Peter Singer, walking beside Melbourne’s Merri Creek: ‘We ought to try and improve [capitalism], patch it up, fill the gaps.’ Photograph: Ellen Smith/The Guardian View image in fullscreen Peter Singer, walking beside Melbourne’s Merri Creek: ‘We ought to try and improve [capitalism], patch it up, fill the gaps.’ Photograph: Ellen Smith/The Guardian Walk with ... Philosophy Peter Singer: ‘Capitalism is still the most productive economic system that ever existed’ Once dubbed ‘the most dangerous man on Earth’, the world-renowned moral philosopher discusses accepting capitalism, the return of Trump and disappointment in his most famous work’s impact
Peter Singer misses the beach. After two decades working in the US the world renowned moral philosopher returned not to his old haunt of bayside Melbourne but its urban centre. He has made do with a “fairly natural” scrubby bushland walking track along the city’s Merri Creek. “ I think they’ve done a pretty good job here,” he says approvingly.
Singer’s manner is dry with a hint of bemusement, still with that same flat Australian accent. He discusses mind bending ethical dilemmas with a pragmatic delivery that’s almost disarmingly casual but softens when he briefly explains why he’s left the bay behind. “Our kids live near here,” he says – “and they wouldn’t move to us!” Ranging in ages from 12 to 20, his grandchildren are “now all in this same little pocket, and they come for dinner usually once a week, sometimes we play cards.”
After calling time on his stint as professor of bioethics at Princeton’s University Center for Human Values, Singer delivered a final lecture at the end of 2023. His PowerPoint presentation began by quoting the horrified reaction to his controversial appointment in 1999 (a former alumni likened it to a sign of the “decline of western civilisation”). This was, after all, the man once dubbed the “most dangerous man on Earth” by critics for his views on issues such as voluntary euthanasia, abortion and advocating for parents’ right to selective euthanasia of their disabled newborn babies.
The presentation touched on his 2021 launch of the Journal of Controversial Ideas , the “sad” demise of disgraced crypto billionaire and proponent of effective altruism Sam Bankman-Fried (with a slide entitled “Be good but don’t be sketchy!”) before plugging his website and ending with a disarmingly casual line, “OK, that’s about it guys …” The final slide featured a photo of Singer in a wetsuit, board under one arm and the caption: “Bye, I’ve gone surfing.”
View image in fullscreen Peter Singer: ‘I like being out there in the ocean and waiting for the right wave.’ Photograph: Ellen Smith/The Guardian The man widely recognised as a foundational thinker for the modern animal rights and effective altruism movements says he’s been too busy to devote proper time to the hobby he took up in his 50s after “graduating from boogie boarding”. The 80-year-old might have stopped teaching but is not exactly retired (in the last few years he has launched a podcast, a global alliance for corporate philanthropy and an AI version of himself). But he does have a favourite break at a beach south-west of Melbourne. “I like being out there in the ocean and waiting for the right wave,” he says. “Looking at where it’s going to keep breaking and trying to get there.”
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