This post is in response to a news story covering the appointment of (and protests against) Peter Singer as Professor at Princeton University. Protests are sparked due to Singers lack of belief in God and belief (in some instances) in infanticide. Singer has the opinion that what makes us human is not what we are but the ability of rational thought and the quality of self-awareness. Intrinsically babies are not born with these qualities or abilities. Singer also believes that an act is moral based on the consequences stating that the act should benefit all involved. Based on these beliefs Singer argues that infanticide is completely acceptable, with agreement from the parents, in cases where the infant is severely disabled.
Many may not like my take on Singer’s views but I have to agree with many of them. Most of the moral beliefs held in this world are based on religious beliefs. The religious beliefs dictate that we as humans are somehow more valuable than all other life, that we are made in the image of some all-powerful God, or simply that because the bible (or similar writings) says so that killing is wrong. There are many theories regarding the value of one’s life. Many believe that one’s value can be determined by what one contributes to society or that at least they don’t make things worse. A severely retarded child is likely to have nothing to contribute to the world, never be self-aware, never be capable of any rational thought, and only be a drain on the medical and other community resources as well as an emotional, physical and financial burden to its parents and the community at large. Animals of the planet starve, kill, sacrifice, and abandon the weak and sickly all the time for the greater benefit of the herd, pack, pride, etc. Hell humans make decisions on who can live or die every day from doling out capital punishment (aka the death penalty) to humans found to be completely lacking of reasoning and have no benefit to the world, to euthanasia of cats, dogs, horses, ferrets, and other animals who are ill and suffering or who cannot be found a home, to slaughtering cows, pigs and chickens for consumption, to dropping bombs on unknown peoples because you don’t agree with their cultural practices or because they are withholding oil from the masses, or the not so simple act of aborting a fetus because you are not ready to be a parent or because you can’t afford to raise even a healthy, intelligent child. Death by decision is practiced on monumental scales in the U.S. and around the world every single day. The reality is, in my opinion, that we humans are not some elevated being that is valuable just because we exist. In fact, one could argue that because we exist the world is worse off. Destruction of rain forests, hunting species into extinction, air, water, and land pollution, never ending encroachment into neighboring natural habitats, war, global warming, and a myriad of other dastardly facts are all due to our existence. Unfortunately, our existence is based on having more, getting more, making more, making bigger, making better instead of being satisfied with what you need which always leads to the suffering of someone or something. This is another concept for which I agree that is addressed by Singer in his work (for which I am familiar) entitled The Singer Solution to World Poverty.
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