When & why did circumcision begin (it’s not what you think)? What are the arguments for it & what are the experts saying? Sugar water instead of anesthetic??

Brendon Marotta is a filmmaker whose feature-length documentary, American Circumcision, won multiple awards & can be found on Amazon & YouTube. In this episode, we talk about the surprising history of circumcision, the practice today, parental consent & why this is so hard to talk about, but female circumcision isn’t. 

This episode originally aired March 13, 2023.

If you like this episode, you’ll also like episode 293: THE SECRET LIVES OF MEN: MENTAL HEALTH CONFESSIONS!

Guest: 

https://www.hegemonmedia.com/

https://brendonmarotta.com/

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Host:  

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00:00 — Why Americans still circumcise

02:00 — Thought barriers around foreskin

04:30 — Cultural hypnosis at work

07:00 — The ripple effect on men’s lives

09:00 — Masculinity, shame & silence

13:00 — Who really benefits?

14:00 — Circumcision’s strange beginnings

16:00 — From “cure for masturbation” to medicine

18:00 — Parental choice or medical coercion?

21:00 — Relative vs absolute risk explained

23:00 — Science, politics & cultural blame game

27:00 — The baby restraint nobody wants to see

28:00 — Sugar water instead of anesthetic

29:00 — Trauma that lives in the body

30:00 — Physical consequences & lost sensation

33:00 — When men discover hidden trauma

35:00 — Anger, intimacy & what’s really missing

36:00 — The simplest solution of all

37:00 — Where to find Brendon’s work

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