Barbaric parts of the world... A tension exists here. On the one hand, we look at other parts of the world, see what they do, and say that it is simply "their" way; they have their own cultural and social meanings, and we have no right to tell them otherwise. On the other hand, sometimes what they do is just wrong to us. FGM is one such thing. It's wrapped up in their cultural meanings, but for the rest of us it is indeed a barbaric practice. Anyway, male circumcision is a different kettle of fish, I suppose (since FGM is used to control women's sexual behaviour, and causes sex to not be physically pleasing). As a European, I'm quite glad to be intact.
In the West we have the underground sex trade. That fails the religious criteria, so while it is equally disgusting, I think it is more of a law enforcement issue. No one in the main stream would argue against efforts to shut it down.
I agree. I wish more Americans would see the hypocrisy in this line of thinking, but they just don't and it's frustrating.