Is this another witchunt?

On his face rests a wearied expression. It's the face of a 41-year-old man fighting for his reputation as a legitimate scientist.Why would the world care about a little-known astronomy professor at a public university in Iowa? It's because of the 2004 book he co-authored with theologian Jay W. Richards called "The Privileged Planet."The book claims that Earth is so unique, it must have been created by an "intelligent designer." Most scientists say there's no way to test that theory as opposed to Darwin's theory of natural selection so it belongs in religion or philosophy courses, not in science classes.Fearing ISU's reputation was at stake, more than 120 faculty members signed a petition this month against representing intelligent design as science. The petition doesn't mention him by name, but Gonzalez believes it's a threat to his place among the Ames intelligentsia.