Larken Rose

“Toward Freedom” is an Everything-Voluntary.com series sharing personal stories about the journey toward freedom. Archived stories can be found here. Submit your story to the editor. Originally published in The Voluntaryist, 1st Quarter 2012. I was raised in a conservative home, in a conservative town, with some libertarian leanings. I grew up thinking the good…

The Best Way

Guest post by Kerri Dame. I was inspired to create this blog post following a conversation with some of my lovely, intelligent, compassionate girlfriends the other day, wherein I was surprised that they all seemed to truly believe that physical punishment (spanking) is a necessary part of parenting. Because each child is different, sometimes they…

Might is Spite

Guest post by Ted Olson. I saw a mom pull a 3-year-old out of a shopping carriage by her tiny little biceps. As the toddler hung there, feet dangling, her mom murmured with rage and hatred, “If you ever do that again, you’re going to get it.” Mom plopped a teary-eyed child back into the…

Stuck in a Bad Pattern?

Guest post by Laura Markham. Sages say that raising children is one of the best paths to enlightenment because it stretches the heart and teaches us to love. Parents have daily opportunities to dig deep in search of patience and compassion. Luckily, we’re strongly motivated by our love for our children, so we stretch. Sometimes,…