Say no to circumcision - 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.

The number of blogs and articles this week started out slow this week before picking up the pace. I suppose everyone was traveling to the demonstration in Washington and was too busy to blog the first of the week.
  

Monday, March 22, 2010

Dispatch online: TRUDY THOMAS: Circumcise, condomise
A South African doctor writes that even if a man is circumcised, he must still wear a condom for safe sex. Only the condom will prevent HIV, not circumcision. The doctor points out that Eastern Cape men have some of the highest circumcision rates in the world, and they also have some of the highest AIDS infection and death rates.

The Citizen: Male circumcision no 100pc HIV protection
A Tanzania article stating that everyone, circumcised and intact, must use condoms to prevent HIV infection. The author noted that traditional circumcision could easily become a conduit for the pandemic because the male circumcisions were conducted in unhygienic conditions with crude tools.
 

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

International Coalition for Genital Integrity: Intactivists return to Washington, DC
A short post describing the history of the genital integrity protest and march, along with a schedule of the intactivist events against infant circumcision.

Mirror.co.uk: Sex Doctor: My penis is in a tight spot
A young man is concerned about not being able to retract his foreskin because the opening is too tight. The Sex Doctor says he has phimosis and suggests gentle stretching. The Sex Doctor then erroneously suggests that circumcision may be required. The least invasive surgical treatment of phimosis is preputioplasty in which the too-restrictive opening is widened surgically. A slightly more invasive surgical treatment is a dorsal slit.
 

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Dr. Pate's Blog: Say NO to infant male circumcision!
Doctor Pate points out that male infant circumcision is non-therapeutic, that is, newborn male circumcision has no medical necessity. Doctor Pate appeals to everyone to sign the petition to the CDC urging the CDC to release a truthful statement on the harms and risks of circumcision.

Mark Alders: We Interupt to Bring You an Important Message...
Mark speaks out to say he is an intactivist. He believes in genital integrity for both boys and girls.

The Mouthy Housewives: The Foreskin Dilemma: To Circumcise or Not
A brief answer to a circumcision question. There is no hygiene benefit to circumcision. It is easier to care for an intact penis than a circumcised penis. And, not everyone is circumcising. The rate is almost 50-50.
 

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Toronto Sun: Does circumcision cause erectile dysfunction?
no circumcision: (March 26) Does circumcision procedure cause ED (erectile dysfunction) ?
A doctor questions if one of the harms of circumcision is erectile disfunction (ED). Based on my experience, my infant circumcision has drastically curtailed my sexual pleasure after I hit my mid-40s. Restoring has allowed be to regain some of what I lost. I also note that ED drugs like Viagra and Cialis have a disproportionate market share in the circumcised US compared to the rest of the world. (apparently, the Toronto Sun keeps changing the publication date of this article. Since it is a good article, I don't mind.)

DrMomma: Peaceful Parenting: A Strategic Approach to End Infant Circumcision in Canada
There is an acive effort in Canada to end infant circumcision. The effort must be meeting with success because the national Canadian circumcision rate is about 9%.

DrMomma: Peaceful Parenting: 2010 Genital Integrity Rally/March in Washington
A description of the Demonstration in Washington, DC, against infant circumcision. An appeal is made by the organizers of the demonstration for additional contributions to help defray some of the costs.

Poppin' Off at the Keys: Get That Knife Away From His Penis
More info on the Washington DC demonstration against infant circumcision.

Male Circumcision and HIV: San Francisco Pride Parade 2009: Images of the MGMBill.org contingent available soon
A notice of the availability of pictures of the 2009 SF Pride Parade. A sample picture showing a parade participant is presented.
 

Friday, March 26, 2010

Mideast Youth: Circumcision or Genital Mutilation
A discussion of the historical basis of circumcision (genital mutilation). Circumcision, an old practice, has no clear references concerning its history, motive and origin. Circumcision is a ritual practice of primitive cultures and can be rooted in the factors of sexual punishment, ritual sacrifice and self-injury. Circumcision has no preventive or medical benefits. Circumcision, as an act of genital mutilation for both sexes, cannot morally be permitted.

Winnipeg Free Press: It's well past time to end male circumcision
Dr. W. Giffort-Jones, MD, writes that there is no health benefit to infant circumcision.

Male Circumcision and HIV: Two Studies, Same Story: Neither women nor men who have sex with men receive benefit from male circumcision
Two recent studies confirm that male circumcision is not helpful for reducing HIV infections. One studey determined that circumcison status is not statistically significant with respect to HIV infection risk. The other study found that the risk for male to female transmission increases by more than 50% if the male is circumcised.

The FiX Magazine: The First Cut is the Deepest
"Circumcision sounds like something dreamed up by the Marquis de Sade and enacted by the Department of Defense: The newborn baby is strapped down, spread-eagled, on a small board called a Circumstraint. The surgeon slices the foreskin lengthwise to peel it forcibly from the glans. (The foreskin doesnt naturally separate from the head of the penis for several years; until then, it adheres to the skin underneath.) Then comes the clamp. One of the most common is the Gomco clamp, a demonic-looking device that fits tightly around a bell that is slipped under the foreskin and over the head of the babys penis. The clamp is tightened, crushing the foreskin, which is then removed with a scalpel. Just the thought of this makes me cup my hands over my privates."
 

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Woman to Woman Childbirth Education: Circumcision Aftermath
A story of a man who forcibly circumcised at age eight for religious reasons. Even though the circumcision was done in a hospital, the man feels like he was molested by being circumcised. The man had commented on the blogger's Circumcision Guidelines post.

no circumcision: The controversial cut
"Its a painful, unnecessary and traumatic procedure," says one mother. "For me, its not my right to be cutting off parts of my babys body when theres nothing wrong with him."

DrMomma: Peaceful Parenting: An American Baby Intactivist in Scotland
A Scottish woman writes about how she learned about routine infant circumcision in the Untied States. She became an intactivist fighting for the rights of infants to their intact genitals.