[LJ Idol: Topic 15] "without breath to complain"

[cheshire23]

Seven-year-old Lydia Schatz, it is alleged, died for mispronouncing a word.

Comments

[rattsu]

Yeah, this is why I am happy that hitting a child is forbidden here in Sweden since 1966. I have never understood why it should be allowed to do to a child what it is forbidden to do to an adult. Seriously. I mean the first lesson i remember learning as a child was: "Never hit anybody smaller than yourself" when playing rough on the playground. I do wonder of the people who support 'spanking' want to bring back the right for the husband to discipline the wife as well? Or the boss his employees?

I don't think our children are that worse behaved than in the US...

THANK YOU for making this post, this incident have been making the rounds in the paper here as well, and I think that it is important to remember that this is just the tip of the iceberg.

[cheshire23]

I do wonder of the people who support 'spanking' want to bring back the right for the husband to discipline the wife as well?

Debi Pearl is so adamant that "God hates divorce" that she believes women should not seek permanent separation even if their husbands engage in life-threatening domestic violence or sexually abuse their children. She says that the proper thing to do in those cases is to report the husband to the police, and then have "romantic" letters and three-minute phone calls and visits - prison is a good place for him to think over his misdeeds, and then she can welcome him home with open arms once he gets out.

I...don't even know where to begin with everything that is wrong with that.

[rattsu]

If there truly is a god somewhere, it really must feel embarrassed by all the shit said in its name..

[supremegoddess1]

Someone on my friends' list is actually related to this family and she's completely horrified by all of this. More reasons most Christians scare me.

[cheshire23]

I do think it's important to keep in mind that most Christians, and even most conservative/evangelical Christians, are every bit as horrified by what has happened here and by what the Pearls teach, if not more so. Most of the outcry about this case is happening among the conservative Christian homeschooling community.

I understand the instinct (my husband is a survivor of child abuse with a Christian fundamentalist motivation), but it is no more right (and no more OK) to say that "most Christians" practice what the Pearls preach than it is to say that "most homosexuals" are likely to molest children.

[supremegoddess1]

oh, i don't believe that most christians practice this. sorry if i gave that impression.

[cheshire23]

I know I come to this from a weird place, since I'm not *exactly* Christian - I'm one of those odd Quakers who doesn't identify as Christian, though many of those at my Meeting do. It's...complicated. :P

[cheshire23]

In my reading about this, I've seen some sources say that they're giving copies of To Train Up a Child free to military families.

I've also seen estimates that as much as 1/6 of the Christian homeschooling community follows the Pearls' advice. *shudders*

[teaberryblue]

Yeah, I am not opposed to the idea of spanking as long as it's not intended to punish so much as derail dangerous behavior. There's a huge difference between a swat on the seat of the pants to keep a kid from touching something hot or sharp and taking off a belt and pulling the kid's pants down after the fact.

[dawnstar]

I hope you'll forgive me for not making it through this one. :/

[cheshire23]

Is OK *hugs*

[poppetawoppet]

I just don't have words....

I mean my parents swatted me on the butt occasionally as a child, but this...

my goodness

[cheshire23]

This was *hard* to write. Necessary, but extremely difficult.