Not radical or rational 1

John Milbank is quoted as saying that "by supporting the total disjuncture of sex and procreation, the Left is really supporting a new mode of fascism" ("Lazarus-style comeback", 16 April).

Two things are very clear about this statement. First, the learned professor might spend a little more time learning about fascism in practice, rather than invoking it merely as a label for something he dislikes (the counterpart being "radical", which surfer-style seems to predicate anything he agrees with). He might then be a bit less casual in his use of language. Second, since it is very hard to see how any evidence or rational argument could support the assertion, it would be very nice to know how he arrived at it.

I am not sure which is more outrageous: making this assertion in the first place or publishing it without challenge.

Richard Ashcroft, Professor of bioethics Queen Mary, University of London.