As one of the vast majority of circumcised adults in this country, I initially believed that the most important factor was that the son resemble the father, so that there’ll be no question of abnormalcy, and no awkward explanations to fret over in later years.

I was reluctant at first, but sensing her passion over the issue, and having no real problem with foreskins as a rule, I went along with her decision to leave our boys intact.

I’m not alone. According to one study, fully 10 percent of circumcised men wish they’d been left with their hoodies intact. Unfortunately, there’s no way we’ll ever really know what was lost.

James Faulk is a writer living in Eureka. He can be reached at [email protected].