Controversy over bioethics appointment

A year-long search by Princeton University involving three committees of scholars and 19 outside experts from disparate disciplines has resulted in a unanimous decision to appoint Peter Singer - a world famous animal rights activist - to the chair in bioethics at the University's Center for Human Values. The appointment has caused an unprecedented level of controversy as a direct result of Singer's inflammatory ideas. Although his detractors, who range from anti-abortionists to disability activists, agree that his academic credentials are impeccable, it is Singer's utilitarian defence of euthanasia - not just for terminally ill adults but also severly disabled babies - that has generated the hostility. There have been no serious calls to cancel the appointment, although anti-abortionists said they would picket his lectures.