In New Zealand, question answers you!
Thursday, June 18th, 2009
This is what happens when hysterical morons get 300,000 people to sign a petition over a non-issue: a $9 million referendum with a question so loaded that any response is meaningless.
Democracy at its finest.
I can’t wait to get my ballot in the mail so I can post it back with a caricature of the idiots who initiated this colossal waste of time and money.
More info here.
PS: I was not disciplined with violence as a kid and I turned out just fine– I offer this as a counterpoint to one of the stupidest and most prevalent arguments for beating one’s children.
June 18th, 2009 at 12:36 pm
To correct you, “non-hysterical”, “non-moronic”. It is an issue when a light tap on your childs backside makes you guilty of a crime. The waste of money is partially H. Clark’s fault for not including this with the General Election. I agree with you that violence and beating one’s children is wrong - physical discipline should be done in a controlled, considered manner (rather than lashing out).
You turned out just fine? Hmmm, OK, if you say so. ;-)
June 18th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
Ross,
A “light tap on your child’s backside” will not land you in prison. This is what I mean by “hysterical”— you are wayyyy overstating the risk to yourself as a parent while ignoring the very real and freaking obvious problem of violence against kids. Banning smacking sends a very simple message that IMHO will do a lot more good than harm: When you are angry at your child, which is ALWAYS the state of every parent I have seen smack their kids, you are not in the right frame of mind to evaluate the merits of violence against them.
And my main complaint about the referendum is not that there shouldn’t be one, or that people don’t have a right to express their opinion, but that the question is so biased as to be a moronic one. Implied in the wording is that smacking is part of “good” parenting, so right there it is weaseling out of letting people express whether or not physical punishment is a valid parenting tactic in the first place.
Hysterical, moronic.
June 18th, 2009 at 9:43 pm
Yes, I agree with you about the wording. The clerk of the house should have pointed that out when they were tweaking the wording.
June 19th, 2009 at 12:16 am
I can’t believe this is still going on. I thought the fight was finished, that’s how National got so many votes; they took the bill, tweaked it so it was more “reasonable,” and made themselves out to be goddamn heroes.
BTW, in Sweden they have a much stricter law against violence against children, and people aren’t put into prison unnecessarily there either.
Our culture treats children like second-class citizens, with the same rights as pets. Sorry, not the same rights. Apparently you can get in SERIOUS trouble for smacking your dog.