Really interesting post. Maybe because the only binary division of humans I've ever been tempted to believe in is that between Cat People and Dog People, and I'm the latter.
On the homo sapiens front, too, your post made a lot of sense. I think I was being prickly because I've seen way too many gringos over the years who take any manifestation of corporal punishment as a mark of backwardness and of course of their own superiority. But you, Carrol and Christopher R. D. were making good distinctions that bring wider context into the picture. (Though C.R.D. is rather quicker to attribute the distinction to sweeping premodern/modern divides than I'll ever be. I tell you: dog people/cat people, it's the only binary that holds any weight...)
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