[tarheeljks]

1) yes, i was spanked as a child. it was sometimes w/a hand, sometimes with a belt, sometimes being slapped (usually if i was mouthing off), and sometimes with the closest object that would not seriously injure me.

2) i have no kids, but if i ever do it is highly likely that i will spank them as a form of punishment.

3) i'm of the opinion that just telling a child "no" or sending them to the corner for a few minutes is generally not an effective method of punishment, but it depends on the child. my sister who is almost 16 has never been spanked and my parents would have never needed to spank her (they wouldn't now even if she did something wrong), but this was not the case with my brother and i. we were not spanked every time we stepped out of line, but the threat of being spanked was enough that the imminent threat served as an excellent deterrent. i also think that equating spanking to child abuse is lol; at the time i may have thought that may parents were trying to kill me, but i never suffered any lasting physical effects from a spanking (w/the exception of an occasional welt, which faded after a few minutes)

i'm 22 for the record and am part of a younger crowd that generally probably wasn't spanked as much. however, i think spanking is certainly a cultural issue-- i'm black and i would estimate that basically all of my black friends (and definitely all of my relatives) were spanked, whereas very few of my white friends were spanked. maybe i'm way off w/that remark but i think it's worth noting.