In this episode I finally explore a topic I've wondered about for a long time: circumcision. How did an ancient punishment for prisoners turned religious ritual become a medical procedure carried out by over 80% of Americans? What triggered doctors to start recommending circumcision for all newborn boys starting in the late 1800s and why doesn't the rest of the world do it too? What about the ethical implications of performing a body altering procedure on someone without their consent? Is there really a good reason to do it? Or does a 5.4 billion dollar a year industry come into play? Let's fix that.

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Sources:

• UNAIDS "Male Circumcision: context, criteria, and culture"
• Journal of Pediatric Surgery "The evolutionary saga of circumcision from a religious perspective"
• Advanced Urological Care "Circumcision Revisited: An Historical Perspective"
• National Library of Medicine "Male genital representation in paleolithic art: erection and circumcision before history"
• Research Gate "High Cost of Circumcision"
• Wikipedia "Circumcision"
• Wikipedia "Prevalence of Circumcision"
• Johns Hopkins Medicine "Johns Hopkins Study: Newborn Male Circumcision Rates In US Dropped Between 2012 and 2022"

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Consider this the third and final installment of my war with Japan triptych. In this episode, we'll discuss the top secret "Manhattan Project" led by physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer that led to the development of the first atomic bomb. We'll uncover the motives behind creating such a dangerous weapon and for using it on two cities in Japan, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, leading to civilian casualties of up to 300,000 people. We'll also consider the question, what now? What does this mean for us today and for future generations going forward?

Support the show!

• Join the Patreon (patreon.com/historyfixpodcast)
• Buy some merch
• Buy Me a Coffee
• Venmo @Shea-LaFountaine

Sources:

• “Duck and Cover” video
• National WWII Museum “‘Destroyer of Worlds:’ The Making of an Atomic Bomb”
• National Archives “The Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki”
• History.com “Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki”
• History Extra “Before the atomic bombs…”

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Support the show

Shoot me a message!

Support the show