Traditional initiation is a rite of passage into manhood for young males that is practiced by various ethnic groups in Africa, including parts of South Africa. Among them are the Xhosa, Ndebele, Sotho and Venda communities.
Just because it’s traditional does not mean it isn’t fucked up shit. Could I be wrong because I don’t know the context? Totally! But melanin is just color, not inherent fucking virtue. Don’t fetishize other cultures. They could suck as much as yours.
Many cultural traditions have practical origins. In climates where water is scarce, cleaning is often more difficult. And given the high likelihood of early childhood infections relating to the foreskin, in many of those cultures you apparently look down on, it is considered common sense to remove it before it becomes a problem.
Yeah. I remember some of the ones practiced on me.
The practical origins were things like control, degradation, fear. Practical purposes are not always valid or good. Some cultures are fucked up and if everything about them burned it would be an acceptable sacrifice for the amount of bullshit we’re getting rid of.
early childhood infections
Okay. But Europe and Asia don’t do this, don’t have a long tradition of this. Do surrounding cultural groups?
What infections? Infections are well within the realm of academia, we study the shit out of infections, and with cis dudes doing most of the science finding, I think dick infections their causes and their remedies is something I would expect a flood of academic material on.
look down on
I don’t assume they’re less than half as depraved tyrannical and shitty as the dumpster fire I fell out of. Sometimes I’m surprised, sometimes I’m not.
common sense
Okay but is it? A few of the women in my family, extremely high genetic cancer risk, removed a breast at the drop of a hat, like first hint radical mastectomy being planned instead of any tests, no attempt to save anything. I, not being an insane reactionary defined by a childish trauma response and kind of liking my breasts¹ might take a more measured approach. I can’t help but think these kids, these literal children, are not sufficiently informed for these decisions to be made with the amount of cultural inertia behind them.
The culture I’m from is mostly fucked up shit.
Just because it’s traditional does not mean it isn’t fucked up shit. Could I be wrong because I don’t know the context? Totally! But melanin is just color, not inherent fucking virtue. Don’t fetishize other cultures. They could suck as much as yours.
Many cultural traditions have practical origins. In climates where water is scarce, cleaning is often more difficult. And given the high likelihood of early childhood infections relating to the foreskin, in many of those cultures you apparently look down on, it is considered common sense to remove it before it becomes a problem.
The foreskin/glans is self cleaning, if it was this big hazard to our health and safety it would not have evolved.
Tell that to the appendix.
The appendix is rarely a health hazard, it’s just useless. Hence why it didn’t filter itself out.
It’s not useless.
deleted by creator
Then why is infection so common?
Yeah. I remember some of the ones practiced on me.
The practical origins were things like control, degradation, fear. Practical purposes are not always valid or good. Some cultures are fucked up and if everything about them burned it would be an acceptable sacrifice for the amount of bullshit we’re getting rid of.
Okay. But Europe and Asia don’t do this, don’t have a long tradition of this. Do surrounding cultural groups?
What infections? Infections are well within the realm of academia, we study the shit out of infections, and with cis dudes doing most of the science finding, I think dick infections their causes and their remedies is something I would expect a flood of academic material on.
I don’t assume they’re less than half as depraved tyrannical and shitty as the dumpster fire I fell out of. Sometimes I’m surprised, sometimes I’m not.
Okay but is it? A few of the women in my family, extremely high genetic cancer risk, removed a breast at the drop of a hat, like first hint radical mastectomy being planned instead of any tests, no attempt to save anything. I, not being an insane reactionary defined by a childish trauma response and kind of liking my breasts¹ might take a more measured approach. I can’t help but think these kids, these literal children, are not sufficiently informed for these decisions to be made with the amount of cultural inertia behind them.
¹and having anything to lose