Hi there,
I just thought I would pop in here and say that here in the Netherlands, circumcision is far from the norm. It is basically just a religious issue. Given that, even a Jewish friend was apalled and had a long argument with a non-Jewish Canadian friend of ours who circumcised his son "so that he'd look like his father". My husband is circumcised, and until we were trying to get pregnant never gave it a second thought (we both used to be Americans). But after reading about all the "pros" and cons, we both decided firmly that there's no reason to do it at all, and plenty of reasons not to.
There was a poster on the wall at the midwife's, stating that if one intended to get the operation, it must be planned in advance and is expensive. A Dutch friend was absolutely shocked when I showed him some of the stories about routine circumcision without consulting the parents, forcible retraction of the foreskin, etc. He's not even sure he knows anyone who was circumcised for anything other than strictly religious reasons.
Our son, 2 months old, was in for a checkup recently, and the doctor simply moved the entire genitalia around gently with one finger and said, "Everything looks fine here". Not one medical professional ever raised the issue of circumcision at all. Walter was in the hospital for two weeks after a home birth (collapsed lung; he's thriving now) so plenty of doctors and nurses saw that he's intact. So there's sanity somewhere on Earth!
--Katrina
I just thought I would pop in here and say that here in the Netherlands, circumcision is far from the norm. It is basically just a religious issue. Given that, even a Jewish friend was apalled and had a long argument with a non-Jewish Canadian friend of ours who circumcised his son "so that he'd look like his father". My husband is circumcised, and until we were trying to get pregnant never gave it a second thought (we both used to be Americans). But after reading about all the "pros" and cons, we both decided firmly that there's no reason to do it at all, and plenty of reasons not to.
There was a poster on the wall at the midwife's, stating that if one intended to get the operation, it must be planned in advance and is expensive. A Dutch friend was absolutely shocked when I showed him some of the stories about routine circumcision without consulting the parents, forcible retraction of the foreskin, etc. He's not even sure he knows anyone who was circumcised for anything other than strictly religious reasons.
Our son, 2 months old, was in for a checkup recently, and the doctor simply moved the entire genitalia around gently with one finger and said, "Everything looks fine here". Not one medical professional ever raised the issue of circumcision at all. Walter was in the hospital for two weeks after a home birth (collapsed lung; he's thriving now) so plenty of doctors and nurses saw that he's intact. So there's sanity somewhere on Earth!
--Katrina
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