Is circumcision evil

Answer 1

The procedure is typically done on a newborn for religious reasons in the Jewish and Muslim communities. In the USA, it is also done on people who claim to be Christians, despite the New Testament scriptures that condemn it. Rarely, it is done to fix a medical problem that cannot be fixed any other way. Due to the lack of knowledge about the foreskin in the USA, many "medical" circumcisions are actually unnecessary.

Some people claim to do it for "personal reasons" when ironically forcing it on someone else, ignoring their personal choice. Feminists, despite claiming to promote equality, completely ignore the issue or try to justify it using the same arguments that they condemn when they are used to promote female circumcision (which can be as little as a prick, or the removal of the entire prepuce).

'Cruel' is a subjective statement. However, as circumcision removes the entire prepuce (foreskin) is removed, and causes extreme pain (especially when performed on a child), then it is considered by most people to be cruel, which is why most countries don't promote circumcision, other than Jewish-majority and Muslim-majority countries. A study in 1997 had to be halted due to the pain caused to children. Those who do not scream out typically go into a state of silent shock.

Additionally, there are numerous risks, including medical problems and even the risk of death (over 100 babies die each year in the USA from circumcision or circumcision complications). The glans also becomes dried out, and the foreskin's natural lubrication is removed.

It is completely unnecessary - arguments for it have been debunked numerous times. For example, cleanliness is achieved easily by simply washing the penis as one would wash a finger until the foreskin naturally separates (this can be as late as puberty, sometimes later), at which point it takes only seconds to wash under the foreskin. HIV risk is reduced by condoms - and studies that claim HIV is reduced by circumcision have been proven to be based on fraudulent data. The USA has a high rate of circumcision, yet a high rate of HIV - this is likely due to the myth that circumcision reduces HIV risk, thus resulting in mass unprotected sex.

Some people invoke perverted reasons such as "I want him to look like me / his father" or ignorant reasons such as "he will be bullied" (interestingly, they don't dye the hair of blonde children despite blonde stereotypes, to "prevent bullying", but instead teach children how to deal with bullying). Less children are circumcised these days, and children can quite easily point out that having a normal, whole penis, is natural in the vast majority of countries, so the idea that it can be used as bullying material is silly.

As a result of it being completely unnecessary other than to fix a genuine medical issue that already exists, it is, by the standards of most people in the world, cruel.

Answer 2

Like all good and evil, people have many different opinions on this.

Some people feel it is needed due to religious purposes. Some people feel it is needed for health purposes. In some religions and societies, it is very much a cultural norm to have boys circumcised.

Some people feel it is wrong all together. There are even some that feel it is a form of genital mutilation.

If this is a decision you are facing, the best thing you can do is talk to a few people that have different opinions, and then research to weigh what you have been told.