Comments on: Video: "Judge" beats disabled daughter for using the Internet

By: TokenFrenchDude

TokenFrenchDude — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 08:36:00 +0000

We did look at context; OldBrownSquirrel wrote : “In fairness, Proverbs 23:13-14 doesn’t really support my reading; that context makes it clear that the rod in question is to be used for beating. *sigh* Thankfully, Proverbs doesn’t carry the same weight as Leviticus or Deuteronomy.”

By: aquitaine

aquitaine — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 11:22:00 +0000

I use context to determine original intent. There is sheep/flock/shepherd imagery running throughout the OT and the NT. I understand that translations can be pathetic. I don’t think your aim is to get a clearer picture of what the original text meant. And if your argument is that corporal punishment is condoned in the bible, why don’t you try reading the damn book? You’ll find passages much less vague, even if they’re not as pithy.

By: Barrie Fairhurst

Barrie Fairhurst — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 03:49:00 +0000

I forced myself to watch this. I had to pause occasionally as it was just too disturbing, but if this poor girl had to endure the beating, the least I could do was at least endure watching it.

My father would beat me and my brothers with a belt. One of the worst beatings he gave was to my brother whos sin was to accidentally discover our dads pornography stash.

At least our mother would cry downstairs and shout up begging him to stop. He never did, but would return repentant hours later. We were so desperate for paternal affection we would forgive him.

The confusion of such abuse remains for a lifetime. I don’t care about the statute of limitations – this guy deserves to be punished. The damage has has caused will last a lot longer.

By: TokenFrenchDude

TokenFrenchDude — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 09:14:00 +0000

You’ve never used two or more translation to get a clearer picture at what the original text shows ?

You are using an interpretation (guiding stick) of one translation in English, when all translations of that passage refer to a beating stick. (http://bible.cc/proverbs/13-24.htm )

By: aquitaine

aquitaine — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 08:56:00 +0000

How can you use a translation to “show” original intent? Simply because the translation for crook into French refers to a beating stick, I’m supposed to believe that this is what the ORIGINAL text meant, what the author was advocating? OldBrownSquirrel cleared it up when he wrote, “A shepherd’s rod is used to guide, sometimes to poke or prod, even to hook and grab, but nobody in their right mind uses a crook to beat sheep.” And yeah, when taking into account the disdainful, accusatory tone in your initial comment: “As the Bible tells us: ‘He who spareth the rod hateth his son’ ” and your follow-up French translation, I do see you blaming the writer for the translation and subsequent interpretation.

By: pdeverit

pdeverit — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 06:21:00 +0000

We often hear from those who fight to uphold this practice for those under the age of 18 (even to the blaming of the social maladies of the day on a supposed “lack” of it), but we rarely, if ever, find advocates for the return of corporal punishment to the general adult community, college campuses, inmate population, or military. Why is that?

Ask ten unyielding proponents of child/adolescent/teenage-only “spanking” about the “right” way to do it, and what would be abusive, indecent, or obscene, and you will get ten different answers.

These proponents should consider making their own video-recording of the “right way” to do it.

Visit Unlimited Justice/Parents and Teachers Against Violence in Education to learn more and add your voice.

By: TokenFrenchDude

TokenFrenchDude — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 11:34:00 +0000

“Don’t blame the translation or the interpretation on the writer.”

Blaming ? I used the translation to show “OldBrownSquirrel” that the rod, in that passage, was really meant as a beating stick, not to lead.

By: Thad Boyd

Thad Boyd — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 22:12:00 +0000

Looks like this has hit the mainstream news. The victim and her mother have been on Matt Lauer, and the father has released a horribly ill-advised press release accusing her of exaggerating her illness and posting this in retaliation for his threat to take her Mercedes away. Apparently he’s found a lawyer whose judgement is as spectacularly poor as his own; at this point his ex-wife’s allegations that he’s a drug addict are very easy to believe.

By: Amelia_G

Amelia_G — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 21:10:00 +0000

Sorry, I wasn’t trying to make excuses for the mom! Just thought I saw her trying to defuse, deflect, disengage. At first. I can’t watch this video a second time, not even to verify his erection.

By: aquitaine

aquitaine — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 19:54:00 +0000

Regardless of whether it was off topic or not, you made it a topic. Don’t blame the translation or the interpretation on the writer.

By: OldBrownSquirrel

OldBrownSquirrel — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 17:12:00 +0000

I saw this this morning and was tempted to drive the three hours or so to Rockport with my shamboks, rope duct tape, a pitcher, and a towel.

He's evidently prepared for that reaction:

A neighbor said she saw Adams and his girlfriend packing luggage, a briefcase and rifles into their truck, as if to leave for a while.

[emphasis mine]

By: ellenar

ellenar — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 16:25:00 +0000

Truly disturbing video. It makes me wonder how long the abuse had been going on before the girl decided to record this episode. It is obvious that she was waiting to record something that she was expecting to happen in her room. I think she must have been abused many times before this particular beating.

By: Jason Clark

Jason Clark — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 16:14:00 +0000

“Quite Common” does not equate with “Condoned by the Bible.” Your argument is flawed. I also think that just because those things may have happened back then and weren’t criminalized to the extent they are today that certainly doesn’t mean that all people that lived back then actively participated and were monsters. People are people. Most of them tend to have a conscience. Additionally, the people during those times did not have the knowledge that we have today about the psychological damage caused by such abuse. What seems like common sense to us, may not have been so obvious to them.

By: Angie unduplicated

Angie unduplicated — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 16:05:00 +0000

Certain things aren’t being discussed–the fact that abuse of authority by a public employee is a crime in many states, and Texas may (certainly should be) one of them. Secondly, if an officer of the law and/or the court can be prosecuted for on-the-job brutality, they can and should be liable for the same behavior in the home, since these are salaried positions. It’s altogether too common for law officers to exert self-control on the street and beat their wives behind closed doors. Finally, Hillary Adams should get herself lawyered up, stat. Far more disabled children are abused than normal children, and social workers are more tolerant of that abuse, sadly. What we are seeing may well be a civil rights violation, and she may be able to collect civil damages–if the system isn’t run by relatives of the abuser, as they were in Blount Co., TN when I was a child who was told, accurately, that the police who were investigating the abuse were the abuser’s kin.

By: Angie unduplicated

Angie unduplicated — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 15:57:00 +0000

She may need help in later years to overcome the tendency to dissociate at the first signs of verbal brutality, since we have bad bosses and coworkers to deal with and dissociation will create errors and other work-related problems.

By: OldBrownSquirrel

OldBrownSquirrel — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 15:56:00 +0000

In fairness, Proverbs 23:13-14 doesn’t really support my reading; that context makes it clear that the rod in question is to be used for beating. *sigh* Thankfully, Proverbs doesn’t carry the same weight as Leviticus or Deuteronomy.

By: Angie unduplicated

Angie unduplicated — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 15:54:00 +0000

It’s not because she’s used to it. You never get used to being beaten up. Abusers feed on tears–they love to make someone cry; ever heard of bullies? She’s tough, strong, wonderful, and refuses to allow him that piece of emotional/sexual satisfaction.

By: Angie unduplicated

Angie unduplicated — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 15:48:00 +0000

The good thing about Southern towns is that good people watch out for others. It’s the only reason my stepsister survived her mother–neighbors were alerted, teachers told to look for bruises and for any illness which lasted over a day, and at least one marriage was arranged to provide information on the abuser’s whereabouts and behavior.
The bad thing about Southern towns is that abuser families run police departments and judiciaries, especially in Alabama and East Tennessee.

By: Angie unduplicated

Angie unduplicated — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 15:44:00 +0000

Abuser families will hack, including Apple devices. Some sell their findings as intellectual property, others steal credit card numbers and PINS, all fear open communication which will enable survivors to interface with open society.

By: Angie unduplicated

Angie unduplicated — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 15:42:00 +0000

Many thanks, Marina, from a bathroom cleaner and abuse survivor. Are you an Adams Cody, a Tipton, or a Burchfield? After all, these are the abuser families who blacklisted my employment to keep their little secret, that they enjoy socially bullying an individual with a vascular birthmark.

By: donovan acree

donovan acree — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 14:54:00 +0000

It was chilling to see how, at the end of the physical abuse, the girl and mother spoke in a calm tone about the daughter waking up in the morning. To see her switch from being abused to normal discussion so quickly is a good indication that this sort of thing is normal in her life.

By: Steve Jacobs

Steve Jacobs — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 14:37:00 +0000

@CD who said: “This is why I hate fucking born-again-christians and other types of republicans. This ‘judge’ and is frau need to have their lungs torn out.”

Wasn’t the much beloved Alec Baldwin just as much of an ass to his own daughter? Abuse cuts across racial, class, and political lines. Sometimes people just suck.

Edit: please note that I’m not accusing Alec Baldwin of physical abusing his daughter, but his verbal/emotional abuse of his child was unforgivable.

By: Ray Perkins

Ray Perkins — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 10:30:00 +0000

“It rubs the lotion on its skin or else it gets the hose again.” Life imitates art. Sadly.

By: TokenFrenchDude

TokenFrenchDude — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 09:13:00 +0000

But I’ve also read the same passage in French, which uses the word “verge”, a stick used for whipping someone.

Anyway my stance against the bible was off topic.

By: bunglebogs

bunglebogs — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 09:13:00 +0000

I don’t think I’m an emotional guy – but as a father I watched this and cried.

By: SarahKH

SarahKH — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 09:06:00 +0000

Even without the blurb on the story about the mother I knew she would be interceding, she’d be participating in the event.

Fear is a very powerful thing for keeping people in line and doing what you want them to do… even if they don’t necessarily want to do it.

By: Lastly Lynn

Lastly Lynn — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 08:58:00 +0000

“He who fights monsters should see to it that he himself does not become a monster.” — Friedrich Nietzsche

By: cdh1971

cdh1971 — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 07:55:00 +0000

This is why I hate fucking born-again-christians and other types of republicans. This ‘judge’ and is frau need to have their lungs torn out.

By: someone2343

someone2343 — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 07:40:00 +0000

The mom is an abuser too. I think it’s premature (and sexist) to automatically make excuses for her, and to try to paint her actions as some kind of attempt to protect her daughter, just because she’s a woman. She took a belt and hit her kid. She didn’t negotiate, she joined in.

By: Amelia_G

Amelia_G — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 07:31:00 +0000

It looked to me that the mom was trying to… god… say, LOOK, I’m going to whale her so hard! one supreme hit and then we are so punished! to prëemptively end it. But it didn’t work, didn’t stop him. Then the mom goes off and negotiates with him by agreeing with him… That 7 minutes probably wasn’t the end of the evening–look how it came in waves. Did the mom hope to protect her by angrily, loudly, publicly ordering her to sleep in the baby sister’s room, whose little presence might, hopefully, discourage JUDGE ADAMS?

Can I get on my feminist high horse for a nanosecond?! How to say this. Feminism is very important to me, but I don’t know how to talk about it because I have so few role models.

Women are so trapped when they have children. Of course children are the most trapped of all (which is part of what traps their moms).