I attended the same High School as you in the 1970’s. As in your time the cane was administered in doses of 2, 4 and 6 “cuts”. The number had less to do with the severity of the offence as the truculence of the teacher. This begs the question, Jeff. How did you get 11 in one day?

Jeff - you're not the Messiah, you were just a very naughty boy! (Life of Brian, Monty Python)

The cane never permanently hurt anyone, look at you Jeff, a fine upstanding person of the community....I say bring it back or at least something of it's equivalent.... just the threat of the cane kept me in line (i never felt the wrath of it though)...the lack of discipline, disrespect of authority and general lack of responsibility for one's own actions probably coincided with the demise of the cane. .. on a side note, I am sure that you are still naughty to this day and could use a good caning..any volunteers???

Wow Jeff that's a bit cruel. I watched a documentary last night about Fairbridge School near Molong, and the story was harrowing and yes I think I can use the word outraged. I absolutely am very thankful that I was brought up in a loving family with two parents who loved (and still do) me very much. I hope that I provide a loving and stable upbringing for my bubba. The biggest problem the victims of these institutions feel is the lack of official recognition of their suffering. Some of them were able to build loving families of their own, but they always carried the guilt the hurt and the outrage. But what burns the most is when they go looking for an apology or yes compensation they get sidelined. One of my neighbours was a victim of a catholic run orphanage and he is still fighting to this day for some sort of apology.

What about a sorry day for all those in the past who got the size 10 up the backside by the local rotund Police Sergeant for playing up on the streets and then got another when re-telling of the incident to our fathers. Emotionally scarred me for life. Learning manners and behaviour the old way they called it.

Personally I think your belittling the stolen & forgotten ones but hey, I'll join in anyway. There is no way on earth that a sorry day is needed for the caned generation, what is needed is to bring the cane back along with some hard-arsed teachers and coppers to inflict some discipline on our current crop of little darlings. I copped the cane and it taught me respect, something our youth are severely lacking in today.

MizJasper - at a lot of Catholic boarding schools it seems students also got a size (something) up the backside too, but not by the Police.

The events of yesterday just show how meaningless the Aboriginal apology was. Kevin07 is such a fake.

i demand an apology from the current government for subjecting us to tracey grimshaw and anna coren, and the verbal diahrea that proceeds from their mouths. also i would like to suggest all kids who copped the cane at school are allowed a healing session with the teacher who gave us the cane where we would have 5 mins each to go like stink on the tools with a cane ourselves.

Jeff, you being caned so frequently only re-enforces the fact that it does not work. What the major problem was the Priests and other teachers getting so much pleasure from administering it. As you no doubt have worked out as you got older, some teachers actually got off on the brutality. Maybe as in other historical abuse cases these child abuses should be brought before the court.