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Notes -
I oppose them, in general, though if there are functional or discomfort reasons to perform genital surgery on intersex children I support it. I don’t like children getting their ears pierced. I saw a little boy with pierced ears today and I rolled my eyes — it’s bad enough that little girls get their ears pierced, but at least it’s common and you have the excuse of social convention.
But I also come from a family lineage where adults getting their ears pierced, tattoos, and body modification in general is… controversial. My mother getting her ears pierced as an adult was something she was worried about telling her sister. I have very conservative instincts on body modification, which liberals and most modern conservatives don’t share. Cyberpunk transhumanism is body horror to me.
My ideal society would be more unified morally and epistemically. I think lack of a social consensus and strong norms of behavior and belief are major social problems, and they cause more suffering than freedom prevents.
But I also know I’m not going to get my ideal society, and parents socially transitioning their little boy because they’re nuts is more in the category of “don’t interrupt your enemy while he’s making a mistake” territory; if you want to play pretend with your kid, okay, waste energy on that and not on raising them to be dutiful and strong. It’s your lineage.
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