SUSAN THOMAS READ the postcard for the third time. It had been ten days since she had received the second letter with $5,000.

     "Please go to: www.pardon-me.edu. Then enter the password: URD12C.

     "Your answers will not be shared with anyone. Instead, they will be used to guide me as to what materials I make available to you to evaluate in the privacy of your own home or office.

     "If, for any reason, this site is shut down, it will be the direct result of interference from the government. In such an event, wait a day or two and try again. I’ll use that time to talk to the powers that be and prod them into putting it back up."

     Pardon-me, eh? Catchy, Susan thought.

     Password: URD12C?

     Oh, I get it, she said to herself. You are the one to see. Very cryptic.

     “Answer the following to the best of your ability,” the screen said. “If you don’t know the answer, just click ‘I don’t know.’

     “There are no wrong answers. You’re being asked what you think. As long as you click what you actually think, you’ll be answering correctly.

     “Question 1: Using Peter’s money to pay Paul is proof-positive of a Ponzi scheme.”

     Hmm, Susan thought. Ponzi schemes always use other people’s money. That’s probably true.

     A pop-up appeared: “If all it takes is using Peter’s money to pay Paul, then every bank in America would be guilty of running a Ponzi scheme. Social Security was designed from the get-go to use other people’s money to pay previous people who were already signed up.

     “What makes a Ponzi scheme illegal is some act of deceit, some lie that convinces both Peter and Paul that the scheme is real and capable of delivering the returns that are promised, even though the developer knows that it can’t, or won’t. This is why you never see ‘Ponzi scheme’ in a list of charges. You only see wire fraud or mail fraud or structuring.”

     This is pretty cool, she thought as she scrolled down the page.

     “Question 2: Ponzi schemes are designed from the get-go to rip people off.”

     I think I’m gonna click “True” for this one, she thought, as she positioned her cursor.

     The text in the box cleared and a new message appeared.

     “You’re right. Usually this is true. Most Ponzi scheme operators design their schemes specifically to convince potential victims that they will be making a killing. But not always.

     “The original Ponzi scheme (named after a real Mr. Ponzi) was actually based on a valid way to make money by returning a certain kind of stamp back to the post office. The U.S. Post Office really did pay about 10 percent more for the returned unused stamps than what they cost to begin with.

     “What made the original Ponzi scheme illegal was the fact that Ponzi didn’t use people’s money to do this. He only told them that that’s what he was going to use their money for. It was this deception that turned his scheme into a ‘fraud.’”

     I’ll try one more, Susan thought. It says I can quit anytime and pick up where I left off.

     “Question 3: A lie is not a lie unless the liar knows it’s a lie when he’s telling it.”

     This one’s tricky. I don’t buy it. Susan was concentrating deeply now.

     “A lie is not always the same thing as an untruth or a falsehood. It can be, but it often is not. The liar has to know that he’s lying as he’s telling the lie. Try the following example:

     “You’re the secretary to the CEO. He tells you that he’s got a few errands to run, but will then be meeting a client for lunch at noon at Duke’s. Right after he leaves, his wife calls you and asks for him. You tell her about his lunch engagement.

     “While crossing the street, your boss is hit by a car and is taken to the emergency room. He never makes his appointment.

     “Question: Did you lie to his wife? You told her he would be at Duke’s at noon. As it turned out, this never happened. 

     "The key is -- did you know he wasn’t going to be there when you told his wife that he was?”

     I see what you’re saying. She directed her thoughts to the screen.

     This is fun. But I have my own appointment to go to. I wish they had presented stuff like this during the trial. This I can wrap my head around.