Yes, but that doesn't necessarily mean that anyone who uses physical force to teach behavior is an idiot.
There are times when a point needs to be made to a child immediately and very clearly that something isn't okay. Spanking can be the best way to do that. It's best for younger children who are old enough to do dangerous things but not old enough to be reasoned with much yet.
For example, if I had a kid that was 2 or 3 that ran out into the road, I'd spank them, because it's important that I get the point across to them immediately and without room for misunderstanding that that's something that isn't okay to do. Pain is a good teacher because it gets down into our unconscious minds. We're biologically wired to avoid things that cause pain. A three year old probably won't understand if you sit down and explain to him why the street is dangerous and it's not okay to play in it, but he'll understand pretty fast that playing in the street makes his butt hurt and avoid it for that reason.
Which is why spanking is best used rarely.
That's fine, I'm not saying you have to spank your kids or you're a crappy parent or anything. There are many different ways to discipline a kid, and every parent will need to find what works for them.
It probably will bother me to have to spank my kid and make them cry. Just like it would bother me to take away their favorite toy and make them cry, or ground them and make them cry. But as a parent you have to discipline your kid, and it's going to make them unhappy when you do. And I intend to use the most effective tools available to do that, whatever those may be.
Yes, I do. I'm not sure why that's something to be ashamed of. Punishing your child is supposed to be unpleasant for the kid, otherwise it wouldn't be punishment. I'm not sure why so many people consider inflicting a little bit of physical pain which will fade in a couple of minutes at most to be such an awful thing. Why is that worse than taking away something they love as punishment? Doesn't that cause emotional pain? Why is that okay? Or grounding them in their room? When we do that in prisons it's called solitary confinement and people consider it cruel. Why is that okay to do to your kids?