Corporal punishment Poll

[Berkut]

Yep. My mom was basically crazier than Raz, and routinely thought nothing of beating the holy shit out of us. She would lose her temper and basically go crazy trying to hit us as hard as she could, with whatever was to hand.

Now, my older brothers did much to deserve a good beating, and have turned out amazingly well - I think my oldest brother is in prison in California right now for a parole violation, and my other brother is a drug addict as well, although he is barely smart enough to mostly keep out of jail. Needless to say, I have nothing to do with either of them, and as little to do with my mother as absolutely possible - although not so much because of how she treated us as kids, but because she is still pretty much out of touch with reality and a amazingly unpleasant person to be around most of the time.

But I can say pretty honestly that my mother was generally abusive, and when she was in her depressive modes, was (in hindsight) genuinely dangerous.

[Razgovory]

Sorry Berkut.

[Syt]

Yep. My mom was basically crazier than Raz, and routinely thought nothing of beating the holy shit out of us. She would lose her temper and basically go crazy trying to hit us as hard as she could, with whatever was to hand.

Now, my older brothers did much to deserve a good beating, and have turned out amazingly well - I think my oldest brother is in prison in California right now for a parole violation, and my other brother is a drug addict as well, although he is barely smart enough to mostly keep out of jail. Needless to say, I have nothing to do with either of them, and as little to do with my mother as absolutely possible - although not so much because of how she treated us as kids, but because she is still pretty much out of touch with reality and a amazingly unpleasant person to be around most of the time.

But I can say pretty honestly that my mother was generally abusive, and when she was in her depressive modes, was (in hindsight) genuinely dangerous.

Shit, berk, sorry.


I got a good hindsight thrashing with a wooden spoon a few times as a little kid, I think the last time as first grader? when I did something I wasn't supposed to (usually when I snatched something from my parents, or snuck into their stuff and broke something). Never after that, though I remember getting smacked over the back of my head when I was ten or so, because my father didn't like me cracking my knuckles.

[Martinus]

Not as such, no.

I have been smacked on my ass or ear maybe two or three times, as far as I remember, when I was insufferable and my mom just lost it, but there was no corporeal punishment "policy" in my childhood.

Also I remember my dad tried to spank me once but I was faster than him, ran away and went to my mom to tell my side of the story and got them to have an argument. 

[Martinus]

I was smacked as a child.  I think it's healthy, every kid should be slapped by their mum or dad at least once.  Otherwise they'll grow up like Martinus

Et tu Brute? What the fuck was that?

[Richard Hakluyt]

Same as Marti really, a couple of slaps from an exhausted parent when I was being a pain and other things were going badly too. I don't think there is any need for it, any reasonably competent parent can summon sufficient gravitas to keep a kid in line. Mind you, how many parents are reasonably competent  ?

[Brazen]

Barely. I was talking to my dad about this the other day. He said "I remember smacking you and when I saw the red hand mark on the back of your little legs I vowed never to do it again." After that I used to get sent to my room.

After a while I self disciplined. According to my parents I used to say, "I'm going to have a temper now" and go off to the other room to have a strop.

I've seen no correlating evidence among friends and acquaintances between how they were disciplined and the type of adult they turned into.

[Valdemar]

Once that I recall. Can't recall why though, so no lasting effect

V

[Grey Fox]

Yes altho my father was really good at making me scared of the punishment so he didn't actually have to do it.

[Eddie Teach]

I was smacked as a child.  I think it's healthy, every kid should be slapped by their mum or dad at least once.  Otherwise they'll grow up like Martinus

Et tu Brute? What the fuck was that?

I believe he's calling you a pansy.

[ulmont]

I'm curious if anyone here is serious.  The Poll results do show that several of you were physically punished in your younger years.

Oh, I'm serious.  Spanking was a relatively common punishment in my house growing up.  My parents never lost their temper or anything, mind you, so not an abusive situation.

[BuddhaRhubarb]

shocking to see that a large percentage of Languishites were thrashed as children... then again, I think that just means we are old.

[sbr]

I don't remember ever getting hit by my parents, but it is possible. 

I do remember getting hit with a wooden spoon by the babysitter when I was less than 5 years old and refusing to cry.  Also when I was 9, my 5 year old brother threw a toy at me because I wouldn't go get him a blanket from the scary room downstairs.  The toy hit me in the face and broke one of my front teeth in half, once my parents found out what happened my dad drug my brother into his room and from what I could hear I am pretty sure he got smacked around pretty good.

[Malthus]

shocking to see that a large percentage of Languishites were thrashed as children... then again, I think that just means we are old.

I suppose, though I'm pretty old, and I wasn't spanked or hit as a kid.

Nor do I spank or hit mine, though I am tempted to sometimes!  The kid often reminds me of Calvin from Calvin & Hobbes - you will be telling him something and he'll simply zone out into his own world where he's a 50' tall Samurai warrior with a laser sword fighting dinosaurs or something MUCH more interesting than what you have to say, like "don't put your hand on the hot stove", "you have to learn to spell these words for school", or "please hold my hand while we are crossing this busy street' - smacking him upside the head just so he pays attention can be awfully attractive. But I don't do it.

That said, giving a 5 year old a smack to remind him to stay in the present world and pay attention is worlds away from waling on a teenager with a belt in a fit of rage.

[Maximus]

Not infrequently. There were all sorts of unspoken "rules" about it that I found out as I grew older. Spanking while angry was verboten, for example.