also that flying the ODP is at the pilot's prerogative. There is no
requirement to "notify" ATC and they had better protect the
appropriate airspace if they are doing their job correctly.

But it's an open question of what "pilot's prerogative" means. That
doesn't necessarily mean that the route is automatically protected.

The whole reason I called the Sante Fe tower was to get an answer to
this particular question, but as soon as I mentioned the words
"pilot's prerogative", the controller blurted out "yes, but...." and
proceed to tell me about the hypothetical situation I described to
you. But anyway, I assure you that I remember his opinion on the
matter very clearly; the only thing vaguely remembered is the scenario
he set up.

Still, you'd better wait for Bill English or Scott Dunham to respond
to your AVSIG question before you become too confident about what
ATC's responsibility is. I'm interested in their responses too.