Man, that picture of the Georgia shopper looks like one pissed off man. I'm curious how he thinks slapping a kid will "shut her up." From my experience, kids who have been physically disciplined cry harder. Sounds like he let his anger get the better of him.

Remember the "kids" who vandalized some cars with spray paint in Singapore and who were then whipped by authorities there--and the horror and shock from our beloved MSM here? And the "they got what they deserved" reaction from most of the rest of us?

If parents allow their children to run amuck as toddlers, they grow up disrespectful of others and their property, and then turn into petty criminals, who must be housed in prison at public expense.

Better to nip it in the bud, like the old man did at Wal Mart, and like they did in Singapore. He actually did the child a favor, saving it from a potential life of misbehavior and criminality.

Good for him, and hope the judge agrees.

Okay popalong....since you seem to be such a know-it-all, when it comes to children. Do you know why that child was crying????? It could have had a severe ear infection, fever, tummy ache.....does that warrant a stranger slapping her??? No it doesn't. All I can do, is hope that the next time you are having a bad day, for whatever reason...your spouse died, maybe your family pet after 17 years has died., you lost your job....just found out you had a terminal illness....whatever the reason..if you show any discontent in public, since afterall you are an adult. I hope someone beats your ass....just to keep you from having a bad day...again. You are an idiot!

popalong - I hope you are never near my children. I can punish my kids, but if a stranger touched them - they would be sooooo sorry.

My wife used to be an early childhood teacher in the inner city of Newark, NJ. She saw a lot of dysfunctional kids whose parents told her to beat the kids if they got out of line. Could there be a connection there between beating kids and dysfunctional adults and children???

Um, if the kid is sick and has an ear infection, then the parents shouldn't trot the kid out in public to infect the rest of us. I don't think anyone should be able to assault someone else's kid, but the way these parents let their little princes and princesses carry on in public places nowadays is ridiculous. I'm in my late 20s, and my parents never let me act in such a way. Parents are far too lenient with their kids to the extent that they worship them, rather than parenting and disciplining them. Our society has become far too kid-centric, and as a result these children are bred wtih a huge sense of entitlement.

I love how it is always "let their child do ." You know what? Many times the crying is because a parent did NOT let their child do something. If I go into a Walmart or any store and my three year old begs and pleads for an item or to do something and I say no, there is a chance my son will cry. Since the crying is a manipulation tool used by most children, I WILL IGNORE IT.

To say I am an ignorant parent is incorrect. I choose not to acknowledge my child's reaction because all that does is to reinforce the bad behavior.

If I have shopping I need to do and I drove all the way to the store to do it, I will NOT leave the store because it may offend somebody's precious ears.

If that man had even tried to do that to my child, he would have a broken nose, if he is lucky. That SOB had no right to touch somebody else's child.

Why is that kid on a leash, rather than in a stroller?

I'm not a parent myself, but the idea that leashes are for dogs & strollers are for children seems like it should go without saying.

eli--occasionally after you take a sick child to the doctor, you have to take them somewhere in public to get a perscription filled. It may just be a wal-mart.

that said, whether the child was sick or not, no stranger has a right to lay a hand on anyone elses child. It's the same as walking up to someone and punching them. you can't do that.

I'm shocked that anyone could think this man's actions were justified. Unless it was self-defense (against a two year old?) I can't think of any justification for him slapping a child.

And crying in a store is hardly "running amok" and light years away from vandalizing cars.

That man had no more right to slap the child than he had to slap the mother. And I hope the legal system will treat this assault on a child with the same seriousness it would an assault on an adult.

You might be surprised at how many of the well-mannered, respectful, diligent young people you encounter haven't been spanked, slapped, smacked or otherwise hit in order to help them avoid a "life of misbehavior and criminality". And if you haven't encountered any kids or teens like that, perhaps you are looking in the wrong places. Or through the wrong lens.

I agree that the man should not have hit someone else's child. I will say that the behavior of so many parents and their lack of respect for others, makes an incident like this almost inevitable. Please parents stop your children from behaving worse than animals in public. My parents would never tolerate my yelling and crying in public. There used to be such a thing as respect for others. Now, children can do whatever they want.

For one thing, ear infections aren't contagious. And as someone else already mentioned, if you take a sick kid to the doctor and they give you a prescription, you might need to get it filled somewhere.

On the MomsLikeMe thread that Kate linked to, one commenter said her husband thinks that if a person doesn't discipline their child, someone else has the right to do so. On several ocassions, I have had to say something to other kids whose parents were not doing anything. The most recent ocassion was over the summer when some older kids were playing too roughly in the pool and knocked my 2 year old over. But I certainly didn't hit them! That man had no right to touch that child. Geez, some states are considering legislation to make it illegal to hit your OWN child. We've all been in a position where someone else's kid was being too loud or too wild or whatever. But under no circumstances is it okay to slap someone else's kid.

As for the leash, I've never used one, but I had to laugh at the stroller comment. Stores cram their shelving and racks so close together that strollers just do not fit. Not to mention that some kids won't stay in one. My 2 year old won't, she can unbuckle the straps herself and climb out and that's just dangerous. And it's not a leash like a dog leash, they are backpacks that look like animals with a tether attached. Useful in crowded situations or if you have a kid that likes to dart away. When I first read about this incident, it made it sound like the mom was flinging the kid around while the leash was around his neck. But having watched the video, I see nothing wrong with it. The mom was probably doing what people are always saying parents need to do--removing a disruptive kid from a public place.

What is amazing is that people really do think one can control the crying of a two year old. A child may cry for manipulation but after a while, it feed upon itself and it becomes a real cry. However, since it started as a manipulation tactic, it should be ignored.

A child that young will not understand "respect for others" or any other type of garbage like that. If you can remember what your parents taught you, you were much older than two when you learned it.

As for use of a harness as opposed to a stroller, I have NO problem with that. It is not a leash. It does not go around the child's neck. It allow the child the freedom to walk around a store but gives the parent the safety of something to keep them from wandering.

However, that is not germane to what happened. No matter where the child was at the time or what the child was doing, a strange man has NO right to come up and slap a child.

A child cannot defend against a grown adult man. This is actually worse than adult on adult assault. He got lucky somebody more aggressive wasn't the parent of that child or he would be in a world of hurt now.

he was crazy but people get sick of spoiled kids that you won't discipline

Larry it is ridiculous to assume a crying child is spoiled and undisciplined. All children cry. Period fact of life. Does not mean that child is not disciplined. I'm not going to pretend every person on this planet is a great parent. There are many people who should never have had children simply due to their lack of ability to raise them. HOWEVER...you are making a gross generalization that all parents with a crying child fall into that camp. That is simply insane.

He looks like an angry and abusive man.

As a parent of a special needs child, am I to keep him locked up like a animal. My child has crying spells, and if some stranger was to slap him, it would be the last he slapped for awhile. I'm not a violent person, but where my children are concerned, you would be better off slapping a Rabid Tiger.

What ever happened to "children should be seen and not heard"? If your children are creating a disturbance in public, do something about it. If I have to listen to your brats run wild in a public place, I at least want to see you beat them. If you don't want to beat them in public, have enough decency to remove the little boogermonsters from that public place so as not to disturb everyone else.

Kids on leashes are fantastic. In fact, watching a kid get beaten in public is the only thing better than seeing them on a leash. One day, maybe I'll get lucky enough to see a kid on a leash being beaten in public.

That having been said, even I can't defend hitting someone else's 2 year old.

Wow, that's crazy. I don't know what I would have done if that was my child.

Wow. That anyone would condone what this man did boggles my mind. And that anyone would assume that a crying two-year-old is spoiled is almost as bad.

Let me tell you about my child crying in Walmart. When my youngest son was about 4, I told both boys that I was tired of them begging for treats at the store. I explained that I would give them a small allowance -- I think it was 50 cents a week, which was enough to buy an occassional piece of candy. If they had enough of their own money, they could use it to buy treats. But if they asked me to buy anything for them, the answer would be no. Then I took them both to Walmart and bought them each a little wallet to keep their money in, 'just like Daddy does.' On the way through check out, my 4-year-old started begging and I reminded him of the program and said no. He melted down and started crying. I did not buy him the treat, which probably would have made him stop crying. Instead, I finished paying and carried my kicking, screaming toddler to the car and buckled him into his car seat. I explained the system again, handed him his wallet, got in the car and headed for home. Well, he was totally hysterical and started yelling that he didn't want the wallet. Then he threw it at me. It bounced off the windshield, then off my head. It was one of the hardest things I've ever done, but I turned the car around, took that crying child back into the Walmart and returned the wallet, explaining that my son clearly didn't want it, since he'd thrown it at me. Now he was screaming and trying to drag me away from the return desk, yelling, "No, Mom! Don't take it back. I want it!" Thank God for the older woman behind the counter, who recognized the lesson I was trying to teach and said, "Hang in there, Mom. You're doing the right thing and he'll thank you for it someday." That child cried all the way back to the car, then fell asleep from sheer exhaustian before I'd gotten out of the parking lot. He's almost 18 now and while I hear his friends begging his parents to buy them every new teenage toy that hits the market, my son has saved his pennies, worked odd jobs to make more, and pays for -- and takes care of -- his own things. I thank God today that the lesson he learned that day at Walmart was that crying doesn't get you what you want instead of learning that it's OK to hit people. And when I hear a child crying I try to remember to smile at the mom and say "hang tough, honey."

Well...I will admit as a mother I was 'put on a leash' it was really a harness with a leash by my mother, who had 4 other kids to keep track of when we were in parking lots. She kept us safe and I remember...the 'to keep you safe speech' before we put the harnesses that came in all sorts of colors to match our dresses, every time she put it on us. I am a safety nut, so that doesn't bother me, if a stroller doesn't work.

The physical hitting of anyone, period, is simply defined as assault. May God bless any soul that places a hand on my child in appropriately - they will be begging for the police to save them from me.

I'm sorry all you mommies and daddies out there but I'm sick of parents who are unable to control their children. If the child has an ear infection, who's fault is that? Shouldn't you be taking them to the doctor and/or keeping the child home? I've had children slapping me and shooting me with their play guns yelling 'bang you're dead!' and the parents do NOTHING. I'm sorry people, but I do NOT want to be around these children when they grow up to become spoiled adults. This man did what I ALWAYS want to do when a child is screaming and the parent is doing nothing. I only wish I had the guts like he does. Oh, and PS, I'm a early 30's female who is sensitive to everyone, not some mean old guy.

I hate bratty kids and their incessant, annoying, loud, disturbing noises, wails, screams and cries. I don't blame the guy for losing it. I usually go to Wal-Mart late night when I know all the brats are sleeping. Sometimes I encounter a stupid redneck who drags her brats out in the middle of the night, though, to disturb everyone who doesn't have kids and we have to listen to the crap. Kids suck because of their parents not disciplining them properly. A kid who cries for no reason needs slapped. If a mother takes a sick kid out, then she should be punished, not only for cruelty, but for exposing everyone to the brat's germs.

My husband bought a "leash" for our toddler. It's actually a backpack that has a detachable strap on it. I was originally against it, but she LOVES it. A lot of places aren't stroller-friendly, and once kids get to a certain age they want to be able to walk around. Clearly, at 2, she's not at an age where we would let her run amok, which is exactly what she wants to do. We've heard negative comments (like from the person above), but as a parent, I have to do what feels like a good fit for my child. She's a runner, she's a darter, and she loves to be outside. I cannot always be carrying aan extremely active, 32 lb person, nor can I always use a stroller (at the Aquarium, for instance, strollers are not allowed). If the "leash" prevents her from experiencing something truly horrible, like getting hit by a car in a parking lot or being snatched up by a stranger, then we're going to do it. If I've learned anything as a parent, it's that you will never be able to please everybody. Someone will always have a critical word. You just have to suck it up and do right by your kids. And just FYI, if someone even hinted that they were going to "shut" my kid up, you would see ME on the evening news.

I remember carrying my crying son out of Target and all these people were sneering at me. "Oh, I LIKE it when he cries!" I shouted. "Sometimes, when he's quiet and cooing, I pinch him JUST because I like it SO much!!!!"

I like to think I would have opened a can of WhoopAss on that horrible man.

My girlfriend keeps me on a leash and I hardly even notice it except when I spin around too much and get all tangled up.

Children should not be on leashes! They should be in zoos.

Owl Meat GitAlongLittleDoggie,

Don't you make me drag you out of the store kicking and yelling again.

I am so happy to hear that so many of you adults were pure angels when you were children!

And clearly, the adults who are bereading parents for allowing their children to get ear infections or illnesses, are extremely familiar with parenting.

Because once in a while, a child will have an ear infection with no visible symptoms until they usually develop a fever.

Oh, and yes, those bad moms are terrible people when they must take their child straight from the doctor to get an antibiotic filled and "disturb" the other shoppers with their child's crankiness.

Geez. I am shocked at how judgmental some of the comments are -- mostly toward the mother? It's crazy. What's sick is a man slapping a 2 year old girl-- NOT even his own -- NOT just once, but four or five times? Obviously, he really has some self-control.

I am glad so many of you adults popped out of the womb fully grown, and never needed to experience childhood.

(And yes, I agree with the fact that kids are spoiled, as the mom of two young boys, I am very proactive in preventing my children from "disturbing" other people in restauraunts. But in a Wal-Mart for crying? Wow. Why don't we just muzzle 'em all whenever they step out of the house?! They'll develop some wonderful self-control and excellent social skills).

Give me a break, people. :)

Clearly, we have a long way to go before we are a decent and caring society, judging my many of the comments here.

This is a result of the public not knowing how to control their kids. Whether dumping them off to grandparents, aunts, or even themselves, parents let themselves be run by their own kids. Just wait until later when their kids are causing trouble and the parents are either too scared, purposely ignorant, or don’t care. Others get fed up and parents need to understand that their kids are not the center of everyone’s universe. Stephens’ actions are not tolerable but they are understandable.

Yes, I am bringing race into the discussion!
If had been some blue eyed, fair haired,
brat, the ENTIRE WORLD would be screaming "guillotine, guillotine" for that jerk.
Nancy Grace would have been crying hysterically while loading her shotgun!

How dare a total stranger physically
discipline someone's child!

There's absolutely no excusing, condoning, justifying, understanding, sanctioning, etc, that bully's behavior!!!!!

So... let me get this straight. This is what I am hearing:

On one hand, we are supposed to "mind our own children" and teach them about behaving, yet none of you want to witness it while you are out and about in the world. You insist that people constantly let their kids run amock; a crying child is usually the result of careless parents. So, we are supposed to keep them bound and gagged in public.

Or, we just don't let them out of the house.

Then, in the last comment, we have a man who thinks parents are horrible if we drop them off at a nanny's or grandmother's home who undoubtedly must be doing an inattentive job.

Do you think we would, by chance, be dropping them off to run errands in peace because (God forbid) our child gets hurt or tired and makes a peep in public... then we get the evil eye from people like you? Or a smackdown? LOL. What happens if we run out of milk, or need some band-aids, and no one can watch the kids?

The point is, it's a lose-lose situation. Parents are damned if they do (drop the kids off to run an errand and spare all of your caring eyes and ears) and damned if they don't (don't drop them off, and their kid makes a noise in a store).

I hope you see your double standards here.

We are not supposed to bring our children in public where, yes, they may cry (anyone ever think maybe the little girl had just stubbed her toe? The assumptions here are insane).

Maybe the little girl was being naughty, maybe she had a boo-boo. I know, being the clutz that I am, have hurt myself in public several times and it's all I can do from throwing a tantrum myself. ;)

Apparently, you judgmental people were either a) perfectly behaved children ALL of the time, b) never left your home, or c) popped out of the womb fully grown and oh-so-well-adapated.

Then again, we are not supposed to let our children be "reared" by someone else -- although, in life, children will also have to learn how to deal with other people, whether it be with a babysitter, a teacher, or a spouse.

Apparently, Bill thinks most care-givers do a crappy job -- parents included. Bill must not realize that sometimes, you absolutely NEED help and sometimes, yes, we are all not perfect parents, because LIFE HAPPENS.

For example, when you have two kids, just moved across the country for a new job, don't know anyone, and your one son is in the hospital with an asthma attack... Or when you need to get medicine or go to the doctor (ever try doing a urine test holding a baby on your lap? Not easy).

At least, that's what I THINK you are trying to say, Bill. Your grammar is a little confusing there, my friend.

It just is completely nonsensical that you people are moaning about how "bad" kids are, yet nobody wants to be proactive in the situation --- unless it involves beating the tar out of a child to make it behave.

Yes, kids can be like little animals. But they need to be taught and will live by example. Yes, there are many parents whose actions I would not agree with; but that does not mean I am going to treat their child poorly. They are living by example. The best I can do is show them how I treat my child.

Point being, if you want the generations of tomorrow to turn out well, we ALL need to set examples -- whether we are parents or not. This means not whacking a stranger.

What to we teach kids? Don't hit other kids. Yet, here is this moron, slapping someone else's 2 year old. Gee, that's really setting a good example. Let's breed the idea that violence against strangers cures disagreements.

From the way many of the comments read here, it is frightening the direction society is going in. What happened to tolerance, respect, do unto others...?

There is a better way to teach a lesson here. And you simply can't group all (or even most) parents into the "careless" group.

It is a sad state of affairs when people state that slapping a stranger's child is "not tolerable but understandable." Understandable?

Whether you are a parent or not, most kids observe and will learn. This is not strictly a generational thing. There have always been bad "seeds." That means society -- as a whole, if you want to be a functioning part of society -- all plays a part in child-rearing.

And the last time I checked, we were all part of the human race.

(Well, some of you... I am really not so sure about). :P

Don't worry Bill, I won't be dropping my kid off at your house.

What an IDIOT! If he was so annoyed by the brat's crying,he could've gone to another section of that store,until ethier the mother and child leave that section,they leave the store,or the brat stopped crying.
That "Dirtbag" should consider the consequences of him hitting that kid.He could face a civil suit,and have his wages garnished.The toddler's future college education could be paid for,while the quality of his future retirement is going to be adversely affected,because he didn't practice proper "Anger Management".
When my lady and I go to "Wally World",as Wal Mart is sometimes called,when a kid is making a racket,I'll say this to her:"Are you done shopping yet? That screaming kid is driving me 'Bats',so let go to the checkout lines,and get the hell out of here!" Mr. Stephens... that is how you handle a siuation like that. Not hitting someone else screaming offspring. Now thanks to you,you might have a civil suit against you,and all or part of her college educationwill be paid for,because of a civil suit that may be placed against you.Next time, you might consider the consequenses of your actions,before you assault someone,especially a toddler.