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My whole life, my mom has run a daycare center from our home. She did this in order to keep working and still take care of yours truly. Now I'm 18 and have seen countless children grow up. I've seen parents from both sides, and I've also seen how my mom -- barred by law from physical punishment -- has had to handle kids. There are some that, upon reaching the "terrible twos," refuse to listen. I've thought time and time again, that kid needs a spanking. One case in particular gets to me every time. There was a young boy, adopted from Russia by his single father. Since my house is a pretty fun place for kids to hang out at with plenty of peers their age, he never wanted to leave. When he'd scream and cry, his father would pick him up and say "no." This had no effect, yet the father would keep enduring the crying. It got to the point where the son started hitting the father (in the face). This I would not take from my child. A simple slap on the butt and the child would stop.
This is reflective of a growing problem I've noticed with the children of America: due to all this anti-spanking and anti-abuse sentiment, children no longer respect their parents' superiority. When I was a kid, my parents had the final say. I could not change their "no" to a "yes." Today I can, but I'm an adult now. There needs to be a point when a child gains this power, but it needs to be closer to 16 than to 6. Parents are too soft, and it results in them being pushovers to their kids. So if you have a kid who misbehaves, spank him/her and, if it works, you'll have taught the child something. If spanking doesn't work, then don't assume you need more spanking; some kids need time-outs, some need priveliges taken away. Experiment.
This brings me to another point. Parents aren't spending enough time with their kids to figure out what works. You can't drop a child off at daycare at 8 in the morning, pick him/her up at 5, eat dinner, and then plop the kid in front of the TV. That's going to have a serious effect on the child's development, no matter if the channel he/she's watching is Cartoon Network or the Discovery Channel. Spend time with your kids, cultivate relationships, and discipline when necessary, always reminding them who's boss.
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-Slauncha
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