|
Dear Member:
As a friend and supporter of this campaign, you share the credit for helping break the silence that enables child abuse. Thank you!
2000 years ago, the Roman scholar Quintilian said this about spanking children: It "unnerves and depresses the mind and leads the child to loathe the light and shun the light of day." Modern-day experts using slightly different language say the same thing. Now, finally, the ugly truth about what happens to children when they are battered by their caretakers is becoming part of mainstream thinking. People who hit children, and who defend others who hit children, are becoming more shrill as they find themselves increasingly marginalized. But they are becoming fewer.
My purpose in writing to you today is to request your support. Demand for our principal publication, the 16-page booklet, Plain Talk About Spanking, is escalating at a faster rate than we can afford to reprint. As you know, Plain Talk is given free of charge. Professionals in child-related fields can get them in quantity, also free. We print a five-month supply of 10,000 booklets at a cost of $2,730, and mail them at a cost of $1,325. In the past, we've managed to balance expenditures with income. But now, the increasing number of requests -- sometimes urgent requests -- for our booklet has upset that balance. It's the price of success!
Some friends have suggested we charge a modest fee to help offset costs. But I am convinced that keeping it free serves to protect some children who would not otherwise be protected. When one compares the 27-cent cost per booklet to the safety of a child, there's no argument. If we all chip in whatever amount we are comfortable with, I am confident we can continue to fill requests, as we have since we first offered the booklet in 1992.
If you aren't familiar with Plain Talk, you can read it online at www.nospank.net/pt2008.htm. If you would like to read typical letters of endorsement from professionals who use it, click on these links: www.nospank.net/lever.pdf,
www.nospank.net/bensinger.pdf,
www.nospank.net/kaye.pdf,
www.nospank.net/janis.pdf,
www.nospank.net/frc.pdf.
If you would like a copy, tell us where to mail it. If your organization needs a quantity, tell us how many and where. We'll send them as soon as the next batch are printed.
If you have questions, comments or advice, don't hesitate to call or email. Contact information is below.
Thank you for caring about the children.
Jordan Riak, Exec. Dir.
riak@nospank.net
|