Spankings did not work for me. All I did was make me think of ways to avoid getting into trouble. As I got older, I would MUCH prefer the spanking because it was over really quick.
I HATED being grounded...especially from my SNES and later my N64.
My little sister...HA! You could take ANYTHING away from her...send her to her room for days and it didn't phase her....but even a little tap on the butt made her very distraught and usually never repeated the offense again. She was also one of the most behaved children I have ever known...but still, it goes to show that each child responds differently.
My older sister, mother of three boys, vowed NEVER to spank her children because she thought it was wrong.
Yeah...she changed her mind FAST. When her oldest got about 4 and he was literally out of control and her second child was 2 and turning into a demon, she decided to try spanking her children.
Let me tell you...those kids where pieces of shit. Timeout...privilege restriction...firm voice, you name it. They rarely worked. After about 3 months of trying the smacks for the naughty/disrespectful mouths and swats on the butt for hitting others or generally being naughty, it was like night and m'er f'in day. If only you guys could here this from my sisters mouth.
Spanking does NOT work for every child and the best parent is the most well rounded parent.
IF I spank my son, I do it calmly. NEVER strike your child out of frustration. After I did it, I tell him all about it. Then, I tell him I love him. I think I have spanked my son a total of 16 times over his little lifetime...that's how few times I have had to employ it.
And for the guy who got beaten with a horse whip handle....that's rather shitty. My father took the physical disciplining too far and it ended up with him eventually getting his ass kicked by his 17 year-old son. (I was smacked in the face one too many times by the back of his hand...)