Why Corporal Punishment is Wrong2

When we (UK ) abolished corporal punishment we literally started from the bottom upwards, and then stopped, no pun intended.
I fail to see how a few strokes of the cane can be described variously as, an infringement of human rights, degrading, perpetuating violence, and all other arguments, while the possession, and presumably the will to use, Trident missiles is ok.
I am no pacifist. I am quite prepared fro my country to be armed to the teeth. I can’t though envisage any scenario in which a British prime minister will unliterary deploy Trident missiles. Nor do I have any idea against whom these missiles of mass destruction are to be deployed.