(no subject)

[labellementeuse]

I'm baaaaaaaack.

Oh computer, my Juanita, it is tragic how much I missed you and your cracked black case. You are my favourite.

Ahem.

Anyway, yeah, hit me up with what I missed, and many thanks for the advice in the last post, I really really really appreciate it and now have lots of good ideas.

What I did with my spare time: watched half of the first season of Dead Zone - verdict: enjoyable but I probably won't bother with the rest; the first disc of S5 of Friends, verdict: 100% predictable; The Devil Wears Prada, verdict: ditto but I like Anne Hathaway; The first season and a half (SO FAR) of Veronica Mars, verdict: awesome. I also, like, did some homework.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot: can anyone remind me of semi-famous recent child abuse cases here in NZ? Obviously, James Whakaruru and the Kahui twins; I'd also be really keen to get my hands on any cases reported where the "discipline" was obviously unreasonable but the parent or caregiver was acquitted.

And on that subject: in the last year, New Zealand's child abuse rate went up 7%. Maybe that's an increase in reporting rather than in actual violence; I really, really hope so. But maybe not. We have a problem in taking care of our children. I believe it is vital that we take steps to remedy this and I believe Sue Bradford's current member's bill is at least a step in the right direction. Write to your MP and tell them so if you agree, please?

Comments

[amarynth.livejournal.com]

Coral Burrows?

[labellementeuse.livejournal.com]

I knew I was forgetting a really famous one. Ta.

[amarynth.livejournal.com]

Keep on fightin' the good fight.

I am fond of quoting that one in discussions about this kind of thing because it started with him smacking her so she'd stop laughing at him.

[anna-en-route.livejournal.com]

The woman who horsewhipped her child a few years ago and got off with reasonable force?

[botrytis.livejournal.com]

The horsewhip case is the one I was going to mention.

[labellementeuse.livejournal.com]

Do you have a name?? *hopeful* Because that's exactly the kind of thing I was looking for. Or a date or anything.

[amarynth.livejournal.com]

Yeah I have heard about that woman but no name or place or time is ever mentioned... might it be apocryphal?

[botrytis.livejournal.com]

I suspect name suppression is involved in this case.

HAVING said that, you're a University student at Canterbury aren't you? You've got a Law school - and that means legal databases, including case law...

You may not be able to get a name, but the Law Library should be able to help you find the case.

[labellementeuse.livejournal.com]

Oh, hey! That's a rocking idea. Thank you!

[nzlemming.livejournal.com]

I don't agree.

I'm not into beating children, but Bradford's bill will do nothing to stop children being beaten. And thus it's a waste of time.

[disturbed-kiwi.livejournal.com]

I do think it will help with those 'reasonable force' cases. But that other than that,I'm not of the effect. Those other countries that have already done it report less incidents now though, don't they?

[disturbed-kiwi.livejournal.com]

not *sure* of the effect

[labellementeuse.livejournal.com]

I had also heard that although, as usual, I don't have a specific study I can refer to.

[labellementeuse.livejournal.com]

I think removing reasonable force is pretty vital and I think that, basically, at this point we have to do something. My deeply socially conservative (in the philosophical sense) heart believes that it is the responsibility of the government to model change for society and saying that we don't think it's OK to hit children is IMO an important part of that. In addition, the incongruity that means what would be an assault on an adult - any adult - is permissable to whatever degree on a child bothers me greatly.

[sennical.livejournal.com]

Yay, you finally watched Veronica! I love that show.

[labellementeuse.livejournal.com]

\o/! It's freaking awesome. Except, hey, now I have a whole 'NOTHER CW show I have to worry about being cancelled. NO FAIR, universe.

[miriamus.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty sure I agree that child abuse figures went up because it's more high-profile, so more people are reporting it. Doesn't make beating children right though.

I personally was supporting the amendment to allow light smacking only. More stringent descriptions of what is and isn't allowed ought to mean fewer abusers would escape conviction because of odd interpretations of "reasonable force" (like the whip woman). Smacking almost certainly doesn't work as a discipline system, at least not on its own, and I like to think I would never do it myself, but I don't believe in banning something simply because it isn't nice or doesn't do what it's meant to.

[labellementeuse.livejournal.com]

I agree that the profile of child abuse has shot up recently and yeah, I do think reporting probably went up a lot. Which is a good thing, of course, but dispiriting.

Unfortunately there are apparently procedural problems with exact definitions of what is and isn't okay but personally I'm not comfortable with enshrining any physical discipline in law as "okay" - while I don't really think parents should be convicted of abuse for a smack once in awhile, I also don't think the gvt. should be explicitly condoning those.

Curious as to what you would say about the apparent friction between assault laws for adults and the corresponding laws that say what would be an assault when performed on an adult - even to help them learn!! - is considered okay as long as you're doing it to teach your kids how to behave.

And since we both agree smacking is not effective... *sigh*

[theuns.livejournal.com]

And since we both agree smacking is not effective... *sigh*

Got a reference for that?

[Personal observation doesn't match the assertion]

[labellementeuse.livejournal.com]

Not off the top of my head (although my personal observation would tend to differ from yours, I guess) but the fact that it's illegal to smack your dog, but not your kid, would seem to be indicative of some kind of discrepancy.

However, I'm fairly sure that there is documented evidence in support of the fact that corporal punishment is least effective of all other kinds and in fact may have the opposite effect. Give me a couple of days and I'll try to track something down.