Is hitting your kids child abuse?

[stevo247]

Our children are our most precious gift' date=' and I do not for one picosecond advocate anything that would harm them.

 

Let us be clear on that.

 

Our children should never be abused, and I will strike down with the certainty of my being anyone who does harm to their innocence or to their well being.

 

If you wish to paint me as a monster for this, then so be it.

 

 

We simply must be clear on what we mean by hitting and on what we do for the express benefit of our children, both collectively and directly.[/quote']

 

I agree.

 

Has hitting been clearly defined?

 

How about age appropriateness?

 

Can we agree that it is inappropriate and harmful to hit a child under the age of 12 months?

[iNow]

There is no black and white answer. The answer is subjective, relative to the situation and context, and dictated by too many factors to account for in a simple binary, yes/no approach.

 

I can, however, agree that infants should not be physically punished because their neural development is not far enough along for that to be a valid form of learning or reinforcement.

 

I think there are good arguments on both sides of this, and, in fact, I'd wager that there is far more alignment here than it may appear.

 

In the meantime, I think this talk below is illuminating, and applies very well to humans as well. Enjoy.

 

 

Edited September 6, 2008 by iNow
multiple post merged

[Severian]

I have never hit my daughter and I can't imagine ever hitting her. I don't even shout at her. If she does something bad she is punished in a way which is quantifiable for her, with a clear explanation of why she is being punished.

 

I have in the past used restraining force though, when for example I was changing her nappy, she grabbed the old nappy full of shit and made as if to throw it.

[DrP]

I have in the past used restraining force though, when for example I was changing her nappy, she grabbed the old nappy full of shit and made as if to throw it.

 

 

Well by doing so Severian, you have violated the human rights of your daughter - who are you to say she was wrong to throw shit - If she want's to throw it then she should be allowed to do so - all aver your nice white shag pile carpet if it pleases her - it is her right as a human to do as she wishes!

[Gilded]

Well by doing so Severian, you have violated the human rights of your daughter - who are you to say she was wrong to throw shit - If she want's to throw it then she should be allowed to do so - all aver your nice white shag pile carpet if it pleases her - it is her right as a human to do as she wishes!

 

Throwing shit has been one of the largest building blocks of our society. So many primates do it and have done it for so long that it's obviously an action of great importance, stemming from very primal instinct, and to forbid it is a horrible, horrible thing and a crime against humanity.

[iNow]

Yeah. Just look at politics and our election of the highest office in the land.

[YT2095]

you beat me to it, I was going to say that the most proficient at it often go on to become politicians

a bit like the human appendix really, completely useless and full of poison.

[Phi for All]

you beat me to it, I was going to say that the most proficient at it often go on to become politicians

That's because they were so full of shit from being lawyers to begin with.

[SkepticLance]

I propose a new law making it illegal for lawyers to enter politics. Only people with science degrees are to be permitted. After all, the present Chinese government is loaded with science graduates, and they have the fastest growing economy on Earth.

 

Oh damn! Just remembered. There are so many lawyers in government we could never pass such a law.

[Mr Skeptic]

I propose a new law making it illegal for lawyers to enter politics. Only people with science degrees are to be permitted.

 

That seems like a good idea. You might want to consider banning lawyers outright.

 

Another requirement that seems like a good idea is to require Supreme Court justices to be able to understand English. It would be funny how they interpret the constitution if it weren't so scary!

[dichotomy]

Oh damn! Just remembered. There are so many lawyers in government we could never pass such a law.

 

Well, maybe scientists could produce a virus that targets specific parasites?

[layman77]

Totally agree. But a measured strike to a child should only be delivered when they are about to potentially get themselves killed, e.g. running in front of a truck.

 

Then why have so many parents train, maybe not all trained their kids not to run into the street WITHOUT hitting them?

 

Just like drinking excessive water is bad for your health, and can even kill you. I'd recommend a ban on water!

 

But you need water to live, you don't need to spank a child to get them to behave properly

 

In other words, it's yet another namby-pamby, feel-good law that does nothing but makes the people who passed the law think they solved all of the world's problems.

 

Now, that's a fallacy, straw man attack in particular, where did this say that the law would solve all the world's problems!?! Can't you see your mistake? I hope your joking or exagerrating.

Edited September 28, 2008 by layman77
multiple post merged

[iNow]

His point was to illuminate the unenforcibility of such laws, and how the only reason they get passed is to loosen the wadded panties of the folks who take absolutist positions against various methods of child rearing via limited physical corrections.

[Mr Skeptic]

But you need water to live, you don't need to spank a child to get them to behave properly

 

Some people can't feel pain. They will tell you that, while you might not need pain to live, it is very useful to prevent you from bleeding to death or getting a wound infected or reopened, etc. Such people occasionally do die due to not feeling pain. Pain is one of the more fundamental things, and useful for learning as even your subconscious knows that pain = bad.

 

Also, you don't need excessive water to live. Your earlier comment that excessive spanking was bad was worthless and misleading, as excessive anything is bad. Why single out spanking?

 

Now, that's a fallacy, straw man attack in particular, where did this say that the law would solve all the world's problems!?! Can't you see your mistake? I hope your joking or exagerrating.

 

One other thing, when you reply to more than one person, include their name in the quote, so it doesn't look like the statement belongs to the previous person. The statement you are replying to here belongs to D H. Namby-pamby isn't even in my vocabulary.

[xnebulalordx676]

I say spanking is not abuse. I say Spanking is separate traditional term for an act that should be allowed to stay a separate term from hitting. Hitting however is abuse. I must say that if the word hitting means being something more than spanking and other the definition of a application of light gentle but firm smack on the behind. (The smack on the behind for the intent and purpose of a slight temporary humility (that has the psychological short term effect of being humility) then that's alright.)

 

Hitting however does not be alright. Not unless the child was about to an extreme danger and was running to wrong direction and there was destructive mechanism, force or animal or human that the child would meet with then the act of hitting being applied by the throwing of a hollow ball at his body or head might save him then please do so.

 

Humility only to correct a current wrong; and not for some other reason or to encourage a long term humility. Furthermore Spanking's an act to be done by the parent or some legal guardian and NOT by the system or school administration.

[ParanoiA]

Furthermore Spanking's an act to be done by the parent or some legal guardian and NOT by the system or school administration.

 

I would, though, appreciate a mechanism to allow the school to administer such punishment. There are plenty of forms of humility the teaching staff could use to stop my class clown challenge-everything-your-told teenager, but they all seem to create an escalation of rebellion rather than the cold reality physical dominance provides. It stopped me, and I didn't have to miss any school and I never plotted revenge.