people money because they will learn not to waste money and end up not spending as much as they currently would have. The safer oil rigs and containers will also keep from creating oil spills and will greatly reduce environmental destruction. Oil spills account for 5% of aquatic environmental hazards and although that doesn’t seem like an enormous number, if it can be reduced to 0, then many aquatic environments will greatly improve. Not to mention that oil spills kill many animals such as fish and when those die, then fishers have much tougher times making money, ad basically, with this bill, we will protect the oceans, reduce the waste of nonrenewable resources, and then finally, progress towards becoming a greener country, and hopefully eventually, a greener world. __ Resources: __ 1.    "Louisiana Fast Facts and Trivia." //50states.com - States and Capitals//. Web. 20 May 2010. . 2.    //CNN.com - Breaking News, U.S., World, Weather, Entertainment & Video News//. Web. 19 May 2010. . 3.    "Louisiana — History.com Articles, Video, Pictures and Facts." //History.com — History Made Every Day — American & World History//. Web. 20 May 2010. . 4.    //Infoplease: Encyclopedia, Almanac, Atlas, Biographies, Dictionary, Thesaurus. Free Online Reference, Research & Homework Help. — Infoplease.com//. Web. 20 May 2010. . 5.    "Oil Spills: Impact on the Ocean - Sea, Effects, Temperature, Percentage, Important, Largest, Types, Source, Marine, Oxygen, Human." //Water: Science and Issues//. Web. 10 May 2010. . 6.    "Oil Spills | Emergency Management | US EPA." //US Environmental Protection Agency//. Web. 17 May 2010. . 7.    "How Much Do Television Ads Costs? - A Primer on Television Advertising Costs - Resources for Entrepreneurs - Gaebler Ventures - Chicago, Illinois." //Entrepreneur Resources - Resources for Entrepreneurs - Gaebler Ventures - Business Incubator - Holding Company - Venture Capital (Chicago, Illinois)//. Web. 19 May 2010. . 8.    //United States Department of Defense (defense.gov)//. Web. 20 May 2010. . 9.    //CBP.gov - Home Page//. Web. 20 May 2010. . 10.    "Oil Spill." //Encyclopedia of Earth//. Web. 20 May 2010. .