I wish I could have said what you just did.
Expresses my thoughts exactly. And I too was whopped a couple of times as a kid by my Dad. I deserved it. Not over the top, but you're darn right it hurt. And I never wanted to commit that same misbehavior again.
Got whalloped in Gym with the legendary "paddle with the holes in it". For real. Wet naked butt and all. Man, was that something. My parents' reaction? Lucky they didn't whallop me all over again because if a teacher did that to me then I must have deserved it. And let me tell you, it was not only a deterrent to me but to the guys who winced as they watched.
And as I look back I realized that there is something cleansing about getting a just punishment. You erred, you know it, you received your punishment, it relieved the guilt, and now you move on with justice having been served.
It's just human nature and human nature does not, and never will, change.
