How about that. It’s not just a figment of Jim Webb’s sick, perverted mind after all…

Thira Srey, office manager for the Southern California-based Cambodian Association of America, said it is acceptable for a mother or caretaker in Cambodia, especially those from rural areas, to kiss the penis of an infant or put it in her mouth as a sign of respect or love.

The child is usually 1 year old or younger, “but no more than 2 years old,” he said.

The act has nothing to do with sexual feelings, he said, noting that it can be viewed as a sign of high respect by a caretaker for a future “master.”

Here’s more:

Such kisses are signs of affection, not sexual abuse, ruled the Maine Supreme Court in 1996 when it overturned a sexual assault conviction of an Afghan immigrant who was similarly photographed with his 18-month-old son. The court ruled that the father kissing his son’s penis was a common cultural practice and not a sexual act.

“Kissing a young son on every part of his body is considered a sign only of love and affection for the child,” the court said in its ruling. “There is nothing sexual about this practice.”

“It shouldn’t be looked at as a crime,” said Ludwig Adamec, a professor emeritus of Middle East history at the University of Arizona’s Center for Near Eastern Studies, who testified as an expert in the Maine case.

You are free to find such customs repellant if you like. But that’s not the point. The point is that Jim Webb was describing a practice that is common and accepted in the part of the world where his novel takes place. He is not, as the Allen campaign and its supporters seem to be suggesting, romanticizing the idea of kissing young boys’ penises.

I can’t believe I just had to type that.

Of course, I’m probably now going to jail for what I just typed into Google to find those articles.

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 26th, 2006 at 11:42 pm by Radley Balko and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.