Poetry Corner - Poor Little Guy

Some time ago, I would participate in a poetry contest which centered on the topic of male infant circumcision. The contest encouraged participants to write out their own original poetry, and even to parody other works, including poetry, songs etc. I found it therapeutic, in a way, to write out my feelings. I'm going to start publishing what came of that poetry contest on here.

The first poem I ever wrote was this.

A lot of people don't give too much thought, or seem to forget the fact that in most cases, circumcision happens to a newborn baby boy. They fast-forward several years later and say "See? Most men don't remember it and they're fine. See? They're OK. They get over it."

It's almost as if they're admitting that what has happened is wrong.

Why else would a person need to "get over it?"

As humans we must overcome all kinds of things. All victims of all forms of abuse, be it verbal, physical or sexual, must find some way to cope. With the right therapy, anyone can become a well-adjusted survivor. We've got to; we can't stay in the same place for ever. We've all got to move on.

I wrote the following not because I feel bad for older men, but because I feel bad for the newborn baby boys who have just come into the world.

When it comes down to it, the number one thing I feel is wrong with male infant circumcision is that it is the violation of the most precious of basic human rights of a healthy, non-consenting baby boy, at his most fragile, most vulnerable state, in most private, most intimate part of his body, his being, his identity as a human male.

I wrote this to express not only the sorrow and the helplessness of not being able to do anything to stop what's going on, but also the hope that through activism, through bringing awareness to this issue, one day this practice will end.

The resilience of the human spirit is no excuse to abuse and mutilate a child.

At the end of the day, abuse is still abuse, and wrong is still wrong.

Poor Little Guy
Hey little boy what happened to you,
Looks like someone took a knife and mutilated you…
Your poor little wound is still purple and fresh,
Who could do such a thing to a baby’s flesh?
Poor little guy…

Were you offered up, or were you stolen away,
From your mother’s side by which you peacefully lay?
Did they spread you open did they tie you down,
Did the man that hurt you wear a mask and gown?
Poor little guy…

Did he care you screamed and did he care you bled,
As you struggled strapped to the restraining bed?
Were you wishing you could end your new-born life,
As you felt the cold sear from a steely knife?
Poor little guy…

What did you feel when your screams weren’t heard,
That your parents stood by and didn’t say a word?
Were they even present, could they even hear,
Their little boy’s screams or see his falling tears?
Poor little guy…

Did the doctor tell them, did they even know,
The unspeakable pain through which you had to go?
Was it something your parents had to decide,
Or did the doctor fill their heads with baseless lies?
Poor little guy…

Pity whether these lies were true or not,
A man can’t decide to have what he’s got,
When your parents were thinking of their little son,
They neglected the man that he would become…
Poor little guy…

I know when you’re older you probably won’t mind,
But what they did to your body is still unkind.
That you won’t remember doesn’t make it right,
It can’t be defended under any light…
Poor little guy…

Sadly, you are not alone in your pain.
Every day boys must suffer again and again.
I fervently pray it’s a dying trend,
To maim little babies; that this madness ends.
Poor little guy.

Edit 7/16/2018:
I totally forgot to say that the inspiration for this poem was the lyrics to the Bruce Springsteen song "I'm on fire."

I want readers to read the lyrics. I wonder if there is some sort of connection, some unintended connection back to day one...

I'm On Fire
Bruce Springsteen

Hey little girl, is your daddy home?
Did he go away and leave you all alone?
I got a bad desire
Oh, oh, oh
I'm on fire

Tell me now baby, is he good to you?
Can he do to you the things that I do?
Oh no, I can take you higher
Oh, oh, oh
I'm on fire

Sometimes it's like someone took a knife, baby, edgy and dull
And cut a six-inch valley through the middle of my soul
At night I wake up with the sheets soaking wet
And a freight train running through the middle of my head
Only you can cool my desire
Oh, oh, oh
I'm on fire
Oh, oh, oh
I'm on fire
Oh, oh, oh
I'm on fire

Why is he eyeing a little girl and wondering if her daddy is home?

Why a six-inch valley? With a knife through the MIDDLE OF HIS SOUL?

(Where is the locus of a man's soul?)

Who did it?

Yes, I know the intentions of this song are more along the lines of the insatiable lust a man might have for a woman he likes.

And yet I wonder if the words of this song are somehow a Freudian slip...

They say that first cut cuts the deepest.

Latest Pro-Circumcision Dismission Tactic: Accusations of "Mansplaining"

"I'm big and you're small, I'm right and you're wrong,
and there's nothing you can do about it!" ~Agatha Trunchbull

"Mansplaining" is a neologism coined to describe the phenomenon of men talking over and down to women, particularly in the case of a man pretending to explain to a woman what she already knows, in a manner that's condescending or patronizing, even if it's her field of expertise.

Like when a man tries to lecture a woman on how her own reproductive system works, or about the challenges she faces as a woman in the workplace, etc.

It's understandable.

The phenomenon is real, it's a legit issue, and there needs to be a word to address it.

The problem, however, is that the term has become so overused in almost any situation to the point that it has lost its usefulness, as now it seems it has come to mean just any time a man tries to explain something and a woman is inconvenienced.

A cheap shut-down and attempt at dismissal.

If a person is explaining or stating something and a woman doesn't want to hear it, because she is actually wrong, and that person happens to be male, all a woman has to do is accuse the person of "mansplaining."

Conversation over.

She wins by virtue of having a vagina.

The term can also be used by a male trying to assert his feminism, in order to dismiss any man daring to challenge a woman. (There may be ulterior motives for a man trying to come off as "feminist." Hugo Schwyzer comes to mind.)

Recently on twitter, one Dr. Jennifer Gunther roused the ire of intactivists by making idiotic statements about male circumcision.

I can't quote her on here now because I've been blocked myself.

Apparently she is in favor of it, citing all the usual tripe. (Prevents this and that, children don't remember it, men aren't adversely affected by it, blah blah blah...)

But when intactivists start challenging her on it, she starts blocking them.

Apparently she can't finish what she starts.

It's funny, because she recently wrote an Op-Ed in the New York Times titled: "My Vagina is Terrific: Your Opinion of It Is Not" with the saucy subtitle: "I dared to discuss my anatomy. Men couldn't handle it."

While she feels men don't get to talk about her vagina, she certainly feels entitled to talk about men's penises.

And while men "couldn't handle" her discussing her anatomy, it sounds like she can't handle men talking about theirs.

Adorable.

I wasn't one to let an idiot doctor get away with spewing unmitigated bullshit, so I chimed in with this:

DrJenGunter. You are a Dr. You are supposed to diagnose and indicate treatment based on medical fact, not what you “think.” You might block Twitter users for some time, but you can’t block the truth forever. Those informed can’t claim ignorance. What kind of Dr. are you? #i2

— Joseph Lewis (@Joseph4GI) April 4, 2018

Not to let the woman with the terrific vagina be outdone by the male intactivist (and possibly to score feminist brownie points), another male Twitter user attempts to dismiss me with the following:

You are mansplaining anatomy and surgery to an OB/GYN surgeon.

Do not do that.

And, no, Dr. Gunter is not obligated to give you any attention.

— Michael Busch (@michael_w_busch) April 5, 2018

There are a few things wrong with this attempt at a dismissal.

First and foremost, the irony of having a woman explain male anatomy and circumcision to males seems to escape him.

Second, male anatomy is outside of the expertise of OB/GYNs, whose field of expertise is the female reproductive system.

And third, yes, doctors have a professional responsibility dispense factually correct information, preferably within the purview of their field of expertise.

If men pontificating on the female reproductive system, female genitals, and/or what a woman's experience is can be called "mansplaining," what is it called when a woman attempts to dictate to men about the male reproductive system, their penises, and what their experience will be?

What is it called when a woman who neither has a penis, nor is circumcised, attempts to dictate what the experience of either circumcised sex will be?

And what is it called when a doctor tries to sound informed on a topic outside the purview of  her field of expertise?

An OB/GYN's field of expertise is the female reproductive system and has no business touching the genitals of male babies.

And yet, according to national surveys, OB/GYNs perform the bulk of male infant circumcisions.

Why?

It must be asked, how is it they're performing circumcisions on healthy, non-consenting male infants and legally getting away with it?

It was cute.

Real cute of Mr. Michael Busch to try and play the mansplaining card to try and silence and dismiss intactivists.

Not today.

If Dr. Jen can talk about her vagina, then I can talk about my dick.

If men are the least people to be commenting on women's bodies, then Dr. Jen and other women need to shut up about men's dicks.

Circumcision concerns male genitals, something Dr. Gunter does not have and whose field of expertise does not concern.

I have a penis.

Of all people I am entitled to talk.

It's ironic to be accused of mansplaining for calling out an OB/GYN for womansplaining to males about their genitals.

Not a man, not even a medical expert on male genitalia.

Dr. Gunter should stick to vulvas and vaginas and leave children’s penises alone

I'm going to affix some definitions to the term "womansplaining":

When a woman lectures intact men about their uncircumcised penises, how "dirty" they are, how much more difficult it is for them to stay clean, prevent diseases etc., etc.

When a woman who isn’t circumcised and comes from a country where girls and women are legally protected from forced genital cutting lectures men about male organs and circumcision, and has the nerve to give men patronizing advice on how they should be grateful they’re circumcised because it’s "cleaner," "healthier," etc.

Here are other terms I think should make the English lexicon:

clitsplaining:

 When a woman who isn't circumcised tries to lecture others about the horrors of female circumcision, as well as the "benefits" of male circumcision, even though she has a clitoris, doesn't know what it's like not to have one, much less what it feels like to be a circumcised male

Perhaps we also need the term "vulva appropriation" to describe a western woman who is not circumcised and claims to speak for all circumcised women, even though most circumcised women are quite happy with their status?

 A circumcised African woman speaking for herself

 Circumcised Malaysian woman speaking her mind

female privilege:

Having laws that protect only your sex from forced genital cutting, religious or not

Being able to say “My body, my choice” and “My child, my choice” regarding male infant circumcision in the same breath.

Decrying FGM, even while there is a federal law against it, while telling angry circumcised men that male circumcision is "harmless," that you prefer circumcised penises, that they should “get over it” and say they’re “mansplaining” when they don’t shut up.

Having entire organizations raising awareness of FGM, and then having the nerve to ask “Why is male circumcision becoming mainstream? Why does this have to be about penises?”

Being able to say female genital cutting is deserving of attention, but male genital cutting should be ignored.

circumsplaining:

When circumcised men, or women who think they speak for circumcised men, to lecture intact men about their uncircumcised penises, how "dirty" they are, how much more difficult it is for them to stay clean, prevent diseases etc., etc.

Male readers, whenever anyone, man or woman, accuses you of mansplaining for educating an ignorant woman about your own genitals, don't let it slide.

Instead, point out the shameless womansplaining and female privilege going on.

Calling you a "mansplainer" is an attempt to make you silent.

Don't be.

Instead, fire back:

 "My Penis is Terrific: Your Opinion of It Is Not"

#mansplaning #womansplaining #malecircumcision #femaleprivilege #clitsplaining #vulvaappropriation #OBGYN #circumcision #i2

Related Post:

The Circumcision Blame Game

ICELAND: Parliament May Cave to Pressure to Call Off Circumcision Restrictions

Not too long ago, I posted on the latest bill in Iceland to restrict circumcision to consenting adults.

Circumcision advocates want to call it a "ban," but if putting an age limit on circumcision is a "ban," then alcohol is "banned" in the United States.

Oh no! What to do. Children can't buy beer and those who sell or buy it for them are defying the law!

There are also laws against sex with minors, which means there's a "ban" on sex too!

Or freedoms are being taken away! Oh noes!

Well anyway, according to Arutz Shevah, Israel National News, Iceland is "dropping" the ban.

I mean, measure.

Well, not quite yet, but it seems it's getting there.

According to the article linked above, parliament’s judicial committee recommended against its passage.

That doesn't exactly mean the measure has actually been "dropped" yet, parliament has yet to make a decision.

Also, a rabbi breaks Godwin's Law by invoking Hitler.

"The Nazis enacted such a law in 1933 and we know how it ended," Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt, president of the CER, said at a conference in Iceland organized by Protestant and Catholic European groups.

There are laws against female circumcision. How have those ended?

I think the world will be better off once male infant genital mutilation is banned, and the practice is relegated to the trash bin of history where it belongs.

But as I said in my last post, I don't think that day is today, and when that measure does fail, people should not be surprised. I think there are alternative solutions that would satisfy both parties, and those ought to be pursued instead.

Intactivists have a long road ahead of them.

Related Links:

CIRCUMCISION LEGISLATION: All Eyes on Iceland

CIRCUMCISION LEGISLATION: An Alternative to a Ban?

Happy International Women’s Day Marilyn Milos

I’m going to be honest. This year is the first time I’d ever heard of International Women’s Day.

So when I started seeing posts about it on my Facebook news feed, I’ll admit I was one of those men wondering if men had an “International Men’s Day.”

It would only be fair, right?

So I look it up on Google, and the first thing I see are posts by, obviously angry feminists, bemoaning that every year, there is a spike in searches for the question “When is international men’s day?”

Apparently, I’m not the only one that asked.

But they seem to frame it in a way that somehow men all get together and collectively decide to antagonize women.

One blogger compared this phenomenon to a jerk friend attending s friend’s birthday party and asking “Dude, where’s my birthday?”

Apparently people like me are akin to birthday party crashers now.

We’re stealing women’s thunder. We’re raining on their parade.

Well boo-hoo!

I didn’t know there was an international woman’s day, let alone an international men’s day. (It’s November 19, apparently.) I seriously just wanted to know.

Reading through these posts out of curiosity, the common denominator is this idea that “men have had their own celebration all other 364 days a year, for centuries,” and I call BULLSHIT.

I work and maintain my household day in and day out with maybe only major holidays off. Some Christmas Eves I have to work up until Christmas dinner, and I never once asked for a “celebration.”

Fuck, I STILL don’t care that I don’t get a pat on the back. I’m a father. It’s my responsibility to work and raise the kids I begat. In Chris Rock’s words, “You’re *supposed* to take care of your kids! What do you want, a cookie?”

I seriously only decided to ask Google cuz I genuinely wanted to know if there was an equivalent to International Women’s Day.

That’s really all there was to it.

Sorry I asked.

Well anyway, now I know there’s a women’s day, now I know there’s a men’s day, so I’ll know when to celebrate the men in my life. I promise not to ask, adding to the spike on google every March 8th, and to the chagrin of bitter feminists who believe every day is some sort of “celebration” for men.

That’s said, on this International Women’s Day, I’d like to take this opportunity to celebrate a special woman.

A woman without whom this intactivist movement would not be possible, Marilyn Milos.

It took a woman to finally look at the procedure of taking a healthy, helpless, non-consenting newborn, strapping him down and cutting off part of his most sensitive, most private, most intimate part of his body and question it’s medical necessity.

She could have decided to focus on the anti-FGM movement, but she didn’t; every other feminist woman is doing that.

She decided this issue needed attention, and she took it upon herself to dedicate herself to this issue, and to raise awareness about something that was happening every day, 1.3 million times a year, and nobody was noticing.

It took a woman to hear the screams American doctors cannot hear, and to question the validity of routine male infant circumcision as a medical procedure.

Sadly, American doctors continue to tune boys' screams as they cut into their genitals, strapped spread eagle style on a circumstraint, but we’ve come a long way.

The world is more aware of this atrocity, this violation of the most basic of human rights, this crime against humanity today, and it’s all because this woman decided to stand up, question and raise awareness.

Marilyn, thank you for what you have done.

Thank you for dedicating years of your life to this cause.

Thank you for fighting for the contention that boys have the same basic human right of genital autonomy as girls do, that boys should be afforded the same protection under the law as girls.

CIRCUMCISION LEGISLATION: An Alternative to a Ban?

A landmark achievement that intactivists grope for is legislation that would give male minors equal protection under the law. That is, that forced male genital mutilation, particularly the circumcision of healthy, non-consenting minors, be banned and made illegal. As of 1996, a federal ban on female genital mutilation prohibits any and every genital cut performed on girls for any reason, and there is no exempt for religions or cultures where female circumcision is considered an important tradition.

I've already mentioned it in a recent post, but the way things stand now, I think the world isn't ready for a ban on male infant circumcision. It was easy to enact legislation that bans female circumcision because it is not a custom in this country for girls to be circumcised. It's always easy to ban something that people already consider barbaric. Much groundwork has to be laid before this country is ready to ban the forced genital mutilation of male minors. It's not going to happen overnight. "Baby steps," as some put it.

Recently I was giving the issue of legality some thought, and I got to thinking about a hypothetical situation; what if, instead of a ban, circumcision were allowed to legally continue, but we enacted legislation that lowered the statutes of limitation, and gave men that grow up to resent the fact that they were circumcised the right take their circumcisers to court?

That's right, no ban. Instead, doctors could keep right on circumcising, and mohels and imams could go right on circumcising, with the acknowledgment that they could one day be legally taken to court by any of the boys they circumcise?

It is often said that most, if not all circumcised men, are happy and content with their lot, but I wonder, how much of this is true? How many would seek legal redress if they possibly could? How many circumcisers would stop if they knew they could face legal consequences one day?






There is a federal law against the forced genital cutting of females enacted in 1996, and the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution already guarantees equal protection for both girls AND boys under the law. Coupled with the fact that reaping profit from performing non-medical surgery on healthy, non-consenting individuals already constitutes medical fraud, the forced genital cutting of healthy, non-consenting boys should already be illegal and against the law.


A big part of the problem is that doctors and religious circumcisers don't have to face any consequences for their actions. If any of the boys they circumcised grow up to resent having been so, they could sleep at night knowing that short of huffing and puffing and gnashing their teeth, there is nothing they can do.

Well, what if instead of a direct ban, intactivists worked to make it legally possible for men of any age to take their circumisers to court? Legally lift statutes of limitation so that adult men can seek legal redress for the unnecessary mutilation inflicted on them? Make it legally required for each circumcision to be documented with the name of the circumciser and child, so that that person has legal access to this information as an adult, in case there is something he'd like to do about it?

The law could start requiring doctors to keep a record of an illness or medical condition that necessitates surgery, what methods of treatment were tried over time before circumcision was considered as a last resort, to ensure that only doctors who performed medically necessary procedures have a legit defense. (A legit medical reason is usually required for any other medical surgery performed on a non-consenting minor!!!) This would ensure that only medically necessary circumcisions were being performed.

The law would also required that this information be kept available to a child when he grows older, and keeping this information from a child would also mean legal repercussions for keeping information a grown person would be legally entitled to.

If current laws mean anything, the forced genital cutting of healthy, non-consenting males should already be illegal, but current laws are toothless and there is nothing a grown man can do to challenge his doctor or circumciser in court.

I think a law like this would give doctors and other would-be circumcisers something to think about, and we'd see a definite drop in the number of circumcisions being performed annually in this country.

While a ban is a long ways off, I don't think a legislative solution is completely out of the question. I think intactivists ought to start considering smaller victories that could achieve the end result they want, which is to stop the forced genital mutilation of healthy, non-consenting minors.

Related Posts:

CIRCUMCISION LEGISLATION: All Eyes on Iceland

San Francisco Circumcision Ban on November Ballot

San Francisco Circumcision Ban

SAN FRANCISCO: Democracy Hits A Brick Wall

One Intactivist's Opinion: The SF Circ Ban Ought Not to Pass

Circumcision is Child Abuse: A Picture Essay

TWITTER REPLY: "Female Circumcision Keeps Us Clean Down There"

Female genital cutting, known as "sunat," is common in South East Asia

I recently posted the following Tweet:

Women who raise a stink about smegma in intact men act like their uncircumcised vulva smells like raspberries and cream. How dare they balk at intact men when their vulva is a disaster zone 7 days out of the month anyway.

— Joseph Lewis (@Joseph4GI) March 3, 2018

And, what seems to be a female Muslim woman's profile, replied with this:

That is why we Muslim women support female circumcision. It keeps us clean down there pic.twitter.com/lQWTgujIKi

— Kubra Jawher (@Sithy321) March 3, 2018

I think this should serve to highlight the dangers of condemning the forced genital cutting of one sex, but condoning it in the other.

There is this firewall between female genital cutting and male genital cutting, where, at least until now, ne'er the twain shall meet, but this coming back to bite anti-FGM groups in the pussy. (Did I just say that?)

Sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander, and as long as male infant circumcision can be defended "because it's cleaner," "because studies says it prevents disease," leaves the door open for female infant circumcision advocates to defend female genital cutting using the same pretexts.

Either religion, "parental choice," and/or "research" justifies the forced genital cutting of healthy, non-consenting minors, or it doesn't. You can't have it both ways.

As long as anti-FGM advocates want to have this firewall up between FGM and MGM, then they fight a losing battle.

THIS is the shit they're going to be up against; a mirror image of themselves.

Related Post:
Circumcision is Child Abuse: A Picture Essay

Catching Up - Important News I've Missed

I'd like to apologize to my readers; I haven't been as active on this blog as I'd like to be. Believe it or not, your blogger has a life outside of intactivism, as intactivism isn't making me rich, and I need to maintain a family. I wish there was some sort of way to be active in this movement, AND make the money that I need for me and my family to survive while doing it.

In the mean time, while I don't have the time to dedicate to long, well-thought-out blog posts, I do post my thoughts often on Twitter. If you're interested, please follow me @Joseph4GI.

Recent News
There have been a lot of important things in the news regarding circumcision. Every time I see something I tell myself "I'll write a blog post about it today," but hardly ever have the time to actually do it.

Today, what I will do is, I'm just going to go down a list of recent pieces of noteworthy news and briefly comment on them.

Iceland Ban
I already posted my thoughts on this in my last blog post, but in short, I don't think it's realistic, and like the San Francisco attempt, it is going to fail. We just aren't ready for a ban yet. We were ready for a ban on FGM because the West already pretty much agreed that they hated it, unlike with MGM, where it's become pretty much ingrained in American culture. They say that in big movements like these, laws are the very last things to change. There will be a ban when we get most of the world on-board the idea that forcibly cutting the genitals of healthy, non-consenting individuals is a violation of basic human rights.

Recently Published Studies
A number of studies that throw a monkey wrench in the pro-circumcision narrative have been published.

A study that showed circumcised men are at a higher risk for cancer-causing HPV was published last year in May, but it didn't really make the news until the latter part of the year. The usual claim by male infant circumcision advocates is that HPV prevalence is higher in intact men, supposedly making them a risk-factor for cervical cancer in women. If this study is correct, then the exact opposite is true.

In another study that was published relatively recently, findings showed that male circumcision greatly increases the risk of urinary tract problems. Again, this goes contrary to the pro-circumcision slogan that male circumcision is supposed to reduce problems with UTIs and the like. This wouldn't be the first study to show this, however; other studies have showed an increase in UTIs post-circumcisions. Studies in Israel here, here and here suggest that circumcision may actually be causing UTIs in infants.

Finally, a new and recent study suggests that that circumcision complications are much higher than circumcision advocates would like parents to believe. Typically, circumcision advocates minimize the number of complications due to circumcision, citing numbers as low as 2% if not lower. The AAP itself in 2012 actually said in their policy statement on circumcision that ''the true incidence of complications after newborn circumcision is unknown." 

There are a few factors contributing to the lack of information on the true incidence of the adverse effects of circumcision. For one, there is a predisposition in American researchers in trying to find only "benefits" in circumcision, and aren't really interested in finding adverse effects; as circumcised males, fathers or mothers of circumcised children, and/or spouses of circumcised husbands, they're simply not interested in looking. Additionally, doctors who profit from the practice are probably not interested in publishing information that would likely lead to infant circumcision being banned, not to mention lawsuits. At least in the US, doctors and hospitals aren't required to publish information regarding adverse outcomes of male infant circumcision. Until the release of this information is made a requirement, we may never know the true incidence of complications of circumcision.


What this latest study goes on is a regional claims database. Because some adverse outcomes of circumcision go unreported, this can only be a conservative estimate.

"American Circumcision" Wins Yet ANOTHER Award
I did manage to post about the film "American Circumcision" winning the Best Documentary Film Award at the Lone Star Festival. Well sir, it looks like the film has managed to nab yet ANOTHER award, this time, the Silver Jury Prize at the Social Justice Film Festival.


Congratulations to the film maker Brendon Marotta for yet another award for his film.

Public Muslim Man Advocates for Choice
When I first saw this tweet, I just couldn't believe my eyes. I'm so glad that, Jews, as well as Muslims, are speaking out against forcibly cutting children, even under religious pretext.

"My community will see me as a traitor for what I'm saying" - @MaajidNawaz on male circumcision for religious reasons #ThePledge pic.twitter.com/LWv2eHMJpJ

— The Pledge (@ThePledge) March 1, 2018

I'm so glad to see people from circumcising faiths speaking out like this!

Well, that about wraps it up for this post.

Until the next time!