WHY?

Two year old Avery Denzinger is going to grow up without her daddy. Her father Frank was buried yesterday after being shot and killed while trying to do his job. Frank was a sheriff's deputy who responded to a domestic violence call and was gunned down by a 15 year old kid, who shot Deputy Denzinger in the back from his bedroom window, and then reported his deed on his myspace page before killing himself. And the only question anyone can ask is WHY?

Why did a kid who was scheduled for a hearing in court the next day on a drug charge still have a computer and internet access in his bedroom? If my children ever are required to appear in court on any kind of charge while they are still under my roof they are going to be hoping for jail because at least there you have cable television.

Why in a house where arguments became so intense that officers had to be called to the home to calm disputes several times, did a teenager have access to a loaded weapon? If you have so little control over your kid that you sometimes have to have police back-up don't you think perhaps it would be wise to disarm them.

I don't mean to pile on the family of this kid who I am sure feel awful about what happened and will be burying their own son soon, but it just happens too often that innocent people and their families are being destroyed by these troubled souls and I am not sure feeling bad after the fact is enough anymore. Why can't we stop this?

Why do these people who for whatever reason decide to end their own lives have to destroy other lives along the way? Why do they find it so easy to throw away human life? No reason is good enough for me anymore. They make the choice to kill and especially in cases where they have no relationship with their victims we need to stop justifying it. I don't care if kids picked on them. I don't care if their daddy didn't love them. I just don't care.

I think what made me so angry was when I was reading about this story on courier-journal.com they had a link to the shooter's myspace page and on it were all these messages from kids writing about what a great guy this kid was and how the media was getting it all wrong. The only mention of the incident seemed to be references to the "choice" he had made. The "choice" he made was to shoot an innocent father in the back and then inform his friends about it on the internet. When he made this "choice" Tyler Dumstorf became a murderer. And then he took the easy way out so that when Avery Denzinger grows up there won't be anybody to answer WHY?

BO KNOWS that prior to any marriage a full season of 48 Hours Mystery should be required viewing. I think if more people watched this show they would realize when you kill your spouse/significant other you will get caught. How many times is this going to happen before people wise up? I knew the first time I saw the story of missing Jessie Davis the boyfriend would end up the killer and today they arrested him. How stupid can you be? You can't get away with a crime where you are automatically the #1 suspect. Haven't these people ever heard the old saying " Women, can't live with them, Can't kill them without getting arrested."

BO KNOWS despite attempts to create some drama for this Tuesday's NBA draft Greg Oden is going to be the first pick.

BO KNOWS how to solve the Lakers problems. It is obvious now that Kobe is running down his teammates to complete strangers in mall parking lots that this is not going to work. ESPN's Ric Bucher who seems to have become the accepted authority on Bryant said on a Podcast the other night that there was zero percent chance Kobe would open the season as a Laker. So I say we blow the whole thing up and start over. We trade Odom, Bynum, and Farmar to the Nets for Jason Kidd. (I know the Nets say they are keeping him but teams always say that). We trade Kobe in a three way deal that sends him to Chicago, sends a package of Bulls and our number 19 pick to Minnesota and brings Kevin Garnett and the number 7 pick to LA. (I would really like to deal him and 19 straight to Minnesota for KG and 7 but what Kobe fails to mention in his trade demand is that he has a no trade clause which allows him to veto any deal. So why he claims to want out of LA, really he is only going to accept deals that send him to Chicago, Phoenix or Dallas making it almost impossible for the Lakers to get fair value.) With the seven pick the Lakers take Cory Brewer. This would give us a starting line-up of Kidd, Brewer, Walton, KG and Mihm/Brown. It gives us two superstars to sell tickets and we can make a three year run at which time we would have two aging veterans with huge expiring contracts and if they can't win we hold on to the cap room to sign free agents. There will be some big names available around this time, LeBron, Wade possibly Durant and Oden.

BO KNOWS despite brutal reviews Evan Almighty will be a huge money maker. Steve Carrell (shown here as depicted in the Office video game) is one of the most popular stars around and the animal angle makes it seem like an OK movie for kids, That combination should guarantee success although I still question 175 million dollar budget for a comedy.

BO KNOWS people are desperate to lose weight without doing the required dieting and exercising, but what risks are they really willing to take. There is a multi-million dollar ad campaign going on to promote some new diet drug called Alli. The drug stops your body from absorbing much of the fat you consume. There is however according to some reports the small chance you will experience a side effect they are calling "leakage". Now I think two of the major reasons people want to lose weight is to look good or to feel more confident. I think any benefits I would get in either area would be negated by the fact that I could crap my pants at any moment. I think this will be a problem. Talk to you next week.

FATHER'S DAY

My son is 3 years old now, but somehow this still doesn't seem like my day. It still feels like a day reserved for much older men for whom there is no gift they need so you give them some piece of crap they neither need nor want hoping they understand what it means.

I suppose I am just in denial. In some ways it seems like yesterday I was swigging Wild Turkey like it was water and barely feeling bad about it the next day. But at the same time that young man living in UK dorms and dreaming of a career in sports television seems like a completely different person. Like some story I read or show that I saw.

It is probably time to get a grip on reality. It is time to quit seeing myself as the kid and come to accept the Diet-Pepsi drinking, Khakis wearing, cartoon watching, sidewalk chalk drawing Dad I have become. I make my living teaching about places I've never been and coaching a game I never could really play. But it feels right, so it is all good.

I know one thing, Father's Day does make you reflect on just how much your life has changed. I remember camping out all night on a Lexington sidewalk for tickets to a Garth Brooks concert and coming away from the window so excited to be in the lower level, and recently I was offered a chance to buy PlayHouse Disney LIVE! seats before they go on sale. I did it with my credit card over the internet and I think I was just as excited. We are in row A.

I remember going to King's Island and riding every roller coaster in the place as many times as I could get through line until they closed the park down. I took my son to the local amusement park on Friday. We rode two merry-go-rounds about five times each,sat on a ferris wheel that went up about 12 feet, and watched the Bugs Bunny show three times. I had a blast.

The weirdest part about being a Father is how to a good part of the world I have lost my identity other than in relation to my son. That became apparent the other day as I was leaving day care after dropping him off and a little girl on her way in stopped to say, "Hi Evan's Daddy."

And now I can confirm that there is another little one on the way. We are hoping for a girl. So that old guy I thought this day was for, hell, I guess it is me. So to any other Father who may see this, enjoy your day.

BO KNOWS the Sopranos Finale has been done to death this week but I feel the need for a few comments. I think people have to understand in general the population doesn't view paintings, or admire sculptures, or even read a damn book. In general we have rejected any form of art that requires thinking and discussion. So if our most popular medium, TV, wants to throw in something every once in awhile that requires these things I am OK with that. I would even encourage it. I have read a lot about the show this week and what makes me mad about the finale is how much brilliant work was overlooked because of the preoccupation with that last scene. I thought it felt a little rushed and the editing a little choppy but we learned a lot about these characters from some of these scenes and what was amazing was in many cases they didn't say a word. You have to love actors who can really say so much without speaking. My three favorite moments.

1. The look of disgust Carmela gives Tony as he goes into his sob story at the therapist's office.

2. The look of sadness Tony gives Meadow when he finds out her career choice was guided by the fact she felt he has been wronged in some way.

3. And my favorite moment was the look of relief on Tony's face when he realizes maybe in the end you can just forget all the shit you have done like Junior.

As for that final scene I think it is good they left it up to us. By not showing Tony's death they didn't cheat us out of the ending. They let us have the ending we wanted. Maybe it says something about us as people whether we need Tony to die for all his crimes or whether we want him somehow to survive all this and continue his life. Or maybe it's just a TV show.

BO KNOWS I seem to live in a nice quiet neighborhood. The kind of place where I always forget to close my garage and all my shit is still there in the morning. But the local news did a story this week about my area where they showed cops riding around five minutes from my house looking for drug dealers and prostitutes. Particularly scary was the fact they showed cops going into an apartment complex that I frequently entered in my pizza delivery days. I would go there at midnight with 300 dollars in my pocket. The cops now won't enter it alone at 2 in the afternoon. I think this is a problem.

BO KNOWS I can't remember a single thing I learned from Mr. Wizard, but I do remember watching him as a child and it was sad to hear that he is gone.

BO KNOWS I can't wait to see how this Randy Moss story plays out in New England. All the press this week was good, but it will be a good story either way. Either we are going to see one of the great career resurrections in football history or I am going to be able to joke on whoever in the fantasy football league thought we were going to and took this guy in the first round.

BO KNOWS the NBA Finals were boring. Bill Simmons of ESPN.com's Page 2 brought up a great point this week. For the few NBA fans left, and by the ratings there aren't many of us, the off-season player moves and the draft have become more interesting than the actual competition on the floor. I think this is a problem, but I have no clue how to fix it.

BO KNOWS pro athletes seem like nothing but self centered money grubbers these days but if you need a nice story about sports check out Rick Reilly's column on the last page of Sports Illustrated this week. I was going to link it for you but for some reason SI's most recent Reilly post is a column from May. That is stupid.

BO KNOWS those of you seeking motivation to diet should go to an amusement park and play the guess your weight game. Nothing brings how fat you are to reality quicker than watching that four foot red needle spin towards 250 on the face of that 20 foot scale. I got two things from the experience a plush snake and the desire to lose 60 pounds. I think I'll start tomorrow. Talk to you next week.

It has been a long time since I have posted any thoughts but I thought it would be good to get back into the swing. Since I created this blog to write to my fantasy football crew and I will get back to doing that once the season starts it will be my intent to post something each Sunday morning. If you would like to check it out please do so and if not that is OK too as I really just feel an urge to get back to writing something even if only I read it. I think I will write about one main idea each week and then put a few random thoughts at the end keeping with the BO KNOWS theme so here we go with a topic I must address even though I am late ---KOBE BRYANT

As most of you know because it was all over the news a few weeks back Kobe Bryant demanded a trade or declared he never wanted to leave LA depending on what time of day you were listening to the radio. I know he is probably the greatest talent playing the game today, but I have had enough of this guy. Let us face the truth, ever since he got away with rape you have to feel a little dirty pulling for this guy. Not to mention what is more important to me as far as watching basketball is he is just a bad teammate who plays the game selfishly and takes a lot of the fun out of rooting for a team I have loved since way before he came around. Things just haven't felt right since Dr. Buss traded an upstanding citizen to another city where he won a title, and kept this piece of shit who can't get us out of the first round and now after wanting so badly to be the man wants out to play for a better team. Are you kidding me? I have just one comment to that. Good Riddance. I would offer him to Portland or Seattle for the number one or number two pick and when they wisely decline the offer I would trade him straight up to Minnesota for Garnett. We won't be any better but we will be better off.

BO KNOWS the Soprano finale will be great tonight, but I really have no clue what they will do. I am a little upset I will be away at a basketball camp and won't get to see it. What are the chances I can make it home without finding out what happened. Everyone is making predictions so I will make one on the big questions. I think Tony lives.

BO KNOWS I am probably about three years behind the rest of the world which makes sense since my son turned three this year, but I finally got around to seeing the SAW movies this week and even though I went in wanting to hate them I must confess they were very entertaining films. I was expecting a slasher film and was surprised. They are not as bloody as I thought and way more interesting than I anticipated.

BO KNOWS if you have kids you should go see Surf's Up. If you have to watch kids films anyways this one was pretty good. I thought it was better than Happy Feet or Shrek the Third.

BO KNOWS he is tired. The family was on vacation this week so we took a series of day trips. I have been to King's Island, Holiday World, and Kentucky Kingdom this week. And now I am off for three days at Transylvania University for a high school basketball camp. I am looking forward to a few days around the house next week, but I can't complain too much as I will only have 8 more weeks off after this one and BO KNOWS that is a good thing. Have a great week.

Hello

Just a quick one to see if anyone is still visiting this space. I apologize for the lack of updates the last few weeks but a weekend trip to Gatlinburg a few weeks ago has left me hopelessly behind in all matters home and school and so I have been working what seems like non-stop to catch up. Note to self --no trips during the school year. Too much to do.
Steve Young would say I have been "laissez-faire" about keeping up with my column. Young has been taking some heat in the press this week for making comments regarding the upbringing of Chris Simms. But that does not bother me nearly as much as him throwing around the term "laissez-faire" on a football pre-game show. This guy is Dennis Miller without the jokes. We get it Steve. You went to college. You are not a dumb jock. Now stop using out of date French economic terms to describe the personal lives of people you know nothing about just because you like to sound smart.
With a 2-9 record it appears the season has hopelessly passed me by. And now I am fearing the game has passed me by altogether. I haven't made picks in a month and the Bs are cracking jokes I no longer understand. What a strange season this has been.
I do know this, the playoff race remains tight with two weeks left in the regular season there are many tewams that could still sneak in. And what sweet revenge for Eye of the Tiger, who all season was questioned about going manning over Tomlinson and who recently defeated the Bs and stands with two weeks left with the best record in the league.
I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving and you enjoy the holiday season. It would be nice to have one get together before the season is over but I know with everyone's schedules it is difficult to do and with basketball season starting Monday my schedule is one of the tightest. But I would like to throw out the idea of either a football Sunday or a game night in a couple of weeks. The best weekend for me would be after school breaks for Christmas on the 16th. I suggest we either gather for games, appetizers and frosty beverages on Friday night the 16th OR have a Football Sunday with football, lunch and frosty beverages on the 18th. If either of those sounds good drop me a call or an e-mail and I will see what more people are interested in.
If I don't see you over the next few weeks Happy Holidays to everyone. Good luck those of you still looking for the trophy. GO TROJANS (not USC)

Welcome to Bo Knows

Half way through the season and it looks like a bunch of teams left to fight over one playoff spot unless something drastically changes in the next couple of weeks. A few sports notes first.
-I know most UK fans join me in hoping the football team doesn't somehow scrape a few more wins and give Barnhart an excuse to give his buddy another season. He should be looking over the country to find a new, young, energetic up and comer to build a program and keep the fan base entertained.
-The NCAA continues to drag its feet on the Randolph Morris case. The kid either took money or he didn't. Can we get a decision on this soon please. It would be great to have another big man for this season but I am not sure it would be great to get your team rolling into the conference season used to playing a certain way and suddenly drop Morris in the mix. It would be best for everyone concerned to know his penalty before the first game. ( and by the way. The idiots who advised this kid owe him an apology. It is too easy to blame a cocky 20 year old kid for a bad decision, but think about it, any 20 year old kid who is told he is good enough for the pros is probably going to like what he hears. But the people telling him this info had a responsibility to make sure they were correct about his first round status. If they weren't well connected enough to get assurances from a team or two that they would draft him if he was still available they should have played it safe and sent him back to school.)
-The NBA season starts this week so a few short notes on my favorite sport.
-Despite all the hype and big names Miami will not win the title.
-The Lakers will be much improved and will make the playoffs. They will be back in the top tier of teams before Phil's deal is over in 3 years. Kobe will make this work because he has to. If Phil blames him again this kid is painted as the punk who wouldn't play team ball forever. Especially if Miami gets a ring.
ON TO FOOTBALL........

KITCHEN BITCHES (6-1) The Bitches are set up well for the second half of the season. Despite his team woes Favre is FFL QB number 3. Her back-up Leftwich is being written about as a player to have in the second half because of his week schedule. The RB trio of Holmes, Barber and an underused Dunn is impressive. Plaxico was a steal in the late rounds of the draft. She keeps the number 2 ranked D on her bench. She can start a line-up of all players in the top ten at their position except one. MID-TERM GRADE A PLAYOFF CHANCES 99.9%

EYE OF THE TIGER (5-2) The "Manning mistake" on draft day becomes less and less obvious each day as he slowly climbs the QB ratings into the top ten. The problem is she is most vulnerable at RB with the starters barely holding in the top twenty. The rest of her line-up has been a pleasant surprise with three receivers in the top ten and Shockey finally becoming the TE he was expected to be when he was drafted. Mid-Term Grade: A- Playoff Chances 85%

THREE WIDE MEN (4-3) I would say with the big names on this roster Three Wide was expecting to be in a much better position at the mid point. Harrison has not put up the numbers of earlier seasons. Injuries to Burleson and Bruce have reduced the WR corps to weekly waiver pick-ups. The QB tandem of McNabb and Eli should be solid and at least one of his write-in draftees Heath Miller has been a pleasant surprise. Cadillac looked like he was going to be the man until injuries forced him out. If he can sneak a few wins until his team gets healthy he may be in a good position to take that playoff spot. MID TERM GRADE B Playoff Chances 60%

I Hate People (2-5) The Colts D and Lamont Jordan have been the only highlights of a miserable season for People. It doesn't look like a turn around is likely with the weapons he has, but he scored 106 last week and he has surprised us before. Mid Term Grade C (credit for working with a team he didn't choose) Playoff Chances 30%

Fromunda Cheese (1-6) Proof that you can't always go by the rankings the Cheese line-up this week features 5 players in the top ten at their position and a RB just on the outside at 12. Despite that he has 1 win this season and I don't see it getting much better. Mid Term Grade D- Playoff Chances 5%

King Bs (6-1) My only concern early in the season was Collins but he has been serviceable at QB. Tomlinson and Gates are 1 at their position and Bengals are two. T.O. has topped 90 points for the season and will probably only do better down the stretch. Jerry Lawler is his logo this week. What an amazing first season in the Football Sunday League. Mid Term B+ ( I couldn't resist) Playoff Chances 100%

The Grizz (4-3) A quick look at the line-up makes you think this team should be better than 4-3. Palmer and Johnson are the best combo in the league. The D and kicker are in the top five. Edge has worked his way back up into the top 3 backs in the league. But still the Grizz barely hang on to a chance for the last playoff spot. If Brown can emerge as a average RB for the rest of the season this team could have what it needs to grab that spot and cause trouble in the playoffs, but he needs to move now. The problem for the playoffs will be unless the Colts lose some games Edge could be watching a lot the last two weeks of the season. Mid Term Grade C Playoff Chances 70%

SITH HAPPENS (3-4) He has been the only one to upset the Bs run at perfection, he has the top WR group in the league with surprises Smith and the other Moss. Brunell has turned into a great pick-up, BUT everyone knows the key to a fantasy championship is usually in the running game and this week he goes three wide with Willie Parker as is only RB. To sum up he doesn't have Sith. MID TERM GRADE C Playoff Chances 40%

James Gang (2-5) Only three players ranked in the top ten on the entite team and one of them kicks field goals. Bad coaching decisions cost at least two wins he could have stolen, but lets face it the players just aren't there to win every week and make a real run. And with Bulger and J.Jones on the shelf things look really bad.
Mid-Term Grade D Playoff Chances 10%

WHOs the Man (2-5) Bledso turned into a nice find to replace disastrous draft pick Culpepper, but the only reason he even has two wins is a 25 point game by his top rated kicker. His only pleasure for the second half will be playing spoiler to some other teams trying to gain that playoff spot. Mid Term grade D+ Playoff Chances 5%

Picks Speed picks this week after a 2-3 week last week the season record is 20-15.
Bo knows these teams get closer to the second season this week
King Bs
I Hate People
Kitchen Bitches
The Grizz
Sith Happens