Do you think spanking children should be banned?
By oceangirl
@oceangirl (170)
United States
January 20, 2007 5:55pm CST
California is apparently considering a bill that would make it illegal to spank children under 3 years old. I'm not sure what to make of it.
While I disagree with spanking, and I'm not sure how much of an impression it makes on toddlers, I'm leery of a law like this. It fails to distinguish between "spanking" and "beating" or "abusing."
Not all physical punishment is abusive. Spanking is just that -- smacking a kid's bottom with one's *open hand*. That is a far cry from *abusing* a child.
16 people like this
102 responses
@XxAngelxX (2830)
• Canada
20 Jan 07
No, I don't think it should be banned at all. I was spanked as a child (when I deserved it) and it didn't hurt me. I would never say I was abused. I have three children now of my own, and although it doesn't happen very often, I have spanked my children on a few occasions when I felt they deserved it, but it was exactly that, "smacking their butt with an open hand".
4 people like this
@Chillingout (811)
• Italy
20 Jan 07
i would forbid spaning at all ages ! You can't educate your children with violence and expect he will grow up normally ! My parents never need to punish me that way !
3 people like this
@Celanith (2327)
• United States
21 Jan 07
I choose to obey the lawmaker of the Bible and he told us in several biblical scriptures to spank our children. Government is getting into area's they have NO buisness at all.
@missyd79 (3438)
• United States
21 Jan 07
see and then they wonder why children are the way they are now adays, is because a parent can not punish a child like they did years ago. my god, my step dad talks about how he was punished as a child, getting the belt across the butt, though he only spanked my a few times growing up, i hardly stepped out of line or talked back to my parents and respect them till no end. Most children today have no respect for their parents and i firmly believe it's because whe can not disicpline our children like years ago.
3 people like this
@sunnypub (2128)
• United States
21 Jan 07
I disagree with spanking too because a lot of times the parents lose track of how hard they are really hitting, plus I agree with you that I don't think it really makes much of an impression.
Even with that I don't think laws should be passed to ban it. the government already controls too much of our lives and I think this kind of law is just over stepping boundaries.
If they were to pass a law like this they had better make sure that the law is very descriptive about what is and is not allowed. I know a lot of people think spanking with a belt is fine but I think if you use props of any kind you are going too far. Of course an open hand can hurt just as bad if there is enough force behind it.
I think it is great that lawmakers want to protect children but there are other ways to go about it.
@xXmeganxX (4421)
•
20 Jan 07
i disagree with actually harming a child in any way wether it's just a tap on the bum, but sometimes they need to be smacked like if they are in danger, like for eg- my baby puts the kettle on and tries to pull it off the unit, i can't move it off there because my kitchen is so small and there is no room, i tell her to stop it, then she will go back and do it again, so then i have to smack her, to teach her a lesson, not to touch dangerous things because that's the only way of her understanding, i don't give her a beating tho, it's just a little tap, i feel bad when i do it but id rather she be tapped, than end up in hospital scalded.
3 people like this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
21 Jan 07
A slap on the hand or on the rear end will not hurt the child and may tell him sticking his finger in a light socket, taking another child's toy, pulling the dog's tail is not right. It's when one spanks for every single misconduct, then it is wrong. Making spanking illegal is wrong because even though when my children were little, we could reason with or could remove them from the situation, there are some children who do need that slap on the rear end.
@kindlady33 (194)
• Philippines
21 Jan 07
as long as it will not hurt the kids it will be fine
1 person likes this
@carolynpb (647)
• United States
21 Jan 07
All I can say is if they start making it a law not to spank children our world i sgoing to be even in worse shape then it already is. In schools teachers can't spank anymore and look at how our schools are. The kids are unruley. The kids who have been spanked and taught that they will be spanked when they do something wrong respect others and are better kids. That is what's wrong with our world to day...thye are trying to make laws that are going agaisnt what the Lord taught in the Bible. Some people think smackng a childs bottem IS abuse. They think "timeout" and "coutning to 3" is the best way to go. These people are delusional. The more we stray away from the teaching of the Bible the more out of hands our kids are going to get and the next geb=neration, if the wowrld stands will be no one but violet children grown up without any respect for authority. God help us then!
1 person likes this
@hazelle (134)
• Philippines
21 Jan 07
Actually I do agree to spanking we've been brought up with it but the difference is my mom always made us understand what brought about that punishment and was always careful to assure us she loves us but did not approve what we do. I think its really up to the parents to discipline their child but the problem is there are abusive ones which probably take out their frustrations on their child.
1 person likes this
@cookielynn (26)
• United States
21 Jan 07
I don't believe the state should be able to pass a law banning spanking. Of course abusing children of any age is wrong. However, spanking is an effective way of disciplining children. As long as parents are using the discipline in a controlled and appropriate way then that's none of the state's business.
@vivek15_vijay (60)
• India
21 Jan 07
i think spanking kids at certain occasions a very much necessary and must be kept in practice.Spanking must be limited and must not done in a serious manner.It must be done in such a manner that the kid knows why was he/she being spanked for.Even the holy bible mentions this thing (proverbs 13:1)
1 person likes this
@ghostbat (156)
• Canada
21 Jan 07
As a child, my parents never used their hand to tell me anything. If i did something unappropriated or ''stupid'' i had to feel the paid of words. Spanking children is the lowest of lows a parent can go. As far as forbidding it, i say yes. Hurting your child isn't a way of teaching him right or wrong.
1 person likes this
@Kathlene (1)
• United States
21 Jan 07
Honey, let me tell you something. I'm the oldest of 5 children and we got whippins' every day just about. With 5 kids we were always in to something. We are all grown now and it didn't hurt a single one of us mentally. We knew who was boss(Moma and Daddy). If we back talked, we thought twice before we did it again. Some kids just don't have that respect for their parents anymore. I here teenagers now-a-days cursing in front of their parents and having open discussions about everything under the sun as if it were no big deal. If we ever said an ugly word if front of my parents we got slapped and brought back to our senses. I'm from the south(Louisiana) to be exact and here I find that parents still have Old Fashioned Values. There wasn't any of that saying "Yeah" and "No" to our elders it was and still is "Yes Mam" and "No Mam" and "Yes Sir" and "No Sir", it just a little thing called RESPECT and the USA doesn't see it very often in this generations of teenagers. My personal opinion: I'd like to knock some of these cocky-mouthed teenagers off their "high horse".
My opinion,
Kathlene
2 people like this
@therock3000 (14)
• United States
21 Jan 07
lucky you. out of the family there is my sister and me. i always get the spanking from my dad. i remember when i was 5 years old, my dad spank my bottom till it turned pure red. why? because i accidentally swing a leather belt and hit my grandma in the head. heck, i was treated like i was a bad kid. and now i turned up not having so much friends. i have one good friend and some friends that went to the same school in middle school. (now a junior high) and i think that spanking should be ban. by spanking, you are only hurting the child's function. if its only once or twice, that can be acceptable but constantly spanking your child for every small problems they make, that is just being a bad parent. and i am saying this because i know my dad was wrong spanking me constantly.
@grayangel (274)
• United States
21 Jan 07
I would say that spanking a child is form a discipline. It does not warp a child's mind, I got spanked when I did something wrong, but I do not think I will spank I own children. I do not think it is abuse.
2 people like this
@puppylover_354 (6)
• United States
21 Jan 07
I think that spanking kids is not fair and all, but making a law against it wouldnt stop people from doing it. I think that it is fair that they specify "under 3 years old". This is far from abusing a child, but childern under 3 years old could become physically damged if hurt too bad by parents.
@magdollars23 (1685)
• United States
21 Jan 07
I dont think spanking children should be banned because it is used to keep order in the home. Now I do think that child abuse is wrong and their is a fine line between spanking and child abuse and I think some people straddle that line very closely which is the reason why spanking is even being considered to be banned. So, I think they should pay more attention to child abuse, but not ban spanking because though sometimes it is hard to tell there is a difference between spanking and child abuse. One is needed one is not!!!
1 person likes this
@cwgrlsarefun (1581)
• United States
21 Jan 07
I really think that they are going to far here. There is a difference between beating your child and spanking a child. I am sorry but I don't see anything wrong with a swat on the rear if the child is misbehaving. This is one reason why we have so many unruly children, we are all afraid to disciplin. For years now they are teaching children that a slap or swat is abuse and it has parents afraid to even disciplin their own children. I don't think that anyone should have the right to tell me what I can and can not do. It is a very rare occasion that I swat my children but I have had to use this and other than get my childs attention it did not do any damage. My child knew though that I was serious.
@marief2rnurse (2704)
• United States
21 Jan 07
Well I don't think spanking a child under 3 teaches them anything at all. Well, okay they will learn to spank back, that's it. You should always be calm with kids 3 and under because they really don't understand you yet. Even with kids older than 3, I always find myself repeating things to them and hopefully someday they will get tired of listening to me and finally do it voluntarily.
1 person likes this
@pooksywooksy (1006)
• Indonesia
21 Jan 07
Back then when I was young, we got spanked for being naughty from our parents. I don't see it as something bad. I do agree of spanking as long as they do it moderately.
Thesedays I noticed that kids are gone wild. In terms of they have no fear of their parents anymore. Is it lack of respect or just merely spoil brats?
Here in the UK, if they find you spanking or doing any physical punishment in public; the government could take your children away from you.
It's not really an idealic situation knowing that because of it, the kids are abusing the system as well.
I vote yes for spanking your kids gently when they are really out of hands.
