How do you feel about circumcision?

[AndyFromMonday]

How do I feel about male genital mutilation? The same way I feel about female genital mutilation. It's disgusting.

 

[AngloDoom]

Pretty much this. Unless you're doing it for religious or health reasons, circumcising your baby is equivalent to getting a tattoo of your favourite band on your baby, or giving them piercings. It's not your decision to make.

Fixed. Seriously, why should a child have to endure mutilation because their parents believe crazy shit?

Agreed, however for those people it's not crazy shit and their doing their child a favour because it's an important part of their religion. If I believe my child would live a longer, happier life if I drew a skull-and-crossbones on their shoulder-blade (to use the tattoo comparison), and would actually avoid torment and endless pain I'm pretty sure I'd take it.

As much as I disagree with it, it's not up to me to decide what people believe in. I'd rather parents wait until the child is old enough to decide whether they want to join in on the religion or not, but (correct me if I'm wrong) part of the whole 'ritual' of it all is doing it at birth.

 

[asam92]

I have two boys and each of them are circumcised. They were medicated beforehand and honestly I don't think they even really felt anything. And I agree with the OP that it makes for a better looking penis. Though I have no issue if you do or don't have it done. Also oddly, this is the second circumcision thread I've seen on the Escapist.

Yep, this is the third I have seen, people seem to be way to interested in this subject, seriously, a dick is a dick, get over it people.

OT: I am neither for nor against, personally i'm not but here in Australia I believe it is a 50/50 ratio (from what I have heard anyway) and in the US it seems to be very pro-circumcision for some reason.

 

[AndyFromMonday]

Foreskin is useless. It serves no practical purpose - it has no effect on sexual stimulation or pleasure.

Bull-fucking-shit. The foreskin has more nerve endings that the entirety of the penis. To say that removal of the foreskin has no effect on sexual pleasure is like saying removing your fingers will have no effect on your ability to play guitar.

The body parts you've mentioned are all important. Nipple and clitoral damage is NOT something to joke about. I assume you mean piercing the clitoris or nipple (not cutting it off, which is what I initially got from your post) and my reply to that is that those are not safe to pierce in an infant.

I believe that the nipple is useless in males and as such I reserve the right to decide whether or not I want my baby to have them. The nipple has virtually no function and using your logic, parents have the right to cut off anything that they deem as useless.

Cutting off ANYTHING that belongs to a baby is not only immoral but downright criminal. You're depriving someone of their right to their own body. Whether or not the foreskin is useless is irrelevant. The fact of the matter is, that baby does NOT belong to the parents and has RIGHTS over his or her own body. The parents do NOT get to decide what a baby gets to keep or not.

Again, foreskin removal has no medical downside. Removal or piercing anything but the earlobe would cause permanent, awful damage to a person. It is NOT the same. It is an extreme exaggeration. None of those locations are just skin.

What? You mean the risk of bleeding and infection associated with the removal of the nipple/ear lobe? Guess what? Those same risks are ASSOCIATED WITH CIRCUMCISION! Do you honestly believe there are zero complications associated with circumcision?

I will say again - a clitoris is NOT just skin. It is in no way related to foreskin. It is not a valid comparison. Stop making it. It's offensive.

And neither is the foreskin. Stop comparing it to a useless piece of skin because it is not.

 

[Darth_Dude]

Well I'm circumcised....I dont really know what to think about it though..

 

[Zing]

I don't really know how to feel. I didn't really have a choice, I had some kind of medical issue or something as a kid so they chopped my foreskin.

I wish I didn't get circumcised, but it's probably more of a grass is greener thing.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

Well, let me give you a tip....

 

[ninetails593]

I think what you're all forgetting is just how horrifying an uncircumcised penis looks like. Circumcision isn't "chopping off body parts", it's just a simple, safe procedure, that the baby will never remember. Hell, it makes him more normal.

That's a whole lot of opinions. Anyway, who cares if a baby's penis supposedly isn't 'pretty' if it's not circumcised. Is it that important? If it's such a simple, safe procedure then let the adult figure it out for themselves around the time they actually want to start using it.

Female circumcision is a more dire mutilation, but who says women need all those folds of labia? They're probably hard to keep clean anyway, so they may as well go.

Right?

You seem to be completely ignoring everything people have been talking about in this thread. Since you're apparently too lazy to look: A baby heals much faster than an adult, the baby has a quick operation that he'll never be able to remember, the adult has an operation that takes a long and grueling time to heal that he will remember for the rest of his life.

 

[Jonabob87]

Not circumcised, think it'd be quite interesting to see what it's like to be circumcised but not enough to actually do it.

I don't see any problem with it though, there are no negatives except speculated loss of feeling (I've never seen any evidence of that) so until there's a good reason to stop, go for it.

 

[ReservoirAngel]

I personally feel that if anyone comes anywhere near my penis with any kind of cutting tool, they're going to be kicked in the head repeatedly until they fuck off and cut that shit out.

 

[Racistman3d]

I'm circumcised, and honestly I'd much rather have not been, mainly cause I live in a place where not too many people are, and I think that it has had some effect on the sensitivity, but it's not something I fret too much over, a penis is simply a penis and I'm not disfigured, so it's no big deal. I probably wouldn't have my sons, but I'm not that strong on the issue.

 

[Gibboniser]

I'd rather people would wait for the baby to make it's own decision, the baby has no say in it, in that respect I hate it. If it's a personal choice then sure why not. The trouble with this discussion, is unless you're a girl, your going to be biased in one way or another.

 

[Straitjacketeering]

Personally I think this should be a female only topic, dudes just turned this into a "I'm circumcised/not so that's how it must be." And the whole thing about cutting off clits, that's just savage and savage people and societies in my opinion do that. >.> Women should feel good too yaknow?

 

[Pipotchi]

Its mutilation, there might be religous reasons or done with the best of intentions but that doesnt make it any less chopping bits off your child.

Also if the benefits are so great why are there websites dedicated to helping circumscised men regrow their foreskins?

I think there are benefits and drawbacks but it should be the childs choice

 

[Treefingers]

Circumcision is the surgical removal of the foreskin of the penis. It is most commonly performed on newborn males (obviously).
I personally approve of it it (but don't disagree if parents or whatever opt not to) for the simple reason that it is a better-looking penis. Seriously, uncircumcised penises look like a worm trying to escape from mud.
Yes it is painful for the baby, possibly more painful than an adult would experience. However, I don't remember any pain from when I was circumcised because I can't remember anything before age 5. I'm grateful that my mother wanted me to have a good-looking penis.
I don't care about the health advantages/disadvantages or any religious practice of it but I personally approve. What about my fellow Escapees?

flawed arguments:
1. Its better looking.

Fact: this is actually not true, and changes from culture to culture. This is considered an appeal to tradition logical fallacy.

2. I don't remember the pain.

rebuttal: If someone was raped using a roofie, does it matter? Even if they don't remember?

This.

There's no decent justification for cutting a bit off the end of a perfectly healthy penis. I disagree with it totally. If someone wants to chop up their own dick that's fine, but forcing it onto babies is unnecessary.

 

[Woodsey]

Yes it is painful for the baby, possibly more painful than an adult would experience. However, I don't remember any pain from when I was circumcised because I can't remember anything before age 5. I'm grateful that my mother wanted me to have a good-looking penis.?

And date rape's OK because they can't remember it happened. I'm not sure whose cock you've been looking at but mine's perfectly clean and looks exactly the same as one that's been circumcised when you flop it out for fun time.

This whole weird American obsession with circumcised dicks is ridiculous. Hilariously, it does say a lot about you guys when 60% or so of the population has an act performed on them that began so as to discourage sexual behaviour.

Its mutilation. If you think you've got an ugly wang get it chopped up when you're old enough to decide for yourself. It "looking better" is NO replacement for removing the choice from the person whose body it is.

The only reason you think its acceptable is because its so widespread. If I now had a daughter and took her to get her clitoris cut off she'd be taken away from me before I could say "snippy time".

The only time its acceptable is for a medical reason. Religion is not an excuse for anything.

 

[Knight Captain Kerr]

It is a bad idea to do this to children. If it has to be done for medical reasons I'm fine with that. I'm fine with people who can consent to such a thing. They can do loads of thing to their body if they want to but I can't see why you would be circumcised.

 

[Grimbold]

No problem if it is for religious or medical reasons.
But did I get this right that christian Americans have their children circumcised just for fun? That is plainly weird.

 

[LongAndShort]

I am of the opinion that all minors are entitled to a right to bodily integrity, and as such circumcision should be a choice (in the case where it's non-medical) once an individual is capable of deciding for themselves.
Some people point out the religious significance of circumcision to a number of religions, but I point at female circumcision (also known as female genital mutilation), and say that many claim it to have religious importance as well.

Some people say I'm extreme in my view, and I probably am.

 

[tikalal]

I think it is a holdover from a less clean time (when it actual had a practical purpose) that only remains acceptable because it is backed by some big religions.

I don't like it. I don't think it should be done unless it is absolutely medically necessary for the child in question.

There is absolutely no reason to.
And fucking aesthetics is NOT a valid reason to chop part of their dick off.

I don't say it very often, but "This".

Why don't you let them grow up a little and then decide if they want a "better-looking penis".

Because if they grew up they would be pretty set in the concept of "don't allow any damage to my penis... ever" which would make the near universal answer be somewhere between "no" and "no" (but with lots of swearing).

So do it before they have the choice, because they would not have their genitals mutilated given the choice?

What a sickening thought... You should be ashamed.