Here is the photo I am referring to:
The reason this photo enraged me is that I am a teacher, and as a teacher I know that the majority of my kids get their butts whipped on a regular basis. Sometimes because of religion, sometimes out of anger and sometimes just because the parent has no idea what to do, but they get spanked or smacked. It is still NORMAL to whoop a kids butt! Our issue in society is not whether or not kids get spanked, but it is the example they see set by US, the adults, the government, the parents, the teachers, the pastors, the friends parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents, the lady in Walmart who slams you with her cart, the adult on the road with road rage, the grown up texting while driving, and everyone else. Guess what!? The kids that are getting "whooped" are still committing violent acts! The true issue is failure to teach along with the spanking. Teaching is what counts, the hitting, the grounding, the time out or whatever does NO GOOD if there is not teaching involved along with it. No matter what parents decide to do we MUST teach along with punishment. Punishment without discipline is no good, you might as well not even bother.
And I haven't done the research but I would be willing to bet violence isn't that much higher then when I was a kid, we just have a lot more media avenues to tell us about it now. Even some of the kids in the Bible were violent, in fact one of the very first stories is about a boy who kills his own brother..... just something to ponder....
I'm personally against spanking, I believe it creates a disconnection between you and your child. I did a good post on "discipline without distress" on a blog on a book I'd read - pop by and have a read! Onestepatatime.co.za
ReplyDeleteHi from ICLW. I've seen that postcard and it bothers me too. It seems like there is these rose coloured glasses that earlier generations look back on themselves through.
ReplyDeleteThis postcard just refers to violence, not violence in children. Some of the worst violence (and the largest occasions of violence) is coming from adults - well, those adults were of the generations where spankings, belt beatings, etc. were completely commonplace. So how does that stand up against this belief that spanking creates less violence? And yes, I agree, there is probably similar amounts of violence now as there was back then. I have to be honest, I think there might even be less now that there are so many social services in place to see and deal with violence in the home.
*are there rose coloured glass (not is). Oops!
DeleteRach I tend to agree!!
ReplyDeleteHeather thanks! I will look!
Just wanted to let you know I nominated you for a Sunshine Award- don't feel obligated to respond :)
ReplyDeletehttp://stupidbrokeneggs.blogspot.com/2013/10/a-sunshine-award-to-start-week.html
Thanks!! :-)
ReplyDeleteI saw this before and it disgusts me. I can't speak to this personally, because I don't have kids yet, but thanks for posting this!
ReplyDeleteThis is why SomeEPeople should NOT be allowed to make SomeECards.
ReplyDeleteTo assume there was less violence when the older generations were spanked is ignorant. I'm sure all sorts of stuff happened "way back in the day"; the larger population just didn't know about it. Today, with the internet and social media makkng news available quickly, we hear about all sorts of horrible, sad things. Just because someone was spanked/whooped/whatever does not mean they are violent and vice versa.
I agree that teaching right from wrong and the WHY along with the punishment (whatever you choose that to be) is key.