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Circumcision.. What do Evolutionary Biologists/Naturalists/Darwinists think?

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Manoko

Member

Wanna play this game ?

There is growing consensus among physicians, including those in the United States, that physicians should discourage parents from circumcising their healthy infant boys because nontherapeutic circumcision of underage boys in Western societies has no compelling health benefits, causes postoperative pain, can have serious long-term consequences, constitutes a violation of the United Nations' Declaration of the Rights of the Child, and conflicts with the Hippocratic oath: primum non nocere: First, do no harm.

Please, reply to this when you can.
Let's try to defend children genital mutilation without the report you quoted a bunch of times, which appear not to be as truthful as you might want it to be.
 

Keri

Member
My husband and I opted against circumcising our son, for similar reasons that you referenced OP: We just didn't have a strong reason to do it and, in the absence of significant benefits, it seemed best to leave it be. But it is such a hard decision to make and I still worry about whether we've set him up to be judged, later in life, for being uncircumcised.

I selfishly hope circumcision becomes less common in the U.S., so I don't have to worry about that.
 
This hasn't been my experience in North America at least.

Every girl I've been with that I've had this conversation with has said uncut penises look weird. It's all about where you were raised and what you grew up with as a norm, but in NA at least I've found most women indeed do give a shit

Basically this. uncut is so rare in the US, that it would freak out an American woman. Its not normalized here. If you are in Europe and hope to hook up with a Euro woman its no big deal of course.
 

Dunlop

Member
My husband and I opted against circumcising our son, for similar reasons that you referenced OP: We just didn't have a strong reason to do it and, in the absence of significant benefits, it seemed best to leave it be. But it is such a hard decision to make and I still worry about whether we've set him up to be judged, later in life, for being uncircumcised.
Judged by who? I think it is declining in the US as well, just not as quickly as the test of the world
 

mantidor

Member
Not really end of story, because had my parents let me decide when I was older I would've not done it from fear of the pain/procedure. Getting your dick chopped is not an easy choice to make as an adult. I have absolutely no recollection of when I had the procedure as a newborn, and am glad my parents opted to have me circumcised.

Everyone is fine with how they are besides the rare medical condition, neither circumcised nor uncircumcised guys are going to have an issue with it, but it's the same for people who had accidents as very small kids, if a baby loses his or her small toe out of some accident he or she won't find a problem with their feet later in life since it always has been like that. That isn't really a good argument. The point is why even do it in the first place? That's where the argument lies.

If we remove the religious reasons and the aesthetic reasons there is little compelling evidence to remove a part of the body. Studies cited have already shown babies do feel pain and it does affect their development, from an evolutionary standpoint there is no real argument pro circumcision that I know of, the foreskin is not like the appendix, and even then no medical professional would ever remove the appendix of anyone just because. The only scientific research has been the one study in Africa about HIV reduced​ risk, that first, isn't that big of a reduction, second, it has been contested over and over and no one has followed up trying to do the same study again and/or elsewhere. What we do know is that the US has bigger STI rates than Europe where circumcision is rare, and unless sexual activity is widely different it seems that at least in the developed world it's simply not an important factor.
 

finalflame

Member
The value of circumcision is 100% a cultural construct and practice at this point. With modern hygiene and daily showering, the cleaning aspect of uncircumcised vs. circumcised is superficial.

There is zero reason to do it, nuff said.

The American Academy of Pediatrics seems to think otherwise (reposting link for visibility, and because the "no real benefits" posts are getting annoying):

Evaluation of current evidence indicates that the health benefits of newborn male circumcision outweigh the risks; furthermore, the benefits of newborn male circumcision justify access to this procedure for families who choose it. Specific benefits from male circumcision were identified for the prevention of urinary tract infections, acquisition of HIV, transmission of some sexually transmitted infections, and penile cancer. Male circumcision does not appear to adversely affect penile sexual function/sensitivity or sexual satisfaction.

In a task force study citing over 200 studies related to male circumcision.

http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/130/3/e756
 
I hate how the term "lol" is now used as a smug dismissal and not to actually express laughter. What he said was true, you won't remember it. He DEFINITELY did NOT say that "nothing you do to a baby affects their mental development", as you suggested as you redefined what he said.

Personally, for whatever reason, I'm glad my parents did it. Can't say I know what the alternative is like, so take that as you will OP.
As a parent I find the whole concept absurd. So I was dismissing the argument. I'm not chopping off a piece of my sons body. I firmly believe in evolution. If there was no use for it we wouldn't have foreskin.
 

Keri

Member
Judged by who? I think it is declining in the US as well, just not as quickly as the test of the world

Mostly by future love interests. Also, I'd hate it if he felt different or abnormal for being uncircumcised, so I'm glad to hear it's declining in the U.S.
 

Manoko

Member
The American Academy of Pediatrics seems to think otherwise (reposting link for visibility, and because the "no real benefits" posts are getting annoying):



In a task force study citing over 200 studies related to male circumcision.

http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/130/3/e756

Again, your report doesn't have much credibility:

http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/pediatrics/early/2013/03/12/peds.2012-2896.full.pdf

There is growing consensus among physicians, including those in the United States, that physicians should discourage parents from circumcising their healthy infant boys because nontherapeutic circumcision of underage boys in Western societies has no compelling health benefits, causes postoperative pain, can have serious long-term consequences, constitutes a violation of the United Nations' Declaration of the Rights of the Child, and conflicts with the Hippocratic oath: primum non nocere: First, do no harm.

You repost your link for visibility, I'll repost mine everytime you do that without acknowledging mine as well.
Stop spreading your biased report and claim it as universal truth, it's pretty damn clear it's not as strong an argument as you might think.
 

finalflame

Member

So, after reading this, it's essentially a weakly cited commentary by European physicians in an attempt to undermine the validity of the opinion of American pediatricians? Seems like a matter of choice here, then. Go with whatever your culture has raised you to believe/do.

You repost your link for visibility, I'll repost mine everytime you do that without acknowledging mine as well.
Stop spreading your biased report and claim it as universal truth, it's pretty damn clear it's not as strong an argument as you might think.

Where's the citation for this "growing consensus"? I see none, so basically, they are talking out of their asses on the final statement. Neato.
 

zou

Member
Judged by who? I think it is declining in the US as well, just not as quickly as the test of the world

yeah, it should be below 50% now, last numbers from 2010 had it around 55%, down from 63% in 2001.

oh and in the western states it's below 30%.
 

vypek

Member
My parents had me circumcised when I was around a week old or something. I don't have any problem with it. Even though it seems to still be relatively popular in the states, I'd probably choose not to have it done to my son if I had one. They could choose to have it done later if they wish.
 

Ploid 3.0

Member
Which of course infants are immune to. You can rip off a baby's arm and it'll grow right back...

The fuck kind of logic is it to say "this pain would be unbearable for a grown man, let's do it on them when they're the weakest they will ever be, for a procedure that isn't even considered medically necessary for 99.9% of cases"? It really hurt when I got my tongue pierced, so I'm getting little Johnny's done in the maternity ward. That's logical right?

Reminds me of that abandoned baby girl that was found covered in ants or something. I wonder how many people would think, "thank goodness she was a baby, that would be too much for a older person."
 

GamerSoul

Member
Look up pictures of both. Frenulum breve is where that bit of skin you are talking about is too short to retract the foreskin when erect. If you can pull it down no problem when you are soft, congratulations on the short frenulum. If you play with yourself right now, you might notice that the "pain" you feel come from that spot, and not a tight foreskin.

If so, that's totally a problem that's fixable without circumcision.
There's still a scalpel involved, sorry...

I guess I didn't do my research properly. Lol but yea I see it now..this is my life. Retracting is not comfortable either way for me. If I can take care of the frenulum..maybe I don't need the full circumcision, we'll see.

You must have a pretty tight foreskin. That was my exact situtation and i found out after going to university ! I could only see the hole of the urethra when i tried to pull it. After numerous tries and while my penis was like ...40% erect i managed to pull it off only to realise that the foreskin headlocked the head like fucking Chris Benoit.

Me moving a lot and having to study made me make it a daily routine to pull it back with some lubricant (vaseline in my case) while *ahem* going at it. After 3 months or so.. voila ! now i can pull my foreskin relatively easy and holy shit it feels AMAZING. I was so optimistic that i tried to leave the head exposed and go to sleep !! Needless to say my penis woke me up in the middle of the night and was like "PUT ME THE FUCK IN YOU BASTARD".

Humor aside, all i'm saying is circumsicion should be the last resort for your case. View retracting your foreskin as an exercise and you might make it !!! (i also considered circumcision at one point not anymore ! )

Also.. It's rather fitting that circumcision prevents issues like that that could be easily addressed if society/family could be more open to sexual education.

Yea I'm definitely weighing my options right now..

Thanks GAF. Haha
 
The problem is so many people think it's a small issue, or a preference thing and that whatever minor aesthetic or hygiene benefits there are justify it.

They don't.

Anywhere between 70-120 babies die in the US every year from complications of the procedure. It DOES cause them extreme pain and anguish. It DOES NOT have a meaningful hygienic benefit, as long as the child learns to retract his foreskin and wash his glans.
Ugh.

You people really need to be sat the fuck down and schooled.

This is not a minor thing for babies and it's filled more child sized coffins than car accidents.

I'm not pro-circumcision or anything but do you have a source for that stat that isn't from Dan Bollinger flawed, non-peer reviewed study?
 

finalflame

Member
Do you have a source for those stats that aren't from Dan Bollinger flawed, non-peer reviewed study?

They don't, as I've already asked and they failed to produce sources. Go figure! Seems the anti-circumcision crowd is big on making claims without citing sources, much like the "growing consensus" above.
 

Manoko

Member
So, after reading this, it's essentially a weakly cited commentary by European physicians in an attempt to undermine the validity of the opinion of American pediatricians? Seems like a matter of choice here, then. Go with whatever your culture has raised you to believe/do.

No it's not.
You quoted your report like it's the "right way" to think about this issue because one pediatric organization did an article on it.
I'm showing you multiple other pediatric organizations, who are rather neutral culturally to circumcision, contrary to the american one who's very deeply involved with it, saying this report was poorly done and very questionnable.

You choose to listen to what suits your belief, and that's a pretty damn damaging way of going about things in general.
Leave babies' genitalia out of this pretty poor way of finding truths please.

What benefits are there to circumcision in the western society ?

Just tell me what you think those are, in your own opinion.
 

GatorBait

Member
There doesn't seem to be a very compelling reason for it. I don't find "I hope people won't think his penis is weird" to be a compelling reason in this modern age.
 
I'll never understand why you lot across the pond have such a self loathing for your penises you feel the need to chop a bit of it off XD. Thing works fine as it is, leave it be. It's really strange how it's considered normal to just hack a piece of your body off for the sheer sake of it.
 
I was circumcised and I really wished that I understood to why my parent forced me to be circumcised as I wouldn't have gone along with it.

Unless there's a medical reason, there is no need to mutilate your son genital and I won't be doing it for my sons should end up having any.

Sue the hospital that done it, doesn't matter if had parents consent, you can do that.
 

Shredderi

Member
Basically this. uncut is so rare in the US, that it would freak out an American woman. Its not normalized here. If you are in Europe and hope to hook up with a Euro woman its no big deal of course.

Why are American women so freaked out about it? The women in europe doesn't seem to have problems with circumsized dicks even though they are accustomed to uncut dicks. A lot women here have been with a circumsized man and I've never heard anyone freaking out about it. Just weird.
 
Mostly by future love interests. Also, I'd hate it if he felt different or abnormal for being uncircumcised, so I'm glad to hear it's declining in the U.S.

Who the fuck wants to sleep with a chick who would refuse you on the basis of your flaccid penis looking weird to her? Your son dodged a fucking bullet if that ever happens to him, for real. That chick has issues.

It's like, if I decided at the last second I didn't want to sleep with a girl because her labia were too big. She would think I was a massive fucking asshole, and so would anybody else who heard about it.

As far as feeling different or abnormal: in my experience, this is a good thing. I mean, maybe my opinion is jilted since I was often an outsider in my teenage years, but although it felt crappy back then I feel now that it taught me some great lessons about how to identify shitty people. Someone ostracizes people who are different than them, and I know instantly I have no reason to give a shit what that person thinks about anything, and can tell them to fuck off at the soonest opportunity. If I had gone through life without ever feeling different I probably would have ended up just like all those other assholes who stumble through life never learning the skill of sympathy.
 

Manoko

Member
Where's the citation for this "growing consensus"? I see none, so basically, they are talking out of their asses on the final statement. Neato.

That growing consensus you're doing your damn hardest to keep out of yourself is reflected in the rates of circumcision declining in the US for over 3 decades now it seems like.

I can source with several news website but it's pretty easy to find.
 

Madness

Member
One of the only facts I have discovered that legitimately shocked me was the fact that most of the population of North America is circumsized.

Before that, I thought it was just a small section of Jewish people.

In Australia and NZ it's basically unheard of unless for actual medical reasons.

Why are people saying North America when it is just the US. In Canada, the rate is down to 32% and dropping every year. Unheard of in Mexico pretty much as well. But the US does it because some girls may think its gross lol or they don't an unnatural looking dick, when cutting off a piece if your dick is the most unnatural thing in the world. American porn especially has exacerbated this. And those who say they feel no effects. How much do you enioy sex with condoms? Curious.

But you can be sure that girls in Canada definitely see more uncut dicks than cut one ones.
 

njean777

Member
Personally I would circumsize my boy. That is just me though.

Why are people saying North America when it is just the US. In Canada, the rate is down to 32% and dropping every year. Unheard of in Mexico pretty much as well. But the US does it because some girls may think its gross lol or they don't an unnatural looking dick, when cutting off a piece if your dick is the most unnatural thing in the world. American porn especially has exacerbated this. And those who say they feel no effects. How much do you enioy sex with condoms? Curious.

But you can be sure that girls in Canada definitely see more uncut dicks than cut one ones.

I have had es sex both with and without a condom and both feel fine. Would rather have it without any day of the week, but that is my preference.
 

Manoko

Member
They don't, as I've already asked and they failed to produce sources. Go figure! Seems the anti-circumcision crowd is big on making claims without citing sources, much like the "growing consensus" above.

By the way, is that something you disagree on, the quote below from the report I linked.

The AAP report lacks a serious discussion of the central ethical dilemma with, on one side, parents’ right to act in the best interest of the child on the basis of cultural, religious, and healthrelated beliefs and wishes and, on the other side, infant boys’ basic right to physical integrity in the absence of compelling reasons for surgery. Physical integrity is one of the most fundamental and inalienable rights a child has. Physicians and their professional organizations have a professional duty to protect this right, irrespective of the gender of the child.
 

Aske

Member
Why are American women so freaked out about it? The women in europe doesn't seem to have problems with circumsized dicks even though they are accustomed to uncut dicks. A lot women here have been with a circumsized man and I've never heard anyone freaking out about it. Just weird.

It's no different to the way people relate to "outie" vaginas. Some people care a lot about labia size. Others don't. Plenty prefer big lips; but vaginoplasty is typically done to reduce lip size. Most people won't care at all, wherever they're from.
 
Absolutely not. I'm not doing it to my kid. I had it done to me and miss my foreskin. Would make jerking it 1000x times better.

As far as the hygiene argument it makes about as much sense as surgically removing my ass to make sure I don't let it get dirty from not washing it properly.

Proper bathing techniques make it a dumb fucking point. Teach your kid how to wash their junk.
 

finalflame

Member
No it's not.
You quoted your report like it's the "right way" to think about this issue because one pediatric organization did an article on it.
I'm showing you multiple other pediatric organizations, who are rather neutral culturally to circumcision, contrary to the american one who's very deeply involved with it, saying this report was poorly done and very questionnable.

You choose to listen what suits your belief, and that's a pretty damn damaging way of going about things in general.

What benefits are there to circumcision in the western society ?

Just tell me what you think those are, in your own opinion.

Honestly, I think the benefits are slim in modern western society where we generally are not at a huge risk of contracting HIV due to other preventative methods. With that said, an objective look at studies conducted shows that it reduces the risk to some extent. The argument largely made in the commentary/response is that "well it's not enough to make up for not giving your son a choice", which can be a valid argument, but does not excuse saying "there are absolutely no benefits of getting circumcised", as it has been proven to reduce, to some degree, the likelihood of contracting HIV, genital warts and genital herpes.

Even if there are other, more effective methods available, it's still wrong to say there are absolutely no benefits. You can happily argue that the benefits do not outweigh the ethical dilemma of not giving your son a choice, but that argument doesn't appeal to me, personally, as I don't think that choice is morally loaded.

At the end of the day, it's up to the parents to decide what they want to do. Again, your parents, at that stage of your life, do have agency over you as a child. I see no significant reasons not to get your son circumcised, if you decide it's something you want. I personally don't like the way uncircumcised dicks look, that's just my preference, so I'm glad mine is circumcised. I've also never met a chick who said she'd be put off by my circumcised dick, but have met a couple who said they were not down with uncircumcised. Anecdotal, but a life experience I've had. It's probably true most chicks don't care, in the grand scheme of things.

Anyways, it probably just comes down to choice. I don't care which choice you make, as long as you don't ardently criticize mine.
 

Zok310

Banned
Never understand why people let their boys suffer in agony for weeks just so they can have a more preferenced dick.
Circumcision serves no purpose other than making the cock look more appealing to western women/men.
 

Keri

Member
yeah, it should be below 50% now, last numbers from 2010 had it around 55%, down from 63% in 2001.

oh and in the western states it's below 30%.

Wow, I had no idea it was dropping so much. I'm glad to hear that it's unlikely this will be an issue for him. I mean, even just having it 50/50 is enough to normalize being uncut.

Who the fuck wants to sleep with a chick who would refuse you on the basis of your flaccid penis looking weird to her? Your son dodged a fucking bullet if that ever happens to him, for real. That chick has issues.

Yeah, I agree. If you really care about someone, there's no way that's going to stand in the way. It's just easy to worry, I guess. This is probably the first irreversible decision parent's of boys make. Thanks for your response though, it helps! Now I can just focus on worrying about the other million things involved in raising a child.
 

fester

Banned
Not really end of story, because had my parents let me decide when I was older I would've not done it from fear of the pain/procedure. Getting your dick chopped is not an easy choice to make as an adult. I have absolutely no recollection of when I had the procedure as a newborn, and am glad my parents opted to have me circumcised.

So inflicting pain on others is OK as long as the person doesn't remember it?

"It offers no benefits and is too painful and scary for adults - so let's do it to our baby."
 

finalflame

Member
So inflicting pain on others is OK as long as the person doesn't remember it?

"It offers no benefits and is too painful and scary for adults - so let's do it to our baby."

Sure -- my parents within their legal right to make that decision when I was an infant, as they have agency over me. I don't really care, pain is temporary, and I'd rather have it be far in my past than something I have to deal with and remember for the rest of my adult life.

YMMV.
 

Madness

Member
Absolutely not. I'm not doing it to my kid. I had it done to me and miss my foreskin. Would make jerking it 1000x times better.

As far as the hygiene argument it makes about as much sense as surgically removing my ass to make sure I don't let it get dirty from not washing it properly.

Proper bathing techniques make it a dumb fucking point. Teach your kid how to wash their junk.

The reason circumcised penises are more very slightly more prone to STI's and STD's is becauss the skin is more sensitive and prone to microtears during sex that do not hurt and are not felt but might allow the infectious bacteria to enter. But this again comes back to safe sex and condom use. With a foreskin, there is almost always sensitivity and arousal with a condom or without. Feels near identical, while a lot of circumcised men I've heard from say they need to masturbate longer, would prefer sex without a condom so they can feel it easier because the sensitivity is massively declined throughout the years.

Proper bathing and shower techniques is simple. Soap your junk and clean it. If you are getting urinary tract infections, you are doing something horrendously wrong with bathing. My cousin had to get circumcision due to societal pressure and phimosis and regrets it. Only because he knows what it was like with his foreskin. He regrets the surgery as a first step now that there are non surgical options for phimosis. Surgeons push it because it is a way to make money and keep a hundred million+ a year elective surgery windfall alive. It is why they always pushback when insurers say they won't cover it anymore etc. Whatever. I think in a global world, and with demographic shift, you are already seeing the decline in the US. Outside of Jewish and Muslim communitiea, you will see it decline and continue. Look at South America, Asia and Europe.
 

UFO

Banned
I've never seen someone with a circumcised wang start a "help me with my dick" thread on gaf. Can't say the same about uncut folk.
 

Manoko

Member
Honestly, I think the benefits are slim in modern western society where we generally are not at a huge risk of contracting HIV due to other preventative methods. With that said, an objective look at studies conducted shows that it reduces the risk to some extent. The argument largely made in the commentary/response is that "well it's not enough to make up for not giving your son a choice", which can be a valid argument, but does not excuse saying "there are absolutely no benefits of getting circumcised", as it has been proven to reduce, to some degree, the likelihood of contracting HIV, genital warts and genital herpes.

Even if there are other, more effective methods available, it's still wrong to say there are absolutely no benefits. You can happily argue that the benefits do not outweigh the ethical dilemma of not giving your son a choice, but that argument doesn't appeal to me, personally, as I don't think that choice is morally loaded.

At the end of the day, it's up to the parents to decide what they want to do. Again, your parents, at that stage of your life, do have agency over you as a child. I see no significant reasons not to get your son circumcised, if you decide it's something you want. I personally don't like the way uncircumcised dicks look, that's just my preference, so I'm glad mine is circumcised. I've also never met a chick who said she'd be put off by my circumcised dick, but have met a couple who said they were not down with uncircumcised. Anecdotal, but a life experience I've had. It's probably true most chicks don't care, in the grand scheme of things.

Anyways, it probably just comes down to choice. I don't care which choice you make, as long as you don't ardently criticize mine.

Refusing your son's physical integrity isn't morally loaded ?

I'll continue to criticize the choice you take unless it's your own and remains your own. When you choose for your son on how his body should be, that's a big no-no and it should only be done when medical intervention is absolutely needed.

Not because you find cut penises to be more aesthetically pleasing.

I am in no position to choose anything on your body, and nobody but yourself only should be. Just think about that. The body of your son isn't your property or your own, he should be given the freedom to choose for himself as he's the only one who'll be living in it, his entire life.

I wish someone had the balls to stand out for my right to bodily integrity when I was a baby and couldn't on my own.
If I really wanted to be circumcised I could have done it later in life.
This "prevention of pain" is wrong (as it's been proven that babies experience pain the same way/intensity you do), and you trade freedom of choice over your own body in doing so. It's morally disgusting to me, that's all.
 

fester

Banned
Sure -- my parents within their legal right to make that decision when I was an infant, as they have agency over me. I don't really care, pain is temporary, and I'd rather have it be far in my past than something I have to deal with and remember for the rest of my adult life.

YMMV.

This is a twisted way of trying to rationalize having choice over your body taken away.

"YMMV" indeed.
 

manakel

Member
This is a twisted way of trying to rationalize having choice over your body taken away.

"YMMV" indeed.
I'm curious, is there any circumcised guys here that feel like their body was violated and their right was taken away?

I am not one. I honestly don't view it as that serious. It's a parent's choice.
 
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