TITLE:
Artistic Laundry
VALIDITY:
Capitalism, Some crime, Some culture. Not autarky.
DESCRIPTION:
With billions of @@PLURALCURRENCY@@ changing hands each year, art deals are big money, and steeped in a culture of secrecy with many pieces being sold from "a @@DEMONYM collection" or "a patron". Now, an independent governance institute has suggested that art dealing is "an ideal playground for money launderers" with particular attention being drawn to @@randomname@@'s recent work Pile of Unwashed Clothes being sold to an East Lebatuckese oligarch for 179.4 million @@PLURALCURRENCY@@.
OPTION 1
"As we learnt during the recent leak of the 'Manamana Papers', shell companies and pseudonyms are often used for the purchase and sale of art, and there is a likelihood that these are strategies to evade tax, to manipulate markets and to launder money," explains Institute Commissioner @@randomname@@, placing a three thousand and seventy nine page report on your desk. "Preventing crime of this sort demands a proper audit trail, and you must legislate to enforce absolute transparency in all levels of art. And who knows, maybe without all the secret illegality around art, we might not get falsely high values assigned to... well... piles of filthy underwear."
OUTCOME:
it turns out @@LEADER@@ is Banksy
OPTION 2
"Can we keep the prodding fingers of government away from our precious pieces please?" pleads art historian and auction house owner Joan Southbee. "We're an internally regulated subculture, and we are always absolutely diligent in stopping any transaction that might bring associations with disrepute. Still, a degree of anonymity adds to the mystique of art, and allows collectors to accumulate treasures without being hounded by journalists and gawkers. Let us maintain a little decorum here, and write into law the right of buyers and sellers to privacy. @@DEMONYM@@ art and @@DEMONYM@@ culture will thank you for it."
OUTCOME:
drug barons visiting the country are offered canapés and a drink
OPTION 3
"Maybe there's a less heavy-handed approach to law enforcement," suggests police sketch artist @@randomname@@. "Maybe if the government were to secretly commission some pieces and to get them on the market, they could then implant trackable pulse transmitters to track down the locations of collectors for further investigation. Of course, they'd need to pay the artists a lot to give the whole scheme credibility. Incidentally, I've been doing some experiments in charcoal..."
OUTCOME:
mobile phones never seem to work in art galleries
