Originally Posted by littlebighead

I'm surprised how many people spank. Just look at this thread. But I feel that for those people who do spank or believe it's okay, don't really think about it too much. Usually, if a parent was spanked as a child, they usually feel they deserved it and don't see anything wrong with it.

I was spanked only once or twice in my life and it was horrifying. I would never ever spank my kids. It does feel like hypocrisy to me -- we teach our kids not be violent toward others, yet we feel it's okay to spank them? Yes, I see spanking as violence. Whether as an attention-getter or punishment, it's still inflicting pain on someone else.

My biggest problem with spanking, I feel, is that it changes the relationship between parent and child. A parent should always be a person who provides love and security, and I feel that spanking would undermine that. And spanking, I feel, makes both the parent and child disconnect from each other. And that's not something I would want, when I want an open, honest relationship with my child.

And finally, I don't find spanking effective. I know a few people who spank their kids, and they're always spanking them. I don't think it really works. I feel encouraged to hear that there are other parents who feel the same way I do, and have actually raised their kids without lifting a hand against them.