Although I am not a parent myself, I feel that the experience of having been a child who was spanked qualifies me to speak on this topic. I grew up with the most loving parents that anyone could ask for; there has never been a shred of doubt in my mind that they loved me completely and unconditionally. They were always encouraging and supportive of me in anything that I wanted to do, and have been there for me every single time I have ever needed anything. But even as much as my parents loved me, that still didn't stop them from giving me a couple of good swats on the backside if I got out of line! They only did so when it was deserved, and it was never excessive...just enough to be sure that I knew I had messed up.
Yes, the horrible truth is that I was spanked when it was needed, and I have to say that it did not traumatize or scar me; it did not give me a complex; it did not make me a violent or abusive adult. As far as I am concerned, the effect that being spanked had on me was quite the opposite; I turned out just fine. In fact, I am glad that my parents disciplined me the way that they did. I wouldn't be the adult that I am today if they hadn't! So, I am absolutely in favor of spanking. I think that spanking is the most effective form of discipline available to parents. Whatever pain may come from spanking, it is temporary, and it will spare the child from worse pain that could occur if they do not change the behavior that caused them to be spanked in the first place. That fact alone makes it worth enduring; better to suffer a small amount of pain now, than to suffer worse pain later in life!
I often wonder who these so-called experts are that make these anti-spanking statements; whoever they are, it is blatantly obvious to me that they have probably never been parents. Any parent with more than five minutes of practical daily experience in raising children will quickly tell you that most of the time, other punishments are far less effective. Grounding often does not work because a parent cannot be right over the child's shoulder every second of the day, making sure without a doubt that punishment is enforced. Besides, kids are too good at sneaking behind a parent's back to do whatever they are supposed to be grounded from anyway. And let's face it, giving a child “time out” is just a complete joke, period! So as far as I am concerned, to say that spanking a child even remotely compares to child abuse is simply the most ludicrous statement to ever pass human lips; to say that any parent should be jailed or judged unfit because they spank their children is nothing short of criminal!
I realize that many out there disagree with my opinion on this, and that's fine; I still stand vehemently and emphatically behind my view. People fail to realize that discipline is a form of love. You discipline your children because you love them, and because you want them to grow up to be decent, caring and considerate human beings! Children need structure in their lives, and they need to learn that when you make a mistake, there are consequences for those actions. They have to learn to take responsibility for their own mistakes. If their parents don't teach them this lesson, then life in the real world will...and I can promise you that life will not be nearly as gentle about it as the parent would!
Maybe if there were more spanking going on, we would have more respectful children in the world. In fact, I am convinced that's true. Kids are getting away with murder because parents are too afraid of getting reported to the authorities if they spank them. Parents cannot properly discipline their children when their hands are tied in this way. And I can definitely tell you this much: if I had ever spoken to my mother the way that I hear some kids do today, I guarantee that I would have only made that mistake once! Children wouldn't be yelling at their parents, cursing them out, and doing God only knows what else if they had gotten the proper discipline at a young age.
The bottom line is that discipline is a parent's responsibility. I am most certainly not condoning abuse in any way, shape or form; I want to make that clear. Child abuse is nothing to make light of; it's tragic when it happens, and it should be prevented. However, to put spanking in the same category with something as horrific as child abuse is just a flat out insult, especially to those children who really are abused. Enduring a spanking is a walk in the park compared to what those unfortunate souls are forced to live through every day!
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