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June 2012

Intactivism: Week in Review June 30, 2012

by Tally on June 30, 2012

Thank you Germany for Saving Our Sons

The big news is the German lower court ruling that circumcising a child is a criminal assault.The court case revolved around a four-year-old Muslim boy who was circumcised at the request of his parents but was later admitted to hospital with severe bleeding. The doctor was charged and tried for grievous bodily harm but was acquitted on the grounds he had parental consent. But the court ultimately ruled to clarify the law by stating that circumcision violated a child's "fundamental right to bodily integrity" and that this right outweighed the rights of the parents.

The Local: Germany's News in English:  Religious circumcisions are crimes says court
Expatica: Berlin hospital suspends circumcisions after court ruling
Andrew Sullivan: The Dish: Cologne's Court Bans Infant Male Genital Mutilation
Intact America: German Court: A Child’s Right to Bodily Integrity Trumps Freedom of Religion and Parents’ Rights
Choose Intact: Coercion Negates Self-Determination
Choose Intact: Outrageous Outrage

Islam versus Europe: German Law Professor Threatened Over Circumcision Court Case
Holm Putzke, the German legal professor whose work formed the basis of the Cologne court's decision to ban circumcision as unlawful violence against the person, has been receiving threats since the judgment was rendered.

Sadly, I have been way too busy the past two weeks. This post is a biweekly review.

Parents, protect your babies. Support intactivism. The following list includes blogs, articles, and websites of interest to Intactivists that were published in the past two weeks. This is a running tally of the ones I found interesting.
 

Sunday, June 17, 2012

The WHOLE Network: How Do I Talk To My Husband About Circumcision?
You are having a baby and you want to have the circumcision discussion with your husband. This post provides help for wives that want to be well-armed with information before approaching their husband.

Intact Houston: Circumcision symposium
The University of Texas Medical Branch held a symposium on circumcision as part of its annual Pediatric Review & Update. Unfortunately, the panel discussion was lopsided by presenting primarily the pro-circumcision viewpoint. They even included a mohel on the panel for the group of doctors. Sadly, the medical symposium did not even cover the ethics of non-therapeutic surgery on children who could not consent.
  Read more . . .

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Intactivism: Week in Review June 16, 2012

by Tally on June 16, 2012

You want to cut off what? Circumcision is unnecessary.Intactivists of Australasia is a new website devoted to fighting for genital integrity of baby boys. The site advocates against male infant circumcision by offering educational and informative posts. Their focus is bringing an end to the non-therapeutic circumcision of minors in Australia and New Zealand.

Parents, protect your babies. Support intactivism. The following list includes blogs, articles, and websites of interest to Intactivists that were published in the past week. This is a running tally of the ones I found interesting.
 

Sunday, June 10, 2012

Circumstitions News: GALVESTON: Symposium on circumcision lacks Balance: No Intactivist voice
A panel of experts convened at a symposium on male infant circumcision for Texas pediatricians. Sadly, the panel was not set up to provide a solid viewpoint about the issue of leaving baby boys whole and intact, that is, not circumcising them. The panel had two advocates for male infant circumcision and one member who counsels parents about circumcision.
 

Monday, June 11, 2012

Intactivists of Australasia: The top 5 disturbing things your son will eventually read about his circumcision
Thanks to the Internet, boys who are circumcised today will be able to easily learn what they lost by being circumcised. They will also be able to learn what their parents knew about circumcision. This does not bode well for parents who let their sons be circumcised. I have noticed that many men appreciate that their parents have apologized to them for letting them be circumcised. I hope more parents become educated about the harm of infant circumcision and make amends to their sons that were circumcised.

Josph4GI: TEXAS: UTMB Debates the "Pros, Cons and Contexts of Male Circumcision"
A critical look at a symposium on male infant circumcision held for pediatricians in Texas. The symposium has a panel addressing techniques, methods, and devices used for male infant circumcision. The panel does not seem prepared to discuss the ethics of cutting off healthy tissue from a baby's sex organ. Nor does the pane seem prepared to discuss the medical need for circumcision of healthy baby boys.

Dr. Momma peaceful parenting: The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding: Circumcision
Many mothers notice a big difference in breastfeeding after their baby boy is circumcised. The painful surgery often breaks, sometimes weakens, the bond between mother and son. The 1981 edition of The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding included information on circumcision. Subsequent editions of the book removed all references of infant circumcision. The author's claim the removal of circumcision information was an oversight, but was it?
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Intactivism: Week in Review June 9, 2012

by Tally on June 9, 2012

The worst foreskin problem most intact males have is that someone thinks they have a problem.The big news this week is a Centers for Disease Control (CDC) report about the increased herpes infection rate due to the Orthodox Jewish circumcision rite of metzitzah b'peh. The rite has the mohel using oral suction after the foreskin is removed. Unfortunately, if the mohel has herpes, there is a high probability that the boy will get it, too. There are many solutions to prevent herpes infection of baby boys. The Orthodox Jewish community does not like the idea of stopping circumcisions, which would be the best answer. There should be testing of mohels with infected mohels prohibited from circumcising. This should be the immediate response and widely supported. We shall see if it happens.

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Parents, protect your babies. Support intactivism. The following list includes blogs, articles, and websites of interest to Intactivists that were published in the past week. This is a running tally of the ones I found interesting.
 

Sunday, June 3, 2012

Intact America:  INTACTIVIST OF THE MONTH: Dr. Dean Edell
Dr. Dean Edell is an outspoken activist against male infant circumcision. He has taken a public stand to educate parents about he harms of male infant circumcision. Intact America honors Doctor Edell as the Intactivist of the Month for June 2012.

Tales of a Midwestern Housewife: The Circumcision Decision
What circumcision decision? Why do people think there is a circumcision decision that needs to be made? Deciding if a part of a baby's penis should be cut off is not a decision that parents should be making. Parents do not decide about female circumcision of their daughters. Why their sons? His body. His choice.

Hilary Burrage: The Other FGM Debate: Is Male Circumcision Also Child Abuse?
Currently in the United Kingdom the issue of female genital cutting or mutilation (FGM) of girls is a hot topic. Female circumcision is unquestionably child abuse. But what about boys? Why is genital cutting of boys not considered child abuse?

Circumcision and HIV: SANTA CRUZ PRIDE: First Amendment Free Zone?
The ACLU in California supported male infant circumcision and helped to shoot down the San Francisco ballot measure to ban infant circumcision. Their action made them a target of a protest against infant circumcision. But the ACLU did not like the adverse publicity and sought to stop it.
 

Monday, June 4, 2012

Choose Intact: Flawed Circumcision Defense: Dr. Ruth Westheimer
Doctor Ruth was outspoken about sexual issues and she offered lots of advice. Most of it was good. Unfortunately, here infant circumcision advice is typical of doctor - cut the boy. We cannot guess if she was advocating for circumcision because of her religion or because, as a doctor, they make money by cutting.

The Case Against Infant Circumcision: Female Circumcision & Health Benefits
Many falsely believe that "Male circumcision has health benefits, but Female Circumcision has no health benefits." In the Western world, researchers spend much time looking for benefits to male circumcision, and frequently come up short. But no one in the West investigates female circumcision or female genital cutting. There is one African study that shows women with the most severe form of FGM, infibulation, still experience orgasms. For some reason, the West is against female circumcision for being a violation of human rights. But those in the West ignore the human rights violation of cutting the genitalia of baby boys.
  Read more . . .

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Intactivism: Week in Review June 2, 2012

by Tally on June 2, 2012

Foreskins are fabulous!Parents, protect your babies. Support intactivism. The following list includes blogs, articles, and websites of interest to Intactivists that were published in the past week. This is a running tally of the ones I found interesting.
 

Sunday, May 27, 2012

barrels of oranges: Circumcision was not a debate
A mother writes that there was no circumcision debate in their house about their baby boy. With about 5 minutes of education about circumcision, her husband (who is circumcised) realized the harm of male infant circumcision. Their baby was left whole and intact.

Choose Intact: Circumcision: A Limited View of Science
Choosing to leave a baby boy whole and intact by refusing to circumcise him is an acknowledgement that science matters. Medical science does not support the immediate need to circumcise baby boys. Medical science shows that healthy boys will remain healthy if they keep their foreskin.

Times of Swaziland: Totally against circumcision
An article about the male circumcision campaign in Africa and how the promoters are not telling the full story, including the harmful effects of male circumcision.
 

Monday, May 28, 2012

Should I circumcise?: Stopping circumcision one coworker at a time
Not only does the blogger fight against male infant circumcision on his blog, he also talks to people IRL. When the situation presents itself, he provides others with educational information on the child's right to a whole body, intact and free of genital cutting. He describes some of the issues he confronted before he felt comfortable approaching people that work for the same large corporation that he does.
  Read more . . .

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