This MP needs a smack

[budwieser]

In most cases, discipline leads to respect.
I was smacked as a child if i did wrong(not to excess i might add) and it taught me right from wrong.

[Osem]

Originally Posted by martyh

Would those parents complaining about not being allowed to smack their kids have actually smacked or even disciplined their kids though ,or are they just using that as a excuse for their own failings ?.I think most would not .When faced with the public outcry over the riots which led to the inevitable scrutiny of wayward parents and the way they raise their children the excuse of "but we aren't allowed to smack our kids" comes out .I'm sorry but i just don't see the connection

Well how big a factor smacking is who knows. I believe the people Lammy is referring to are those who feel they've been disempowered because they fear they're effectively unable to smack their children as a last resort. I'm not sure many of the sort of wayward and ineffectual parents you refer to would even know who David Lammy is let alone bother to express their opinions to him.

My feeling is that every situation and family is different but there's no doubt in my mind that smacking isn't a) the best or b) the only way to achieve the desired objective of instilling discipline in children. In just the same way having lots of money doesn't guarantee well behaved children. That having been said, I believe smacking is a tool which used appropriately and judiciously can have the desired effect when all else fails and I can see why some people who believe that right has been eroded might feel powerless to control their offspring.

[richard1960]

Originally Posted by martyh

Would those parents complaining about not being allowed to smack their kids have actually smacked or even disciplined their kids though ,or are they just using that as a excuse for their own failings ?.I think most would not .When faced with the public outcry over the riots which led to the inevitable scrutiny of wayward parents and the way they raise their children the excuse of "but we aren't allowed to smack our kids" comes out .I'm sorry but i just don't see the connection

David Lammy in his interview did not try to make out this was a panacea just that it was a tool those parents he interviewed thought was missing,and he was addressing that.

I agree with with you with some families the issues could be more complex, but i do not think David Lammy could address these issues on his own,but he could and did make a statement in defence of the decent families where maybe a simple smack would make their kids think twice.

I am sure David Lammy does work in various community groups in his constituency to try and get to those with the most problems,from what i hear he is quite involved and is often on the local radio.

I think he is one of the few Labour MPs that does in a word "get it".

[Maggy J]

Originally Posted by martyh

Anybody else agree with this ,personaly i think he's way of base and to single out working class children is just plain wrong because there are some pretty scummy upper class kids out there

http://news.sky.com/home/politics/article/16158818

Did we both read the same article? Because that's not how I read it.
I read it as trying to understand why some parents are scared of their children and are finding it hard to control them and their children knowing that their parents have very little in the way of an arsenal to exercise parental discipline.Hard working parents, working long hours on poor wages have little time to spend with their children certainly less time than in many middle class and those higher up the food chain.

If parents are scared to smack their children because of the fear of social workers taking and putting them into care(which can mean that they get even less discipline in a system that fails children quite drastically at times). I'm also wondering how many of the younger rioters were in council care at the time..It's all too easy to leave an unsecured children's home.Something I've been told by children in care.

[martyh]

Originally Posted by richard1960

David Lammy in his interview did not try to make out this was a panacea just that it was a tool those parents he interviewed thought was missing,and he was addressing that.

I agree with with you with some families the issues could be more complex, but i do not think David Lammy could address these issues on his own,but he could and did make a statement in defence of the decent families where maybe a simple smack would make their kids think twice.

I am sure David Lammy does work in various community groups in his constituency to try and get to those with the most problems,from what i hear he is quite involved and is often on the local radio.

I think he is one of the few Labour MPs that does in a word "get it".

It may be that the Sky piece i used as reference has concentrated too much on the smacking aspect of his views an in doing so has created a rather blinkered article .My views haven't changed on the smacking aspect though because whether a parent smacks or not has little bearing on the actions of the child in later life ,imo smacking is a punishment for the moment .A 14yr old isn't going to avoid trouble such as getting involved in gangs because is scared of getting smacked he won't do it because of general discipline techniques used from a young age which may or may not include smacking .

[Alan Fry]

Will someone tell this MP that thr riots were cause by a lack of jobs and opportunities, along with the police making mistakes!

[Hom3r]

IMHO all MPs need a smack

[Pierre]

Originally Posted by martyh

It may be that the Sky piece i used as reference has concentrated too much on the smacking aspect of his views an in doing so has created a rather blinkered article .My views haven't changed on the smacking aspect though because whether a parent smacks or not has little bearing on the actions of the child in later life ,imo smacking is a punishment for the moment .A 14yr old isn't going to avoid trouble such as getting involved in gangs because is scared of getting smacked he won't do it because of general discipline techniques used from a young age which may or may not include smacking .

I don't think anyone would claim that smacking, on it's own, has any bearing on the future behaviour of a child.

Of course it is the whole question of dicipline and teaching the child respect.

However, I do feel that when the state tries to stick its nose into the home and tell parents what they can't do inside their own home to dicipline their child, then it has gone too far.

[martyh]

Originally Posted by Pierre

I don't think anyone would claim that smacking, on it's own, has any bearing on the future behaviour of a child.

Of course it is the whole question of dicipline and teaching the child respect.

However, I do feel that when the state tries to stick its nose into the home and tell parents what they can't do inside their own home to dicipline their child, then it has gone too far.

I agree with that ,there are so many variadbles in a childs upbringing that to try a 'one size fits all' regulation such as no smacking is quite unrealistic and i would go as far as to say quite damaging

[fatmat8]

i would be of a mind to smack all mp's