Tuesday, April 28, 2009

U.S. Marines Circumcise Filipino Boys But Not Americans

Today I saw this post in the Stars & Stripes, the U.S. Army newspaper. Turns out the Marine docs are circumcising 13 year old boys in the Phillipines. That, of course, is a good thing -- but here's my question. Why not circumcise American boys? If taxpayers in this country can pay to circumcise Filipino boys for free, shouldn't we at least offer this service to Americans who are footing the bill? Something is not right here. Read & comment below.

Marines provide safe circumcisions for Filipinos
Stars and Stripes Mideast edition, Tuesday, April 28, 2009

MANILA, Philippines — U.S. and Philippine military medical personnel are helping young men in the Philippines with a rite of passage: circumcision.

The troops are performing the procedure as part of their work in Balikatan — an annual bilateral training exercise that runs through Thursday.

During a Medical Civil Action Project on Friday, 13-year-old Joel Bangate underwent the procedure, according to a U.S. military news release.

According to the release, Philippine boys are usually between 10 and 13 years old when they decide to have the circumcision. When Joel learned that the procedure would be offered thanks to the Balikatan troops, the teen decided to take that option.

Professional circumcisions are available at medical facilities in the area, but in most impoverished areas, a village elder usually performs the procedure with a razor blade and without any stitches, according to the release. Boys traditionally sit in a cold bath for two hours to numb themselves while chewing guava leaves for minimal anesthetic. The boys spit the leaves onto the open wound, hoping to heal themselves, according to the release.

Philippine army Capt. William Recuenco — a surgeon — said the end result of the traditional procedure is often an infection.

During the MEDCAP, doctors used sterile instruments and an effective anesthetic and provided antibiotics.

"I have a lot to be thankful for," Joel said after his procedure, according to the release.

20 comments:

  1. I heard similar stories involving the Turkish army and Muslim villagers in Afganistan, Bosnia and Kosovo, where they had to delay lots of circumcisions due to the civil war, and the Turkish army has acted not just as peace-keepers, but also as reliable circumcisers.

    ANDRAS
    jovagasufiu@gmail.com

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  2. Tim Tebow, the All-American college football player at the University of Florida Gators, is a son of a medical missionary in the Philippines. I believe it was during his spring break a year or two ago that he joined his father circumcising indigent Philippine boys :-)

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  3. You're right that something is not right here. The US taxpayer is footing the bill for an invasion of Filipino boys' human rights. A Court in Oregon has just ruled that a 14 year old has the right to refuse to be circumcised. 10-13 year olds in the Philippines are not yet so lucky. The social pressure on them to be circumcised is enormous but some are now resisting, and there is a support group for intact Filipinos

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  4. Nano, not sure if you're asking me to delete Hugh7, or if you're asking him to stop posting his nonsense. I won't delete him because I believe in an open forum for debate. But do I believe his bullshit (hope that doesn't offend anyone)? Absolutely not. I noticed that the so-called support group for Filipinos is really just an American site with a new name. The good news is that the Philippines has achieved nearly 95% to 98% male circumcision, one of the best rates in the world. It's a good example for us. My complaint is that the U.S. military should be offering free circumcisions to Americans, too!

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  5. Any uncircumcised recruit should be obliged to be circumcised when joining the army. The same stands for army schoold and academies.

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  6. Traditionally, a number of branches of the US military have indeed imposed circumcision on recruits as policy.

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  7. A very good policy to force male recruits to be circumcised! I hope mandatory circumcision of male adults be in Europe too!

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  8. Thank god I'm not circumcised

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  9. http://strivetoenter.com/wim/2008/03/10/circumcision-the-woman-and-the-kinsman-redeemer/ is a discussion of circumcision from Christian viewpoint--and the "real" viewpoint is NOT to criticize, but rather to promote, removal of the faulty tissue. The fact is, males need to be circumcised; females do not! Driver's licenses are required for motoring; SS#'s are required for a bank account; circumcision should be required by law for all males. The female minister says "The foreskin is a powerful symbol of sin. It must be cut off."

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  10. Sherry.....come here so I can cut your clit off you dumb bitch!!!

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  11. Can't believe so many stupid people wanting to circumcise the world. If you have been circumcised is because you are either a jew or your parents are ignorant or both. There is no scientific proof of the benefits of circumcision, and people without foreskin don't want to accept there is something wrong with themselves, not with the rest of the world. Do some research.

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  12. A law to require to circumcise boys? What kind of shit is that? The government telling you what to do with your dick? Stupid religious people...

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  13. sherry had to suck on foreskin once and she realized she was a spitter. She agrues that foreskin is faulty and is a symbol of sin. Sherry, if we cut off your clit you won't feel obliged to sin anymore. Shall the government hold you down?

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  14. i was very shocked by this story... why on earth would the government pay for filipino boys to get cut but we have to pay out of our pocket for it...

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  15. Instead of cutting off Sherry's clit, the government should bring in a law to "plug the well" permanently. After all, the government OWNS Sherry's beaver, according to her own opinion.

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  16. Old thread, but circ'ing
    Filipino boys was done to make the existing Filipino practice SAFER for them than the existing tools and practices. It wasn't even done for medical benefits, just to make the existing local custom safer. Sort of like digging wells and teaching sanitation to make villages and families healthier.

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