hit me again... please!

By Phil Lawler ( bio - articles - email ) | Jul 02, 2009

 When I was a teenager, attending a high school staffed by the Christian Brothers of Ireland, we laughed when we said that the "ICB" stood for "International Child Beaters." Sure, we were all acquainted with "the strap" and "the stick." Discipline was strict; corporal punishment was routine. But it was a good school, a generally healthy atmosphere, a solid education. I look back on those days with pleasure and with gratitude-- even if I do still wince when I remember Brother O'Sullivan's windup.

In light of the Ryan Report, unfortunately, it's not so easy to chuckle about physical punishment administered by the Christian Brothers. 

Still let's keep things in perspective. Times have changed. The Christian Brothers have changed. 

And frankly sometimes, when I see what they're doing today, I long for the good old days when they were just beating the tar out of us. The pain goes away sooner than the embarrassment.