Bjørn Lomborg reports on "the first-ever comprehensive attempt at cost-benefit analysis of AIDS priorities." The analysis gives high marks to circumcision, or male genital mutilation:
The Nobel laureates … found that male circumcision is an excellent use of funds. They focused particularly on the longer-term benefits of infant-male circumcision, arguing that there is massive untapped potential to introduce this very cheap practice across Africa. We know that adult-male circumcision reduces the odds of transmission from a woman to a man by up to 60%. Research by Jere Behrman and Hans-Peter Kohler of the University of Pennsylvania makes clear that the real focus needs to be on working out the best ways to broaden adult circumcision efforts across the region, and to convince men that getting circumcised is a good idea. We also need to introduce counseling to ensure that men do not treat circumcision as a vaccine, and engage in riskier behavior as a result.
The Dish 