As a proponent and advocate of Positive Discipline, which is a completely non-punitive and ideally non-coercive, non-manipulative form of "discipline," I personally find the idea of hitting a child completely reprehensible.
Now that's not to say that I wouldn't ever feel like hitting my kid. But I often feel like hitting a grown-up as well. And yet, most adults understand that hitting another adult is not acceptable, and considered assault. But at least adults can defend themselves.
Children are COMPLETELY dependent on us -- for shelter, for food, for all forms of security and especially for love and approval and self-worth. Hitting a child, and setting ourselves up as a threat and a source of fear, instead of love and guidance and couldn't be a bigger violation of the responsibility we take and the promise we make to them when we decide to have them in the first place. Regardless of whether spanking is abuse in any legal or moral framework, there is no upside. There is nothing that spanking can accomplish that more gentle discipline and guidance cannot. And in a practical sense, spanking and punitive discipline is actually often counterproductive.
Hmmm.. I'm not opinionated on this, am I?
Nicki
