I had a call from a mate this week, the board of his company have been mesmerised by a presentation of the latest advances in safety. So I asked to see a copy of this presentation expecting some astounding research and scintillating stuff taking safety into the future. So what did I see? Bradley … [Read more...] about Advancing Backwards in Safety
Bradley Curve
The Dangerous and Harmful Bradley Curve
Of all the models, tools and semiotics in safety I can think of, none is more dangerous and harmful than the Bradley Curve. Here is a model based on the completely false assumption that humans have a ‘natural instinct’ to harm. What utter nonsense. Only the harm organisation DuPont … [Read more...] about The Dangerous and Harmful Bradley Curve
Why is Myth so Scary to Safety?
It is interesting that the concept of myth stirs up Safety so much, especially when there is no study of myth or symbol in any safety curriculum globally. If you want to know about myth and symbol and how they operate in the unconscious and collective unconscious Mind, one can start researching … [Read more...] about Why is Myth so Scary to Safety?
Right and Wrong in Safety
Right and Wrong in Safety Safety is fundamentally a moral and ethical activity. Any desire for a ‘good’ or a virtue, necessitates an ethic. Unfortunately, even in how Safety shapes its own identity it doesn’t know nor consciously articulate an ethic. Even the brand of ‘professional’ demands an … [Read more...] about Right and Wrong in Safety
Safety’s Garden of Eden Complex
Safety’s Garden of Eden Complex One of the enduring myths of the risk and safety industry is the naive belief in paradise. Paradise is that mythical place where no-ne will be harmed. We see this nonsense yearning for utopia demonstrated in the Bradley Curve and the ideological nonsense of zero … [Read more...] about Safety’s Garden of Eden Complex
Safety Curves and Pyramids
For many years DuPont have perpetuated the myth that they are the “Worlds Safest Company” and a “world-class safety leader”. In the 1940s the company developed the safety philosophy that “all accidents are preventable”. Encouraged by their perception of success, DuPont eventually turned safety … [Read more...] about Safety Curves and Pyramids
Safety as Avoidance
Safety as Avoidance The language of ‘error’ is unhelpful when it comes to understanding human judgment and decision making. One can assemble pyramids of ‘unsafe acts’ and ‘unsafe conditions’, fault trees of ‘active and latent failures’, maps of ‘violations’, ‘slips’ and ‘missed barriers’, sets of … [Read more...] about Safety as Avoidance