Who is looking out for Adrian Peterson’s child?

Adrian Peterson’s latest public admission to Bleacher Report that “I had to discipline my son and spank him with a belt,” didn’t cause much of a stir. I read it in an area paper on Nov. 22.

Apparently, there is no one able or willing or interested enough to protect this little boy from the excesses of the physically abusive father, Peterson. A big guy, Peterson is known for his considerable abilities as a NFL running back, currently plying his trade with the Washington Redskins.

He used to be a very hot property, a high draft choice of the Minnesota Vikings out of the University of Oklahoma. He performed spectacularly as a pro. And then, in 2014, Peterson was charged with felony child abuse, accused of using what he called a “switch” on the bare skin of his four-yearold son until blood ran freely from the child’s backside, testicles and legs. According to the Nov. 22 newspaper story, under a plea deal, he eventually was charged with misdemeanor reckless assault. The NFL suspended him and he was out most of the 2014 season. After stints with the Saints and Cardinals, Peterson landed with the Redskins and appears to be having a good football year.

Maybe I missed them, but since Nov. 22 I haven’t seen any updates about Peterson’s abusive behavior toward the child (he has fathered other children, too), who would be 8 years old now, if my arithmetic is correct. When you’re 8, you’re still a little kid, and a belt or a whistling switch, hurts just as much and draws as much blood.

I hope the child is all right and will be all right. One does not have to be a bleeding heart to hope fervently that someone will step forward to rescue him. One just has to have a heart.

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Channel 30 newscaster Gerry Brooks, one of the good guys and a real pro, has retired. The station gave him a fine on-air send-off a few nights ago. Gerry is a friend, the type of guy who always had a good word for everyone and a man of integrity.

Another prominent Connecticut newsman and radio personality, Torrington’s Dan Lovallo, who is semi-retired, is good friends with Brooks. Dan, a member with Jeff Dooley of the Hartford Yard Goats baseball broadcasting team, said, “Back in August, the Yard Goats honored Gerry one night. He came up to the press box in the middle of the seventh inning and sang ‘Take Me Out to the Ball Game’ with me.”

Through a long and extraordinary baseball broadcasting career, Dan, a man with a strong set of pipes, would lead the

crowd in singing the National Anthem and Take Me Out to the Ball Game.

These days, he writes daily posts on his podcast. His website is sportscasterdan.com. Check it out. He is also hooking up with Dooley to broadcast University of Hartford men’s and women’s basketball games. ⏩⏩⏩

Finally, here’s a big Hooray for Connecticut’s Suzy Whaley, sworn in Nov. 9 as the first woman president of the PGA of America. Whaley is director of golf at Suzy Whaley Golf in Cromwell. Long a respected state and national figure as a player and teacher, Suzy, 51, is originally from Syracuse, N.Y.

About the time she was being sworn in, Vijay Singh was winning the Charles Schwab Cup tournament in Phoenix. It was Singh who voiced displeasure a few years ago when it was announced the Whaley and another woman golfer had been given exemptions and would play in PGA men’s tournaments.

So my question is: How does Singh feel about Whaley’s election to the PGA presidency?