I was beaten as a child. I can clearly remember the day my father put me over his knee and gave my backside a bit of a beating. I also remember the circumstances that led up to the event.
I was around eight years old and had been on a school trip. I didn’t have any money with me and when all the other kids bought ice cream, I couldn’t. Luckily for me, a teacher took pity on me and bought me one.
But this is not what I told my father. Perhaps I felt he should have given me some spending money and I wanted to make him feel guilty; but the version of the story I told him had me weeping with thirst and frustration as all the other kids had yummy ice cream and I sat alone on a bench. I may even have gone as far as mentioning thoughts of suicide due to ice cream deprivation, I could be an emotional child.
My father was incensed at the lack of support from the school and called them up to complain. They told him what actually happened and got my bum beaten. And that was a good thing, because it reinforced a very important lesson that has stood me in good stead throughout life; if you are going to lie, make it convincing and make sure you can’t be caught out.
When it came to my turn to be a father, I am sure that the regular lashings I gave to my son (never on the face, unless I wrapped a wet towel around his head), provided him with important life lessons which more than compensate for the extensive scarring and the slight limp. And he would tell you so himself if it wasn’t for his extreme stammer which has been incorrectly attributed to psychological damage in childhood.
So, nothing wrong with disciplining your kids with a little measured violence; but apparently you can’t do it in the UK. You may smack your child; but if your smacking leaves a mark then the child can call in social services and you face a prison term of up to five years. Little Jimmy has just cooked the cat in the microwave. Smack the little bugger just enough so as not to leave a red mark and you are OK. But smack him with just a little more vigour and he will be taken into care and off to jail for you. What nonsense. One MP rather bravely pointed out that his constituents of colour could get away with a lot more smacking because their skin did not turn red.
Those who live in the UK often describe it as a “nanny state”; I suppose this is one, depressing example.
Another depressing item of news from my homeland was the government’s plan to cap benefits in a single household to 26,000 pounds a year, equivalent to a taxable income of 35,000 pounds. What was depressing about this was the chorus of disapproval from worldly-wise individuals such as bishops. Someone made the point that the cap would mean that some families would have to move house. So? Nobody in your household is working and you still expect to maintain a certain lifestyle at the expense of those who do work? To the soup kitchens with you!
Obviously some form of state aid for the truly vulnerable is a good idea. But we are far beyond that now and everyone expects a nice house and big TV with an Xbox and probably even foreign holidays; and the state is expected to pay for it. It’s this extreme social support that is going to bring many countries to their knees in the near future; and the UK will be one of them unless some of the current nonsense is tackled.
My homeland is probably screwed; so very glad I live in Thailand where I can beat up anyone I like and somehow the country gets along without handing out massive amounts of social benefits.
Comments 🔗
2012-02-17| Wally says;My homeland is probably screwed; so very glad I live in Thailand where I can beat up anyone I like ’ What on earth do you do to people you dislike ? I look forward to ‘The Son’s’ response to this blog !
2012-02-17| Dan saysYou’ve got that right. The UK is going down the toilet following the advice of the “holier than thou” brigade.
2012-02-17| Grant saysA bit bleak here Spike, a little deep and dark, not prone to tiny bouts of depression I hope? Try not to spend so much time on the bog… Cheer up and have some chocolate!
2012-02-18| Spike saysDepression? I would be prone if I lived in the UK; but never in Thailand!
2012-02-18| Grant saysGood lad, pleased you’re feeling better…