Hamilton County, OH November 7, 2000 Election
Smart Voter

RIGHT TO LIFE BELIEFS

By Jean Siebenaler

Candidate for State Representative; District 34

This information is provided by the candidate
The label of "pro-choice-pro-life" is far too simplistic for the complexity of the real world. The following outline gives you, the, voter, a more substantive framework of my beliefs
1. I am anti-abortion --The fact of the matter is that I do not know a single person who is pro-abortion, This includes the doctors who perform them and the women who make the very difficult decisions to end their pregnancies.
2. I am personally pro-life --In 1985, my beautiful daughter and only child died from an inherited condition which threatened to kill 1 out of 4 future children, Rather than listen to genetic counselors and well-intentioned friends who felt it best to avoid the risk of further anguish my husband and I placed our faith in God and chose the possibilities of life. We did so not once, but twice, and today we have two healthy, happy sons who give us great joy.
3. I am pro-quality of life for my patients--I believe that patients should be given choices in medical decisions which affect the quality of their lives. They should have choice of doctor, the ability to choose medical care proven to prevent disease, choices for treatments of their chronic medical illnesses, and the right to make difficult individual choices involving pregnancies, end-of-life decisions and other personal issues. 4 .I am against the death penalty-This is an issue which gets lost in the rhetoric about respect for the dignity of life. Given the new scientific evidence utilizing DNA which has exonerated some death row inmates in other states, I would fight for a moratorium on capital punishment in our state,
5. I am against government dictating rules of behavior for pregnant women - This includes legislation against private decisions regarding lifestyle, abortion, or other civil liberties non-pregnant women take for granted. The fact of the matter is that the abortion rate in our country is decreasing without such government intrusion.
6. I am against government determination of the best medical procedures used in abortions -- This is the core of the debate in late-term abortions, which thankfully, are rare, If society has moral objections to a medical procedure used for a medical condition, it needs to bring pressure on the medical profession to produce evidence-based research data which proves its safety and superiority. Heavy handed legislation is rarely a problem-solving approach,

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