Nip it in the bud. With a hammer or a flamethrower if necessary.

- The Cat

P.S. What kind of husband is this guy teaching his daughter to expect?

how was he supposed to know?

and where is mom?

i see pre-teens all over east dallas pregnant and g-styling…

i wonder why none of my kids got into this crap—oh yeah…we don’t allow it and home schooled/private schooled

Cruel? Yes! Necessary? No! Effective? Yes! (in this particular case).

Different strokes for different folks.

Seriously, the father needs his head examined. Something’s loco.

Was it necessary? Not sure. We can never predict the outcome if he hadn’t.

However, the daughter seemed honest and adamant that this was the first time he has ever done anything like this. There presumably is no prior history of abuse, so I wouldn’t be so quick to judge the father.

I probably wouldn’t have gone to the extremes he had, but I don’t condemn him for the action. He only applied the knife to the area she had the tattoo, not anywhere else.

I bet she would lose a leg,or probably her life!

Obviously, I am arguing with people who have never had kids of their own.

From everything you’ve said on this thread, you barely tolerated this girl. And now you’re suddenly The Official Hot Air Parental Authority™?

Because I have to tell you, when I was thirteen, if I was “dating” 18-20 year old guys and going to parties where “every single one of her friends” was smoking meth (or whatever you do with meth), my stepdad wouldn’t have been discussing curfew strategies with my mother. He would’ve called the police.

So try not the throw your shoulder out while you’re patting yourself on the back for being the best parent here, Superdad.

I can’t believe that I agree with Ronsfi.

JS on June 2, 2008 at 6:20 PM

Careful, that’s how it starts. One minute your agreeing with me at HA then, next thing you know, you’re roasting babies at the Darwinian Black Sabbath with me and Hitchins.

Fishoutofwater on June 2, 2008 at 6:10 PM

Let me get this straight. My condemnation and revulsion at the branding of a child with a red hot knife constitutes, in your mind, a “permissive mindset”?

Branding! Do it for the children!

without knowing all the details I cannot condemn his actions.

insideout on June 2, 2008 at 6:30 PM

I beg to differ. I think we absolutely can condemn his actions since we know for a fact he purposely third-degree-burned her.

It’s his motivations and love for his daughter we cannot judge.

Actions are always fair game. People properly make judgments all the time. And despite what the liberals would have us believe, judging actions is not wrong, and in fact is frequently necessary (for us Christians, that’s what Jesus was referring to, and why he could say “do not judge” around the same month [/poetic license] as he was turning over tables with a whip in the temple). Judging people is.

If he’d been a Muslim, he’d have killed her for his honor. Compare & contrast, please.

I R A Darth Aggie on June 2, 2008 at 5:28 PM

Dear Genius,

Unless you mean to assert that Muslims are only capable of punishing by killing, please shut up. If that is what you mean to suggest, you may also shut up.

I’ll restate. If the guy was Muslim the thread would be apoplectic.

Third degree burns indicate an intention to inflict serious pain. The dad needs lessons, help and encouragement in proper parenting. It might seem dumb, but some people just don’t know what’s right.

Think about how badly a simple first degree burn can hurt. Burns are among the most painful of all inuries. I’m back to piss and cheesegrits; there is no excuse.

Did he listen to his daughter cry and scream while he tortured her? Is she an insurgent? Is she his enemy? Nope, he loves her and needs to learn how to do so safely and sanely.

I rule. You suck.

We’re really supposed to believe that a curfew and dress code are what you meant by “implementing stronger discipline?”

Can you backpedal any faster?

Tanya on June 2, 2008 at 6:14 PM

Yup, that’s EXACTLY what I mean by “implementing stronger discipline”. Setting limits on what is acceptable behavior in the home, and sticking to them. What idiot would ever consider corporal punishment on a teenager?

Obviously, I am arguing with people who have never had kids of their own.

I can’t believe that I agree with Ronsfi.

No sympathy from me. I’d say the embarrassment and shame was more painful than the knife. She already showed that she’s not above tearing her flesh with a pencil – if anything, a knife would be less painful.

She’ll get over it.

fourstringfuror on June 2, 2008 at 3:00 PM

Or at least have the chance to.

Fishoutofwater on June 2, 2008 at 6:04 PM

Kudos to you for caring so much about your ex-wife’s daughter and trying so hard to save her. Even now that you have no legal or biological ties to the girl, it is clear that it still torments you that you couldn’t keep her from making such terrible choices and suffering such awful consequences. All young people should be so lucky as to have a father (or father-figure) like you in their lives – one who cares that deeply about their future.

Unlike others here, I do understand what you’re trying to say. You didn’t do anything like this to your step-daughter, but if you had thought for a moment that it would have saved her from what happened, you would have strongly considered it out of sheer desperation on her behalf. I get that. It’s not an endorsement, it’s just simple empathy.

Back off of Fish, you guys. He went through a lot and lost the battle and the war, despite his best efforts. He’s not a terrible person for relating the reality he observed and defending another man’s feelings of desperation.

Excuse me, but EXACTLY WHERE did I “admit” to such an idiotic assumption as you have made, Tanya?

Fishoutofwater on June 2, 2008 at 3:34 PM

We’re really supposed to believe that a curfew and dress code are what you meant by “implementing stronger discipline?”

Can you backpedal any faster?

“Permissive Mindset” in the same breath as “psychobabblers” is the hight of irony. ronsfi on June 2, 2008 at 6:03 PM

Yeah, ever hear of “moral relativism”? The psychobabblers practically invented it. I tell you what, ronsfi, take a tour of your local Juvie lockup and tell us what you see – there you will find the final product of the Permissive Mindset, live and in full color.