If they're serious they should dump the cash into a trust controlled by people outside BFL. Or they should make sure to give a few BIG chunks of that cash out immediately to worthwhile causes like zerocoin. Charity in my mind was like cancer treatment or hospitals or something...
+1 This.
They should use an escrow to prove they have 1000 BTC to donate and have that escrow donate it on behalf of them publicly so there is no funny business.
John could do it.
Likely BFL doesn't want to do this because it involves an honest 3rd party to keep things transparent.
They did put the 1000 BTC at an address that they have sent the first three 50 BTC donations out from.
I'm too lazy to do too much analysis on where the coins came from, but there is this one
https://blockchain.info/address/1KhHvmZXxqGRA821Rsqcs6FF2EwLsddrSXwhich has had over 44,000 BTC run through it starting back in October. Which, is coincidentally, the first time they said they were going to start shipping.