Spare the rod, spoil the child

[DanTheMan]

I say spank your kids because it usually gets the point across. I got spanked and I always felt it tought me not to mess around. I think there should be a limit though....like you can spank your kids and all that when they ARE kids. Come teenager years your kids are no longer "little" anymore and spanking will only worsen the situation, IMHO. I think my parents realized that because that was around the age I stopped getting spanked. Of course, there are other ways to discipline your children. My dad used to have me write essays and stuff on why I misbehaved and sometimes I did it EVERY TIME. This way I'd have to think and realize what I did was wrong...and then write about it. My dad would make me write sometimes 1000x "I will not do this" and "I will not do that" and believe me, it got the point across. It takes hours to do and after writing the SAME thing over and over, and I knew to behave afterwards. Having your kids write out why they act out and rebel against you is a good way to teach them discipline, IMO, that is, if you believe a good smack is "abuse".

[mitchFan]

To me, anything more than a open handed light swat (notice I said swat, meaning no more than one IMO) on the clothed bottom, is abuse plain and simple. And IMO this should be only for situations where children are especially small and try to attempt anything that will endanger themselves (i.e. running into traffic, etc.)

[AbFabGL4ever7]

I'll beat a kid like Madea if the situation calls for it and still kids are attached me.

Granted I don't have any kids myself but my sister has 3, my best friend has two sets of twins, & countless of other friends who's kids have all been in my care all the time.

There is something very organic and nurturing about spanking a kid till he's dripping snot and then tending to his boo boos right afterwards. He gets the idea that he did something wrong, was punished, but in the end Mama is always there for you even if you are acting out like a little devil.

It reminds me of Eddie Griffin's hilarious Dysfunctional Family dvd. His grandmother used to make him break switches off of a tree and beat him within a inch of his life. Then afterwards she would grab peroxide and hold him in her arms and say "Baby this will teach you not to disobey me again, I know it hurts but grandma gotcha real good right here.....ooh and right here.....ooh there's another good one."

The point being I don't believe in abusing a child, but at the same time sparing the rod isn't gonna help either. There is a happy medium that gets the point across.

[Mitchapalooza]

Yep I think spanking is ok, aslong as it teaches the kid a lesson and isn't extreme and really you have to recognize the correct moment to do it, it can't just be done for any random thing, I mean if my kid EVER and I mean EVER swore at me in anyway or disrespected me to my face, or ever to my parents (his/her grandparents) that kid would be taught a lesson. I mean there is only so much sending a kid to their room (where A) they can watch TV, use the computer (that is why my kid is NEVER going to have a computer in his/her room when they grow up, I think the computer should be in a central place in the house) C) they can sneak out the window or invivte people in D) they basicaly are getting away with it, because a kids room is their haven now a days.

I was spanked when I was young (and smacked PRETTY hard when I fucked up in Highschool with drugs, partying and [!@#$%^&*]), and I turned out fine and do not resent my parents or hate them or anything, in fact I have the closest relationship with them out of all of my friends.

Now spanking in schools I DO NO agree with, I may choose to spank my kid by NO WAY IN HELL is anyone OTHER than me going to spank my child. If the kid is doing something wrong in school, the parents should be the ones to deal with it and if that doesn't solve anything than the schools should move to suspension, but NO WAY do they have the right to smack a child who doesn't belong to them.