to spank or not to spank....a child?

           PARENT- a word which we have all heard in our lives and may even be one . But what does the term parent mean.....does it mean procreating and bring into the world a living being or does it mean giving life and nurturing it into a well developed human being? In my humble understanding it is the later. With becoming a parent comes the duties and responsibility to take care of this human being . The duties entail the parents to provide with the basics of life and according the status in life all the comforts required and the responsibilities entail the parents to instill in the children values such as patience , respect, obedience etc. 

          How does a parent instill these values ? Does the parent use physical force like spanking on the well cushioned bottom or does the parent give the child time out or does the parent reason with a child or does the parent let the child be the way it is  hoping that the child learns its lesson through its experience in life. Well each parent reacts differently to manner in which the child behaves and as long as the reaction in constant through out the child's formative years it should be effective.

          There is a general disagreement about what is permissible form of discipline both amongst the general population and amongst the legal systems. According to The American Bar Association Family Legal Guide, "Parents have the legal authority to discipline or punish their children appropriately. They may not, however, use cruel methods or excessive force; that constitutes child abuse". Now definition of child abuse is mentioned in each and every state statute but to take an example of such definition from Illinois statute  -Abuse” means physical abuse, harassment, intimidation of a dependent, interference with personal liberty or willful deprivation but does not include reasonable direction of a minor child by a parent or person in loco parentis. -750 ILCS 60/103(1).
           There have been some precedents in this field to refer to like- State v. Matavale, (Hawaii),Sweaney v. Ada County, Idaho,Commonwealth v. Rubeck. Each have their own version of what is permitted in their respective jurisdiction and what is considered to be an abuse.

            So the law in contest says parents can punish a child . Now coming to people - each person is entitled to his or her thoughts but in my opinion some time spanking coupled with explanation for such action should be perfectly OK, although mostly time outs in most circumstances have the same effect as spanking ( that is if your child is sensitive to it).But one should always remember that a child is a child is a child and  should allow some leeway in their growth and mental development.