12-15-2009, 01:20 PM
(12-15-2009, 11:17 AM)addy Wrote: I don't think I'd forbid any kind of piercing, if I had an underage kid who wanted to get one. But I'm also a little conservative, so I do think it's a major decision.I'll likely talk to my kid about it, and make sure he/she thinks about it very, very seriously.i have to admit, we allowed our kids to have their ear pierced at an early age.
FGM, now that's totally different. It's done without consent (the victims are usually little girls, and I hardly think anyone would really "consent" to such a brutal procedure), and the act itself is akin to torture. Cultural relativism aside, it's still a human rights violation.
but what happens when we get our child's ears pierced when they're only a couple of years old (many in the west do)
re the gm, actually more boys i think, it's called circumcision. not sure a boy of thirteen should be allowed to have the end of his foreskin cut off but it's a common thing in many places.
maybe not the same a FGM though. i agree that it's human rights crime. some rights should transcend culture. cutting up the genital area of preteen girls should have a world wide ban i think.
what about some rights of passage in some african tribes. the right of a thousand cuts come to mind. the guy has well reached puberty and he must be cut 1000 times. depending on how stalwart he is depends if he aquires manhood or not.