I originally posted this to meta, but then I saw no one has posted there in 3 months. If this isn't the right place let me know, but I feel like no one will read it in meta...
When I discovered men's rights it wasn't that hard for me to buy into most of it. Well the parts I didn't already know anyway. I was already aware that the "Gender Wage Gap" was a load of bull and that family courts screw men over from prior experience.
The one thing I could't really buy into fully was that there is a problem with circumcision. I had one, my dad had one, everyone in my family as far as I knew had one, I didn't ever think twice about it.
I've heard my whole life that an uncircumcised penis was "gross". In retrospect I think it was mostly women who have said that. I even thought that myself and was glad to have had one. Honestly I don't think I would change it if I could but I will never know so maybe that is the point.
I've read the arguments against it now and I guess I am still somewhere in the middle. My feelings are evolving on this issue and honestly I am still a bit confused by it.
My wife is pregnant with our 2nd child. I don't yet know the sex and our first was a girl. I am at this moment really split down the middle on this, if it is a boy I honestly don't know what to do.
Part of me doesn't want to hurt my son unnecessarily (if it is a boy). Another part of me thinks well if I don't have it done for him won't he feel odd that he doesn't look like his dad or most of the other boys at school? Will girls ridicule him for being uncut? As someone who was really unpopular in school, I don't want him to have to go through what I did.
I'll tell you a year ago I wouldn't have even thought twice about it, I would have had it done. Now I don't know... it really isn't as simple as some people make it out to be.
[–][deleted] 28 points29 points30 points (11 children) | Copy Link
[–]splodgenessabounds 4 points5 points6 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[+]Bletchlypark points [recovered] (9 children) | Copy Link
Excellent reply! Thank you for taking the time to really read what I said and answer thoughtfully. I wasn't sure how this post would be received here and I guess I am glad that the pitch forks didn't immediately come out.
My deeply held belief on this issue for most of my life was that there was no problem with circumcision whatsoever. Socially and culturally I never had much reason to question that belief. Changing something like doesn't happen over night. It like you have to tear down your old house of belief and then build up a new belief system. It's a process and it takes time and I think I am somewhere in the middle of it right now.
Now I will try to respond to some of your questions / comments.
Yeah I am not really interested.
Like I said personally I have no regrets it was done to me. I have no desire to change anything... That being said the crux of the issue is, like you said, that the child cannot consent to the procedure. That together with the fact that it is medically unnecessary is what is making me think further. The only logical arguments for not waiting is that it could hurt less and or scar less if it is done as an infant? That and I am thinking if you give an 16 year old boy a choice, what boy is going to voluntarily have part of his penis cut off? But maybe that is exactly the point?!?!
I read something that it being circumcised reduces the chances of HIV, but honestly I will ask my pediatrician about that one, he is a great guy and I trust him.
Cripples him sexually, come on I think you clearly went too far there. I certainly don't feel that way about myself.
Clearly what I said came across weird there sorry about that... Removing that from the equation I just don't want him to feel weird. Thinking about it more he probably wouldn't think twice about it as long as we talked about it when he was older. Or maybe he wouldn't even know the difference until the pre-teen years.
If true, in the US anyway that is quite interesting.
True I mean by the time she see's he she's already decided if she likes him or not.
Again what I said comes across sounding really weird... I am not trying to relate popularity to circumcision. I think that I was trying to get at is that as a parent you want you child to have every advantage possible and to minimize every disadvantage possible. I can't really say that being cut or uncut is a disadvantage or not. I guess it is just a worry in my mind since much of society still considers it "normal" at least in the US. And therefore something "un-normal" could be a perceived disadvantage.
[–][deleted] 12 points13 points14 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–]Muesli_nom 5 points6 points7 points (6 children) | Copy Link
[–][deleted] 0 points1 point2 points (5 children) | Copy Link
[–]Muesli_nom 0 points1 point2 points (4 children) | Copy Link
[–][deleted] 0 points1 point2 points (3 children) | Copy Link
[–]Muesli_nom 0 points1 point2 points (2 children) | Copy Link
[–]video_descriptionbot 0 points1 point2 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–][deleted] 0 points1 point2 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–]JoelMahon 2 points3 points4 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–]bassatwork 13 points14 points15 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–]novice_at_life 11 points12 points13 points (2 children) | Copy Link
[+]Bletchlypark points [recovered] (1 child) | Copy Link
That is helpful thanks!
[–]novice_at_life 2 points3 points4 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–]EsraYmssik 10 points11 points12 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–]Deipnoseophist 10 points11 points12 points (2 children) | Copy Link
[–][deleted] 0 points1 point2 points (1 child) | Copy Link
[–]Deipnoseophist 1 point2 points3 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–][deleted] 7 points8 points9 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–]Consilio_et_Animis 6 points7 points8 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–][deleted] 6 points7 points8 points (2 children) | Copy Link
[–]splodgenessabounds 2 points3 points4 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–]the_unseen_one 4 points5 points6 points (7 children) | Copy Link
[+]Bletchlypark points [recovered] (6 children) | Copy Link
I will watch this at some point and I did see the small part of it they showed in TRP movie. But not today.
[–]the_unseen_one 2 points3 points4 points (5 children) | Copy Link
[+]Bletchlypark points [recovered] (3 children) | Copy Link
I couldn't make it past 2 minutes.
There is no way in fucking hell I am doing that to my child.
[–]the_unseen_one 1 point2 points3 points (2 children) | Copy Link
[+]Bletchlypark points [recovered] (1 child) | Copy Link
I was already leaning toward no but now I am 100% absofuckingloutly against it.
The screams, my god I don't think I'll forget that for quite some time.
[–]the_unseen_one 1 point2 points3 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–]GunOfSod 3 points4 points5 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–]MRA-automatron-2kb 2 points3 points4 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–]littlegreenrock 2 points3 points4 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–][deleted] 2 points3 points4 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–]double-happiness 1 point2 points3 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–]C-S-Don 1 point2 points3 points (4 children) | Copy Link
[+]Bletchlypark points [recovered] (3 children) | Copy Link
That is very interesting...
[–]C-S-Don 1 point2 points3 points (2 children) | Copy Link
[+]Bletchlypark points [recovered] (1 child) | Copy Link
Nope I'm a guy and I'm circumcised. I honestly never heard any of that before.
[–]C-S-Don 0 points1 point2 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–]SaiHottari 0 points1 point2 points (1 child) | Copy Link
[–][deleted] 0 points1 point2 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–]ladysnowpea 0 points1 point2 points (0 children) | Copy Link
[–]KaiLi73 0 points1 point2 points (3 children) | Copy Link
[+]Bletchlypark points [recovered] (2 children) | Copy Link
Why do people comment on month old threads?
[–]KaiLi73 0 points1 point2 points (1 child) | Copy Link