>>>My first response would be something along the lines of "Why would I want to do that? If a variable needs to be unaccessible from a subroutine, then I probably need to rethink either the subroutine or the public/private aspect of the variable or the naming of the variable in the subroutine."
>>>
>>It is an interview: you can ask question after interview is finished. But be not persistance in asking if you wish to be hired.
>
>That's kinda my point. Why WOULD I want to do what they're asking me to do? It's poor programming all the way around. And I've been in interviews where they've asked questions like this just to see who would tell them it's poor programming, data design, etc.

From the project he described, I'd cut the interview short and leave as soon as I heard about it.