A bit saddened and surprised that Phil Bronstein failed to contact us immediately to get few choice quotes and some penetrative views on the human penis, we can forgive the Chronicle's Editor-at-Large since he penned a downright spectacular piece on the male piece. Specifically, the flap of skin that gets lopped off for religious and/or societal reasons is also great for freshening up a disgustingly-aged face. (By the way, hailing for Southern California, we have 0.00 problems with plastic surgery. Having work done is the Orange County version of getting a tattoo. A time-honored ritual, really.) Bronstein writes:

In the flap over San Francisco's proposed circumcision ban, one very important constituency hasn't been heard from: vain and aging people who might use a plastic surgery filler made of human baby foreskins.

I'm not kidding.

Once detached, that small piece of human apron tissue can perform all sorts of magic, including the repair of skin damaged by everything from burns to bunions to bad habits.

In his 1891 book, "The History of Circumcision," snipping crusader Dr. Peter Remondino wrote: "for skin-transplanting, there is nothing superior to the prepuce of a boy."

You can look up "prepuce." I had to.

Also, when you Google "prepuce," do NOT do an image search. Don't. Unless, of course, you're a vile child molester. In which case you still shouldn't. You sicko. Anyway.

Said "prepuces" have also helped create something magical called foreskin fibroblasts, which can create collegen. And collegen is your friend. A popular anti-aging skin cream called SkinMedica -- most notably squirted and smeared onto the well-worn faces of Oprah Winfrey and Barbara Walters, who both have breathlessly raved about it -- can run you around $100 a bottle.

If the citys circumcision ban fails at the ballot box (which it will), does this mean the foreskin-culling business will turn into a goldmine? Possibly. Bronstein goes on to say:

Not just ego but substantial money could be involved. Doctors have warned that "the marketing of purloined baby foreskins is a multimillion-dollar-a-year industry." Medical centers could do a booming business as well.

My middle son got his overhang clipped just after birth at a local hospital, and now I think about it every time I'm at a society event talking to someone who's older than 50 and weirdly seamless.

We don't even...oh dear. Ahem. Be sure to check it out. Because, really, it's an excellent read.

[Chron]