Leave His Penis Alone!
Submitted by MariMK
I was at a friend's beach house the other day, and our sons decided they couldn't wait for each other to pee, so they started peeing together.
"Oh," said my friend. "You didn't have him circumcised."
Now, said friend is as blunt and out there as one can be (which I generally appreciate), but perhaps I am a little overly sensitive on this topic. I just don't understand why leaving your son's penis intact is such a major issue.
Before we even conceived, my husband (intact himself) made it plain that were we to have a son, we were not going to circumcise him.
"He'll be different from some of his friends, but with regard to sensation, he'll appreciate it later in life." No biggie for me; I had no opinion one way or the other, and since there was no religious reason to circumcise, why not? When we did find out he was a boy, I didn't think twice. Of course, the little handout the Bradley teacher gave us, with anti-circumcision propaganda on it (supposedly sized to the amount of skin removed during circumcision) reinforced my decision.
"People rationalize this by saying things like 'most boys are circumcised' and 'his nerves aren't developed yet; he won't feel a thing,'" she told us. "But these babies pass out from the pain … whether it's in a hospital (they burn it off) or in a religious rite (sliced off while onlookers nibble hors d'oeuvres), it doesn't matter."
When he was born and remained unsliced, my family went into one of its major panics.
"He'll be ostracized."
"He'll be different from his friends."
"It looks weird."
"Um … smegma."
OK. I realize that there are reasons for circumcision, like cleanliness (if you clean yourself, this should not be a problem, and dad has taught him how to clean his own penis, thanks), or because it is a part of one's religion. I don't buy the "camp follower" viewpoint myself, but if he wants circumcision later, when he's old enough to ask for it, that's OK by me. But for those who feel I am ruining his life by not slicing his foreskin off, hey, take it to the guy who designed the thing.
Submit!
