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Candidates:
Copy and paste the survey questions below into your word processor, type your
answers and send to
lifepac@lifepac.org, or
print and send to LIFE PAC, PO Box PO Box 871103, Vancouver, WA 98687-1103. Alternatively, you can
freely compose your own statement for posting using some of the survey's themes. Responses will be authenticated
before use.
COMMUNITY
VALUES: A CONSISTENT ETHIC OF LIFE IN PUBLIC
POLICY
1. Do municipal governments
have a responsibility to advance a consistent ethic regarding the respect of
human life?
A consistent ethic of life
focuses first on abortion, but also on issues such as end of life care, poverty,
crime, capital
punishment, war, racism, nuclear arms and exploitation. While these are
nationally debated issues, they have street level manifestations that
municipalities can address. A consistent ethic of life
recognizes that each and
every human being is unique and important, that no person is defined by someone
else's choices, and that no one exists solely as a means to someone else's
happiness. The choices we make, as individuals and as a society, must be weighed in light
of their impact on human life and dignity.
Do municipal governments have a responsibility to implement public policies and
facilitate community action that further a consistent respect
of all human life?
COMMUNITY
PREGNANCY CENTERS
2.
Currently, attempts are being made by pro abortion advocates to pass legislation
in several states targeting pro-life pregnancy centers, even though such
centers
provide those states with valuable community services. In Washington State
HB 1366 and
SB 5274 require: 1. The listing of non-provided services both orally and
in writing. This sets a dangerous precedent allowing any organization
with political clout to saddle its competitors with burdensome requirements
of saying or listing what they do not do. In January of this year,
a federal judge ruled
in Maryland on a similar law that "the Ordinance violates the
Freedom of Speech Clause of Article I of the Constitution of the United
States" (pg. 2) and has a "lack of viewpoint neutrality ... a particularly
offensive form of content-based discrimination" (pg. 20). 2. These bills allow
any Planned Parenthood employee, private citizen, or government entity to
bring petitions for injunctions even if they are repeatedly thrown out of
court. A local pregnancy center, surviving on donations, cannot
defend itself in Superior Court pro se (without representation) and cannot
afford to pay a lawyer to defend them even once, yet alone multiple times.
3. These
bills do not regulate conduct, but instead are directed only at the speech
of pregnancy centers (www.protectwomenwa.com,
2011). Do you oppose bills such as HB 1366 and SB 5274 that attempt
to burden pro-life pregnancy centers?
PUBLIC LIBRARY PORNOGRAPHY
3. In the US Supreme Court ruling
United States v. American Library Association, Inc, 2003,
which upheld the use of library internet pornography filters, Chief Justice Rehnquist
stated for the plurality that "to fulfill their traditional
missions, public libraries must have broad discretion to decide what material to
provide to their patrons. Although they seek to provide a wide array of
information, their goal has never been to provide 'universal coverage,'" and "most
libraries already exclude pornography from their print collections because they
deem it inappropriate for inclusion." In 2010,
the Washington State Supreme Court ruled that public libraries' use of
internet filters does not violate the state constitution.
Will you as a city
council person appoint, recommend or request (depending on your level of
authority) only library board candidates who oppose
the inclusion of pornography in public
libraries, whether by internet or as printed materials?
REGULATION OF SEXUALLY
ORIENTED BUSINESSES
4. The U.S. Supreme Court in
Young v. American Mini Theaters, Inc., (1976) and
Renton v. Playtime Theater, Inc., (1986), concluded that municipalities have
"substantial governmental interests" in protecting and preserving the quality of
life for its community against the adverse secondary effects of sexually
oriented businesses while allowing for "reasonable alternative avenues of
communication." Land Use Studies from cities around the United States were
cited in both U.S. Supreme Court cases documenting
the harmful secondary effects including 1. Increased Crime - rape, sexual assault,
prostitution and illegal drug sales; 2. Decreased Property Values - both
residential and commercial; and 3. Urban Blight - people and businesses fleeing the
community. Will you diligently seek
and maintain
zoning ordinances, licensing procedures, permit requirements and operational
regulations which serve to minimize the adverse secondary effects of Sexually
Oriented Businesses?
ABORTION
5. Do you believe that it is
scientifically accurate to say that
human life begins at conception?
If not at conception, when? ___ 3 mths ___ 6
mths ___ 9 mths ___ 1 yr ___ 18 yrs?
6. The 14th Amendment states "nor shall any state deprive any person of
life, liberty or property without due process of law; nor deny to any person
within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." The Supreme
Court in
Roe v. Wade, 1973, stated that "if this suggestion of personhood is
established, the appellant's case, of course, collapses, for the fetus' right to
life would then be guaranteed specifically by the [14th] Amendment." The
Court regrettably concluded though that "we need not resolve the difficult
question of when life begins. When those trained in the respective disciplines
of medicine, philosophy, and theology are unable to arrive at any consensus, the
judiciary, at this point in the development of man's knowledge, is not in a
position to speculate as to the answer."
Do you believe that
life begins at conception and that the State
has a compelling interest in protecting that life?
7.
Is taking the life of a pre-born child
through
abortion ever permissible? Check all that apply:
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_____ No, it's never permissible
_____ Yes, to save mother's life
_____ Yes, in cases of rape or incest
_____ Yes, for physical
deformity
_____ Yes, for genetic
predispositions
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_____ Yes, for gender
_____ Yes, for race _____ Yes,
for economic hardship _____ Yes, to punish
spouse _____ Yes, it's always permissible
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8. Do you support
parental notification and/or consent before a minor (under 18 years of
age) could have an abortion? A judicial bypass of parents would be allowed when necessary.
Notification?
Consent?
PLANNED PARENTHOOD
9.
Should your city partner in any way with the nation's biggest abortion
provider, Planned Parenthood, who received
$363.3 million
dollars in governmental grants and contracts
in 2009 and aborted 332,278 babies? Planned Parenthood was also found by
the State of
Washington in 2010 to have overbilled the state and was required to repay
$345,000. Should Planned Parenthood be contracted with to make community
presentations, provide literature, birth control chemicals or
devises, and/or abortion services?
GAMING
10. The recently approved casino off I-5 near Ridgefield would be one of the largest in the nation.
What is your position on the building of this casino?
CONTRIBUTIONS OF RELIGIOUS
ORGANIZATIONS
11. "Religious communities are the largest and best-organized civil
institutions in the world, claiming the allegiance of billions across race,
class, and national divides. These communities have particular cultural
understandings, infrastructures, and resources to get help where it is
needed most" (World Conference of Religions for Peace). Southwest
Washington has a broad range of religious communities that contribute
substantially to the welfare of families, children, seniors, the homeless, sick,
and refugees. They are a highly valued part of our community which respects
and defends human life at every stage. Are you an active member
in a church, synagogue, temple, mosque or other religious assembly?
If so, you may state here where at:
FAITH-BASED AND
NEIGHBORHOOD PARTNERSHIPS
12. The White House's Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood
Partnerships ensures that religious and other community organizations are
able to compete on an equal footing for participation in Federal programs
without impairing the character of such organizations and without
diminishing the religious freedom of those served.
Does the
collaboration of government with faith-based charitable works lawfully ensure fair treatment of
religious organizations, and
is it good
for our communities?
QUALIFICATIONS
13. Please state your professional experience, community involvement, education
and other qualifications for a mayoral or city council position.
14. May LIFE PAC post your returned survey on our website? Surveys are posted only with your permission.
Please give your campaign web address if you have one:
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