Adrian Peterson was supposed to play football this weekend for the Minnesota Vikings.

Now he’s out of the game.

The All-Pro running back has been indicted on child brutality charges involving injuries suffered by his 4-year-old son when dear old Dad took a tree branch to him while disciplining him.

http://news.msn.com/crime-justice/vikings-place-adrian-peterson-on-exempt-list

This case has me vexed. Does it rise to the level of domestic violence acts being committed by other pro football players? No, but it’s serious and potentially tragic nonetheless.

I’m beginning to tilt more toward tough sanctions against this guy.

Think about what happened here: A 220-pound man takes a piece of wood to a 4-year-old boy and inflicts bodily injury on him. Does that constitute spanking the way most of us understand the term? Hardly.

I was spanked twice — I think — by my mother. Both times she used her hand. One incident I remember vividly occurred in the back seat of a car in which she actually “turned me over her knee” and gave me a serious walloping.

Peterson’s use of a tree branch goes beyond what I understand to be spanking.

The Vikings now have placed him on some sort of “exempt” list, which bars him from all team activities while this case is being investigated. Sponsors are pulling their endorsements from the team, costing the Vikings considerable amounts of money. Fans are protesting against the team; I suspect there might be a fan boycott if the Vikings reinstate Peterson too soon.

Yes, this is a serious matter that deserves serious attention.

The Vikings are giving it all the attention it deserves, which is a lot.