This time of year is filled with so many emotions. The happiness of being with friends and family makes all the necessary work a labor of love. We at Askcherlock have much for which we are grateful. After some serious health scares that turned out to be all right, we are thankful for good health, and send prayers and good wishes to those whose health may not be good. Please know you are in our thoughts.
We have met new people through this blog and other blogging venues. I hold each …

Over the last week the U.S. military officially pulled out of Iraq after almost ten years of war and occupation.  The last of the remaining combat troops and equipment were moved across the border to Kuwait, and loaded on board vessels for the trip home to America.  There were no triumphant  speeches from American politicians, nor were there jubilant celebrations by the military for their great sacrifices and accomplishments.   However, in a dusty corner of a soon-to-be abandoned air base, the U.S. Secretary of Defense, along with a few Generals …

I am almost done wrapping Christmas gifts, so the only thing left to do is fill the Christmas stockings, virtual ones that is. Help me check my list and feel free to add or subtract if you like.
Newt Gingrich: Funny how that last name so resembles the name “Grinch.” Because Newt is such a war-monger, he gets a tiny GI Joe and some plastic tanks to play with. Maybe that will keep him from starting a nuclear war.
Mitt Romney: Mitt gets a pair of yellow flip-flops!
Michelle Bachmann: Any woman who …

Only six months ago, who would have ever thought that eleven-term Congressman Ron Paul would have had a ghost of a chance in winning the Iowa caucuses, or even placing among the top three candidates in New Hampshire.  Well, it looks like the unthinkable just might happen.   It’s true that Paul has a very strong grass-roots organization in both Iowa and New Hampshire, but the Texas Congressman’s new-found popularity among conservative Republicans is about more than simply being well organized.  In fact, the best thing that Ron Paul has going …

Sharon Osbourne once said, “Always treat your husband like a rock star!” For those of us who have a husband, there is much to consider about the care and feeding of him. It’s not like taking care of fish, you know. Even if you are in a committed relationship, some of this may help you. I am no relationship counselor, so just take my considerations as coming from married woman.
1. Do not marry a rock star. I have been there and it wasn’t pretty. Think of all those rock stars …

As the year of 2011 rapidly draws to a close, it is time once again to gaze into the Askcherlock “crystal ball” to see what the year 0f 2012 will bring.
The Political Scene:  By the end of February, 2012 there will be three remaining Republican presidential contenders; those being, Gingrich, Romney and Paul.  Although Gingrich will prevail in the early primaries, the Republicans will finally come to their senses when they  realize that he may actually win the nomination.  Thereafter, Mitt Romney will “clean Gingrich’s clock” in the remaining primaries, …

William Butler Yeats wrote, “The innocent and the beautiful have no enemy but time.” Sadly, this is not the case for our youth today, nor it seems, has it been the case for our children for far too many years. Many of our children have not been allotted “time” to be innocent. The revelations and allegations about former Penn State coach Jerry Sandusky have made us aware once again that children are far too often victims of prey. And this is certainly not limited to Penn State, or other college …

After the 2010 Congressional elections, when  Republican Party candidates scored impressive victories against their Democratic  rivals, the GOP developed a devious political strategy to win back the White House in 2012.  This strategy was pretty well summed up by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell when he stated that Republicans would abandon all attempts to serve the American people and instead, concentrate on whatever political ploys were necessary to defeat Barack Obama in the next election.  History has shown that McConnell and his Republican cronies have been true to their word. 
Since …

“We are each of us angels with only one wing, and we can fly only by embracing one another.”~~~author unknown.
As a Catholic child I was raised in the Church when Masses were still in Latin, and reverence was a mighty force. We were taught by the nuns that each of us has a guardian angel sent by God to watch over us and to keep us safe. We were to envision our angel sitting upon our shoulder, especially when we were afraid.
This certainly helped when I was convinced at the …

In the early years of the 1930′s, all the signs were present that something extraordinary was going on in Germany.  The German people, impoverished by years of economic recession, and angry with the crushing burden of war reparations, began to turn their attentions to a charismatic ex-army corporal from Austria named, Adolph Hitler.  Desperate for a strong leader, and willing to believe the lies of Hitler and the  Nazi party, the German people abandoned all of the individual rights afforded them by the constitution, and put into power a maniacal …

In this day of supposedly advanced thinking and extraordinary leaps in technology, have we really come that far as a nation when many states still have the death penalty? It is a barbaric reaction to crimes, which are no doubt heinous. As a so-called civilized nation, we should not continue implementing the death penalty as proper punishment. We have advanced the use of DNA evidence, but far too late for lives wrongfully taken. The death penalty is inhumane and, at least in my opinion, far too easy in some cases …