Posted on 05/01/2003 3:16:36 AM PDT by sarcasm
Lawmakers have been known to split hairs.
Splitting tongues, they're not so crazy about.
So David Miller, the state representative from Calumet City and a practicing dentist, is serious when he talks about recent legislation he's introduced.
Miller, a Democrat, is sponsoring a bill that would all but ban what has become the latest craze in "body modification"--slicing the tongue in half to create a reptilian appearance.
It's a practice akin to body piercings and tattoos. But detractors like Miller say it carries risks of infection and even death if not performed by licensed medical people and surgeons.
That's why Miller wants to ensure that only physicians perform the procedure, and for sound medical reasons.
If properly done the procedure isn't necessarily harmful, he acknowledges. Still, it's a trend he'd rather not see catch on.
"You know how fads are," he said. "You just never know what's going to happen. We just thought we'd be pro-active."
According to a Web site devoted to the practice, as well as other procedures such as body piercings and tattoos, tongue splitting is the "central bifurcation of the tongue, so as to achieve a 'forked tongue' appearance."
Some people have split their tongue by getting a large number of tongue piercings, stretching them, and then cutting between them, said Shannon Larratt, who runs www.bmezine.com, and had his own tongue split in 1997.
Others have turned to oral surgeons or tattoo parlors. An Albany, N.Y., doctor did his, Larratt said, and he encourages those who want their tongues split to seek a surgeon, too.
But many medical professionals highly discourage the practice.
Among the risks are striking an artery or the tongue becoming so swollen the patient can't breathe. Massive tongue hemorrhage, edema, abscess formation, tetanus and nerve damage are other reported complications, doctors say.
Larratt doesn't deny those risks. In fact, he said, the danger of people seeking poorly done "back alley" jobs are precisely why it should be legal.
"A lot of these laws are worded in ways that make it very difficult for a doctor to do it," he said. "What that means is that the qualified practitioners and doctors don't want to risk losing their licenses. So the only people left doing it are hacks that shouldn't be doing it in the first place."
The bill, also endorsed by state Sen. James T. Meeks and similar to legislation in Michigan, has passed the Senate Judiciary Committee and now awaits consideration by the full Senate.
"There's really no reason someone should be splitting his or her tongue," Meeks said. "We are simply trying to keep people from hurting themselves."
Larratt sees it differently. "We don't question a person if they want to go in and get just about every other procedure," he said. "Why target this one in such an extreme fashion?"
Corset piercing
Branding
These people are totally NUTS!
David models a porcupine quill in his septum.
Thanks, I think.
Who are these people? The ones whose first thought after, "That's disgusting!" is "I need to ban it."
This is SO SICK!!!
I'm not going to post a photo from this page; as far as I'm concerned, it should come with a warning that it's not for the squeamish: http://www.bmevideo.com/tonguesplit/
"Hold muh beer 'n watch this!" PING....
If you want on or off this list, please let me know!
What is tongue lengthening and how is it done?
Tongue lengthening is the freeing of the tongue by the cutting of the connective tissue underneath the tongue so that the tongue appears longer (and as far as anything outside of your mouth is concerned, it is longer!).
What are some of the risks related to tongue lengthening?
Outside of standard tongue surgery risks (as with tongue splitting), there are rumored risks of tongue swallowing, but these are probably urban legend.
Can I lengthen my own tongue?
This is not at all recommended, but it may be possible for a SMALL lengthening to rinse with oral xylocaine and then snip the frenulum with a small pair of surgical scissors. It is very important though NOT to cut any blood vessels, which can be quite prominent in this area. In most cases this cut will simply heal closed. Note that this only works if the frenulum is very pronounced. Stick out your tongue as far as possible -- if the frenulum is now stuck between your lower incisors, this procedure will help you.
Where can I have my tongue lengthened?
Oral surgeons and some dentists can perform this relatively simple operation. It can be done at the same time as a tongue splitting, often at no or neglible extra cost.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.