Circumcision

[JASMAK]

well, see again, its a cultural thing! most people here, girls or boys find foreskin kinda well, gross!

Sorry, as a fellow Albertan, I will have to disagree with you there, my dear!
Circumcision is nowhere near as common as you are making it out to be. According to Wikipedia, we have about a 1 in 3 rate nationwide. Albertans are the highest in the country with a 44.6% rate, according to this site:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prevalence_of_circumcision

I disagree that there is a cultural preference. I'm indifferent, personally. I like 'em either way. But I do feel that my job regarding my baby's body is to keep it intact. There are a lot of men out there who are really angry that this was done to them. I think they are right. They should have had a say. Unless there is a medical reason, I will not be doing anything permanent to my child's body. That is something that a young man should be able to decide on his own.
I have a few friends in Kenya who belong to tribes where the big male rite of passage is to sit unflinching while your foreskin is removed. Without anaesthetic. It is the passage that marks your transformation from boy to warrior. While there is certainly societal pressure to get it done, I prefer the willing participation of this ritual. So, I'm not against circumcision. I just feel that it should be the choice of the individual, not their parent. I absolutely disagree with the statement about owning my baby's body. I am its caretaker and protector, but I do not own them.

Also from Canada...only know a couple boys circ'd...most, are not. I am in BC.

 

[meli1981]

how do you know? do you ask random guys on the street? lol

 

[JASMAK]

how do you know? do you ask random guys on the street? lol

Because I talk to other parents....and when you are changing your baby boys diaper, and someone is changing their baby boys diaper...you see...AND, because my doctor told me only 1 in 10 boys on Van Island are circumcized.

 

[meli1981]

yeah but thats the trend now for new baby boys, doesnt mean most of the men arent circumcised

 

[JASMAK]

I don't care about men....I care about my son...men didnt get a choice, and neither did their mothers...boys my husbands age...they were done without even asking...that was the norm, so yeah, of course more grown men will be circ'd. Now, there is information stating the reasons NOT to do it, the doctors tell you NOT to do it, you have to pay for it, because medically in Canada, it is considered cosmetic. If you haveva son who is cird now...he will be the one who is 'different' in the change room. He will be the one with the 'funny looking' penis.

 

[Gunnhilde]

hey! im married to an uncut dane as well! small world!

I'm sure you have thought of this - but OH told me that it would really stand out for a boy/man to be circumcised in Denmark. Is there any chance your kids would go back?

I love meeting other foreigners married to Danes. It is a special experience.

 

[Aidan's Mummy]

I'm really struglling to understand the it looks better argument, why would anyone care what their son's penis looks like? Besides in my eyes my boys are pure perfection the way they were born I am not about to put them through surgery to 'make them look better' because to me they are fine as they are.

As for health benefits the American pediatric society now states they do not believe the minimal health benefits of circumcision warrants young babies to be circumcisied
"Scientific studies show some medical benefits of circumcision. However, these benefits are not sufficient for the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) to recommend that all infant boys be circumcised." https://www.healthychildren.org/Eng...000&nfstatusdescription=ERROR:+No+local+token x

 

[holly2234]

This may be TMI, but when my OH's is full staff you do have to pull down the foreskin most of the time. It also does smell and I have to meticulously clean it so I don't vomit. I've never had that problem with a circumcised guy and OH does clean it quite thoroughly in the shower...it just doesn't seem to be enough unless I get one of those Always clean wipes out or a q tip. I've never once had that problem with a cut guy, but I'm not saying cut is better - it could just be my OH that has the problem. I also don't notice a huge difference in feeling (or any), but I do notice a difference in the length of time till climax. None of those are of course good enough reasons for me to circumcise a son, but they are differences.

I have to agree. All of my ex's werent cut and they ALL smelled. Hence why i prefer cut. Its not a deal breaker but i still dont like it.

If i have a son, i dont care how it looks, that would be why i would let DH decide. Because im not bothered either way.

Its a totally different situation between husband/OH and son.

 

[steph.]

whats so creepy? its not like getting your kid a nose job or anything, which before anyone says it is COMPLETELY different! we are talking aboyt a procedure thats been done on infants for YEARS (im not sure how long!) and hey if it makes them look better then why not? everything in perspective, people!

Why is it so different to a nose job? If you're getting your child circumcised purely to make a penis look better (which by the way is totally subjective!) then it is no different at all than getting them a nose job.

If babies had routinely been getting nose jobs for years, would that make it ok? Of course not. It's good to question things, no matter how long established they are. It allows us to progress.

Ok, as i said before i probably wont get a future son circ'd but i think comparing a circumcision to a nose job isnt really fair. First a nose job is a lot more complicated in terms of the actual surgery, takes a lot longer to complete, and requires a general anaesthetic. Also it has no health benefits, whereas circumcision, whether you like it or not, does have some benefit. If you want to compare it to another procedure, i would probably compare it to something like ear stenting for bat ears or stalh's bar and the parents who chose to do this dont get nearly as much flack as the circumcising parents!

Also just going back a little further in the thread, i dont think i own my child's body but i do make decisions for her which i think are in her best interest. So if a parent thinks that the baby will benefit more from being cut, and that this is what they would want, then why is it so wrong? I know people say leave it up to them to decide when they are older, but apart from the surgery being more complex in an adult than an infant, realistically which 18 year old boy would have the guts to go through with it?!

 

[Ozzieshunni]

I think that if guys don't properly wash, whether cut or uncut, they still smell.

 

[Natsku]

Interesting https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-18604664

 

[xemmax]

whats so creepy? its not like getting your kid a nose job or anything, which before anyone says it is COMPLETELY different! we are talking aboyt a procedure thats been done on infants for YEARS (im not sure how long!) and hey if it makes them look better then why not? everything in perspective, people!

Why is it so different to a nose job? If you're getting your child circumcised purely to make a penis look better (which by the way is totally subjective!) then it is no different at all than getting them a nose job.

If babies had routinely been getting nose jobs for years, would that make it ok? Of course not. It's good to question things, no matter how long established they are. It allows us to progress.

Ok, as i said before i probably wont get a future son circ'd but i think comparing a circumcision to a nose job isnt really fair. First a nose job is a lot more complicated in terms of the actual surgery, takes a lot longer to complete, and requires a general anaesthetic. Also it has no health benefits, whereas circumcision, whether you like it or not, does have some benefit. If you want to compare it to another procedure, i would probably compare it to something like ear stenting for bat ears or stalh's bar and the parents who chose to do this dont get nearly as much flack as the circumcising parents!

Also just going back a little further in the thread, i dont think i own my child's body but i do make decisions for her which i think are in her best interest. So if a parent thinks that the baby will benefit more from being cut, and that this is what they would want, then why is it so wrong? I know people say leave it up to them to decide when they are older, but apart from the surgery being more complex in an adult than an infant, realistically which 18 year old boy would have the guts to go through with it?!

I'm not reflecting these views on people who circumcise for supposed health benefits (which are minimal) and of course a nose job may be more risky surgery but my stance is that cosmetic surgery for children should only be considered in cases where there is real concern for the child's wellbeing while growing up with a disfigurement/large birthmark etc (and even then it's totally a parent's choice and they should never feel they have to conform to society's view of normal). However cutting off a FUNCTIONING piece of your child's body in a surgical procedure purely to make their penis look better does not make sense to me whatsoever and I am completely opposed.

 

[Andypanda6570]

Let me just say something here all my 3 boys are circumcised they are 21,18 and 12 and I can firmly tell you I DID NOT do it for cosmetic reasons. Back then the thinking was different that it would just be better and safer and so on, so we did it. Now in the U.S. doctors DO NOT tell u, u must do it, it is ur choice, since more is known and the fact is it is a personal choice. My husband is from Italy and is not circumcised , I can tell u it does indeed smell if not properly washed, my husband is extremely clean and never smells. I agree now that we as americans are told that it is not necessary to do this that it is a choice, but when my kids were born they did make it seem health wise it was better. I would not criticize any women for her choice, my sons cried for 5 minutes and were healed in less than 7 days, it was not torture, how can u comment on pain and this & that if u don't know? I am only posting cause of the cosmetic comment, truly back then we were lead to believe it was healthier, we now knowthe truth. Please try not to judge what u don't know, I don't..

 

[xemmax]

Not sure if I have offended you - I was only referring to the post that said it should be done to make a penis look better, and because it could cause problems in a relationship. In my eyes they are poor reasons to put a child through surgery. I know you say it isn't torture but 7 days healing is a long time for a baby, especially on an area which is urinated on (I'm sure those of us who have been through childbirth remember the sting of that). To go through that just to make your child's penis look better just doesn't make sense to me. Other reasons I can understand (though I still wouldn't do it), but cosmetic reasons I just can't support.

 

[Andypanda6570]

Not sure if I have offended you - I was only referring to the post that said it should be done to make a penis look better, and because it could cause problems in a relationship. In my eyes they are poor reasons to put a child through surgery. I know you say it isn't torture but 7 days healing is a long time for a baby, especially on an area which is urinated on (I'm sure those of us who have been through childbirth remember the sting of that). To go through that just to make your child's penis look better just doesn't make sense to me. Other reasons I can understand (though I still wouldn't do it), but cosmetic reasons I just can't support.

NO u did not offend me at all. Totally agree with you on the cosmetic thing, i just wanted people to know back when my kids were born they really did lead us to believe it was for health reasons, if i had known back then maybe i would not have circumcised, maybe i would have i don't really know..XOXOXO

 

[Gunnhilde]

I think that if guys don't properly wash, whether cut or uncut, they still smell.

I've actually washed uncut OH in the shower and it still smells despite my best efforts to get it really clean. It takes some meticulous cleaning with a Qtip or the clean wipes to really get in there.

I've never had the head of a cut guy smell after a shower and a serious washing with soap before. Never.

I don't think it is a really big deal - there is just more work to be done before oral.

Or maybe I just have a seriously weak stomach and I'm a meticulous clean freak. I actually have the same issue with lady parts.

 

[Andypanda6570]

I think that if guys don't properly wash, whether cut or uncut, they still smell.

I've actually washed uncut OH in the shower and it still smells despite my best efforts to get it really clean. It takes some meticulous cleaning with a Qtip or the clean wipes to really get in there.

I've never had the head of a cut guy smell after a shower and a serious washing with soap before. Never.

I don't think it is a really big deal - there is just more work to be done before oral.

Or maybe I just have a seriously weak stomach and I'm a meticulous clean freak. I actually have the same issue with lady parts.

I have to say i totally agree with you on the smell issue, I have had the best of both and it is completely true

 

[xemmax]

I can honestly say my partner does not smell at all and he (nor anyone I know) has to clean their foreskin with a Q tip! Regular washing in the shower is enough.

Yes smegma smells, but it is actually what cleans the penis. So just because it smells, it doesn't mean it is unclean.

 

[Andypanda6570]

I can honestly say my partner does not smell at all and he (nor anyone I know) has to clean their foreskin with a Q tip! Regular washing in the shower is enough.

Yes smegma smells, but it is actually what cleans the penis. So just because it smells, it doesn't mean it is unclean.

I don't think it is fair to say ALL smell, It is more our personal experiences

 

[Ozzieshunni]

I can honestly say my partner does not smell at all and he (nor anyone I know) has to clean their foreskin with a Q tip! Regular washing in the shower is enough.

Yes smegma smells, but it is actually what cleans the penis. So just because it smells, it doesn't mean it is unclean.

I don't think it is fair to say ALL smell, It is more our personal experiences

Agreed