al said:
>   Keep track of "awards" for the year, then
>   donate any resulting money to PG. 

hmm...

any impulse toward charity is a good one...

and i won't chalk that up to self-interest,
even though you're a principle in p.g., al,
because i'm pretty sure you're a volunteer,
and you've donated a big slice of your life
to the cause, and i give full credit for that...

but the money i'm awarding already _will_
benefit p.g., by making its listserve better.

and besides, i have also liked the fact that
michael hart built p.g. not to need money.
(it's so hard to speak of him in past-tense.)
so there's a reluctance to give p.g. money...

the other thing is that p.g. isn't really my
favorite charity.  i very much like 826-l.a.,
an organization nurturing young writers.

still, i like the general idea.

the overwhelming objection, however, is
that i already put the cash in the pockets
of the people who will post the messages.

the money has been promised to _them_.

so i can't now take it out of their pockets
and give it to project gutenberg "instead".

that would be like the "white man" who
broke all his promises to the "indians"...

i just can't do that.

but like i said, i still like the idea.

so here's what i'll do...

i'll give people a _choice_ between:
1.  receiving their money as promised, or
2.  opting instead to donate it to charity...

if they decide to donate their prize-money,
i'll _increase_ it by 50% (so $2 becomes $3)
and then split it between p.g. and 826-l.a,
so p.g. will get $1.50, and likewise 826-l.a.

transparent accounting will be done here:
>   http://z-m-l.com/misc/gutvold_positivity.html

and yes, i'll give al his $2 prize for that post.

-bowerbird