Advice Needed: Circumcised vs Uncircumcised

So you may not all remember awhile back when I posted that I was expecting a son to be born. Well he is almost here and one question that I never really considered before was the whole circumcision thing.I am on the fence and leaning toward no but I have heard some horror stories in both cases that has pushed me into investigating further into this issue.My parents did have me circumcised pretty much without a second thought because my dad is Moslem and at the time pretty much it was automatic. I have been told by the 'old wives' that regardless of the reasons baby should be what daddy is but I don't really buy that as a good reason to go chopping things.Here is what I understand. Much of what I understand may be myth and I am trying to figure out what is and what isn't.Pro Circumcision:
1. Lower rate of urinary tract infection.
2. Lower risk of complications due to urinary tract infections.
3. Lower risk of penile cancer (really does this exist????)
4. Easier to care for/clean.
5. Social factors. (i.e. not being different) I don't really think this is enough of a reason but my wife disagrees to an extent.Against Circumcision:
1. Essentially completely unnecessary genital mutilation. (this is why I am leaning no)
2. Can leave scar tissue that causes problems or at least desensitizes the area.
3. Can cause sexual problems especially if a mistake is made.
4. The risk of a problem occurring during the procedure.
5. The risk of infection after the procedure.
6. The social issues really will not be as present for children who are born today because more and more boys are not being circumsized.Which of these are true concerns? What are all your opinions? I would also really like to hear from the male variety here at EvC and your experiences good or bad about being circumcised or not.This message has been edited by Jazzns, 01-16-2006 08:20 AM

Thanks for the advice. That pretty much jives with what I have been feeling.Just curious. What exactly constitutes "restored"?

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No smoking signs by gas stations. No religion in the public square. The government should keep us from being engulfed in flames on earth, and that is pretty much it. -- Jon Stewart, The Daily Show

I thought a bit about the whole 'chicks dig it' factor a bit but then I decided that in no way would that really be helpful. First off, if a girl wants to throw in the towel because it is weird or different then it probably shouldn't have happened anyway. Second, who knows, maybe because we didn't he will be a tiger in the sack and girls can look past it. I have no idea how I might "perform" differently had I not been cut.

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No smoking signs by gas stations. No religion in the public square. The government should keep us from being engulfed in flames on earth, and that is pretty much it. -- Jon Stewart, The Daily Show

I suppose if it irreconcilably came down to the whole baby should look like daddy issue then if I really didn't want him circumsiced I could go in for the "restoration".I am suprisingly finding this is actually an important issue.The AAP seems to also be on the fence with regards to circumcision with an healthy dose of skepticism towards many of the claimed medical benefits of it.http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/...diatrics%3B103/3/686

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No smoking signs by gas stations. No religion in the public square. The government should keep us from being engulfed in flames on earth, and that is pretty much it. -- Jon Stewart, The Daily Show

From the AAP: The only thing your son gets is a topical local! WTF that is horrible! I had no idea!Then to top that off I ran across a quote from a lactation consultant: Normally a random quote like this wouldn't register as much for me but a friend of mine recently had a son and had him circumcised. He would not eat after that and they could do nothing to keep him awake. They almost had to put the poor kid on a tube until a few days later and essentially having to force feed him he picked it back up. Althought it turned out alright the unfortunate consequence was that they essentially had to abandon breastfeeding which is very important to my wife and I.I think I have made up my mind and have the right kind of knowledge to make a firm case for NOT circumcising. For a moment there I was actually kind of pissed off at my parents but why worry about things you cannot change and that really don't matter for me.

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No smoking signs by gas stations. No religion in the public square. The government should keep us from being engulfed in flames on earth, and that is pretty much it. -- Jon Stewart, The Daily Show

I can't view pictures until I get home but I only need to imagine. I mean here your baby is in its first day of life and the first thing we do is put it through what amounts to an amputation without any pain meds! I mean geesh do people think that babies are not people yet or that they don't get their pain nerves in until later or something. I am just shocked that so many parents let their children undergo this especially being able to feel the whole thing. How utterly horrifying.

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No smoking signs by gas stations. No religion in the public square. The government should keep us from being engulfed in flames on earth, and that is pretty much it. -- Jon Stewart, The Daily Show

The sites biased against circumcision tend to have information that agrees with the AAP while the site you linked to has numerous pieces of information that are either contrary to the AAP or that the AAP is explicitly skeptical of.Anyone else have thoughts or opinions on this site? Are there others (especially from respectable medical orginizations) that differ widly from the AAP?

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No smoking signs by gas stations. No religion in the public square. The government should keep us from being engulfed in flames on earth, and that is pretty much it. -- Jon Stewart, The Daily Show