tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7597569938038396009.post5322618080091225581..comments2008-10-15T21:09:06.717-04:00PCMnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7597569938038396009.post-57402070596428252172008-10-15T21:09:00.000-04:002008-10-15T21:09:00.000-04:00"Others blamed laws limited their ability to discipline (ie: hit) misbehaving children."<BR/><BR/>I've heard this one before. Some time ago, I was criticizing the parents who see me wandering around on foot patrol and tell their kids things like, "you better behave or he'll arrest you." I pointed out that this made me uncomfortable and sent the wrong message to kids. The person I was talking to disagreed and said parents had to do things like that because they can't use corporal punishment. But the thing is, corporal punishment is not illegal, within reason. Also, who says hitting a kid will teach him/her anything. The worst case scenario is it will teach your kids that violence is a great way to influence behavior. Violence can be cyclical.<BR/><BR/>You make a good point when you question how we define a child. I think eighteen may be too young. This causes problems in the "age of consent" area and can lead to a lot of problems (like 18 year olds being labeled as "sex offenders" because they had 16 year old girlfriends). And I know 21 is too old for the drinking age. Our society, which is supposed to value individual responsibility, seems to infantalize many people who should be expected to act like responsible adults.dave hnoreply@blogger.com