30 to 40 years ago, it was a well accepted practice by Asian parents to smack, slap and/or cane their children for misdemeanors ranging from mild pranks to serious misbehaviour. No one batted an eyelid then.
I grew up getting my fair share of cane marks on my legs and arms for telling lies, failing my exams, staying out too late, quarreling with my siblings, etc.
I like many others of my generation habour no resentment towards our parents, knowing they are disciplining us. We learn the word 'SHAME' as it was really really shameful to have others know we did wrong and thus were punished. Our parents had no qualms telling all and sundry about our latest capers and boy oh boy, having other adults chiding us on top of our parents' scoldings was more than enough reason to stay home without being officially grounded.
We had to face the wrath of our parents too when teachers complained. Double trouble all right. How did we turn out? We did not turn to drugs for sure. Unlike the kids of today who turn to drugs for every little reason - lack of communication with parents, disharmony at home, parents too strict or too lax....whatever. The laws today calls parental disciplining by caning, child abuse. Look at our kids. They don't know what the word 'SHAME' is at all! Scold them and they'll run away. Take away their privileges and they rebel by refusing to study and not going to school.
There are of course, children who are obedient and respectful with parental guidance but more often than not, the reverse is more prevalent. As parents, we can try all the tricks in the tomes of books on 'Bringing Up Difficult Children' yet we fail to incalcate the values we want them to have. Why is that so? Simple. Society deplores the manhandling of children by parents and as a result, when our children do wrong when they grow up gets manhandled by the law enforcers. Now isn't that ironic!
[This message has been edited by Diamante (edited 28-02-2002).]
