Yesterday, I witnessed an incident which showed me rather clearly how Western society is gradually derailing through Western mentality.
A boy (1) aged six was in the yard with a boy aged five when out of the blue Boy 1 punched boy 2 in the stomach causing him to fall down in pain.
The mother of boy 1 after saying "that's not nice please say sorry" to boy 2 did nothing except repeating herself a few more times in a rather & perplexingly soft tone considering what just happened. Boy 1 refused to apologise until his mother told her son that he'd not get an ice cream if he did not apologise. Only then did boy 1 go over to boy 2 & said sorry, clearly not meaning it.

I had to restrain myself from telling the mother that she is literally failing in disciplining her child & will cop the consequences of her her failing in a few years.

This wasn't a one-off. I've seen her son in action with others & he has a very nasty streak but mother refuses to see it & gets all offended when I tell her why not give him a clip behind the ears when the boy is clearly very nasty for his age.

To my eyes it was a clear example of how our society has been ruined by those academic social engineers who push for indiscipline for our own future detriment.

This mother might have handed her brat over to the government well before he turned 5 instead of raising him herself. I don't believe in abortion for any reasons other than a threat to the mother's survival, a serious disability detected in the unborn child, or rape.

But, a psychological test, followed by de-sexing if the test is failed, could be a good idea.

Thanks for fronting up with a pertinent topic, Indyvidual.

Indyvidual,

It's important to remember you are not this child's
parent. You need to be careful with the judgements
you're making and the words you're using to try
to get the mother to discipline her child. Some
parents may take offence at a stranger's attempts
to correct their child's behaviour.

As adults should we intervene and take sides?

When kids are having punch-ups among themselves it
is difficult to have a clear guide line as to whether
an adult should intervene or not. Kids will have
incidents when they fallout with others.

Some parents don't believe in adults intervening and
taking sides. They feel that kids have to learn from
their experiences how to stand up for themselves, how to
handle difficult situations and hopefully how to work
things out and get on with each other.

The consensus seems to be - that if a parent continues
to intervene and
defend then the child they're defending could
become dependent on adults sorting things out for them.
And in this way by intervening the adult could
damage the situation greatly.

Obviously, the behaviour of this child is causing you
stress.

However, if you've already pointed it out to the
mother that stronger discipline is needed - you've done
all that you could. Giving the child a "clip behind the
ear? " Many parents may find this objectionable. You can't
bash goodness into children. It usually has the opposite
result.

Indyvidual,

In the last generation, all traces of tough love and rule-bound parenting have been supplanted by a more empathetic style. The approach to bad behaviour is always therapeutic. Kids soon learn that they won't be punished, and that they don't need to take responsibility for their behaviour.

bash goodness into children
Foxy,
To take the phrase "a clip behind the ear" & twist it into the severe term of "bash" is a crystal clear indicator that you are actually part of & fostering the real problem that is the lack of discipline we're confronted by as a society.
What do you call a disciplining slap then ? Torture ?

There is a cause and effect argument with your confrontational scenario. Indyvidual.

In psychology studies, the ground is unclear if the character of a person is formed by environmental factors or is governed by genetic predisposition.
At times sibling rivalry has a robust outcome, (environmental): Behaviour is learned.
At other times, behaviour is innately expressed with spontaneity. (Genetic predisposition).
So that is a rough sketch of the two sources of natural character building resulting in differing predispositions and actions to environmental stimulus governing outcomes.

I have noted many children subjected to violent countermeasures by parents or authorities for that matter, which only entrenches their violent streak more firmly. The use of violence against violence can be counterproductive; it’s the endless argument!
On the other hand, a timid or submissive personality can be manipulated by violence with some ease and success.
It’s why extraction of confessions under torture are more easily and reliably extracted, depending on the personality type: Torture can be very successful, but not always guaranteed for positive conclusions.

The weak and submissive parent is soon manipulated by a strong willed child; that’s a human interaction outcome not necessarily related to the fall of the West, an unfolding event before our eyes I agree with you on.