A Proper Spank is Better Than Time Out to Create Respect

Our modern culture tells us that spanking is wicked even to the point of being criminal while “time out” is humane without any negative or residual side effects. This is far from the truth.

The reality is “time out” may temporarily divert a child’s attention from continuing a misdeed but does not establish a firm boundary. The child may or may not serve his entire time-out and immediately after can go back on his merry way doing what he was doing before.. He continues to test the same behavior again and again until he wears out the caretaker’s resolve or he learns to be better at negotiating a “softer sentence” or an “acquittal.”

The lack of establishing parameters especially as the child gets older leads to a habit of “pushing the envelope.” Eventually the inclination towards risky behavior collides with authority figures inside and outside the home. Time-out is ineffectual though no one wants to admit it for it is so much easier than the traditional discipline.

Traditional discipline takes work. Parents have to be involved 24/7. As soon as the child does something destructive to self or others the parent has to administer the correct consequence. The consequence should not be too harsh to harm the child nor should be too weak to allow the child to think his misconduct is tolerable and the parent to appear powerless.

The consequence has to have an element of psychological or physical pain so the child pays attention and remembers not to do it again. It may be the psychological pain of taking out the paddle in a dramatic way or the physical pain of slapping the child on the behind. In either case you have the child’s attention plus a clear, precise boundary is drawn in the child’s consciousness. The fear of the parent’s reaction pops into the child’s head even in the contemplation stage before the child acts and prevents him from doing it.

A spank on the behind of an infant-toddler is a clear and concise “no”. It is final. “Do not do it again.” Children at this stage of their lives understand “no” better when coupled with a little dose of pain like a slap but are unable to comprehend parental lectures no matter how well intended. The reasons for the prohibitions come after the slap, not before.

It is true that a spank does not lead to discussion or negotiation. It simply means this will not be tolerated again. It inhibits a particular behavior. Horrors! It eliminates certain behavior like walking into traffic, hurting someone or talking back, which is a true long term benefit for the safety of the child..

The slap is usually spontaneous not a premeditated one. The guardian knows the child’s behavior is dangerous and needs to stop it. No questions asked. It is the way it is going to be. No discussion is necessary.

Too many modern people are under the misconception that a spank should happen after you have exhausted all other options. In reality this translates into a child being much older than an infant-toddler age before he experiences a first slap. By this time the spank has to be more severe for usually greater transgressions.

This makes for a much more difficult uphill battle. This delay in using spanking leads to a child’s increased resistance resulting in a greater potential for abuse. The older child has reached the level of independence to be able to resent the parent’s dominance while the infant-toddler just follows the parental dictates learning to respect their guidance.

This type of training is natural in the animal kingdom. Mammals use loving slaps to direct their young to behave properly. There is no animosity towards their parents, only acceptance of their authority.

As we continue to wander down the modern fantasy path of permissive materialism we are getting away from centuries of childrearing knowledge. This path abruptly ends with out-of-control brats.

Returning to the historical main artery of raising children takes only a greater appreciation of our intuitive nature. You know what behaviors of your infant-toddler will have negative implications for his future. You respond at the perfect time, at the instant it is happening or is going to happen.

“No” with an attention getting spank is the most effective way to internalize a safe guidance system in your child. It is an extraordinary act of love to give your child the gift of your mature experience. Discipline is love, love is discipline.

In return your child will give you the respect of a loving parent instead of a headache from endlessly debating the degrees of his misdeeds.

Competency Eliminates the Need for Affirmative Action

Some in America are attempting to pass laws to extinguish human nature. Historically only totalitarian nations have tried to override human nature with unintended disastrous results.

The state of Michigan has passed a law making it a crime to discriminate against height and weight in employment. Next will be laws to protect cross-eyed, freckled, sunken chest or large nosed people.

The reality is we are all unique in feelings, looks, thinking and preferences. We all have been discriminated against and we all have discriminated against others whether we admit it or not. Our likes and dislikes are different. This diversity makes life and people interesting.

“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder”, continues to shock and mystify us. What could that person see in the other one is a question we continually ask ourselves throughout our lives. It just illustrates that we all see things differently. Our unique human nature and experiences shape our preferences in choosing who we want and do not want to associate with in our personal lives and in the workplace.

For workers in a free market economy there is one characteristic that supercedes all other preferences. It is competency to do the job. When a person can get the job done efficiently with a positive attitude he will more likely get the position over even a family member who is lazy and obnoxious.

There is presently no need for affirmative action laws from a central government to get hired when a person has good skills, good work ethic and a positive disposition. A person with these characteristics is sought after by employers to advance the business. They can be short, tall, fat or slim, dark or translucent, small or large individuals. In a free enterprise economy getting the job done effectively is the major consideration for anyone doing the hiring.

We are in a global economy. The US cannot afford the lunacy of social engineering in the work place. The need to conform to the demographic formula devised by government bureaucrats to appease special interests is a poison pill to business.

When government interferes with our freedom of whom to choose to hire they are not only limiting our liberty, but they are tampering with our free enterprise economy. This is a system that relies on motivating people to do more than the minimum.

The American economy cannot compete vigorously when the free market forces are repressed by big government. The multitude of nationwide employer’s hiring decisions has proven to create a more vibrant economy then putting the power into the hands of a centralized government. We have recently seen the economic miracle of unleashing the power of a free market economy throughout Asia. The best person to perform a job will triumph over some pseudo scientific rationale for supposedly leveling the playing field.

Government interference in the work place in the form of affirmative action only creates resentment. The workers who were selected as part of a quota system will never be sure they earned the position. The worker not selected or advanced to a higher position would likely resent the worker chosen under this arbitrary government quota system.

Choosing the best qualified person is not perfect. The process is subjective. There are always going to be people complaining about being discriminated against. This will continue to happen regardless of any new naïve legislation imposed by governmental elites.

We should transfer the monies given to affirmative action bureaucrats to education programs to increase worker skills, attitude and work ethic. Prepared employees on every level will increase their likelihood of obtaining and keeping a job. This is a win-win situation for the employee and the employer. It certainly leaves the decision making in the hands of the person with the most knowledge of how best to fill the position.

By allowing the employer the freedom to run his own business, the worker, regardless of gender, race or physical characteristics has the best chance of obtaining a job on his own merits. This leads to a greater chance of job satisfaction, commitment and growth in the organization. The government has no need or right to muscle in on the employers’ prerogative to hire someone they may not want.

Let us keep free enterprise free.