Philosophy Discussion Forums

Kate wrote: ↑October 23rd, 2019, 3:59 am I was in U.S. but now in New Zealand. It seems to me to be a little ironic that it the more secular-humanist cultures (such as in this country, Germany and Scandinavia) that have started to get a conscience about interfering with their children’s genitalia.

Kate wrote: ↑October 23rd, 2019, 3:45 pm I don't know if any country has actually made it illegal although there have been moves to do so. It was as prevalent here in the middle of the last century as in the U.S. but it is no longer funded by the public health system and is discouraged by most doctors. It is now only performed by the various groups who are interested in using babies’ genitals for religious or cultural rituals.
There has been a law passed here allowing sexual discrimination to stop these practices extending to females as public opinion shifted with increased Muslim immigration. Brian D. Earp at the Yale University Department of Philosophy is an interesting commentator on these phenomena.

I was in U.S. but now in New Zealand. It seems to me to be a little ironic that it the more secular-humanist cultures (such as in this country, Germany and Scandinavia) that have started to get a conscience about interfering with their children’s genitalia.

Kate wrote: ↑October 24th, 2019, 4:36 pm LuckyR, I think the only real difference is that the circumcision rate in New Zealand is estimated to have declined to 10 to 20% and the in U.S. it is thought to still be in the region of 50 to 60%.

Kate wrote: ↑October 24th, 2019, 4:37 pm Belinda, thanks for support. We all know that this is a topic that almost no one is able to be completely objective about because it touches on so many aspects of our humanity.
To make just one point. Doctors know that all surgery carries some risk of serious complication and even the Mayo Clinic admits this. Regardless of whether the incidence is one in a 1000 or in a 100,000, when it goes badly wrong it totally changes, at the most intimate level, the life of the person who is maimed.
The ethics of the people who find this sort of ‘collateral damage’ acceptable in pursuit of some imagined greater good definitely do need an airing.

Kate wrote: ↑October 24th, 2019, 9:44 pm But it usually involves both parents and practitioners.
(This is an emotive topic for me and my objectivity in discussing it is questionable.)
As you say above, progress is being made. And even if it is does involve a migration of the mutilation to other parts of the body that are thought to benefit from modification then at least the issue of who consents is simplified.

Kate wrote: ↑October 15th, 2019, 3:59 pm SMUK44. In a society where most of the males have had a third to a half of their penis skin removed a person with normally functioning genitals becomes an object of curiosity. I cannot imagine the effect this has had on your life and this is much more than an ethical matter. The psychological and physiological aspects are of far greater concern to the individuals involved. I would like to personal message with you but so far I am not eligible to on this forum.

Kate wrote: ↑October 24th, 2019, 9:44 pm But it usually involves both parents and practitioners.
(This is an emotive topic for me and my objectivity in discussing it is questionable.)
As you say above, progress is being made. And even if it is does involve a migration of the mutilation to other parts of the body that are thought to benefit from modification then at least the issue of who consents is simplified.

Kate wrote: ↑October 28th, 2019, 5:10 pm SMUK44, I have had experience of this and hope to message you.