utilitarianism, bioethics, radical charity -- giving until it hurts -- What does it mean to be alive? What does it mean to die?

Peter Singer: "Egoism, Altruism, and Sociobiology" (Timmons)

• Peter Singer, Susan Reich: Animal Liberation, 2nd edition, New York Review of Books, 1990.
• Peter Singer: Practical Ethics, 2nd edition, Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 1993.
• Peter Singer: Writings on an Ethical Life, Ecco, New York, 2000; Fourth Estate, London, 2001.
• Collection of links to Singer's writings, interviews, and reviews of his books: http://www.petersingerlinks.com/
• Peter Singer: Review of Dearest Pet: On Bestiality by Midas Dekkers. http://www.nerve.com/Opinions/Singer/heavyPetting/main.asp

Writings by Peter Singer

    [books/ book excerpts]

• A Better World? Excerpted from One World. New Haven, 2002.
• All Animals are Equal. Excerpted from Animal Rights and Human Obligations. 2nd edition, New Jersey, 1989.
• The Animal Liberation Movement. Nottingham, 1985. [French translation]
• Conditioned Ethical Blindness. Excerpted from Animal Liberation: a Graphic Guide. London, 1987.
• Do Animals Feel Pain? Excerpted from Animal Liberation. 2nd Edition, New York, 1990. [Spanish Translation]
• The Escalator of Reason. Excerpted from How Are We to Live? New York, 1995.
• A Meaningful Life. Excerpted from Ethics into Action. Oxford, 1998.
• Proving the Obvious. Excerpted from Animal liberation: a Graphic Guide. London, 1987.
• Taking Life: Humans. Excerpted from Practical Ethics. 2nd Edition, Cambridge, 1993.

    [articles]

• Abortion. The Oxford Companion to Philosophy. Oxford, 1995.
• Animals. The Oxford Companion to Philosophy. Oxford, 1995.
• Applied Ethics. The Oxford Companion to Philosophy. Oxford, 1995.
• Darwin for the Left. Prospect, June, 1998.
• Dialectic. The Oxford Companion to Philosophy. Oxford, 1995.
• The Drowning Child and the Expanding Circle. New Internationalist. No. 289, April, 1997.

• Extending Generosity to the Wider World. The Mercury News. June 30, 2002. [Spanish Translation]

• Famine, Affluence and Morality. Philosophy & Public Affairs, 1 (1972) [revised version].
• Fertilization in vitro. The Oxford Companion to Philosophy. Oxford, 1995.
• The Freest Nation in the World? Free Inquiry Magazine, Volume 20, Number 3.
• Heavy Petting. Nerve.
• Hegel, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich. The Oxford Companion to Philosophy. Oxford, 1995.
• Killing. The Oxford Companion to Philosophy. Oxford, 1995.
• Might or Right. New Internationalist. No. 342, Jan / Feb, 2002.
• My Better Nature. Evatt Foundation.
• Owl of Minerva. The Oxford Companion to Philosophy. Oxford, 1995.
• A Philosophical Self-Portrait. The Penguin Dictionary of Philosophy. London, 1997. [Spanish translation]
• The Singer Solution to World Poverty. The New York Times, Sunday Magazine, September 5, 1999. [Spanish translation]
• The Triviality of the Debate Over 'Is-Ought' and the Definition of 'Moral'. American Philosophical Quarterly, Volume 10, Number 1, January 1973.

• Vegetarianism. The Oxford Companion to Philosophy. Oxford, 1995.

• World-Soul. The Oxford Companion to Philosophy. Oxford, 1995.

    [letters]

• Academic Freedom in Germany. Reply to Ulrich Steinvorth. The New York Review of Books, October 24, 1991.
• Animal Experiments. Reply to Stephen Rothman. The New York Review of Books, June 15, 1989.
• Animal Interests. Reply to Dennis Flanagan. The New York Review of Books, March 28, 1985.
• Animal Rights. To Richard A. Posner. Slate Magazine. June 11, 2001. 
• 'The Body in Pain'. Reply to Paul Weiss. The New York Review of Books, June 12, 1986.
• Embryonic Bioethics. Reply to Thomas A. Shannon. The New York Review of Books, November 11, 1976.
• Experimenting on Animals. Reply to Adrian R. Morrison. The New York Review of Books, May 27, 1993.
• Food for Thought. Reply to David Rosinger. The New York Review of Books, June 14, 1973.
• Marx and the Giraffe. Reply to Melvin Rader. The New York Review of Books, February 21, 1980.
• Marx and the Giraffe. Reply to G. A. Cohen. The New York Review of Books, February 21, 1980.
• Marxism and Liberty. Reply to Robert L. Heilbroner. The New York Review of Books, December 18, 1980.
• Necessary Suffering? Reply to Michael E. Raynor. The New York Review of Books, August 13, 1992.
• The Paradox of Cause. Reply to Cushing Strout. The New York Review of Books, May 3, 1979.
• Power of Positive Popperism. Reply to Robert Solo. The New York Review of Books, August 8, 1974.
• Practical Ethics. Peter Singer et al. The Wall Street Journal, October 15, 1998.
• Preserving the Landscape. Reply to John Rahlett. The New York Review of Books, April 26, 1990.
• Prove it. Reply to George Soros. The New York Review of Books, September 19, 1974.
• Right to Life? Reply to H. L. A. Hart. The New York Review of Books, August 14, 1980.
• Sex in the Head. Reply to J. M. Cameron. The New York Review of Books, July 15, 1976.
• Still Powerless? Reply to Peter Clecak. The New York Review of Books, November 28, 1974
• They Didn't Use Animals. Reply to Bruce Max Felmann. The New York Review of Books, October 26, 1989.
• This Property is Condemned. Reply to Peter Wirth. The New York Review of Books, May 1, 1975.
• Unkind to Animals. Reply to Susan Sperling. The New York Review of Books, April 13, 1989.
• Unkind to Animals. Reply to Berkley A. Lynch. The New York Review of Books, April 13, 1989.

    Writings about Peter Singer

• Biographical note. Animal Liberation Action Group.

• Bonnie Steinbock Comments on, and Criticisms of, Peter Singer's "Speciesism" Argument. By Bob Corbett.

• The Case of Singer. By Austin Cline.

• Comments on Peter Singer's Analysis that Leads to Speciesism. By Bob Corbett.

• The Dangerous Philosopher. By Michael Specter.

• Duty and Famine. By Sally Haslanger.

• The Ethics of Baby-Killing. By Jason Zinoman.

• Famous Vegetarians: Professor Peter Singer. International Vegetarian Union (IVU).

• 'Insiders and Outsiders' Study Notes. By Michael Connelly.
• Killing Stupid Babies. By Jow Lindsay.
• Critique of Wesley J. Smith's 'Peter Singer Gets a Chair'. By Punkerslut.
• Peter Singer Lectures on Ethics. By Zach Goodman.
• Puppy Love. By Peter Berkowitz.

• Singer-Index Test. By Harry J. Gensler.

• Speech and Challenges. Philadelphia Inquirer Editorial.

• Who Lives, Who Dies? By Mark Oppenheimer.

• Why Are We Afraid of Peter Singer? By Jeff Sharlet.

    Reviews

• A Companion to Bioethics. By Antonio Casado da Rocha. Metapsychology.

• A Darwinian Left. By Ralph Brave. Salon Books.
• A Darwinian Left. By Leigh Van Halen. Scientific American.
• Animal Liberation. By Dave Kopel. Independence Institute.
• Animal Liberation. Anonymous reviewer. Elephant Information Repository.
• Ethics into Action. By Ian Hacking. The New York Review of Books.
• Practical Ethics. By Jörn W. Janneck. Jörn W. Janneck's Home Page.
• Rethinking Life and Death. By Richard Martinez. New York University School of Medicine.
• Singer and His Critics. By Anthony Skelton. Anthony Skelton's Home Page.
• Unsanctifying Human Life. By Adriano Palma. Metapsychology.
• Writings on an Ethical Life. Anonymous reviewer. The Economist.
• Writings on an Ethical Life. By Jessica Polichetti. Common Sense.
• Writings on an Ethical Life. By Margaret Wertheim. LA Weekly.
• Writings on an Ethical Life. By D John Doyle. BMJ.

    Interviews & discussions

• Claiming Darwin for the Left. By Julian Baggini. The Philosopher's Magazine.

• Dangerous Words. By Kathryn Federici Greenwood. Princeton Alumni Weekly. January 26, 2000.

• The Ethical Debate of Stem Cell Research. Discussion with Tony Jones and Margaret Somerville [transcript]. ABC Online. August 16, 2001. 

• Ethics in the Age of Evolutionary Psychology. By Francis Steen. CogWeb, March 7, 2000.

• Ethics into Action. By John Cleary [transcript]. ABC Online. January 26, 2000.

• Genetic Supermarkets in the Pipeline for Family Shopping. By Kerry O'Brien [transcript]. ABC Online. August 23, 2000.
• Humanism Extended? By Staffan Gunnarson. The International Humanist and Ethical Union.
• Is this a Dangerous Philosopher? By Claudette Vaughan. Animal Liberation NSW.
• Living and Dying. By Jill Neimark. Psychology Today, January 1999.
• Peter Singer. By S. Barsch, T. Bendokat and M. Brück. Heilpädagogik Online. January 2003. [Questions in German]
• Peter Singer: 20 Questions. By Vance Lehmkuhl. Philadelphia City Paper, October 7-14, 1999.
• Professor Death. By Viktor Frolke. Salon. June 25, 2001.
• The Pursuit of Happiness. By Ronald Bailey. Reason, December 2000.
• Sparrow Talks with Peter Singer. By Sparrow. Green World Center.
• Should We Breach the Species Barrier and Grant Rights to Apes? Letter exchange between Peter Singer and Kenan Malik. KenanMalik.com. April 1999.

    Audio & video

• Ethicist Peter Singer. Interview with Christopher Lyndon. The Connection. Realaudio. March 10, 2000.
• Ethics, Health Care and Disability. Discussion with Adrienne Asch. Realvideo.
• Gensler-Singer Debate on Sanctity of Life. John Carroll University. Realaudio.
• Global Ethics. Talk at the 10th Annual Meeting at the Association for Practical and Professional Ethics. Realvideo.
• Greed. Interview with Hugh LaFollette. Ideas and Issues. WETS. Realaudio. September 24, 2000.
• In Defense of Animals: A Portrait of Peter Singer. VHS documentary. Bullfrog Films.
• Interview with Liam Bartlett. ABC Online. Realaudio. May 9, 2001.
• Interview with Verity James. ABC Online. Realaudio. August 22, 2001.
• Interview with Derek Guille. ABC Online. Realaudio. August 22, 2001.
• Writings on an Ethical Life. Interview with Diane Rehm. American University Radio. Realaudio. November 27, 2000.

Why Are We Afraid of Peter Singer?  Jefff Sharlet The Chronicle of Higher Education

The Utilitarian Horror of Peter Singer Other People's Mothers by Peter Berkowitz

The Appointment of Professor Peter Singer  from the President of Princeton University

from the Statement on the Hiring of Peter Singer

We the undersigned protest the hiring of Dr. Peter Singer as the Ira DeCamp Professor of Bioethics at Princeton University’s Center for Human Values. We protest his hiring because Dr. Singer denies the intrinsic moral worth of an entire class of human beings –newborn children – and promotes policies that would deprive many infants with disabilities of their basic human right to legal protection against homicide.

In his book Practical Ethics, Dr. Singer states that no infant has as strong a claim to life as a rational, self-conscious human being.¹ Dr. Singer’s criteria for distinguishing newborn infants from “normal human beings”² (including more mature infants) thus hinge on subjectively imposed conditions such as “rationality, autonomy, and self-consciousness”.³ This lesser claim to life is also applied to those older children or adults whose mental age is and has always been that of an infant.⁴ His assertion of the appropriateness of killing some humans based on others’ decision concerning the “quality” of their lives should strike fear into everyone who cherishes equality and honors human life.

Furthermore, Dr. Singer defines certain disabled persons as individuals who are living “a life not worth living.”⁵ His views permit the killing of certain newborn infants with disabilities up to 28 days after birth.⁶ Dr. Singer states that “killing a disabled infant is not morally equivalent to killing a person. Very often, it is not wrong at all.”⁷ Dr. Singer’s message threatens individuals with disabilities and contributes to the erosion of the public’s regard for the fundamental human rights of disabled people.

Finally, Dr. Singer suggests that the regulated killing of babies with spina bifida be permitted.⁸ He would extend to parents the authority to “replace” a Down’s syndrome or hemophiliac infant (i.e. kill the child and conceive another) if adequate family or societal resources were not forthcoming. ⁹ Even though Dr. Singer concentrates on disabled infants, the ethical arguments and metaphors that he provisionally adopts¹⁰ leave open the potential empowerment of parents to kill a non-disabled newborn whose “replacement” would ameliorate their prospects for a happy life.¹¹

The hiring of Dr. Peter Singer to a professorial chair in ethics at a university as prestigious as Princeton will certainly, though perhaps unintentionally, legitimate his claims. Thus legitimated, Dr. Singer will use the platform afforded by Princeton to continue to argue for the killing of certain disabled babies, and his teachings may help cast the practice of infanticide in a more respectable light; further, his teaching may encourage the propagation of infanticide. The hiring of Dr. Peter Singer is a blatant violation of Princeton University’s policy of respect for people with disabilities. Princeton University’s Commitment to the Community specifically states:

Abusive or harassing behavior, verbal, or physical, which demeans, intimidates, threatens, or injures another because of his or her personal characteristics or beliefs is subject to University disciplinary sanctions…

Examples of personal characteristics or beliefs include but are not limited to sex, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, and handicap.¹²

¹ Singer, Peter. Practical Ethics 2nd edition p. 182
² Ibid.
³ Ibid.
⁴ Ibid. p. 181
⁵ Ibid. p. 184
⁶ Kuhse & Singer, Should the Baby Live?, pp.194-97
⁷ Singer, Peter. Practical Ethics 2nd edition p. 191
⁸ Ibid. pp. 184, 202-03
⁹ Ibid. pp. 186-90
¹⁰ Ibid. pp. x-xi, 127, 129-31
¹¹ Ibid. pp. 182, 186
¹² http://www.princeton.edu/Ombuds/fairness.html
¹³ Singer, Peter. Practical Ethics 2nd edition p. 189

Quotations

Bibliography

Web Stuff

Peter Singer Philosophy Around the Web

Peter Singer Brief details and bibliography, provided by Eco Books.

Peter Singer on Envirolink Including a conversation with Peter Singer, parts one and two, 
and an excerpt from his Animal Liberation, Do Animals Feel Pain?.

Green Issues Philosophy Around the Web