Corporal Punishment
July 29th, 2009 at 9:44 am by David FarrarI was interested to read in the Herald:
Nineteen years after physical punishment was banned in schools, a sampling of children suggests that while most want the ban, there is still some support for smacking as a form of discipline.
The reason I was interested is because my first ever poll was as a 17 year old at Rongotai College. I chaired the Student Council and we surveyed around 800 students (4th formers and up) on whether or not they wanted the school to continue with corporal punishment. So yes I was attracted to polling at an early age.
This was in 1985 and off memory 56% of students voted that they wanted corporal punishment to continue. The rationale was quite simple. They would rather have two strokes of the cane than an hour after school in detention.
We presented the results to the School Board and they were horrified that most students wanted to continue with corporal punishment, as they were seeking to end it. So they decided not to publish the results.
This then resulted not only in my first poll, but my first leak. I rang up the Evening Post and asked to speak to the Education reporter. And to my amazement it was a front page or page three story. I recall some board members wondering how the results got to the newspaper, and they were blaming each other. No one thought it might have been the 17 year old 
Anyway back to this story:
Ten out of 17 Year 7 pupils at Rangeview Intermediate in Te Atatu said they would vote no in the referendum which says: “Should a smack as part of good parental correction be a criminal offence in New Zealand?”
Most kids have a lot of common sense.
Yet 14 of the 17 children still report having been smacked and, despite the official doctrine of non-violence at school, most believe their parents were right to smack them.
Again this shows how silly the law is.
July 29th, 2009 at 9:46 am
Wow, 17 pupils. Great sample size. Truly representative.
[DPF: Well soon you are going to get a sample size of many hundreds of thousands telling you the same thing]
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 9:52 am
Perhaps it was only those old enough to vote?
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 9:58 am
There’s a referendum on bringing corporal punishment back into schools? When????
[DPF: The sample of 17 was about smacking by parents. The corporal punishment poll I referred to was of around 800 students and off memory had a participation rate of over 90%]
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 10:02 am
I think you shot yourself in the foot there Jarbury. The sample of 17 referred to was discussing the subject of the referendum, not the corporal punishment in schools issue (which never did me any harm!)
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 10:03 am
Jarbury, read the whole Herald story and you won’t waste everyone’s time with silly comments.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 10:04 am
What did they say they wanted for a new drinking age and how quickly can we follow their advice?
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 10:06 am
Well the article starts….
My comment above was a tad facetious I accept.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 10:06 am
Hasn’t the government already said they dont care what the people say in the referendum, so it’s kind of pointless, at least until the next election?
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 10:11 am
“The rationale was quite simple. They would rather have two strokes of the cane than an hour after school in detention.”
So, an hour detention is more effective as punishment and deterrent.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 10:11 am
“This was in 1985 and off memory 56% of students voted that they wanted corporal punishment to continue. The rationale was quite simple.”
I believe Howick College was the first school to ban corporal punishment when it opened in 1974. This was a decision made by foundation principal Don Ingham who was a friend of Labour Party Prime Minister Bill Rowling.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 10:11 am
Well – JK did say so. But if the wheel squeeks hard enough, Mr. Key might just have to grease it.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 10:17 am
eszett – you obviously never got caned. I would have rather got two strokes of the cane than do an hour detention as well. Both were unpleasant but the cane hurt a lot straight away but unless you were getting six, it was over a lot quicker than an hour of staring at a wall.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 10:21 am
All depends on who gave the the two strokes Brian
I can guarantee no teacher would have wanted to be stuck with me for an hour AFTER school.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 10:42 am
slow news day?
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 10:42 am
[DPF: Well soon you are going to get a sample size of many hundreds of thousands telling you the same thing]
Not exactly. The referendum won’t tell us:
- how many people support no smacking at all
- how many people support samcking that doesn’t hurt (eg hand and bum taps)
- how many people support smacking that leaves no marks or permanent injury
- how many people think a decent hiding every now and then is ok/good
- how many people think parents should be able to treat/mistreat their own kids as they see fit
Of those who vote we won’t know how many are parents. Or how many have been parents.
Vote:Beyond confirming a protest vote I don’t think we will learn much.
July 29th, 2009 at 10:52 am
Cerium – do you actually think that there are people (who don’t belong in jail) who would support a smack that leaves a child with a permanent injury?
Do you think that voters without children didn’t have their own parents to base an opinion on?
You are trying to confuse the issue – often effective, but a very lame strategy for those in the minority.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 10:56 am
“Of those who vote we won’t know how many are parents. Or how many have been parents.
Beyond confirming a protest vote I don’t think we will learn much.”
by that logic you must believe that only those who pay taxes should vote in the general election?
(good on ya – kiwiblog is doing you good)
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 10:57 am
@ Cerium, we will find out exactly who agrees / disagrees with the anti smacking law.
Your other questions are rubbish. The referendum won’t tell us how many pixies and fairies live in your backyard either.
You exhibit the utmost arrogance of the minority to deem the voice of the majority as ‘irrelevant’.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 11:35 am
Three conclusion jumpers in a row. I don’t agree with the law as it is.
“permanent injury” OR marks, just trying to break into broad categories
“how many are parents” – I didn’t suggest that the voting should be restricted in the referendum, but what different groups of people think is relevant to trying to understand where we are as a society on the issue of corporal punishment – and the above sampling refereed to by DPF was very narrow, the pupils parents may think differently (or not)
“we will find out exactly who agrees / disagrees with the anti smacking law” – not necessarily, because that is not what the referendum asks. There may be one or two who make an honest attempt to answer the actual question – and there are indications some people at least who say they understand it clearly.
“You exhibit the utmost arrogance of the minority to deem the voice of the majority as ‘irrelevant’.”
Vote:Show me where I did this? Am I “the minority”? Why do you think I deem the majority as ‘irrelevant’?
July 29th, 2009 at 11:49 am
nothing like polling geeks who never get in trouble…
theres no way in hell i would have let some scumbag left wing teacher cane me. i would have ended up getting expelled.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 12:47 pm
The girls probanly thought they had a raw deal. For boys honour was probably restored all round after the traditional method. For girls it was a dreaded tongue lashing from the Senior Assistant Mistress (assistant principal) that could reduce the victim to tears within five minutes.
DPF you were lucky. A boy wrote to the paper many years ago (when nom de plumes were accepted) complaining about ‘bureaucratic heights’ in a decision to retain school caps. The editor who was probably a Rotary (or similar) mate of the principal told the principal the letter had been received and who wrote it and the boy was suspended. In those days adult solidarity took precedence over journalists’ ethics about not revealing sources.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 1:45 pm
DPF,
As a former pupil of Rongotai College from a few years earlier than you [1976-80] I would like to give my perspective. Obviously being there before you corporal punishment was still in force. I remember the high degree of respect the students had for the teachers, and the junior school had for the seniors. When I was in the seventh form I remember if a junior student was pushing the boundaries generally all that was required from a 7th former was ‘the look’ to bring them back in line. If required we issued detentions, but generally this was a last resort, and in fact very little corporal punishment was actually brought to bear.
We can see this parallel with good parenting practices, where even though there may be the ultimate punishment [ie a smack], it is very seldom ever required to be put into action. Corporal punishment worked in this same way at college.
I still recall when, as a 7th former, we would stand strategically around the assembly hall during morning assemblies. There were a group of about four 4th formers who were often a little ‘mischevious’ shall we say. I would station myself near where they would sit to keep an eye on them. They might start to talk, or jab each other etc., but they knew I was there and would often look to see if I was watching. In the end it was quite fun. There was a ‘line in the sand’ which we all understood. And even though they would approach it, they made sure they never crossed it. In some ways it was like watching a potentially naughty child, but one who knew the acceptable boundaries – if they made sure they didn’t ‘cross over’ then they wouldn’t ‘get a smack’.
These 4th formers respected the ‘agreed on’ boundaries, and even though they pushed them occassionally, I can honestly say I never needed to issue a detention. We would often greet each other around the school, and I’m sure they knew that if they ever needed an advocate that they could come to me, or many others in the 7th form, for help.
Years later, after corporal punishment was removed, my brother, who had been two years behind me, was doing some building work at Rongotai College. He was astounded at the drop in the standard of behaviour, the standard of dress and general tidiness of students, and the drop in respect for teachers and seniors. He couldn’t believe it was the same school.
Just as we have seen this transformation for the worse throughout our education system, we have already observed the further decline in childrens behaviour and respect for their elders, and indeed for all authority figures, since ‘Bradford’s Abomination’ has been made law.
Vote:If we don’t throw this thing out, or seriously modify it, then heaven knows where we as a society will be in 5, 10, 15 years from now. But if I have to guess the ‘tip of the iceberg’ we see at the moment is revealing the monstrosity that lurks ‘just below the surface’.
July 29th, 2009 at 1:54 pm
Some very good points raised DPF. I actually want to return to section 59 for parents and also for teachers. I have been arguing for some time that when teachers decided they didn’t want corporal punishment in schools then it was a step backward.
My experience about corporal punishment would be similar. Many young people preferred the previous regime of caning because the punishment was administered quickly and then the matter was over. Now naughty children are suspended, stood down, in record numbers while behaviour is getting worse and worse.
It is just a bad law. It goes against common sense, biblical revelation and all experience. The main argument by the anti-smacking lobby appears to be that children should have the same rights as adults. Now of course this would mean, if thought through logically, that we couldn’t put our children into time out. As I cannot force an adult to stay in a room if I don’t like their behaviour, presumably I cannot force my own children to their room!
In fact Sue Bradford is a former Communist who is using the Communist playbook. Communists hate authority apart from that of the State. They particularly distrust family authority and the authority of parents because they cannot control it. In the Soviet Union children were encouraged to inform on their parents and many did so. We in enlightened liberal New Zealand are encouraging children to inform on their parents if they are smacked. This is an example of a radical minority forcing their views on everybody else.
I say vote no at the referendum. And let’s put pressure on John Key and the rest of the government to man up on this. 85% of New Zealanders are against this law — it should be repealed straight away.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 2:19 pm
“When I was in the seventh form I remember if a junior student was pushing the boundaries generally all that was required from a 7th former was ‘the look’ to bring them back in line. If required we issued detentions, but generally this was a last resort, and in fact very little corporal punishment was actually brought to bear.”
I remember it being similar on a class basis, teachers that were respected could usually control things with “the look”. Some would use corporal punishment as a backup, some didn’t need to. And teachers without respect had poor control with or without corporal punishment. My F1 teacher strapped frequently, my F2 teacher never strapped, and F2 was a better run classroom.
Similarly in families. “The look” and “detention” (equivalents) can be effective for all discipline (in some families) and nearly all (in quite a few families).
I haven’t seem any studies or research on any link between corporal punishment cessation and law and order. Obviously it’s possible it has some connection – it’s possible those who are used to corporal punishment at home are more prone to running riot without it at school.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 3:01 pm
I was at school when corporal punishment was not just allowed but an everyday thing and while I didn’t go to school here in NZ, my own experiences certainly coloured my world view in later years.
Vote:We weren’t “disciplined” in school; we were beaten. We were punched, kicked, shoved, beaten with steel rulers, chair legs, lengths of broom handle or the leather – a thick strop with coins sewn into it to add weight. For distance work, there was always the blackboard duster and many of my teachers had an eye like a rifleman.
This was the daily reality for children in my school from the age of about six until they were big enough to fight back, which meant the more senior years in school were less fractious all round.
We were beaten for minor infractions – speaking out of turn, being unable to answer a question, turning in poor handwriting or messy homework, wearing a badge on your jacket, smoking, swearing or – oh, the irony – fighting in the playground. I frequently saw teachers hit people on spec – because they looked like they might be up to something.
I have scars from being hit at school by some of my teachers and I had two bones broken. My mother decided I must have deserved it to get a hiding and said nothing. My father worked away at the time (jobs being scarce) and so by the time he got home it was all mostly forgotten.
It didn’t happen every day to me or even every other day, but it was a constant presence in my school life from the age of 6 to the age of 15, when I retaliated and walked out of school. (This wasn’t in the Victorian era, either. This was between 1974 and 1983.)
The upshot of it all was that I grew up with a loathing of authority and certain anti-social tendencies that I worked hard to rid myself of. It didn’t make me respect my teachers; just the opposite. There were at least three I loathed and I drank a toast when I heard they died. I had half-formed plans to ambush another and give him a taste of his own medicine. There were other teachers, who didn’t use force to control us, who I adored and who inspired me to return to study later in life and make something of myself.
I realise this is just one person’s experience and means little in the context of a Kiwiblog “debate” where positions are all long held and immutable, but I did want to point out that for every “A smack in school never did me any harm” view there is an opposite view.
July 29th, 2009 at 3:11 pm
Great post bearhunter. maybe we went to the same schools.
cerium says “it’s possible those who are used to corporal punishment at home are more prone to running riot without it at school.”
There was no corporal punishment in my home past about the age of six, but plenty in the schools. And I ram amock at school. Not because of lack of corporal punishment, but because of stupid, petty rules, enforced by stupid, petty thugs. And because I was bored by boring teachers who lost all their passion for liife, let alone teaching.
Yet, like bearhunter, I also had teachers who inspired and challenged me, who made learning an adventure and desirable and I never ran amock when fully engaged.
My “revenge’ moment came a few months after I left school. One of my tormentors was walking down the street towards me, when he recognised me, he crossed the road rather than be a man and walk up to me. I walked taller that day, nad have every day since as i knew at once I had turned out the better Man.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 3:40 pm
Yep, great post bearhunter. The two teachers who impressed me the most at school never hit. I can remember things they inspired me with, the hitters just remind me of the hitting.
MNIJ, I can’t remember being hit at home but I got plenty at school too. I was far from the worst – I wonder what sort of home life the boy who kicked the headmaster in the balls must have had.
As much as some wish I don’t see how we can ever go back to corporal punishment at school. Parents that don’t use corporal punishment would never acept or allow it for their kids, and kids that get it at home wouldn’t accept it at school.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 3:46 pm
Cerium 2:19 pm,
“And teachers without respect had poor control with or without corporal punishment.”
I think you highlight the central ‘issue’, Cerium. That being “respect”. I believe children need to be taught to respect their parents, teachers, and indeed ALL authority figures. I believe, in general, that this is where our society has fallen down.
If I may use the way my brother and I were raised as an example. If required we were smacked, but I can honestly say it was very infrequent, and by the time we were about five neither of us needed to be smacked again. All that was required was ‘the look’ by mum or dad, and that was the end of it. And if we ever did ‘cross the line’ we were told that we had ‘disappointed’ our parents. As adults my brother and I often reflect on how we were raised, and both agree that the ‘I’m disappointed in you’ comment from our parents was far worse than any smack we ever received. That being said, the foundation of getting a smack at an earlier age paved the way for future ‘verbal’ correction, and was, I believe, essential to our later receptiveness.
Subject to what I have just said above, I believe we do our ‘children’ a huge disservice by removing all ability to use corporal punishment, in schools and now the home, if and when required. Rather than the parents/teachers guiding those children in their care, we now have children running roughshod over all authority figures with the threat of ‘I know my rights’, and ‘You can’t do that’.
Vote:I beleive we have made a ‘rod for our own back’, and as a result we see burgeoning societal violence and a continually increasing prison population. And IMHO things will only get worse.
July 29th, 2009 at 3:51 pm
crap Kris. Sorry, but your post above IS crap.
Respect must be earned, not enforced. Enforced, it isn’t respect, its obeisance.
And define “authority figures”.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 3:56 pm
I agree entirely about respect. Kids want attention and they want to love and respect their parents. So parents need to earn and retain that respect. I think most do.
But I’m not so sure about the necessity for the smacks. Some parents can obviously use it as a final solution to set initial boundaries, if it isn’t overdone it can work. As you say, if used judiciously early it becomes unnecessary. Other parents are able to successfully use some other non-smack sort of final solution. It only need be minor if the scene is set young enough.
As I’ve previously said, I think everyone has to accept that corporal punishment won’t return to schools.
Vote:I think everyone has to accept that some degree of corporal punishment is ok in some homes.
I would hope that everyone can accept that discipline can be successfully maintained without smacking.
July 29th, 2009 at 3:56 pm
“I walked taller that day, nad have every day since as i knew at once I had turned out the better Man.”
so it did you some good huh?
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 3:59 pm
“We weren’t “disciplined” in school; we were beaten. We were punched, kicked, shoved, beaten with steel rulers, chair legs, lengths of broom handle or the leather ”
problem is bearhunter it’s now the teachers who are punched, kicked, shoved & beaten
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 4:07 pm
I appreciate corporal punishment has been overused. However the use of corporal punishment is right and should be used. The Bible says it and our experience shows that it seems almost impossible to raise our children without it.
We had corporal punishment in school — but generally it was done by the principal or assistant principals. It meant that at high school we had effective discipline and it certainly wasn’t overused.
Without corporal punishment our children are running amok. They are turning on the teachers and the teachers are regularly being assaulted. This is a fact.
Without corporal punishment we have the police being permanently assigned to some schools — particularly in South Auckland. So the teachers won’t cane the kids — how enlightened of them. They will let the police handle them. Is that what we want? We won’t cane them, instead the police may have to tazer them!
However — I would be quite happy if schools had the opportunity to use corporal punishment or not. I reckon that schools that had corporal punishment would be inundated with parents wanting to send their children there.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 4:12 pm
Cerium 3:56 pm,
“I think everyone has to accept that some degree of corporal punishment is ok in some homes.”
AGREED
“I would hope that everyone can accept that discipline can be successfully maintained without smacking.”
I AGREE, but with the proviso that the ‘ground rules’ have previously been established. And that may have included SOME corporal punishment in SOME homes.
But otherwise, I think we’re essentially on a ‘similar’ page.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 4:13 pm
Scott, the bible says a lot of things that people ignore, doesn’t it? Why is that?
Do you, for example, kill your son if he disobeys you? the bible says you should.
Do you rape the women of your enemies? The bible says you should.
Do you kill people who worship other gods? the bible says you should.
The bible is a book, not a blueprint.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 4:21 pm
Scott 4:07 pm,
“However — I would be quite happy if schools had the opportunity to use corporal punishment or not. I reckon that schools that had corporal punishment would be inundated with parents wanting to send their children there.”
Now THAT would be an interesting survey: ‘How many parents would send their children to a school where [appropriate] corporal punishment was used?’
Based on recent polls where 85% have indicated a ‘NO’ vote in response to the current referendum, can I suggest a similar level of support of, say, 85%? Where do I sign?
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 4:29 pm
I’m pretty ambivalent about corporal punishment in schools because I saw it abused and misused by inadequate or even sadistic teachers.
On the other hand some used it well but very sparingly and it eliminated the mind games many teachers seem to continually restort to nowadays to keep a semblance of control. And the kind of bullying that seems an epidemic now would have been sorted out smartly.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 4:50 pm
MyNameIsJack 4:38 pm,
“increasing anarchy… We are in one of the most settled periods ever in human existence”
You HAVE to be joking Jack, surely. Even for you this is a pretty ‘long bow’.
… swine flue, AIDS, GLOBAL recession, GLOBAL terrorism, GLOBAL moral decline, etc, etc …
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 4:51 pm
The major for issue for John Key if the referendum turnout is high and the result a NO is maintaining his I know best and the law is working so I won’t change it – thereby pissing off a sizeable portion of the electorate who may reward him with a much reduced majority and perhaps an increase for ACT and others or a climbdown which diminishes his stature and authority making it harder to retain the undoubted confidence of the electorate.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 5:24 pm
NOt1tocommentoften 5:03 pm,
“Kris K – are you suggesting there would be no swine flu, AIDS or Terrorism if we all followed your book? You’ve made my day. Thanks for the humour.”
Actually I didn’t say that, but of course you show your true colours by twisting the words of others.
My comments were in response to MNIJ’s where he stated, “We are in one of the most settled periods ever in human existence”.
But then you knew that, didn’t you.
Typical lies and obfuscation that we have come to expect from your ilk.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 5:27 pm
NOt1tocommentoften…
Ilk is a village in Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg county, in the Northern Great Plain region of eastern Hungary.
Are you the mayor?
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 5:35 pm
I have been deleting all the comments debating Christianity as off topic. Take it to general debate.
Vote:July 29th, 2009 at 9:24 pm
I personally believe that there is simply insufficient evidence to suggest that the law has been working well for the last 2years and that there is no need for change – based on John Key’s current position.
The NZ Law society differs completely, its current president recently releasing a statement that indicates there has been very little positive change brought forward by the amendment and very little change in the country’s child abuse statistics and reports – sitting comfortably with a statement by the author, Sue Bradford “this bill was never intended to address the concerns of child abuse.”
Clearly not – this bill was intended to undermine the values and principles of NZ Families and their rights to decide how best to discipline their children. The notion that one way/size fits all is completely inaccurate on the basis that all children are different in their own unique ways, reaching levels in education and progress at different stages – similar facts alone prove that the the notion of “positive parenting” working well for every child in New Zealand is complete nonsense.
Behind this there are consistent studies, completed in just 2007 by Otago University that found that children who were smacked in a reasonable way had similar or slightly better outcomes in terms of aggression, substance abuse, adult convictions and school achievement than those who were not smacked at all. And a study by the Christchurch School of Medicine found there was no difference in outcomes between no smacking and moderate physical punishment. They said, “It is misleading to imply that occasional or mild physical punishment has long term adverse consequences”.
Such studies sit on top of a 2007 UNICEF Report “An overview of child well-being in rich countries” concluding that the likelihood of a child being injured or killed is associated with drug/alcohol abuse, single parent or weak family structures, poverty and poor housing and low education, indicating that child correction and discipline is no way connected to this country’s appalling Child abuse reputation.
I will be voting NO in the upcoming referendum and I encourage others to follow.
Vote:July 30th, 2009 at 8:13 am
@ Patrick Starr: Teachers may well get shoved or hit these days. But there’s a huge difference between a 40-year-old man laying into a 9-year-old boy with a chair leg and a teenager assaulting an adult. I’m not saying it’s right, just making myself clear.
Vote:July 30th, 2009 at 6:34 pm
When I was at school, there were teachers who would walk around the classroom armed with a cane, and would pick out students randomly and ask them a question. If you got the answer wrong, wallop! In case anyone is wondering, I don’t agree with that.
Then, sometime during the mid 80s, and in an act of almost unprecedented stupidity, the then Labour government abolished all corporal punishment in all schools with absolutely no exceptions. Instead of defining a sensible policy on this, they went from one extreme to the other.
What they could have done by way of a workable compromise was to pass a law that required all instances of corporal punishment be authorised by the headmaster, and that they be duly witnessed and documented by at least one other teacher. A little bit of bureaucracy could have curtailed the excesses of the teachers who were too handy with the cane, but at the same time keeping corporal punishment in reserve for cases of serious misconduct or persistent laziness. What would have been wrong with that?
Bill.
Vote:July 30th, 2009 at 7:00 pm
Two kinds of authority – popular authority and dictatorial authority. In my experience, no more than 10% of teachers can rely on popular authority. The other 90% are out there getting crushed by little people who don’t have to listen to a word they say.
I remember having a student teacher at our school once – we had her in tears within 10 minutes – she ran out of the classroom and was back 10 minutes later with one of the most feared “dictatorial authorities” in our school. After he had dealt 30 boys two each, she had a quiet, relaxed classroom and DIDN’T QUIT HER TEACHING JOB.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/workplace/news/article.cfm?c_id=74&objectid=10498498
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/education/news/article.cfm?c_id=35&objectid=10493218
Vote:July 31st, 2009 at 12:32 pm
BR 6:34 pm,
I agree that it does appear we have thrown out the baby with the bath water. As you implied; just because a few teachers abused their authority, therefore ALL teachers must. A bit like the ‘all men are rapists’ accusation from the feminazis.
MeneerCronje 7:00 pm,
Vote:You do have to wonder, in the absence of corporal punishment in schools, just how many ‘good’ teachers have left the profession. Or, for that matter, how many chose not to enter the profession and followed another career path. I’m sure this is one of the reasons that our standard of education is in the poor state it is.
July 31st, 2009 at 3:20 pm
I have once been asked if I ever smack my child. “Of course not,” I protested, and then gave the following account:
One day my pre-teen daughter was very disobedient. So I straightened out my arm, thrusting my hand into her chest. My hand went right in and upon exiting ripped out her heart. It was still pumping in my hand: lub-dub, lub-dub… So I asserted: “Naughty-naughty, don’t ever do that again or I’ll rip your heart out like this, do you understand?” So she responded in a crying voice: “Sure Daddy, I’ll never do that again, but next time, please give me a smack.”
Which way will I vote? Yeah, now you k-no-w!
Vote:July 31st, 2009 at 5:55 pm
Comeon(1) 3:20 pm,
“I have once been asked if I ever smack my child. “Of course not,” I protested, and then gave the following account:
One day my pre-teen daughter was very disobedient. So I straightened out my arm, thrusting my hand into her chest.”
I’m glad you carried on with your story. For a minute there I was considering ringing CYFs to dob you in for sexually molesting your daughter.
Vote: