Disciplining Techniques That Work

From What to Expect : the toddler years

2. Make the punishment fit the crime
It's virtually impossible for a young toddler to understand that television privileges are being revoked because of a crayon masterpiece drawn on the living-room wall. Your child is much more likely to get your point if you take the crayons away immediately and don't return them until after lunch (and then don't forget to include a pad of drawing paper). There is almost always a way to fit the punishment to the crime...

Sounds like reasonable advice. But who will carry it to Mr L K Advani? He needs it. Look at this column in the Economic Times. The relevant part is here:

L K Advani told a television interviewer that BJP will oppose VAT despite not having any fundamental problems with it.

Advani said his party will have no option but to oppose such reforms initiative if the Congress party behaves the way it did in Goa or Jharkhand. After this statement, the BJP-ruled states have decided not to implement VAT from April 1.

Even if one assumes for a moment that the Congress had badly goofed up in Goa and Jharkhand, on what basis do you link these events with the implementation of VAT?

I'm not hinting that Mr Chidambaram or Mr Manmohan Singh or anyone in the government is a toddler going through the "Terrible Two's", but the principle is good enough for adults too I imagine.

Could it be that the sudden aloofness over VAT is not due to political cussedness, and the traders, who are a traditional base of the party, are responsible? If yes, this could be just another free electricity scheme for the traders.