Letters to the Editor

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Male circumcision cuts HIV transmission Should adult men in areas rife with unprotected sex and AIDS be encouraged to go under the knife?
  • Er, not exactly

    it isn't designed to stamp out a man's sexual pleasure or identity

    In religious terms, it usually establishes an identity, which I guess can also be construed as subsuming personal identity to the tribal, if one wants to be all academic about it.

    And as someone mentioned already, the popularity of circumcision among American Christians-- who have no religious obligation to do it, of course-- can be directly traced to efforts to prevent masturbation by decreasing sensation.

    Regarding the subheadline, I don't think these studies will have much impact on people in high-risk areas, but they certainly make circumcised Americans feel superior. Personally, I wouldn't do it to a kid unless I expected him to become a truck driver in Botswana or something; a middle-class American should be perfectly capable of understanding the significance of condom use and acting accordingly.

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