Time out works & if you feel like hitting then you are the one who needs the time out.

I recently read an interesting article from Montreal Gazette which discussed a study from the Journal of Child and Family studies and the results which indicated time outs are an effective tool for parents. 

"Time out can de-escalate contentious parent-child situations, they found, and the more effectively and consistently it's used, the less it's needed."

Nothing really new there, but the article started me thinking about the contrast of physical discipline and other forms of parenting. Oddly enough, the most insightful view on this subject that I recall seeing comes from comedian Louis C.K. and his comedy special Louis C.K.: Hilarious. You can view the segment below the blog post (though I warn you Louis is not shy about dropping the F bombs and coming down on the offensive side occasionally). If you would rather bypass the cursing, which I actually find quite fitting in this discussion, the relevant transcript (edited) is here: 

"You're huge. How could you hit me? That's crazy. You're a giant, and I can't defend myself" I really think it's crazy that we hit our kids. It really is--here's the crazy part about it. Kids are the only people in the world that you're allowed to hit. Do you realize that? They're the most vulnerable, and they're the most destroyed by being hit, but it's totally okay to hit them. And they're the only ones. If you hit a dog they ^#!%i!# will put you in jail for that ^#!%i!#. You can't hit a person unless you can prove that they were trying to kill you. But a little tiny person with a head this big who trusts you implicitly, ^#!% 'em. Who gives a ^#!%? Just ^#!%i!# hit--let's all hit them. Hey, people want you to hit your kid. If your kid is making noise in public, <people will say>, "hit him, hit him! Hit him!"