Is Spanking an Acceptable Form of Discipline?

Is Spanking an Acceptable Form of Discipline?

You have probably heard the expression, "Spare the rod, spoil the child." Do you agree with it? Perhaps you were spanked as a kid. Was it appropriate? Some people see spanking as an outdated method of punishment or even child abuse, while others view a swat on the bottom as a parent's prerogative. Where do we draw the line when it comes to disciplining our children?

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De-evolution
  • reb412
    Entropy

    Socially, pretty sure we're devolving. More child abuse is going on, more women beating, more divorces, more murders, etc. Science (by the law of entropy) says we are getting worse.

    (also, why didn't you mention with atrocities things like killing millions of Jews, allowing for dictators to kill milssions of people, etc.? Why are the "atrocities" you mentioned mental and psychological things? Isn't an atrocity a physical act of evil-doing?)

    - reb412 August 30, 2008 9:11PM

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    • edwin p
      I BEG TO DIFFER

      Actually where I live in Canada, I just saw in the paper that in 2008 compared with 2007 to date, that while homicide is up slightly, all other crimes such as sex crimes, car thefts both actual and attempted and break and enters are down substantially. Also, no police officer in this city of 700,000 has died in the line of duty since 1970 and there have been no school shootings since corporal punishment left the schools in 1983. Around here, it appears we are on the dawn of correction.

      - edwin pCA August 31, 2008 6:45PM

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      • reb412
        Wow.

        I'm moving to where you live. :-)

        That's an amazing statistic. Do you live in west Canada?

        - reb412 August 31, 2008 7:36PM

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        • edwin p
          I"M FROM THE WEST

          Yes, I'm from Western Canada, Winnipeg, Manitoba to be exact-ONE GREAT CITY & GATEWAY TO THE GOLDEN WEST!

          - edwin pCA August 31, 2008 7:45PM

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          • reb412
            I love West Canada....

            I 've been out that way once in my life and loved it (I don't like eastern Canada).

            - reb412 August 31, 2008 8:36PM

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      • daughterofgoodluck
        But

        Since corporal punishment left the schools, has it also left the homes? At least domestic corporal punishment is still allowed in Canada. You can't be sure just like you cannot possibly link school corporal punishment to school shootings. That'll be on the vague side.

        You never can tell, maybe parents/guardians are just being better parents by giving their children the required discipline.

        - daughterofgoodluck August 31, 2008 10:26PM

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        • edwin p
          CORPORAL PUNISHMENT IS VERY RESTRICTED IN CANADA

          Corporal Punishment is still in Canadian homes but as of the Supreme Court of Canada decision in 2004, it is very restricted. Only children from 2 to 12 can be spanked. Only an open hand can be used, absolutely no foreign objects and no hitting on the face or head. It must also be of a reasonable remedial nature and not done in anger. There is a Bill pending in Parliament to ban all corporal punishment but it appears that we are about to go into an election as we have a minority Government and in that case it will die on the order paper. Let's hope it will be reintroduced by whatever Government takes over if an election should occur which will probably be mid October. WE OWE IT TO THE CHILDREN OF CANADA TO SEE THAT THEY ARE PROTECTED FROM ALL ACTS OF VIOLENCE!

          - edwin pCA September 1, 2008 3:37PM

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          • daughterofgoodluck
            Yes I know

            Yes I know very much about the 2 to 12 age-limit existing in Canada and all but the bottom line is that spanking is still allowed. Parents can still spank and they sure still do. Besides, that age-group is the one most commonly exposed to corporal punishment and in addition, the one in which the effectiveness of corporal punishment is mostly relevant, so what's the point in extending it further. All the same, there's no direct correlation between restriction (and even prohibition) and limitation of use by parents.

            Also, when they say hitting on the face or head or hitting IN ANGER, that transcends the scope of a corrective spanking by far. It has become a case of VIOLENT hitting to let out emotions. If I spank my child, then that'll be a corrective punishment and not violence. Let me make it clear here that all forms of discipline, as sweet as they may sound, can become as violent as ever once anger accompanies the administration. Talk about time-out, we've seen children in our hospital with dislocated arms after the parent angrily picks up the child for a time-out. Is that not an act of violence, without even raising a finger to spank?


            - daughterofgoodluck September 1, 2008 11:04PM

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        • UltraConservative
          Agreed

          Agreed. How can you link the two but by supposition? Just because school shootings have been down because of corporal punishment gone from the schools does not mean that is why it went down. Here in America, Corporal punishment went out of the Public Schools in Colorado when I was in 6th grade. That was 30 some years ago. It has not helped.

          - UltraConservative November 16, 2008 6:21PM

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    • GettinGwap
      About that

      I don't believe we are getting instinctually or mentally worse. We make advances everyday in a myriad of fields. One thing that could explain many of those statistics are that we have more tools to do harm with now and with more outlets than ever before. Take WWI. There were so many advances in technology and weaponry that our weapons became more destructive, but we kept our same old wartime tendencies. That's why casualties were so high in that war. Our ways will never change, the sooner we realize that, the better. Our tools will change however, that's the "problem".

      - GettinGwapUS January 29, 2009 1:55AM

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