Disney-comics digest #840.

[David A Gerstein]

	TODD regarding "The Rabbit's Foot," WDC&S 32:
	"The plot is a bit nastier than we think of as Barks, as well,
with [DD] planning to whip the boys at the end..."
	Actually, I think that what makes this moment particularly
harsh is that (A) Donald is using a metal-plated strap rather than the
usual tree branch, (B) Donald refers to "the licking of your lives,"
and (C) THE BOYS HAVEN'T DONE A THING TO DESERVE IT!  Every other time
we see DD chasing the boys with intent to spank them, they've at least
accidentally done something to pique his rage.  In WDC&S 32, DD simply
realizes they were right when he was wrong, and because he's mad, that
gives him the license to spank them for that.
	Van Horn has managed to get comments about DD spanking the
kids past Disney's editors in recent months, but for those of us who
aren't "name" creators yet, it's harder.  DD threatening to "whale the
blazes" out of the boys made it when I dialogued "The Hoard at the
Rainbow's End" (DDA 25);  DD stating that he'll "peel you kids like
onions," which was in my script for "A Car-Gone Conclusion" (DDA 31),
did not.  Why not?
	Do more parents spank their kids now than in years past?
Maybe it's that the question of what constitutes child abuse is more
important these days?  I always enjoyed DD's exaggerated threats to
the kids, but then my parents never peeled me like an onion, either.

	PER:
	I put our E-mail address in some letters to Disney letter
columns, but then those comics lost their letter columns.  They're
apparently going to get them back eventually, and I'll try again at
that point.

	David Gerstein
	<96dag at williams.edu>
	"Have a chestnut, boys! ... OW!"