Child Slapping

Sometimes you just cant "talk" to a child and make them listen. sure they are only young, how are they know the difference.

Teach the kid as you would a pet dog. A good slap in the arse for doing something wrong, praise when it doesnt do it again. Dont push your kids face into the piss stain in the carpet though, thats just bad parenting

I got slapped only once, and it was well deserved - plus it did was it was intended to do. When I have kids, I will not forego a good slap, but only as a last resort.

Originally posted by Syth
Well I think something like this one shouldn't base a decision like this on one's personal opinions. We need research!!

Research ? On what exactly ? Go with your gut. Bring your child up as you were, or you would have wished to have been. Forget all that RAISING BABIES FOR DUMMIES nonsense. If you cant make decisions about your own child without going to THE BOOK first then you shouldn't be a parent at all.

And another thing, why is my right eye twitching ?

Basically corporal punishment is wrong.

You could bang on about 'trust' all day long and a parents 'right', but, it smacks of allowing the clergy in schools to administer physical punishment, which I'm sure most people have heard nightmare stories about.

Essentially it comes down to human rights, most parents could be trusted to use discression in administering physical punishment, some cannot, ergo to prevent abuse, it should be curtailed and classified as abuse.

Indeed one allows ambiguity to encroach into the remit of punishment against abuse, when one condones (some unspecified) level of physical punishment for children.

For example, if my father was to throw a dig at me, a twenty four year old male, would that be "assault" or "parenting".

The law would stipulate assault, but, somehow, if I was younger and ironically less able to defend myself, suddenly there is ambiguity as to whether or not physical "punishment" is a tangable and societally acceptable modus parentus.

It's not, it's too open to abuse and calling non-corporal punishment techniques (tree hugging hippie) nonesense, simply shows an inability and a general ignorance on the part of the proponent of physical punishment.

In Irish society, captial punishment is unconstitutional. Recently three young men who admitted to being involved in a fight, where 'later on ' six other unnamed assaliants killed a man, were imprisoned. The State, because of Northern history, has strong laws about paramilitary violence. Indeed Ireland would seek to import itself as a progressive country when it comes to protecting women from physical abuse. Sadly though, on some of the fundamentals Ireland is still weak on when it comes to equality and justice in my view.

Equality for fathers in custody arrangements (currently the law heavily favours mothers).

The ability of 'parents' to perform low level acts of potential physical abuse and have it 'condoned' as a parent's perogative.

The general shift in Irish society and law towards excluding babies of foreigners, born in this country from citizenship rights, while still extending that right, to auntie ethel in the US, the third grand daughter twice removed of a famine immigrant, a symptom of Irish latent racism, since most immigrants these days are black/asian.

Hmm, this is a tricky one...

I noticed in France that they slap the **** out of their kids for any kind of misdemeanour; they expect them to act like adults and as a result most French kids are very well behaved ans sit at the table in silence.

Then again, is this what childhood is supposed to be? Shouldn't you let kids be kids to a certain extent?

I wonder how much anti-social behaviour is a result of allowing kids to eat 12 bags of crisps washed down with a 2 litre of coke? I can't help thinking that a requirement for slapping is the result of ****ty parenting. However, my kids are too young for me to know for sure, I'll find out in the next couple of years...

I think if I saw someone in a supermarket slapping their kid about I'd report it. In the case of this mother who says 'oh, he does it everywhere, all the time' she is clearly lacking in some parenting skills, and I woudl imagine it's the old 'reared on crisps' scenario.

Of course the americans have a cure for ****ty diet and bad parenting, it's called Ritalin.

Originally posted by echomadman
maddox while a little OTT has a point, in some cases a slap is justified in my opinion, a child has to learn that there are consequences to their actions, I got slapped maybe twice as a child, I deserved it on both occasions and the threat of another one made an excellent deterrant.

Well that makes you an authority on the subject then doesn't it?

But seriously, you still fail to address how, as a society, we come up with a rule set that allows parents to 'slap' children, and doesn't allow for physical abuse to seep into the fold from this.

Also, at what age does corporal punishment become assault?

Frequently you get random people giving personal anecdotes about how being hit with a spoon as a child never did them any harm.

Funnily enough the people who had bones broken by their parents as children never really seem so, willing to share their horrors in order to justify the counterpoint.

My point would be that while I accept that some parents administer corporal punishment in what society would deem an acceptable fashion, some don't and that those who don't get validated by society's general position of condoning parental corporal punishment.

Also, I have yet to hear, you, nor anybody else, actually jusfity the position that hitting children is ok, if you happen to be that child's parent 'and' you take it easy.

One might also say that making underage children work in factories is 'ok' as long as you are elder and related to that child and you "don't" overexploit them.

It might also be helpful to discourse in general if you argued your counterpoint rather then arbitrarily dismissing other posters points with "blah, blah blah off topic", as if yours was the word of Solomen!

I have to say, I'm with typedef on this issue, and I think a lot of people who on the surface have said "a slap doesn't do any harm" would actually be in agreement if they thought this through.

Ixoy said:

The key is in the severity of the slaps, the reasons for giving them, and the connection by the child between the slap and them understanding they've committed a bad act.

...and this is the problem. I am very much against the state legislating in family areas, but sometimes it simply becomes necessary. There is no way to monitor ANY of the factors ixoy mentions, basically an abusive parent could break a kids arm, and then claim that it was either deserved, or the kid understands it, or the crime was heinous, whatever.

I respect parents who occasionally slap their kids, it's their decision. But this law is to protect kids from parents who do not have that ability to judge: and we all know there are a significant amount of parents out there who are just plain crazy.

Therefore slapping kids should be discouraged, and a facility provided to punish those who practise it excessively. Not a "police state" - because these prosecuations are damned rare. But a facility to protect kids.

I don't think it's "excessive" that a woman was reported for allegedly hitting here son on the head (the article mentions kicking, too) - personally, I would say that people *don't* report this kind of thing unless it's excessive. And that article certainly made it sound excessive. I mean, people will ask you to stop doing soemthing before they call the cops. People challenge you when you hit your kid.

Put simply, if you give your kid a smack on the arse, I don't think anyone will report you. Nor do i think a court will convict you. But hitting kids in the head is out of line for *many* reasons, apart from medical ones. And kicking them? In fairness.... that's just mad.

So I'm not suggesting that *everything* can be solved with a chat - but as was already said, if you have to resort to beating regualrly, there's a problem. And one thing I do trust people, the cops and the courts to do is not to charge people who have not been excessive. Cops may be a bit touched, but they're not nazis.

I myself was beaten a handful of times, and deserved it, and feel it did no harm. But I grew up with kids who came into school with black eyes, and even in one case a broken arm. I was even taught by a schoolteacher who knocked out 4 teeth from a fellow student.

And that's nothing compared to some. Fred and Rosie west come to mind. We have to protect our kids - simple as that.

I am quite happy that there's a law to protect children from excessive force. Better a cautioned mother with a criminal record than a dead, injured or conditioned-to-violence kid IMHO.

And as for the suggestion that kids be regarded as pet animals? I hope that's a joke...

Certainly, the difficulty of policing corporal punishment in the home, requires legislation in order to protect children.

Personally, I would be of the opinion that a total prohibition on corporal punishment is the only solution that adequately moves towards protecting the innocent and the young.

Parents will enivatebly administer corporal punishment, but, if it was against the law to do so, the severity and frequency would be quite diminished, not only that, but, it would admonish doubt, when one sees a child being slapped, beaten whatever you want to call it, that the parent in question (if there is any question) is out of line.

Actually Hobart you're right.

It would be much better to cling to our pig ignorant drunken Mick image for fear as being castigated as part of the minorty of Liberal, Gay loving Americans.

First it's marriage, then next thing you know.... the vote!!

Well said.

Give it up man...

We know it was you.

seems to be a problem here:

ya see, I thought this post was about a woman kicking the **** out of her child in public (article mentions blows to the head and kicking)

But everyone here is posting about "a few well deserved slaps on the arse" - which I myself said I have no problem with. A *few*.

Now, nobody reports people for smacking their kids. It simply does not happen. People are reported for beating the shiot out of their kids, like this woman. And when they are, they go down for it. And that, IMHO, is a good thing.

And if anyone here thinks this article means that any parent who smacks their kid is liable for arrest, I think you're all being a bit paranoid and willing to sensationalise the whole issue.

But hey. I guess it's been slow the past while ;-)