Wow! Jacka, spewing vitriol aren’t you! Totally inappropriate – you could do with some self-discipline and education yourself! Jan isn’t suggesting kids shouldn’t be punished or disciplined – she’s just questioning the wisdom of corporal punishment. I recall when in year 6 many moons ago, the cane being meted out in front of the whole class to the SAME kids week in and week out (by the deputy headmaster, who was an ex-rugby player and a very strong bloke who didn’t hold back much when that cane went down), so obviously corporal punishment wasn’t working. I won’t go as far as to say I was traumatized but it certainly sticks very clearly in my memory. Discipline needs to start in the home and I agree that many parents need education in appropriate ways to discipline their children but corporal punishment isn’t the answer. I think many parents who hit their kids do so out of frustration when they don’t know of any other way to rein their kids in. It’s a complex societal problem which can’t be ‘fixed’ by belting someone!