Letters to the Editor
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Ugh, So Many People...
have no understanding of what legislation is FOR.
It's not a "suggestion." It's not a means of telling people what society believes. It's NOT NOT NOT something that only applies when someone really goes overboard.
Gads.
So many posters here have made comments to the effect of, "Well, make the law, then most people won't be prosecuted, but they'll think before they do something I don't like."
Stupid stupid stupid. If you're one of the people thinking that way, lemme tell ya: you are living in SUCH PRIVILEGE that you have no business at all talking about what the LAW should be.
Here's what law is: it is a THREAT.
It is a THREAT from the state that you will spend years of your life LOCKED IN A CAGE.
Do you guys REALIZE this?
Child abuse is a crime that will land you in prison and separate you from your kids. Child abuse is something that the law should very definitely be all about preventing.
"Spanking" if understood as a physical form of discipline without harming the child, should NOT NOT NOT be equated with child abuse. And the "you wouldn't hit an adult" line of thinking is madness. Nonsense. I've been hit by adults (as an adult) MORE TIMES than I've been hit as a child by my parents. None of these situations were cases where I was threatening someone physically or where "logic" demanded it.
In other words: YES, adults hit adults. All the fuckin' time. What world are you living in if the only "hit" you ever see ends up in court? I mean, really--open your EYES.
That MEANS that we as a society are not prepared to outlaw this. There simply is NOT a common perspective on the use of (let's say) non-lethal violence amongst "the people." If "the people" can't agree on this shit, our government should NOT be stepping in to make these decisions for us.
We should outlaw the things we all AGREE on, and find other means of making the case for the things which are not "obvious to all."
Now I'll be nice and personal here. I don't like spending time with people who hit me. This includes the "friends" who think a punch in the shoulder is good fun. There are MANY males I've known who ENJOY that behavior, and enjoyed it when they were younger too. No, they weren't all psychotic or dealing with emotional baggage from their childhoods. They were people who had a DIFFERENT personal response to "roughhousing" or whatever euphemism may have been invoked at the time.
Ugh. I'm too emotional on this topic--topic being people threatening to cage each other for behaviors which can't be agreed upon.
Listen up: if you are in favor of this legislation, you need to be aware that you are advocating locking people in a cage for spanking their children.
Don't weasel around it. That's what you're saying. And if it's inconceivable that YOU or any of your friends will get locked in a cage because of such a law, then you're effectively an unindicted criminal. The poor guy in the trailer/tenement who gets sent to his repeated rape and beating because you had some idea about how flexible law enforcement is has every right to hate you for your naivete.
And don't think for a moment you won't be "remembered" when these guys get out.