This session, although quite dark in many ways, gives me hope. I would rather see the world "burn" and have people start waking up rather than the world run like clockwork and people stay asleep. I still don't discount the idea of an alien invasion especially after watching the new ABC remake of V. The dynamics in that show are amazing and illustrate the basic ideas of how lacking emotion is valued by the V's leadership, having emotions means weakness to them. The scary thing about the show is how much people look up to the alien beings as a savior, even some churches! I kind of feel that the slow boil of alien information will be a great way to put people back in line, as they tend to look for solutions even when sometimes problems are beyond anybody's control.
As my favorite comic George Carlin said: "When you're born, you get a ticket to the freak show. When you're born in America, you get a front-row seat."
About the spanking issue, I was occasionally spanked as a child. Sometimes, it was for stupid reasons as my mother would get wound up on the image of the family. My father was much more reasonable, sometimes defending me in cases where she was unreasonable. I also had a godmother who I could call and visit on weekends, who was like my second mother. For some people a grandmother fulfills that role, but most of my family is overseas, so I am grateful for her. Nowadays, I am someone who can be humble and do my job, yet will stand up for myself or others if there is injustice. I suppose too much spanking would make me docile, render my emotional center to stay internal? Or, too little or no spanking (discipline) would make me fight for every single thing, even if it would not be wise to.
An interesting analogy goes with religion and sex. A couple of friends of mine were very religious growing up... as soon as they got into puberty and free of the family dynamic by moving out, etc... became quite promiscuous and obsessed with sex. On the other hand, my sister and I, who were taught the more open ideas of being safe, yet not being shamed about sex, turned out to be quite neutral about it. I'm grateful that my sex drive doesn't control me. It would be horrible to be someone who would be driven like some of my older co workers are. It isn't that I find a problem with lusting, I just find it sad that the idea of it obsesses them.
I do remember some neighbor friends who later became annoyances who were spoiled and not given boundaries. The few times they were spanked was when they bothered their mother, a controlling, phony, conniving woman. 2 of the 3 boys are miscreants and charmers, one is not intelligent but good at heart and humble. I am only in occasional contact with the last one mentioned.
