Morality v political expediency

I softened my stance on shopping to allow a weekly paper. I plumped for the Saturday Guardian, and duly skipped across the valley to buy it from Bromham. Carefully designed to tap into our post-Christmas spare tyres, it included the first guide to getting fit, British Army style, and a poster with a timetable laying out a daily workout programme spanning 16 weeks. Clearly a road-map to guilt. But I stuck the poster on the fridge and vowed to keep to the schedule.
Somehow, I managed to justify Monday's paper as well, and carefully kept the instruction booklet for the upper body workout.
Back to school Tuesday, and I went straight to Devizes, ran for 30 minutes (not strictly what the army recommended for day 1, week 1, but near enough), then on to the post office. Newspapers piled invitingly by door. I consulted my conscience: I couldn't think of a good reason to get the paper, yet I really needed the lower body instructions.
I picked up the paper, took it to the counter, and casually extracted the guide, later slipping it into my bag before returning the paper to the pile.
It was only when I got home that I realised how twisted my priorities had become: I had stolen an - admittedly free - insert, in order to avoid violating a New Year's resolution that I had already broken the day before (meat, chocolate and wine all fell on Friday 4th).

The first local GP meeting of 2008; Mark had moved it to the Lansdowne Hotel in Calne, and booked a room that held 12. We sent e-mails to all local green groups, as well as sympathetic friends. By 7.35, we numbered 19, and moved into a large hall, more used to the benevolent gatherings of the North Wilts Rotary Club.
It was a rather excited and enthusiastic gathering, several new faces, a good handful of our loyal friends. Mark led the way through the minute's attunement, forgetting the introductions in his eagerness to gallop on to the four pending by-elections. He produced Nick's poster, which they'd compiled together after a successful assault on Upavon in search of the ten signatures required for registration.
Top of the mini-manifesto was: 'Weekly curbside rubbish and recycling collection, including plastic and cardboard.' But, piped up Hilary, didn't we believe that every other week was preferable?
'Yes,' Mark replied, 'but, you see, we don't exactly specify weekly rubbish collection. It was deliberately ambiguous.'
We debated the morality of this. New faces Pam and Steve suggested that we take a completely different tack, along the lines of 'We can help you green your life.'
There were a couple of nods, before Derek - possibly the most honourable man you could hope to meet - closed the debate: the important thing is to get people on the councils, he said firmly. 'We can have a far greater influence from the inside.'
Once again, political expediency had triumphed over morality. The ends, we must hope will trump the means.