I agree on that. Good parents question themselves, seek guidance from a variety of sources and generally just give a crap. Terrible parents never ask themselves of what they are doing is right or wrong.

This is such a great article, Mr. Young. I was beaten as a child, with a large wooden paddle, and by the time I was four, I learned to stop crying because if I cried, the beatings lasted longer. I was determined never to strike my children.

I live in Florida (not by choice) and this is still one of my favorite gifs!

Thank all the deities for this! One teeny piece of good news for those of us in FL.

My mother died 29 years ago and honestly it was a relief not to have to deal with her mental illness (that my father ignored). I don’t feel badly saying it anymore; she was horribly abusive & while I wish she had gotten help, I’m relieved that I no longer have to deal with her. I hope you find peace in whatever manner…

This. To paraphrase (badly) Maya Angelou— we all do the best we can and when we know better we do better. 

Sounds so familiar to me. There’s no way I’d let any adult administer corporal punishment to my child regardless of how I felt about it in my own home.

Mine are 25 & 22. They played a game with their bio dad that all three termed Bongo Butt; the kids would spank him (like playing drums) and then he’d tickle them or some such.

Catholic school by any chance? (Former Catholic here.)

A slap in the face always felt WAY more personal than a beating on the bare bottom with a wooden paddle.

The most impactful thing I ever did as a parent was say “I am so disappointed in your behavior.”

Please don’t. The fact that you feel that way can help you figure out what else to do. Good parents struggle endlessly about their choices; crap parents never even give it a second thought. That you’re questioning is a really good sign that you’re trying to do what’s best and that is all any of us can do.

I was beaten as a child - I have a hard time distinguishing between spanking and beating. That’s my damage from my childhood; my intellectual brain understands it but my emotional brain does not.

We don’t have cable tv, just streaming services and I’m so so glad. I see the occasional political ad on YouTube but I’m not inundated. I don’t think my anxiety or my liver could take the constant onslaught.

Well damn this is yet another reason I won’t sleep tomorrow night! Hoping she wins!

I live in FL (not by my choice but hey, my partner’s job is here) and I am SOOOOO psyched to vote for Gillum. I’ll be up late tomorrow watching all the returns across the country because that’s the kind of nerd I am. 

These are grown ass people who absolutely knew what they were doing. I mean, FFS.

I can. I was brought up in a a VERY political family (though most disagree with my views); voting was presented as a privilege. As a military spouse I had to vote absentee from my original state of residence. I’m a Giant Political Nerd, to a degree that irks even the people with whom I agree. I genuinely love going to…

Didn’t wanna edit: I was a military spouse for 20+ years & always voted absentee. I loooooove going to the polls on Election Day & physically filling out my ballot. I could vote early which would be convenient but I desperately enjoy the whole process of voting in person because I am a Political Nerd of the highest…

Already put it up on all my social media - I have a car & I’ll drive you to your polling place & back home. 🤓