Second draft: reworked the premise to be centered on commerce, rather than safety concerns. Also changed name from “Boulder Dash”.
Reworked option 4.
Flood Pain
Validity: Must have cars
Description
After two shipments of assorted produce from a remote farming community were wiped out by a massive flash flood turned landslide in a mountainous region of @@NAME@@, experts have noted that commercial traffic is being lost to treacherous mountain conditions with increasing regularity. In response, an unstable coalition of shaken citizens and stone-cold opportunists have gathered in your office to try and direct your approach to this apparently tumultuous problem.
Option 1
"Think of the farmers!" wails humble yeoman @@RANDOMNAME@@, waving a pitchfork in your face. "It may not look like much to you, but that was my town’s entire harvest down the drain! The government needs to reimburse the full value of goods lost to natural disasters, and support small farms so we aren’t discouraged from growing. You can't play fast and loose with people's livelihoods!"
Effect: farmers refer to tornadoes as “rainmakers”
Option 2a
Validity: must have market economy
“Think of the truckers!” wails Big Rig, CEO of Big Rig Trucking, Inc. “It’s not just farmers getting crushed. I lost two good semis that day! Not to mention the inconvenience for anyone else using that road. You need to create a new department that'll patrol every mountain road 'round the clock and be on-site immediately to clear debris and airlift vehicles.”
Effect: hikers are trailed by law enforcement for their own safety
Option 2b
Validity: must have state-planned economy
“Think of the truckers!” wails @@RANDOMNAME@@, your Minister of Logistics. “It’s not just farmers getting crushed. We lost two good semis that day! Not to mention the inconvenience for anyone else using that road. You need to create a new department that'll patrol every mountain road 'round the clock and be on-site immediately to clear debris and airlift vehicles.”
Effect: hikers are trailed by law enforcement for their own safety
Option 3
"I wouldn't get so swept up by all this" counters Minister of Apathy @@RANDOMNAME@@, trying to ignore a fly @@HE@@'s too important to swat. "Why should we waste our time and money on some backwater roads? They aren’t used for anything that matters, anyways. It’ll make much more sense to forget about landslides and invest in airports. It'll create jobs and allow for faster shipping than any road."
Effect: war criminals are virtually unreachable in the nation's remote mountain villages
Option 4
Suddenly, everyone in the room turns to look at your Minister of Public Relations, who’s spent the last five minutes madly grinning. “I think we could stand to benefit from this,” he says. “Whenever one of these ‘incidents’ occurs, you’ll arrive at the scene with a full camera crew. We’ll show you sifting through debris, comforting people, that sort of thing. With some clever demolitions work, you won’t even need to wait!”
Effect: first responders often find @@LEADER@@ signing autographs at disaster sites
