Letters to the Editor
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I FEEL LIKE WOMEN SHOULD HAVE THEIR LABIA CUT OFF
it makes it cleaner down there when I go down on them.
Also, there is a need in American society to lop off women's breasts since the breast cancer rate is so high. Chop em off and the problem goes away.
since when do WOMEN control what gets chopped off on men?
I am really beginning to want to get a sex change and become a female. Seems men only have the illusion of having power in society while women are the forces behind the scenes.
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a few thoughts
1. Neal, you're a coward. Stand up to your parents and respect your wife and son. My parents and in-laws pushed for circumcision of our son. I told them to "Fuck off" in a sweeter voice.
2. It would be interesting to see the ages of the people who support circumcision for "medical and hygiene" reasons vs. those who think that's all a bunch of foolishness.
In our local Attachment Parenting group, there was a definite age gap in the decision. The plus-35 set all circumcised their sons because of the UTI mythology (in reality, girls get more UTIs then boys and are treated with antibiotics) and out of concern for the employees of the nursing home where their son might reside in 85 years.
The under-35 set, including some super religious types, all said "No, that's stupid." Their boys are just fine. No UTIs, no infections, and none of the disasters that our parents and the over-35 year olds warned of.
We're located in the Midwest, where the circumcision tradition is the strongest. Interesting times.
3. To all the letter writers who still have their foreskins and are bitching, please learn to wash yourself. And if its itchy, borrow your wife's Monistat. Yeast is a bitch.
Although I'm sure that some of the letters aren't true. They sound too much like the stereotypical dreaded American foreskin problems that don't seem to affect men in Europe or Japan.
And if you are thinking about cutting your son, please get circumcised first, spread eagle, with no anesthetic. If you get the Plastibell, enjoy watching it rot off. Refuse all after surgery meds. Enjoy!
4. Guys don't compare dicks in the locker room, ever. Guys who check out other guys are accused of being gay. Guys hate being accused of being gay, unless, of course, they are gay.
I was in high school in the '90s. I attended P.E. daily. The number of dicks I saw? One. Mine. The number of guys teased for being intact? Zero. And I'm sure we had some - lots of European immigrants there.
If a guy uses the locker room to justify circumcision, ask him when he is coming out of the closet. It means he was checking out the other dicks.
5. Circumcision doesn't prevent HIV infection. You still have to wear a condom. So just wear the fucking condom and don't be a manwhore. Teach your kid some self respect.
The United States has the highest PER CAPITA HIV infection rate in the industrialized world. We also have, by far, the highest circumcision rate in the industrialized world. It doesn't seem like circumcision is helping American men that much.
6. Companies make money harvesting foreskins. Doctors and hospitals make money cutting foreskins. Like everything else, it boils down to money.
Foreskin face cream. Smear some poor baby's dick on your face: http://next-magazine.com/archive/1203/personal-best.shtml
Buy your own newborn foreskins: http://ccr.coriell.org/ccr/products/nfek.html
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the real height of arrogance
What does get me is the constant LACK OF RESPECT for Judaism and religion in general here. It is THE HEIGHT OF ARROGANCE for people without a stake in the situation to say to you that 5000 years of your tradition is all bullshit and you should get rid of it already. What if you said that to the Chinese?
The real "height of arrogance" is assuming that your religion is due respect by default. You are essentially demanding that we suspend reason for the sake of your religious beliefs. Why should I tolerate circumcision when I consider it a gross abuse of human rights? Why would I respect a religion with such a grotesque practice at its heart?
As for traditional Chinese culture, are saying that foot-binding, a long and cherished tradition, should have been preserved out of respect for past? What about female genital mutilation? There's another tradition going back thousands of years.
Finally that which is done to one is done to all in my book. The circumcision of a child outside of serious medical need is an injustice which reverberates throughout humanity.
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Re: "Alternadad"
this is part of a book called "Alternadad." I almost wet myself laughing when I saw that. Yeah, Pollack, you're a hip, cool, alternadad who still does exactly what Mommy and Daddy tell you. Now there's some indie cred, you pathetic loser.
I can certainly understand this reaction if you don't follow Pollock's work (as most people don't, of course -- nothing wrong w/ that). But I've been reading him for some time, and I can assure you that the title of the book is meant in a very jokey, self-conscious, self-deprecating way. You might still find it obnoxious, but I assure you Pollock doesn't actually present himself as unimpeachably hip.
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He Who Is Without Sin, Cut the First Foreskin
The next letter writer who calls Neal Pollack a coward is no longer my grandchild!
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WHEN GOD TOLD PEOPLE TO CIRC THEIR BOYS
he was playing a trick on humanity to see who the stupid barbaric ones were SO HE COULD KEEP THEM OUT OF HEAVEN.
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Tedious and hard to believe
I read a lot of memoirs, but I would never pick up Pollack's book if this is a sample. I was tempted to skim through much of it, but kept going. The dialogue struck me as unbelievable and crass when it wasn't stiff, and I found it difficult to sympathize with anyone here (except for the baby). Pollack might have been better off filtering this material into a short story, but as a memoir, it doesn't feel reflective or original enough, just a series of gripes, written about in very unmemorable prose.
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Took the words right out of my mouth.
Mike Zimbouski, you rock.
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Why does...
having your foreskin removed make you a Jew? Isn't it about the religion? If you do not practice the religion, then why do you need to follow the rules of the religion?
If Jewish people cannot accept other Jews that may not have their foreskin removed, then what does that say about being a Jew? Is it ok that Jews are bigoted and judgemental about circumcision that parents would disown their grandchild over it?
Circumcision is an elective surgery. It is not medically required as of yet (depending on the validity of those STD studies that have come up recently). Ultimately, I think it is torture because it isn't necessary.
Let me tell you about me. I am not circumcized (sp?). I was shy about my body in junior high and high school, but there is extreme pressure to be just like everyone else. Now, that I am an adult, I tend to revel in my differences rather than try to conform. If I like to wear pink and knit, then it says nothing about my masculinity. If I am not circumcised, then I am different. But, it damn well does not matter in the grand scheme of things. I do not relate better with men who are uncut, it is almost never discussed.
Using emotional blackmail is despicable. The boy should not have been circumcised.