Politician, give 'em an inch and they'll be telling you how to raise your kids. The problems are similar to gun control.

Responsible people seek to obey the laws. Gun laws are ostensibly made to control criminal and potential criminal behavior. People who own guns for target, sport or personal protection are not out doing drive-bys or taking down banks and liquor stores. Many gun laws infringe upon the honest citizens' ability to pursue the aforementioned, honest endeavors. The criminal, by definition, doesn't give a damn about the law and isn't going to obey any law that stands between him and what he wants. Do you think the Columbine killers were checking to make sure their clips only held ten rounds each?

The people who are beating the Hell out of their kids aren't going to pay any attention to anti-spnking laws in CA. First of all, they aren't discipling the kid. They are hitting the child because they are inconveienced or annoyed or drunk or worse. They are already criminals or people who are in some way impaired. What they are doing only remotely resembles discipline to a moronic legislator who doesn't have children and has no idea of what it is like to raise a child. She's kinda like the Pope giving marital advice.

Parents who LOVE their children find a way that works best. It may or may not involove spanking or corporeal punishment. Each child is different. Some kids, a good swat on the bottom is about the only way to get their attention. I was one of those kids and even at that it barely phased me. The spanking was just part of the calculated risk of whatever mischief I was into at the time. With some kids (like my own ) just a stern look or a snap of the fingers is enough to command attention.

In CA a child under the age of 5 is not considered a credible witness in any legal proceeding and such a law would probably be unenforcable. Also I am sure that our judicial system which is already stretched to the max would just love to have a whole new category of complaints with which to deal. This legislator needs to find a hobby like beekeeping or something else that is constructive and keep her BIG nose out of private people's families.