[TulipMama]

it's NOT the individual whacks that are so dangerous to parents and children. It's the teaching that parents continue to switch and repeatedly switch until they achieve complete rulership over the child. It's the anger that rises up in parents as they start to feel that their child is bucking the regime, and the tool they have is to spank the child into submission.

I know the Pearls are big on relationship building (string-tying and all that) but while THEY may have been able to whack their children dispassionately and repeatedly from room to room as the book describes and remained emotionally cozy with their children, normal parents are probably going to experience emotional distancing and anger.

Very well said. I believe that gets to one of the key problems with what Pearl, et al, are teaching. The mindset of control, must control at all costs--with very few tools, the chief one being physical punishment.

I wish Michael Pearl, Gary Ezzo, Elizabeth @ the Woodshed, Tedd Tripp, and the others within the modern Christian community would take a minute and reflect on what they are actually teaching and the impact they are having on parents and children. I wish they would take a few minutes to read this article and pray about what they preach to the many:
Avoiding Millstones: An Open Letter to Those Who Advocate Spanking By Rebecca Prewett