You made me stop and think ttdtt.
You are absolutely right, the title 'Teaching children to obey' is offensive. Imagine a child educator coming out with a book of that title.
We are their guardians and there to guide our children. At the very least, a more appropriate title would be 'Guiding your child to do what is right'. Even the use of the word 'children' makes it more impersonal.
We are not their bosses, to bully them around with whatever whim we wish to inflict on them. Even in various sectors of the business world, the term boss is being less used and replaced by terms such as Team Leaders or Supervisors.
As you mentioned, they play the same game with the sheepie's, they demand obedience rather than guiding them and the discipline is severe.
They have set up their own little Kingdom, based on the ancient Israelites with their strict laws and punishment for breaking them. The bible talks about a New Covenant where laws are written in people's hearts, this doesn't require the control that they practice. However, they don't believe the sheepie's are in this New Covenant and therefore don't have the law written in their hearts and no doubt, they feel they have the duty to Lord it over them. No wonder they want parents to be strict and calculating, insisting on obedience and inflicting punishment when they disobey when it comes to teaching their own children.
Of course, discipline should never be unreasonable or abusive. On the other hand, it should not be vague or inconsequential, leaving the child with no incentive to change
Employing discipline is not always necessary and probably should be viewed as a last resort, depending on the situation. Often times, explaining the dangers or the consequences of their actions or the displeasure that it causes other people is sufficient. There are many times when the child already knows what they have done is wrong, guiding them to behave rather than discipline is much more beneficial. The article is not balanced.