> >
> > Would you rather go swimming because it's fun to splash in the water, or because someone is pointing a gun at your head and saying, "Get in the pool"?
> >
>
> I don't think preference is relevant to his point. He's saying that neither reason is inherently (objectively) "better" than the other.
>
You may be right about the relevancy to Frum's point, but I do think one could argue that one motivation is better than another.

Running *to* something would seem to me to be better than better than running *from* something. If you're running from something, it doesn't matter much where you go, as long as it's *away*. You may end up avoiding the stick that way, but you are not assured of the carrot. Whereas if you are moving towards something, it's implied you have a focus and a goal and a direction, and this way, when you get there, you will not only receive the reward at the end, you will also have avoided the stick.

The point, however,in all of this, is to move the mule. Some mules respond better to the stick, and some respond better to the carrot; and some need a little of both, which is why I think God included both warnings about the consequences of sin *and* assurances of His love and plans for our future in the Bible.

koala"has observed that her male managers at work tend to wield the stick while the female managers hold out the carrot"mom