http://www.care2.com/greenliving/making-the-cut-the-circumcision-quandary.html
Making the Cut: The Circumcision Quandary
“The first cut is the deepest, Baby I know” –Cat Stevens
I am Jewish and I am circumcised, both of which were not of my choice. This is not to say that I have any problem or issue with being Jewish, it was just the bloodline I was descended from. On the other hand, if somehow I could wind back the clock and do it all over again, I would remain Jewish, but kindly refuse the circumcision when offered.
This thorny issue became an issue when my son came into the world a few years back. My wife and I were adamant about “not carving” the boy, and while we weren’t ready to become anti-circumcision activists, we just really didn’t see the point in subjecting our boy to something that seemed wholly unnecessary. A few family members (why is it always the family?) that are a bit more conventional than myself, took issue with my lack of enthusiasm for circumcision, cautioning me that it was both a heritage thing, as well as a cosmetic obligation. “He won’t look like his father!” a certain family member cautioned me. My response was a mix between incredulous and mild indignation.
Without overstating the obvious, the issue of circumcision (in this case I am only contending with male circumcision, as female circumcision [or genital mutilation] remains illegal in the United States along with most of the world and is beyond any sane rationalization) is knotty and highly emotional. Recently, a group of “intactivists” marched on Washington D.C. to honor Genital Integrity Awareness Week, as well as protest a practice that many deem at best, unwarranted, and at worst barbaric. In the U.S. the only industrialized western country to practice circumcision, 56 percent of male infants were circumcised in 2006, even though the American Academy of Pediatrics claim the benefits of circumcision are not sufficient enough to recommend the procedure. Still, the majority of Americans unflinchingly and obediently adhere to the status quo for religious reasons, perceived health and hygiene benefits, as well as cosmetic preference.
Back in 2005 much noise was made about the proactive benefits of circumcision in regions of Africa where the AIDS virus was highly prevalent. According to reports, the incidence of contracting HIV was somewhat decreased among circumcised males who practiced unprotected sex. While I am all for taking a stand against the AIDS epidemic, I find obvious holes in this argument that are too numerous to list.
The real issue here is whether to cut or not to cut. This common procedure, while many in the medical profession would argue is relatively painless and benign, has been proven to be physically impactful on both the short-term as well as the long-term. Despite my lack of enthusiasm for circumcision, I would argue that the decision should be a personal one, and if you do elect to carve your child, you should be prepared to answer some awkward questions down the road–questions that will no doubt be more troublesome than “why doesn’t my weenie look like yours?”
So it goes without saying that this is a highly charged subject matter, and I am genuinely curious how my readers feel. Do you think it is barbaric and should be outlawed post haste? Should this be a personal decision among parents and families? Do infants have rights on this matter? Is this an issue best left to God and medicine? Or is all this talk about weenies just yucky?
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125 comments
add your comment »Ronald, it is only a personal choice when the person whose body is being altered is making the choice. Parental proxy does not substitute for the informed consent of the patient.
More recent medical science has shown that the infant nervous system is actually hypersensitive. The notion that infants feel pain less intensively than adults is a myth. Pain studies on infant circumcision show that cortisol levels spike and never return to baseline, suggesting that infant circumcision has a profound and permanent impact on the brain.
If circumcision is truly the personal choice you believe it to be, let the PATIENT make the choice.
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My mate and I will have our son circumsized as we believe it to be a religious rite we believe in. We will do it when he is young and his nerve endings not fully developed. This has been discussed with our family doctor and a neurologist whom we trust as well as our religious leader. We also believe in abortion and in gay marriage and believe some things are personal choice... Your choices are yours, mine are mine and I believe mine are as valid as yours.
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"Circumcision is a choice. Sometimes it is a religious one and religion is a choice. You have no right to make the decision on religion of another family and thus no right to make a decision on whether or not a boy should be circumcised. Circumcision of a girl is done to limit a woman's life choices, and thus it is more than a religious choice.
As a woman I prefer a man who is circumsised(sic). This was my decision, not a religious decision nor yours. Ronald T.
"Ronald"? Interesting name for a woman.
Be that as it may, the genital mutilation of an infant certainly isn't HIS choice. He has to be tied down and bodily restrained, in order for the mutilation to occur.
Neither is it appropriate for anyone, parents included, to force their religious beliefs on a child, especially when it involves mutilating the infant's body. Parents can introduce a child to religious ideas, but forcing one's beliefs and opinions on another person is tantamount to a violation of his soul.
The mutilation of anyone, male or female, is a criminal act.
We can prefer anyone or anything we wish. We cannot force our beliefs or mutilate another person without doing violence to that person.
Rood
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>>Circumcision is a choice.
Unless the patient himself is choosing it, it's most certainly NOT a choice. I've never met a baby who wanted to have the most sensitive part of his penis amputated.
It is a non-therapeutic surgery that causes a lifelong alteration in both the function and aesthetic of the penis - nobody has the right to force that on a non-consenting minor. It's unethical at best.
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Circumcision is a choice. Sometimes it is a religious one and religion is a choice. You have no right to make the decision on religion of another family and thus no right to make a decision on whether or not a boy should be circumcised. Circumcision of a girl is done to limit a woman's life choices, and thus it is more than a religious choice.
As a woman I prefer a man who is circumsised. This was my decision, not a religious decision nor yours.
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I still find it hard to believe that there are still circumcised men who are pro circumcision. How brainwashed are you guys???? You lost 20,000 to 40,000 nerve ending on your penis and you're okay with this?? and then... you advocate that it continue to be done, without consent to the actual person that then is forced to live with the results, whether they like or not. Then try to justify this human rights violation by saying women prefer men circumcised. This is no different then me saying that I prefer women who had their clitoral hoods removed without their consent. (which I don't by the way..). Ignorance is so blissful...
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The " Penn and Teller: Bullshit" episode is the best in discussing the circumcision debate:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xIZLna_uzLQ
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[Jessica C: "(W)when I gave birth to my son 14 years ago i (sic) wanted to have him circumscised (sic) but the hospital refused to perform this unless it was on medical grounds untill (sic) he was 4 years old... the reason ... was ...his foreskin was tight and the hole was on the side, but mostly because ... my brother(s) foreskin ruptured during intercourse resulting in him having to have a circumcision at the age of 28. My son has still not been circumsiced (sic) but he ... unsurprisingly said no. However I recently married a circumcised man who despite having a botched circumcison at birth, still advocates it ... i (sic) think overall i (sic) am still pro circumcision and have to sya (sic) it is preferable from a womans (sic) point of view ..."]
Good for your son. He probably knows by now that there's nothing on a man's body so richly sensitive as an intact penis. His decision demonstrates simple common sense.
As for your brother, are you and he sure it wasn't a torn frenum which caused his problem?
And it was too bad about your new husband, but, gee, EVERY circumcision ... is a genital mutilation ... is a "botched" job. But from a woman's point of view, women are the chief beneficiaries when a man is intact.
See Kristen O'Hara's book: http://www.sexasnatureintendedit.com
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>>i am still pro circumcision and have to sya it is preferable from a womans point of view also
Why is it preferable from a woman's point of view? And how is it a parental right to decide to alter healthy, normal erogenous tissue on a non-consenting minor?
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when I gave birth to my son 14 years ago i wanted to have him circumscised but the hospital refused to perform this unless it was on medical grounds untill he was 4 years old. the reason that I wanted to have him done was partly medical as his foreskin was tight and the hole was on the side not at the top, but mostly because of something my brother had said.
He was not ciscumcised but had always wished that he had been, as he felt that it would have saved him a lot of trouble later in life and even more so when his foreskin ruptured during intercourse resulting in him having to have a circumcision at the age of 28. My son has still not been circumsiced but he has now been offered the choice and unsurprisingly said no. However I recently married a circumcised man who despite having a botched circumcison at birth, still advocates it. it has led to some odd conversations but i think overall i am still pro circumcision and have to sya it is preferable from a womans point of view also
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