How Could This Happen?

(3)

Tonight's subject is, 'foreskin retention.' On the face of it, the phrase seems to be legitimate. Seems to be. But suppose I proposed a slightly different phrase, say, 'nose retention.' You would no doubt be struck by the sheer ludicrosity of such a phrase. You would no doubt say something to the effect that, 'The nose is the result of millions of years of evolution, and to speak of 'retaining it' is simply idiotic.' And you would be correct of course.

But 'foreskin retention' became a dubious idea in America in the last century. The foreskin was suspected of being somehow subversive. The idea that male American infants should be allowed to retain their foreskins became a very dubious idea, almost an un-American Idea. The foreskin was assigned the role of a universal villain whose removal was mandatory. The result was that a hundred million American male infants were sexually mutilated. How could this have happened?