posted September 21, 2003 04:46 PM           

I guess people will never grow tired of customising their bodies.

posted September 21, 2003 05:33 PM         

I had no idea this was common in the States!
I have never heard of this being done to anyone in Sweden and when I read this topic to Hubby he thought all the circumcised men never could experience a "joyful" masturbation!

Well who are we(me and hubby) to talk about what the circumcised feel and not feel but for me that little piece of skin is important for added "joyness" (for men).

I totally agree with Pixel on this topic.
And washing the penis the right way keeps it clean no nead for any cutting to achieve this.

posted December 10, 2003 02:49 PM         

Exerpt from _Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom_
By Christiane Northrup, M.D.

quote:

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Circumcision

Circumcision of baby boys is another example of a painful procedure that is unnecessary. I've done hundreds of circumcisions-I am incapable of doing one ever again. Though I often used a local anesthetic, even inserting the needle for this caused the baby unnecessary pain and didn't always work very well. Increasingly, doctors and parents alike are appreciating the fact that babies are born with a nervous system that is fully capable of feeling pain and that circumcision without anesthesia is barbaric. The lead article in the New England Journal of Medicine’s April 1997 issue showed that a topical anesthetic (lidocaine-prilocaine cream) significantly decreases the pain if applied sixty to eighty minutes before the procedure.

In the past when I did the procedure, I would ask mothers to come into the nursery to comfort their babies while they were being circumcised, but they wouldn’t do it. They couldn’t stand the idea. I always made sure I personally took the newly circumcised baby to his mother as soon as I was finished-so that she could comfort her child. I didn’t want him wounded and then left alone in the nursery. Circumcision is a perfect example of the triumph of emotion and outdated and unproven beliefs over common sense and scientific data. In fact, many insurance companies will no longer pay for it because they consider it “cosmetic surgery.” Circumcision does make it easier to keep the penis clean during conditions when bathing is not feasible (such as wartime), and it may decrease the risk of cancer of the penis (which is very rare). But there is very little medical justification for routinely circumcising newborns. Dr. George Dennison sums up the circumcision issue very nicely: “To me the idea of performing 100,000 mutilating procedures on newborns to possibly prevent cancer in one elderly man is absurd.” There is also no solid evidence that circumcising a male protects his female partners from sexually transmitted diseases. What protects them best is monogamy.

The discussion of circumcision is a perfect example of the strength and influence of first-chakra tribal programming on our thought and emotional responses. This programming is so ingrained that many people cannot even discuss the subject of circumcision without guilt, denial, or other strong emotions. I know that even addressing the subject of the baby boy’s bodily integrity, choices and pain (if the procedure is done without anesthetic) can cause a “kill the messenger” reaction. But first-chakra programming can be successfully questioned and worked through, if desired. Many Jewish couples have rethought the entire circumcision issue and have decided not to have it done to their sons. This will certainly not be everyone’s choice.

If I had had a son, I would have draped my own body over his to protect his foreskin if necessary. One of my friends had a son recently and didn’t have him circumcised. When asked why not, her answer was simple: “Why would you automatically cut off a piece of a the body simply because it is there?” Even Benjamin Spock, the baby expert of all time, said that if he had it to do over again, he’d leave his son’s little penis alone.

I’ve seen circumcisions done in the delivery room. Welcome to the world, baby boy-now to initiate you properly, we’re going to cut off one of the most sensitive parts of your body with no anesthesia! Circumcision is known to cause sleep disturbances for atleast three days. I believe that is also has profound implications for male sexuality that I can’t begin to address adequately in this book. In fact, it’s a form of sexual abuse. We certainly feel that way about female clitoridectomy, circumcision, and infibulation, but we justify male infant circumcision by pretending that babies don’t feel it because they’re too young and it will have no consequences when they are older. I was taught that babies couldn’t feel when they were born and therefore wouldn’t feel their circumcision. Why was it, then, that when I strapped their little arms and legs down on the board (called a “circumstraint”), they were often perfectly calm; then when I started cutting their foreskins, they screamed loudly, with cries that broke my heart? For years, in some hospitals, surgery on infants had been carried out without anesthesia because of this misconception! Women who are going through memories of abuse in childhood know how deeply and painfully early experiences leave their marks in the body.

The foreskin is a highly innervated part of the body. There is no doubt that circumcision “toughens” the delicate skin of the tip of the penis. Men who have been circumcised later in life and who therefore know the difference report a decrease in their sexual sensations. One of my friends who is [i]not[j/] circumcised says that he wonders if rape is less common in countries in which the men are not circumcised. His experience is that having intercourse with a woman who isn’t aroused and well lubricated is as painful for him as it is for her because of the delicacy of the foreskin! The foreskin is part of a male’s body wisdom. What feelings might he miss if he doesn’t have it? The foreskin, in addition to being a highly innervated area, is also perfect for skin grafts and should be left in place in case a boy ever needs one. Right now, foreskins removed in circumcision are being cultured and used for temporary skin grafts in those who have had burns or following certain kinds of surgeries. One foreskin yields enough cells to cover an area the size of four football fields! In Europe, circumcision is rarely done except in Jewish populations. Its continued popularity in the United States still amazes me.

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posted April 22, 2004 01:48 AM         

actually, i was trying to paste Harpyr's article onto a thread in the Gaia forum, but at the same time i was trying to get dinner, and my babe was protesting my attention to the computer adamantly.....literally pulling my fingers off the keyboard and wailing loudly......whew!

so i posted it in this open window rather than the other one....

not that interesting....maybe i can conjure up something a little more risque...

posted April 28, 2004 03:38 PM         

I'm kinda glad my husband is circumsized because DAYUM that man wants sex 24 hours a day 7 days a week. He's a 17 year old trapped in a 35 year old body. It's quite annoying because my libido just can't keep up. If he had that extra piece of skin and it felt even BETTER I think I'd be a dead woman.

posted April 29, 2004 01:46 PM         

If I had a son I would have him circumsized, mainly for the health issue Ilog mentioned.