R: Reinstate the Cane

Is corporal punishment cruel? Even if it may be, does the state have the right to regulate its use? What should the status of children be, exactly, relative to their parents? Does the United Nations have the right to claim to be the defender of children worldwide, or does ideology plague its very stances (and existence)? These questions only begin to scrape at the surface of the many issues underlying modern takes on corporal punishment. Was it ever really that bad? How much of current beliefs are based on history - and how much are based on artificially constructed narrative? What is the efficacy of the cane for instilling discipline? How about for causing permanent emotional trauma?