Spare the rod, spoil the child

[Fidel_Castronaut]

[Jackalope]

An alternative is to have the child stand facing a wall or corner of the room and contemplate their wrongdoing.

Works well. Provided the kid will do what you tell them to do.

That's the catch, isn't it? If it gets to the point where they won't cooperate, as a parent, you're bloody well screwed.

[Cato]

Works well. Provided the kid will do what you tell them to do.

That's the catch, isn't it? If it gets to the point where they won't cooperate, as a parent, you're bloody well screwed.

But that sums up the point really, doesn't it? You don't justify going nuclear because there's a chance one day there is no other option.

[Jacob(smooth)]

Works well. Provided the kid will do what you tell them to do.

That's the catch, isn't it? If it gets to the point where they won't cooperate, as a parent, you're bloody well screwed.

Makes it tougher certainly. That's where the toolkit comes in.

I remember thing 1 having an epic temper tantrum. I sat calmly with her, refused to let her rile me, explained why her behaviour was inappropriate and talked her Down. She apologised and understood.

Next day she did it again. Same strategy, same result.

Next day again.
And again. Morning AND evening.
For a week and a bit.

Figured out in the end that she was relishing the attention and quality time! And was thus flipping out so I would spend the time calming her down. On the last day I lost it, yelled at her and told her if she spoke to me like that again I would send her to her room when she got home, give her dinner in there and not let her down until she could behave in a decent manner.

And that was that.

[ShaMan]

[Jenny A]

And the overlap between BDSM and the other two groups? Doesn't surprise me though. Spanking is a conservative authoritarian sort of thing and atheists tend to be non-authoritarian in general.

[Cato]

And the overlap between BDSM and the other two groups?

All closet atheists. Theists don't condone sexual adventure, particularly if there's the slightest chance of it being fun and enjoyable.

[Mystical]

Life can get even more miserable for a kid than they think it already is. In all reality the law requires you to feed and clothe them and send them to school. So.. whats that? Oh your DS. Its gone. TV/internet too. Cell phone? Not anymore You've been signed up for softball or public service after school. Huh what? Oh thats right you didnt clean your room so I had to. You had too much stuff, it turns out. Oh you are smoking weed with your friends? Good luck me helping you get a license oh and btw we are getting you a piss test once a month and I will be calling the police on whomevers house you were just at. (That ones compliments of my grandma, the rest I made up). Ride the bus to school instead of me driving you.
That said, at some point theyre just too old for any of this shit and you're just trying to keep them out of trouble while they figure out who they're going to be. I plan on helping my kids know who they are before that, long before that.

My mum called the cops on my brother when he was 17 and wouldn't go to school! It was a daily fight, me and her and him. But he graduated. I've seen Hell and holes in walls and fists clenched and brother on the ceiling acting like a ninja cuz he's drunk. I've called the cops on my own brother. You do what you gotta do and its not easy. One day though, they'll thank you for it.

[Jackalope]

---

That's the catch, isn't it? If it gets to the point where they won't cooperate, as a parent, you're bloody well screwed.

Makes it tougher certainly. That's where the toolkit comes in.

I remember thing 1 having an epic temper tantrum. I sat calmly with her, refused to let her rile me, explained why her behaviour was inappropriate and talked her Down. She apologised and understood.

Next day she did it again. Same strategy, same result.

Next day again.
And again. Morning AND evening.
For a week and a bit.

Figured out in the end that she was relishing the attention and quality time! And was thus flipping out so I would spend the time calming her down. On the last day I lost it, yelled at her and told her if she spoke to me like that again I would send her to her room when she got home, give her dinner in there and not let her down until she could behave in a decent manner.

And that was that.

---

Yeah, I hear you. I make it a point to never let my anger go unchecked in front of or directed towards my son. He's had motivation issues at the alternative school that was a bitch to get him into, and one afternoon when he brought a note home from a very frustrated teacher...

I dressed him down with the command voice I learned as an NCO in the army. Message received loud and clear - kid knows Dad is serious when the volume goes up. Dad doesn't get angry. Dad doesn't yell. Oh fuck, Dad is serious about this shit.

Trick is, you can't yell at 'em all the time or they get numb to it.

I'm no model parent to be sure, and no two kids are alike - which is why I'm not absolutely anti-corporal punishment. It's the wrong tool for *me*, and it seems very often misused, over-used, unnecessary, and sends a very confusing message.

[The Valkyrie]

That's not really Emma Watson!