Quote:
Originally Posted by n david
You believe that was child abuse? I do believe it was excessive, but not sure I'd label it abuse. Now if there was a pattern or this wasn't the first time it happened, then I'd consider it abuse.
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If the spanking left bruises and welts for days to come, I would say it is bordering on child abuse. I do believe the point of spanking is to make the child understand what he did was wrong, but to leave marks/welts/bruises that take days to heal up, that is moving past just dealing with wrong, in my opinion.
Now, I wasn't on the jury, and certainly don't know all the evidence or facts of this situation.
While we spanked our children, we certainly never left evidence, and after the spanking, we hugged our children, and talked to them for a long time about the reasons why they were spanked. Our spanking was done in love to teach them right from wrong.
Many times though I have seen spankings carried out in deep anger. I would say that if you cannot spank your child without doing it in a sense of love, perhaps you need to find another way to discipline your child. Spanking in anger will leave marks, welts, and pain far beyond just the spanking.
Our children still say to this day that they would much rather the spankings from us than a talk, because the talk lasted longer, and was the part that really dealt with the issue. I believe the most effective discipline is when you combine a spanking, and a talk, as they both work hand in hand. Soon, it comes to a point where a voice raised, or a certain look will do the trick, and spankings are no longer necessary. The children will learn to respect discipline given in love.