Angela Merkel intervenes over court ban on circumcision of young boys (in Germany)

[Douglas Carpenter]

81. no I don't believe foot binding should be allowed

But male circumcision simply does not rise to that level. Any male who feels deeply bitter about having been circumcised - must surely have had a most idyllic childhood - to be able to view their circumcision as one of the worst things that ever happened to them. My God, I can only envy someone who has the luxury of being able to view that as the lowest point of their youth. No doubt, many adults feel that their childhood religious indoctrination harmed them. Do we therefore ban Sunday School or other forms of childhood religious education? There are very few things in a small child's upbringing that the child has the ability to make a consensual decision about. Okay foot binding and removal of the female clitoris are things that most of us agree can and should be banned. They rise to a significant standard of harm that state intervention is warranted. Male circumcision simply does not rise to that level and is in fact an accepted part of American culture for approximately 50% of Americans and almost a mandatory religious requirement for Jews and Muslims. If one wishes to concentrate their efforts on protecting children, I am sure there are far more pressing concerns that will be appreciated rather than resented.