You may not have heard of Democrat presidential candidate Andrew Yang, a New York entrepreneur, but he catapulted into the limelight by taking an unprovoked and out-of-left-field position: He is against circumcision.
The Daily Beast noticed his tweet on it and decided to interview about it. Yang would push his view into public policy.
Yang told The Daily Beast that the procedure is “sort of pushed on parents in many situations.” From the interview:
“From what I’ve seen, the evidence on it being a positive health choice for the infant is quite shaky,” said Yang, who did not address whether he’s circumcised himself.If elected, Yang said he wants to “inform parents that it is entirely up to them whether their infant gets circumcised, and that there are costs and benefits either way.”“The more choice we give parents, and the more we diminish the possible preconceptions or misinformation various parents are receiving, then the better off we’ll be as a society,” Yang said.According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, the upsides of circumcision—including a reduced chance of sexually transmitted diseases and urinary tract infections—are worth any risks. But the AAP and other medical groups say the decision should still be left up to parents.
The Mayo Clinic has more benefits from circumcision:
I’m all for education on anything before you do something to your child, but we don’t need government involvement in this. Come on.
Then again, if you look at Yang’s positions, this shouldn’t shock you. He wants universal basic income, medicare for all, and something called human-centered capitalism.
At least he lists his positions on his website unlike Robert O’Rourke.
[Featured image via YouTube]
CLICK HERE FOR FULL VERSION OF THIS STORY