Ask Lemmy

The idea that you would cut off a part of your kids genitalia just so they could 'fit in' culturally is kinda blown away by the fact that it is now less common to be circumcised than being natural, even in the USA. By the time your kid is old enough to care, it will be a complete non-issue, and they can always get one as an adult if they want. Don't take that agency away.

https://www.medpagetoday.com/pediatrics/generalpediatrics/117464

The idea that it has a population-level health benefit is completely debunked. It is medically advisable in only a tiny fraction of kids (sub 1%). The fact that %60 of the US population is circumcised is all thanks to religious hooey from puritans who don't want children to masturbate, and think chopping a sensitive part of their genitals off to make it harder to enjoy is the best way to go - thanks to education and a wider exposure to the rest of the world via the Internet, US parents are finally realising this which is why it's in decline.

Nope, not even once. I find the idea of circumcision really bizarre.

Never ever regretted being uncircumcised. In fact, I regularly feel especially grateful to my parents for not getting me circumcised. If it were socially acceptable, I'd talk to more people about it and why it's great not being circumsized. I would get me parents a "Thanks for not mutilating me as a baby" thank you cake.

I definitely would leave it up to them. It is a very long recovery to regrow that skin if they have regrets or issues later in life.

No

Ok, so I'm a 38 year old uncircumcised Canadian male and on this issue, I have two opinions:

1.) Circumcision for moral, traditional, covenantial, or social cohesion reasons is child genital mutilation. Full stop, no second guesses...

2.) I have a larger-ish penis with a proportionally smaller frenulum and tighter foreskin. I am not bragging about size, I wish I was smaller because, when I get very aroused it can be quite painful. The foreskin frenulum pulls right against the tip of my penis and bends it down. If I were to excuse the frenulum and loosen my foreskin, I can imagine having sex when I am very erect would feel much better. This would be great because right now it feels like I'm trying to fuck with reigns on.

I have been exploring the idea of the loosening surgery, but obviously this is my choice, for aesthetic and pain management reasons.

The child has no choice, it's abuse. I have a choice, it's a medical procedure.

Not for a fucking second. Ever.

I did as a kid because I was different from everyone else.

As an adult I'm so incredibly thankful that I didn't suffer genital mutilation because of social pressure from people I couldn't care less about.

I'm very happy being natural.

GenX USAmerican here. I felt 'different' as a kid when we had to shower for gym class. Besides that, it's been fine. Teach your son proper hygiene and it will be okay. I have never had a negative sexual encounter about it, or been otherwise teased by women. Circumcision is so much less common here than it used to be.

1. If you aren't Jewish, what reason do you have to do it to an infant that can't possibly wait until they're old enough to decide for themselves?

2. Would you be struggling with the same decision to surgically alter an infant's genitals if we were talking about your daughter instead of your son?

Never, I'm very happy to be in cut. Just wash myself in the shower, and it's more sensation and fun.

Genital mutilation is a caveman practice...

No why would I want to mutilate my dick

Don't mutilate your kid. If there's a medical reason go ahead, otherwise leave it be.
Your son can't put it back if you remove it, but he can remove it if you leave it. Let it be his choice over his body.

No, don't ever mutilate your kid for bullshit reasons. Cutting his penis just so that he can fit it in with others is nonsense.

I think its a lot less common in the US these days. My 6yo isn't, and to my knowledge none of the little kids in the family are either. My friend has 3 little boys all uncut

Male circumcision is genital mutilation.

If it’s your culture, your culture is dumb.

No. It's child mutilation. Just. No.

Parents who perform unnecessary surgery on their children because society says they should are bad parents.

That might seem harsh, but it's true. You have a responsibility to make the right choices for your kids, and "society" doesn't get a vote.

I faced the same question, but found it to be a no-brainer. You don't perform unnecessary surgery on a baby.

The reason it is performed in the US is to stop boys from masturbating.

Ignore any excuses for doing it that people have come up with since. That's the only reason the US started doing it, and every other reason is just people trying to rationalize why they keep doing it.

The "reasons" people come up with to explain it now are based on extremely unlikely events. All the serious issues that come up are avoided with proper hygiene. Unless they still have a stupid masturbation hangup, it all comes down to this:

Parents feel icky about having to explain to their child how to wash their penis.

If you can't handle that, I'll tell you right now that you're going to have a hell of a lot tougher conversations.

What I told them was to imagine they were wearing a hoodie in the shower. You'd need to pull the hood back before shampooing your hair. Same thing goes for the little head, but don't use shampoo, that might burn.

Not circumcising my kids only caused me one problem:

My mom reacted like it was a direct personal attack on her, because I was circumcised. She saw it as me saying she was wrong. I found it difficult to convince her that I was not judging her. She didn't have the same information available to her as I did. When I was born, she didn't really have a choice.

No. Why the hell would I want the end of my dick chopped off??

The rates are falling in America so you son probably won't be the only kid with a foreskin. That said do remember there is a small chance of death from blood loss. No really that happens a few times a year.

Dude I have a foreskin and it's fucking rad. I can pinch it closed when I pee and it'll fill up like a balloon. How could you deny your son that?

Tbh I love my foreakin, it's fun to play with and overall just enhances the penis having experience. 10/10 would recommend

This is your opportunity to discontinue a barbaric practice that was done to you for stupid reasons.

The only thing that is making this a difficult ethical choice for you is the culture you were brought up in. If you were born in most other places, this issue wouldn’t even provoke serious thought in your brain, just astonishment, laughter, and ridicule for anyone who practiced it.

This isn’t a hard choice. Do the right thing.

Don't do it. Let your kid choose as an adult. You can't undo circumcision.

Genital mutilation is inexcusable disgusting tradition - don't do it.