I have three children of my own and if you think bashing someone's head in because they slapped your child is responsible and mature then you're an idiot.

I never said I'd bash his head in, that would kill him.

I feel sorry for your kids. I hope the father is willing to protect them.

The man who hurt my kids will be out of prison in 2024.
In my estimation and by every other sane and sound estimation I've ever heard, what I did was the mature and responsible thing.
What's more, I am here to raise my children. What's even more, they know I am capable of protecting them.

You realize I have no idea what you're talking about? Also, each situation is different, if the guy got a prison sentence that long then it probably was for the best. But sometimes you need immediate action and sometimes that guy isn't going to/can't be caught.

I think you're talking out of your ass, that's what I think. Do you have children? Have they ever been hurt by someone?

This thread's turned into a pissing contest a few times already.

The situation that occurred is unfortunate. At least everyone can agree on that.

/thread

No one said he had done so before - just that he had done it this time.

Which makes him a piece of shit in the estimation of most.

MM, were not going to "bash his brains in" or shoot the man. If it was allowed then we very much would (bash his brains in to death, that is). But we are going to do a bashing of sorts. Possibly one that will place the parent in jail for assault.

What I do fail to understand is how you don't get the instinct to mortally maim someone who harms anyone in your nest. How is it you don't feel this transcends all maturity, social conditioning, self restraint goes out the window and animal programming kicks in?

My point was that poppinjay, stating 'a 61 year old, prone to child abuse,' is just as much an assumption in this case as 'the mother is a bad parent.'

We're going on 2 articles here. Not biographies of the individuals. Maybe he just had a really bad day lol.

Excuse me? Did you not just read my post that stated I've had this happen to me as a child? I don't think one can get a better perspective than that.

This makes no sense. The man is clearly past most of the conditions of natural selection that would apply. It's the mother and child that should be more concerned by this law. The man proved to be a challenge in that respect.

Anyway, what you're getting at in your post doesn't really apply in my society...so I have no use for it.

I really have no idea what Georgia is like. It very well might compare to the other Georgia.

Where I'm from, perhaps it's a different world. I'm used to more civil and stable society.

Our slapping friend from the news story did. Two anecdotes to one. Sorry your coach didn't serve time or get his head blown off... :rolleyes:

Children have no perspective but their own, by definition. "It happened to me as a child" is likely the single most suspect thing a human being can say. Ask any psychologist. Case in point, notice your post starts by acknowledging that, but then you go on to talk as if how you experienced it as a child WAS objectively what happened.

You didn't break down into tears because of the coach's vicious mitting of your poor little head. You broke down into tears from the humiliation of it, the hurt feelings of it, the surprise of it. Fundamentally a self-perspectived phenomenon, and very appropriate to a child. So I'm sorry you had that experience, but you can't go thinking it informs how grown people ought to behave.

You mean when your coach hit you with a baseball glove? And just what sort of action should have been taken against him that couldn't have been handled without violence?

My point is (and I didn't direct my comment only to yours because this thread has been full of such statements) there is no justifying a violent reaction to someone hitting your child, including this case.

It's one thing to say it, lots of people would say it (i'd kick his ass!) and find themselves more rational when it actually happens to them. But to believe that it is a preferred course of action - in front of your child - is just ridiculous.

Wow. I never expected to read something so disrespectful and blatantly out of line on this forum. You can't be serious. Are we not better than this?

Rat- first off, that was only part of the story, and you have no fucking clue what happened.

Objectively? Both my parents were there, many people witnessed it. The guy nearly got lynched. I know what happened exactly, and from several sources outside my own.

I swear this is the last time I ever share anything like that here. You guys act as if each post is a testimony of every exact fact and have no respect for the poster.

mixed, have you stopped to think that there might be some gender differences in our actions? Or that not everyone is going to react like you?

Ok, since we're making up crazy shit then how about some guy is pounding the shit out of your kid and he won't stop? You going to wait for the police officers?

---------- Post added at 01:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:07 PM ----------

I admit that was a cheap shot but I don't like it when people refer to me as a total moron. Besides that fact, it has/had some legitimacy. At the time it appeared that she would honestly not stop someone from attacking her kids. So how about stop viewing things out of context?

Sorry I missed this before. I didn't say I failed to understand it. Perhaps it is just me, but I am fine with the mechanisms we have enacted in 'civilized' society to handle these situations. What I don't get, is how someone thinks they would be protecting their child by exposing them to even more brutal behavior (perpetrated by their parent) that would likely end in them watching while their parent is handcuffed and carted off to jail...for a slap. It's not like he tried to kill her.

Maybe it is just me, but I have no, none, nada of that impulse in me and I don't think it has anything to do with my gender as we have heard several women on this thread echo those sentiments about kicking ass.

To be honest though, it does irk me a little because I think such claims are bluster and bravado and they generally come from people who have never had anything serious happen to their children. The year after the situation with my kids happened, I talked to a lot of parents online who had been in similar situations and the most common reaction they would express to me was not rage - it's something else. Far more primal and quieting than vengeance. If at anytime, that luxury usually comes later.

Once again, I fail to understand, why, you are thinking objectively and out of the box. Yes, it was just a slap. Yes he was just irritated that the kid is crying and invading his quiet adult space.

But he was a complete stranger.

You do not know him or his motives behind his actions or his intentions further.

It's not just bluster bravado and show off.

I think I explained my thinking pretty well.
Sorry, but couldn't it be possible that you are wrong in your imagining of what most people would do? After all, I think if every instance similar in nature and intensity as this one erupted into unchecked violence there would be a lot more of it happening.
Reality isn't out of the box.

I appreciate your opinions on this, and maybe your reactions are more civil. But judging by the responses so far, I wouldn't stipulate that they're more common. I unfortunately don't have children yet, but I do know I would most likely respond to violence upon them the same as I would on any family member less able to protect themselves. Violence stops violence, right there, right then. Until the incident resolves, there's no way to anticipate how that violence will escalate or when it will end. Besides the fact that this was a child, for whom a slap to the face can be injurious, not just insulting. So yes, I throw my vote in with those who would react with immediate violence, in order to stop the violence being committed. It's just self-defence, extended to those who can't defend themselves.

I've cracked another person for hitting his own kid (and I mean he knocked a tooth loose and drew blood from the boy). I'd do at least as much (and likely more) to someone hurting my kids (or wife). I'd hope that most people would.

Responding with a reasonable level of force against a previous (and illegal) forceful action is entirely justified - certainly in law and in generally accepted morals.

I just went by what you said, dude.

So another option, say, removing your child immediately from danger. That wouldn't be your first impulse. Check, gotcha.

then the people who told you that are the idiots.
really? how do they know this? what would they have witnessed from their incident that would lead them to believe they are protected by you?

---------- Post added at 10:10 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:59 PM ----------

yes there is. it tells the rest of the world not to jack with your child.

Sure it would. How is incapacitating the attacker not removing the child from danger?

Exactly. MM is a woman, and indeed perhaps the best option for a woman would be to remove the child from the situation. She may not be physically strong enough or experienced enough (in terms of physical confrontations) to do otherwise.

But for those who are stronger, more experienced, etc., taking more forceful action to minimize or prevent harm is perhaps a better route.

People posting here should take into account people's differing physical and emotional abilities in terms of dealing with stuff like this.

slap the shit out of your kids, seriously, the only reason they cry out of emotional distress instead of legitimate reasons is lack of conditioning. My dad always told me "stop crying or I'll give you something to cry about"

he was right, I had no reason to cry over spilled chocolate milk, or not getting a toy I want. That kind of immaturity needs to go away or you wind up with adults with an inflated sense of entitlement.

that said, it wasn't his role to perform such an action.

Oh come on lol. Children are supposed to cry - Especially 2-year-old babies. Granted, tantrums require special attention, but crying in general is perfectly acceptable.

Late to the party, but this thread has gone crazy. No one has the right to touch anyone's child under any circumstance. Period.

Crying? No big deal. Whining and crying tantrum? Most likely poor parenting. A two year old understands expectation. If a parent tells the child that he/she expects the child will behave in a store before they enter and are removed at the onset of a tantrum, this scenario would never have occurred.

If someone struck my child, I'm not quite sure how I'd react. Shock most likely. I might feel like attacking him and be angry and say something nasty. But I truly can't see myself in this position because if my child had been crying in a store, it would've been because something hurt and she would have been in my arms. ;)

Although it's got nothing to do with the OP, there are more ways to discipline than through hitting. Hitting is a stress reliever for the parent and the kid learns nothing of value.

As a child and teen, I was slapped in the face by my mother on a consistent basis, whipped on the bare ass by my father yet continued the very behavior my parents were trying to stop. I feared them but didn't respect them and learned that if I kept up the negative behavior, I'd at least have their attention for a moment. They didn't know any better as they'd been beaten as kids, too.

I also witnessed firsthand another family's discipline through love, respect and teaching. I've adapted this approach and have found it to be quite effective.

Turning your back on a two year old sitting in a cart in the middle of the Walmart to beat someone up instead of grabbing your child and leaving the scene immediately is idiotic. Sorry, but it just is.

---------- Post added at 09:21 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:18 AM ----------

The man slapped the child. Is there no conception here of measuring a situation?

I hardly see the use of arguing this with folks who, apparently, think acting like Charles Bronson is some sort of entitlement in life.

Well, maybe if you dropped the holier than thou attitude and stopped thinking that people who disagree with you are wrong and tried to see our point of view without resorting to calling people morons and idiots people could make you see their point.

Actually, no. They can't. So yeah, there's no point in even trying in arguing. How about we just agree to disagree?