So I'm scrolling through my Facebook news feed and I run across this story; apparently, nurses can shame moms who didn't have their sons circumcised.
The story was published on Distractify and can be accessed here.
According to the story, a nurse was telling a mother she needed to register a circumcision form at the hospital. When the mother told the nurse she didn't need one as she was not having her son circumcised, the nurse gave her the following remark:
"Honestly, I don't know why we have a form for it. They should just automatically do it to everyone. I can't imagine why some people don't circumcise their sons. It's just so disgusting. I have three boys and of course they've all been circumcised."
Obviously the nurse was brazenly inserting herself into this conversation trying to justify *her*self by giving accounts of her life nobody asked for.
Personally, I don't think there's a problem when two people are having a conversation about circumcision. This happens all the time. I think it's generally a good thing that people are talking about it, as it does give mothers who didn't have their sons circumcised to talk about their decision.
Especially on social media, I think it's totally appropriate for mothers to talk about their own experiences and their own opinions.
This situation, however, is different.
Unlike a conversation happening between peers in person or on social media, we have an uneven power dynamic here, where a nurse, who is supposed to be a professional, is shaming a patient and inserting herself into the conversation.
What would happen if the scenario where reversed?
How would it play out if a nurse had told the parent "I can't see why people circumcised their sons. It's so disgusting. I have three boys and of course none of them were circumcised."?
That nurse would probably not have a job anymore, no doubt.
I have actually heard of a case where an intactivist nurse very politely tried to talk to parents about the possibility of leaving their baby boys intact, not even with the snarky attitude as the nurse in this story. Nothing like "this is disgusting," but rather trying to give parents information. You know? So that parents could make an "informed decision."
Needless to say, the parents complained to the nurse's higher-ups that they felt "harassed" and "uncomfortable" that the nurse was "prying into her business."
According to this story, the mom asked other moms in the "Parenting" subreddit and apparently this is not that uncommon.
"After I had my son every nurse that came in the room asked if I scheduled the circumcision. I had to keep telling them I wasn’t doing it. It got awkward after the third time," one mom wrote.
"When I had both of my boys they pushed it," another mom wrote. "Everyone that came into the room asked if it was going to get done. I’m surprised it didn’t get 'done by accident.'"
"Healthcare worker here!" another person wrote. "I’ve heard of this happening before, and it’s pretty common. Honestly, I would report her to your doctor."
I sincerely hope this parent did.
I don't think it's a problem if nurses are trying to genuinely inform parents so that they make an informed decision, but inserting your own opinions that anatomically correct genitals are "disgusting" crosses that line.
It's definitely a double-standard that nurses can outright shame parents for not having circumcised their children, but a nurse can't provide accurate information regarding anatomically correct genitals.
It's always interesting to hear male infant circumcision advocates try to write off intactivists as being this way or that way, of belonging to this party or the other, of espousing these views or those.
It's a defense mechanism to try and associate a group of people with whom one disagrees, with another group of people that are basically a pariah of society.
Attempting to tarnish the reputation of a person making an argument, without having to refute what they are trying to say is the signature move of a person with weak arguments.
If you can't attack the argument, attack the person, AKA "ad hominem."
There are many variations of smearing tactics; guilt by association, poisoning the well, "no true Scotsman," division and construction just to name a few. I've studiously analyzed every dismissal tactic thrown at intactivists for years.
Quite possibly the most commonly used attack against intactivists is that they are all somehow "antisemites." The Godwin's Law (anyone who disagrees with me is a Nazi) attack can't always work because some of the most vocal opponents to male infant genital mutilation happen to be Jewish. So when that happens, you're a "self-hating Jew." (No true Scotsman)
When religious, right-wing leaning types try to dismiss intactivists, a favorite tactic to attempt a "gotcha" moment is by bringing up abortion (tu quoque), except it actually shoots those arguing for "the rights of the child" in the foot. (tu quoque back)
Pro-abortionists can't win the "It's my baby, my choice" argument either because they trip over their own "Whose body? Whose choice?" rhetoric.
"Those who oppose male infant circumcision must obviously be White Supremacist members of the KKK," some might say (guilt by association). Except male infant genital mutilation has become so ingrained in American culture, White Supremacists have actually taken it up as a sign as being "All-American."
The rule is, associate intactivists with the most hated group of people to invalidate their argument.
But associating the person making an argument with a hated group or person is logically fallacious, as it doesn't necessarily invalidate an argument; an argument stands or falls on its own merit.
Why Now?
Why am I bringing this up now?
Why am I talking about the complexity of the demographics of the intactivist movement?
Because at this point in time, there is a number of intactivists who ally themselves with the anti-vax movement, who are associating with Donald Drumpf supporters (this reference should tell any of my readers how I feel about the current president), who are openly espousing the idea that the current pandemic is a "hoax" to try and make vaccines mandatory, who are calling for the immediate calling off of the corona virus lock-downs in the name of "freedom."
And there is no doubt that circumcision advocates are going to seize this opportunity to say "See? Intactivists are all racist Donald Drumpf supporters who probably watch Alex Jones, oppose vaccinations and believe the world is flat."
It needs to be made clear that intactivism, the idea that a person is born with human rights, and that the most precious of human rights is that of the right to one's own body, and that baring medical necessity, doctors have no business mutilating the genitals of a healthy, non-consenting individual, let alone be giving his parents any kind of "choice" in the matter, is not exclusive to any one group.
Intactivism is an idea espoused by people of all walks of life, and no doubt some of them are going to be right-wing drumpf supporters who buy into the idea that the current coronavirus is a "hoax" and that people shouldn't be obliged to wear masks, etc.
The fact that a valid argument is being made by a person who has questionable beliefs does not invalidate the argument; the argument has to be refuted. Attacking the person, and not the argument itself is committing the logical fallacy of "ad hominem."
An argument isn't made invalid merely by pointing out that the person making it belongs to the Republican Party, supports Donald Drumpf, listens to Alex Jones, or is otherwise a member of a group you know people may not like.
It is not helpful that some intactivists are vociferously opposing vaccinations, supporting the current president and buying into conspiracy theories that the government is trying to vaccinate everyone to make them "docile sheep," that this is "a social experiment to see who follows," but this can't be helped.
(I think it's funny to hear people engaging in mass psychosis accuse others of being "sheep.")
It is a mistake to try and "zero in" on "what kind of people" intactivists are, because intactivism isn't a movement of this or that party, of this or that group of people.
There are intactivists on the left, intactivists on the right, intactivists who support Donald Drumpf, intactivists who support Joe Biden, and even intactivists who vote third party. Some intactivists are pro-abortion, some are pro-life. Some intactivists are pro-vaccines, others are anti-vaxx. Some are pro gun control, others, and I know a few personally, oppose it.
All of them agree on this one point, however; cutting the genitals of a healthy, non-consenting individual is a violation of the most basic of human rights.
Intactivism isn't endemic to any one group of people. It's rather asinine to insinuate otherwise.
This Intactivist
I can't speak for all intactivists, but I for one am an intactivist that makes a distinction between vaccines and medically necessary surgery, versus elective, cosmetic, medically unnecessary surgery. Vaccination is based on sound science, and the proof is in the eradication of diseases like small pox and polio.
Vaccines have been proven to strengthen the immune system against pathogens that cause disease. They do not remove any flesh from the body, and they are recommended by every respected medical organization, unlike male infant circumcision.
I am of the opinion that, intactivists need to be careful not to conflate vaccines, which have been proven to prevent disease, with elective surgery, and even non-surgical intervention like wearing masks, social distancing and washing one's hands, in order to all vaccines and all surgery.
As for this blogger, I am a father to three beautiful children, and I would be devastated should any harm befall them. Coronavirus has infected people within my family and within my own circle of friends, some of whom have died. Having my own children die is frightening, so we all wear masks when we go outside and wash our hands with disinfectant whenever we come home. If a vaccine that has been proven to prevent coronavirus comes out, I will definitely consider it for me and my children, because it will prevent a highly contagious disease with a high probability of death.
This is a related, but bigger topic that warrants its own post, but
intactivists also need to be careful that we do not eat our own. If there's anything certain that can be said about intactivists, it's that we are a diverse group of people with often conflicting opinions. It's a
sad thing, but time and time again, I've witnessed intactivists falling
out with each other, swearing not to talk to each other again because
they disagreed on one topic or another.
I myself have been blocked on
social media by intactivists who are pro-gun control, and recently, I've
witnessed intactivists blocking each other because they disagree on the
current lockdown and whether or not the coronavirus pandemic is a "hoax
perpetuated by the government to see who is a sheep or not." Can we
please stop mixing issues and focus on our common goal? Intactivists eat
each other, we keep being split up into different factions and this is
why we can't ever get anything DONE. In order to move forward, we're going to have to put our differences aside and work toward our common goal of condemning male infant circumcision for the pseudocience and medical fraud it is.
ANYWAY, I Close with My Mission Statement
The foreskin is not a birth defect. Neither is it a congenital
deformity or genetic anomaly akin to a 6th finger or a cleft. Neither is
it a medical condition like a ruptured appendix or diseased gall
bladder. Neither is it a dead part of the body, like the umbilical
cord, hair, or fingernails.
The foreskin is not "extra skin." The foreskin is normal, natural,
healthy, functioning tissue, present in all males at birth; it is as
intrinsic to male genitalia as labia are to female genitalia.
Unless there is a medical or clinical indication, the circumcision of a
healthy, non-consenting individuals is a deliberate wound; it is the
destruction of normal, healthy tissue, the permanent disfigurement
of normal, healthy organs, and by very definition, infant genital
mutilation, and a violation of the most basic of human rights.
Without medical or clinical indication, doctors have absolutely no
business performing surgery in healthy, non-consenting individuals, much
less be eliciting any kind of "decision" from parents, and much less expect to be reimbursed.
In any other case, reaping profit from non-medical procedures on non-consenting individuals constitutes medical fraud.
Genital integrity, autonomy and self-determination are inalienable
human rights. I am against the forced circumcision of healthy,
non-consenting minors because it violates these rights.
Genital mutilation, whether it be wrapped in culture, religion or “research” is still genital mutilation.
It is mistaken, the belief that the right amount of “science” can be
used to legitimize the deliberate violation of basic human rights.
DISCLAIMER:
The views I express in this blog are my own
individual opinion, and they do not necessarily reflect the views of all
intactivists. I am but an individual with one opinion, and I do not
pretend to speak for the intactivist movement as a whole, thank you.
Well, just today, a fellow intactivist, Jason F., posted on his Facebook wall the window of opportunity that this pandemic presents to intactivists; the pandemic has resulted in massive budget shortfalls, and now states are looking to cut expenses.
I've posted content by this fellow intactivist before, regarding meatal stenosis. (That blog post can be accessed here.) I don't have time to sit down and write long, detailed blog posts anymore, so I'll merely copy and paste what he wrote here:
The following was copied and pasted from a status on the Facebook wall of Jason F. with his permission.
Forget the brief period when states said elective procedures should be put on hold.
The BIG news is the massive budget shortfalls facing almost every state due to CoViD-19 and related closures. Tax revenues are dramatically down and states are frantically looking in every corner of their budgets for where they can slash expenses.
Circumcision should be the first to go (from Medicaid) in the 35 states that still pay for it automatically at birth. It is outrageous that states would prioritize genital mutilation over other critical services; it’s outrageous we were ever paying for this with our tax dollars in the first place. Even in the 15 states that have dropped routine infant circumcision from Medicaid, doctors and nurses and administrators often find ways to do the surgery, code it fraudulently and get paid. Think about it: infant circumcision is such an essential business in the USA that medical professionals are willing to risk their careers, risk massive fines and possibly jail to ensure that every parent who asks for circumcision is served. Circumcision as identity.
If ever there was a year to strike, it’s 2020. Contact your state representatives and senators (especially those on the budget committee), contact your state Medicaid office or Department of Health, and make the case that penis chopping should be on the chopping block. New York, Illinois, Texas, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Ohio stand to save millions of dollars from doing like the rest of the civilized world + 15 American states in eliminating circumcision of healthy boys from public healthcare programs.
* * * * *
From NBC News today:
COVID-19 has led to dramatic decreases in revenue for state governments across the country — regardless of which party has its hand on the wheel. Many states are still crunching their numbers ahead of the next fiscal year, which begins in the summer for most. [Hint hint: budgeting season starts NOW.]
The lastest came on Tuesday afternoon when Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, announced that the past two months have led his state to miss its budget estimates by $776.9 million and that he is cutting $775 million in spending as a response. Those cuts, which include $210 million to Medicaid and $465 million in education spending, must be made within the next two months, he said. (Ohio is already $777 million short — if they keep paying for circumcision in the face of this, the should burn in hell. Mike DeWine should put a stop to it tomorrow.)
With the COVID-19 outbreak shutting down large swathes of the economy, all sorts of revenue sources for the states have dwindled significantly, including sales, income and other taxes.
In Maryland, state budget officials outlined a nearly $3 billion shortfall they're projecting in the final quarter of this fiscal year. Some other states in serious trouble: Oklahoma, Alaska, Arkansas, Wyoming and West Virginia. (Original article can be accessed here.)
* * * * *
West Virginia and Ohio (along with Michigan, Kentucky and Indiana) have the highest infant circumcision rates in the country. Why are they still paying for it in the face of the biggest budget crises in a lifetime???
My Facebook news feed tells me that a new educational film is joining the line-up of films that address the topic of male infant circumcision.
The very first film I ever encountered on the topic was Cut: The Film by Jewish filmmaker Eliyahu Ungar Sargon.
The second was the film American Circumcision by award-winning filmmaker Brendon Marotta.
But now, yet another, brand-new educational film on male infant circumcision has been released; The Circumcision Movie had been in the works and is finally available to view.
According to a Facebook user whom I've decided to keep anonymous for privacy, The Circumcision Movie is a very informational movie that is perfect for someone who is new to the topic of circumcision.
How does this new film compare to Brendon Marotta's American circumcision?
According to the Facebook user, American Circumcision is a documentary about circumcision and many of it's broad implications of it. It is a 2-hour-long film that covers the intactivist movement, the influential people behind it, the rise of circumcision in America and the world, its position in science, medicine, culture, and more.
In contrast, The Circumcision Movie is much shorter, and focuses on parents and healthcare providers. It's more of a conversation with people who were considering it for their sons, along with the voices of doctors, regret parents, and people affected by it. It furthermore discusses religious perspectives, cultural, family and medical perspectives.
As I've mentioned before, recently I haven't had the time to pay the attention I'd like to give the intactivist movement, and thus write more thought-out articles, so, at least for a while, my posts are going to be short.
Other organizations and groups meant to disseminate information regarding anatomically correct male genitalia and correct care of male babies with unaltered genitals in a circumcising culture such as the United States, have sprung up, making the task of raising awareness and educating the masses less daunting.
Eventually I'd like to sit down and update my page of organizations.
One such organization I'm seeing more and more of on Facebook is a group called "Your Whole Baby."
I found out about this coronavirus development because somebody posted a link to an article on their blog. The links in my blog were taken from them, so I'd like to give credit to them by linking to that article, accessible right here.
Times are tough, but at the very least, I think that less baby boys having part of their penises needlessly, at least for now, is a good thing.
Perhaps more parents will use this opportunity to think about something they would normally wouldn't give a second thought to.
I had been following the Detroit FGM court case (see related posts below), and it seems the case has finally reached it's conclusion:
According to The Detroit News, the most serious remaining charge against the doctor accused of FGM has been dropped, adding the final nail in the coffin for the federal ban on FGM of 2006.
I'm disappointed, but not surprised at the results.
I knew it would end like this.
Americans would rather sacrifice the rights of baby girls on the altar of "religious freedom" rather than bring that elephant in the room, the forced genital cutting of baby boys that happens 3,000 times a day, into question.
I'm not going to comment long like I usually do.
I'm just going to close with the statements and questions I usually ask:
In any other case, reaping profit from non-medical surgery, on healthy, non-consenting individuals already constitutes medical fraud.
Without medical or clinical indication, can doctors be performing non-medical surgery on healthy, non-consenting individuals?
Much less be eliciting any kind of "decision" from parents?
How far are doctors expected to comply with "parental decisions?"
The risks of male infant circumcision include infection, partial or full ablation, hemorrhage and even death.
(Exact statistics on either male or male infant circumcision are unknown because those who perform them do not collect or report them, and governments do not require them to because they want to avoid being seen as "infringers of religious freedom.")
How is any of this conscionable given that male infant circumcision is non-medical, non-therapeutic?
Rough times lie ahead, but I am confident in that the truth cannot be hidden long.
"Do nothing secretly; for Time sees and hears all things, and discloses all." ~Sophocles
Perhaps this decision being handed down during the current coronavirus scare was strategic; people are distracted by the current pandemic.
But it doesn't matter.
"Truth suppress'd, whether by courts or crooks, will find an avenue to be told. During wartime it takes longer."--Sheila Steele
Welp... it's been a month, and I'm still in Twitter jail.
Yes, I've still got my Twitter app on my iPhone, and I still check in from time to time to see if I'm still locked out.
No avail.
(The funny thing is, I keep getting messages from Twitter on my e-mail account, so I’m guessing my account survives somehow, somewhere.)
I was thinking to myself, I've still got this blog.
But then, I was also thinking, is it really necessary anymore?
Don't get me wrong, I want to keep it, I want it to go on until something phenomenal happens, like medical organizations finally having the guts to recognize male infant circumcision for the male infant mutilation that it is, but a lot of things have changed since my creation of this blog.
A lot more people have started speaking out.
A lot more organizations have been created.
Some very notable people have started talking openly about male infant circumcision and foreskin.
Very important films have been made regarding this topic.
Is this blog really necessary?
Do I still need to keep raising awareness?
It seems this issue has gone mainstream and now people are undeniably aware.
I'd like to sit back and do other things, now that this issue is out in the open and people are talking about it.
Twitter may have censored, cancelled me, but they can't censor or cancel all the other users talking about this issue, calling doctors and others out.
It used to be that I was on Twitter, Facebook, parenting forums, you name it, and parents would spew unmitigated bullshit.
I felt I had to be that internet warrior jumping in and posting all the links to all the relevant information so that people become aware of all the myths and lies being purported by male infant genital mutilation advocates.
That was like 10 years ago.
Now, it seems, I go to Facebook, Twitter, forums, YouTube comments etc., I see some mother openly brag about how "I'm going to have my son circumcised and no one is going to stop me," and I immediately start checking the comments, and a number of commenters have already got it.
All the talking points I felt needed to be brought up have already been brought up and some mothers and fathers are talking about how they wish they would have had all this information before.
More parents are coming out as "regret parents," and being commended for having seen the light.
I think we've come to the point where this blog is really no longer necessary.
Influencers with huge followers, such as Joe Rogan are openly denouncing male infant genital mutilation.
Comedians such as Andrew Schulz are openly addressing American idiocy on intact male organs.
I dunno, I think the time has come for me to sit back, take a break and enjoy the ride.
Since I started this blog, I have made it a point to post in this blog at least once, but now, I think, from 2020, I'm going to start cutting back.
It looks like, I don't need to be as aggressive, as angry anymore.
More and more people are waking up, and how.
Still, if I have an epiphany or find information that needs to be shared, I'll post it on here, so this isn't me abandoning this blog, it's me saying, I think I need a break.
My time off of Twitter has actually given me time to start thinking about other things.
So maybe Twitter kicking me out is somehow a blessing in disguise.
I've actually been intending to write out all my thoughts on circumcision in either a book, or one by one on this blog.
How circumcision began in this country, and why it continues seems absolutely clear to me, you see.
But I can't sit down and think about these things if I'm constantly on Twitter, or if I feel constantly under pressure to come up with a blog post every month.
I'd like to take a hiatus and start compiling, editing, and weaving my thoughts into one work. I was thinking a book, but I'm no author.
This isn't a promise; I'm not an editor or a writer, and I understand writing a book is a huge undertaking.
This is just me expressing a desire that may or may not materialize.
Is this the end of Joseph4gi, the angry intactivist?
