[Livia]

Originally Posted by Jack_

I was smacked a couple of times as a child, not often, but sometimes, and whilst it hasn't made me into a bad person, I am still totally against the principle of it. And that's what it is really, the principle of it. You are exerting physical force upon someone who is vulnerable and unable to retaliate, it is morally wrong. It's like exercising your power just because you can.

There are plenty of other ways to discipline a child effectively, smacking isn't and doesn't need to be one of them.

It is not like exercising your power just because you can. My father told me that on the two occasions he smacked me as a child he felt terrible, he didn't enjoy it, but there was no other way. I believe him... he is my hero.

Unless parents abuse their children physically, I'd say it is the business of no one how they raise their children and what punishment they see fit. It is especially not the business of people like you and me who don't actually have children. Like I said, there are plenty of kids who need people taking up their cause, but loved children who get the occasional smack are not those kids.