Fertility website promises to deliver ‘beautiful babies’
By Paula Bustamante
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
CRITICISED by some as narcissism gone mad, a fertility forum website, aimed at creating good-looking babies, was launched last month.
Presented as a solution for parents who worry about having ugly children, the Fertility Forum is "like any charitable work," according to managing director Greg Hodge.
It’s "a noble cause for those going through the difficult experience of failing to conceive," he said, explaining that the site gets no payment for directing donors and recipients to professional clinics.
The forum is accessed through the website of BeautifulPeople.com, which was founded in 2002 in Denmark and has a presence in 190 countries, including 21 members in Ireland.
Beautiful members can post if they want to donate their genetically blessed sperm or eggs to an unattractive person or couple who wants a baby.
"Initially, we hesitated to widen the offering to non-beautiful people," explained BeautifulPeople.com founder Robert Hintze.
"But everyone — including ugly people — would like to bring good-looking children in to the world, and we can’t be selfish with our attractive gene pool."
Last month BeautifulPeople.com booted out 5,000 people who gained weight and were deemed too ugly to remain members.
Those wanting to join submit a photo for approval by their peers — some 600,000 people pay to be part of the network.
"It’s completely democratic — if you secure enough positive votes, you are accepted; if not, you are shown the door," said Hodge, who manages the website launched in the US in 2005.
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This appeared in the printed version of the Irish Examiner Wednesday, July 28, 2010
