-DM-

Just as there is a lot of bad information out there on both sides of the fence with regard to religion (theists put out bad information and, yes, so do nontheists) there is a lot of bad information out there regarding the pros and cons of circumcision.

My take on it: the anticircumcision crowd these days tends to be as religious in believing and disseminating misinformation regarding circumcision as were Dr. Kellogg and the procircumcision crowd of yesteryear. It is almost impossible to find unbiased information on the subject.

-Don-

HazyRigby

I can't imagine any woman thinking that (probably because I don't).

I'm an American woman, and all of the lovers I've had have been circumcised, including my husband. Circumcision pisses me off, but do I find a cut penis ugly? No. I find both cut and uncut penises to be beautiful and extraordinarily sexy. Not to be crude, but just looking at my husband's gorgeous example makes my mouth water. I can't understand why anyone would find penises ugly, for goodness' sake.

And I think that if more mothers had my opinion on penises, we'd see fewer circumcisions. I know if I had a son, I'd never want to deprive him of any of his natural body parts, especially the ones which would give him the most pleasure.

john fraz

by HazyRigby
> I can't imagine any woman thinking that (probably because
I don't).
>
> I'm an American woman, and all of the lovers I've had have
been circumcised, including my husband. Circumcision pisses
me off, but do I find a cut penis ugly? No. I find both cut and
uncut penises to be beautiful and extraordinarily sexy.
>Not to be crude, but just looking at my husband's gorgeous
example makes my mouth water. I can't understand why
anyone would find penises ugly, for goodness' sake.

Exactly: for goodness sake! Sex is evil, the sight of a penis implies sex. (for some people anyway; as Heinlein said, sex is too good for some people. They should have been born oysters.) There's also the squeamishness associated with it; it's called a "weapon". A frisson of fear, a thrill of disgust "A snake!"
Even if they're not dogmatically or otherwise seriously of the opinion or belief that sex is evil, it still carries some negative connotations. The "proper American ethic" -even if not evangelical- view is that it has its place, and that's the place for it (whitebread & vanilla, missionary position in the bedroom only).

> Not to be crude, but just looking at my husband's gorgeous
example makes my mouth water.

Ditto for the female form
(I hope that emoticon is not too crude)

by alek0
>1. According to WHO, cleanliness is one of the reasons given for FGM.
http://www.who.int/inf-fs/en/fact241.html
>"The reasons given by families for having FGM performed include:
>
> hygiene and aesthetic reasons: the external female genitalia
are considered dirty and unsightly and are to be removed to
promote hygiene and provide aesthetic appeal;

I don't understand many people's distaste for female genitalia -even women, even about themselves (though it's "normal" to be hardest on your own appearence, I suppose)

Again we find the hygiene argument -as if washing isn't enough for the average healthy person, and medical help if there's an honest health complication.

Think also about the cultures where the female form in its entirety is considered unsightly, and not to be seen. Seeing a pretty woman makes a man think about sex (even a high-ranking priest/mullah), sex is evil, thus hide every part of the female form from sight.
Maybe off-topic, but indicative of how seriously such things can be to some people, I recall reading of a debate in Tehran, Iran, where a transportation minister was trying to argue for more funding for more, bigger busses. He said that if 10,000 men each bump up against 3 women in a day's business, that's 30,000 unnecessary and preventable sins committed that day.:banghead: