Trolley Problem

7:23 a.m., a railyard at the edge of the city. You stand on a maintenance platform, watching a trolley pull away — but something is wrong. It's accelerating instead of slowing. The brakes are gone. On the track ahead, five workers in hard hats are replacing rail ties, every one of them wearing noise-canceling earmuffs. The trolley is doing 40 mph and 30 seconds from impact. You scream, but the wind eats your voice. Within arm's reach is a switching lever. Pull it and the trolley diverts to a side track — the five live. But on that side track is one more worker, sitting cross-legged with his back to you, repairing something. He cannot hear you either. 27 seconds. The future of five people and the future of one rest on your hand.