Women or mothers in general, should have no say as to what a 'son' wants to do with his body. Court case after court case has sided with mothers and daughters bodily functions over dad's protests. Women really believe they should have a 'say' in everything under the sun. Ahem, no. The 'wussification of men' is coming to an end. Hope you enjoyed the ride. We didn't.

At age 13, NEITHER parent should have a say in what happens to the kid's body.

As for "wussification," any man who wants a part of his son's penis cut off needs his head examined. The one on his shoulders, that is.

Nkenga:

As for "wussification," any man who wants a part of his son's penis cut off needs his head examined. The one on his shoulders, that is.

Ok... so why do people keep referring to it as "penis cut off" or other such shoddy penmanship? Get over it. It is extra skin removed.

Haven't studies confirmed that even in today's time with daily washing, etc, etc that circumcision lessens the change of acquiring an STD because of less skin area, etc, etc. I know I read something on that. And, I know it has been shown that circumcized men has lower incidences of premature ejaculation. Forget religion, I'd rather my boy have a lifetime of possibly enhanced joy for the week of a sore groin.

"And, I know it has been shown that circumcized men has lower incidences of premature ejaculation."

That's because they lose sensation in the glans penis, the skin of which becomes keratinized without the protection of the foreskin. Removing the foreskin to enhance sexual pleasure is like intentionally making yourself half-deaf to be able to withstand loud music better.

The kid should wait until he has sex before making this decision, and should read as much as he can about how the experience is different for men and for women with circumsized vs. uncircumsized penises.

It's not the most important issue in the world, but it's amazing how ignorant most Americans are about the foreskin and its function (I'm speaking as an American male whose foreskin was removed as an infant).

"Forget religion, I'd rather my boy have a lifetime of possibly enhanced joy for the week of a sore groin."

As someone who was circumcised without my consent, I have to agree with Radiotone, this 13 year old needs to wait and understand the implications before he has this irreversible operation done.

And no parent should be able to decide this for any boy, religious custom or not.

A bit of extra skin? Are you serious? This is a part of this child's body, that is not harming him in any way. If he has been taught to keep it clean, and is taught safer sex, the chances of him having any problems are minimized.

That "bit of extra skin" as you call it is a part of his penis. And I say again, any man who wants a part of his son's penis cut off needs to go through psychiatric evaluation.

I guess "having your penis cut off" is a bit of an exaggeration. I suppose "having your penis skinned" is more accurate. Ick.

"That "bit of extra skin" as you call it is a part of his penis."

Yeah, no kidding. Your eyelids are just as much a "bit of extra skin". And they have basically the same function: to protect a sensitive piece of equipment. Even if eyelid cancer were a major threat, I wouldn't want mine prophylactically removed, would you?

So hoist up the boys and look for more blankets. Unless you are courting one of those "submissive foreign women" from an ad in a girlie pictures magazine your love life is likely to fade away quickly.

I somewhat agree. Parents and caregivers and others of influence are entitled to their OPINIONS, and should share them with the boy, but not to the point of coersion.
This also raises a question about what age boys NEED to be circumcised, also somewhat misleading. Need is not dictated by age, and more than one kind of “need” may arise at any age.
If we are to accept that elective infant circumcision (without other “need”) is a wrongful invasion of a boy’s rights, then we have the responsibility to educate him about it no later than when he is starting school, and to teach him to retract his foreskin and to prepare for a decision to be circumcised no later than about age of puberty. By that time, with such education and guidance, he should be prepared to decide for himself. As we can see from other posts here, many uncut boys have already made such a choice for themselves by the time they reach that age. We also see that they find this “before and after” experience a vast improvement.