It seems to me that the way this scheme is set up there's a huge incentive to lie. Yeah, I did the 200 sit-ups (when only 10 were done), and the charity gets nothing.

The only way this works is if there is a watcher holding Mr Harford accountable for his behavior verifying whether or not the 200 sit-ups were done. That watcher could be some other person or it could be Mr. Harford's conscience, but without that watcher this scheme quickly falls apart.

If Tim were really interested in becoming a better person, he'd do the 200 sit-ups, inform the holders of his check and then give $100/week to this charity for the whole year anyway.

better yet . go to the teenage study hall with bars and be a great example. do the sit ups ,play some basketball with the them. Order healthy pizza ,make a green garden salad picked from their garden for a good example.served with fruit colas and home made apple pie with apples from their apple trees and home made ice cream from local farmers dairy milk. the Montesorri method of teachingand classroom using both outside and inside space preferred by most no child left behind- early childhood development classes ffor add and adhd students and other high risk students text books with some high tech learning aids and no walls.

still tax deductable and a good resume brownie point.

what the world needs now is love sweet (brotherly ) love

a song on the interent

hytp://lyrics.christiansunite.co­m/lyrics_1307_4.shtml

<link>

Everybody's gatherin round that Christmas tree
We're laughin and talkin and singin so merrily
There's pumpkin pie and toys, happy girls and boys,
But what's the proper meaning, behind this Christmas joy?

Oh celebrating Jesus, that's what Christmas means to me
It's the birthday of the One, who makes to blind to see
He purchased my salvation, way back on Calvary
I'm celebrating Jesus, that's what Christmas means to me

Celebrating Jesus, that's what Christmas means to me
It's the birthday of the One, who makes to blind to see
He purchased my salvation, way back on Calvary
I'm celebrating Jesus, that's what Christmas means to me

Everybody's gatherin round that Christmas tree
We're laughin and talkin and singin so merrily
There's snow flakes on the ground, loved ones all around
But Christmas lights won't shine as bright, as all this joy I've found

Celebrating Jesus, that's what Christmas means to me
It's the birthday of the One, who makes to blind to see
He purchased my salvation, way back on Calvary
I'm celebrating Jesus, that's what Christmas means to me

People celebrate the Spirit, Christmas brings to town
It's nothing new to Christians, cause we feel it all year round
All year round, we feel it all year round

Everybody's gatherin round that Christmas tree
We're laughin and talkin and singin so merrily
There's presents round the tree, one for you and me
But the greatest gift of all, is still a soul set free!

Celebrating Jesus, that's what Christmas means to me
It's the birthday of the One, who makes to blind to see
He purchased my salvation, way back on Calvary
I'm celebrating Jesus, that's what Christmas means to me

I'm celebrating Jesus, that's what Christmas means to me
You know I'm celebrating Jesus, that's what Christmas means to me

Some people will always cheat at solitaire. The solution is not to assign watchers to people who say they are going to play it.

Though it is true the existing system is cheatable, all systems are. At some point, we have to allow for personal honor and integrity to be part of the equation. No system is going to be perfect, after all, even if you made it so that you could figure out no possible way to beat the system, it would only take someone slightly smarter than you to see what you could not.

Trust, has to be a part of almost any working system. Without it, there is too much inhumanity. With it, sure we have flaws, but we are a democratic society, and if there was ever a flawed yet beautiful system, democracy is it. Someone once said "Democracy is the worst form of government. Except for all the others that have been tried."

I agree with Admaphid, changing the charity to something you revile is good motivation, but at the end of the day, any motivation is better than none. So, the people who founded this little operation did a good thing. Good for them, and good for anyone who plays along in the spirit of doing right by themselves and/or others.

Den-

Den,

In my post I specifically said the watcher could be another person OR Harford's own conscience. And while admaphid's method would work if Harford's foremost desire was to get fit, it does nothing for the charity he supposedly desires to help.