There is a phrase that has crept quietly into incident investigations, executive briefings, and regulatory testimony: the safety system failed. It is spoken with the neutrality of a coroner’s report and the comfort of distance. When this phrase is used, no one raises their voice. No one’s reputation is threatened. No one’s moral agency is challenged. “The system failed” does not accuse—it absolves. And in doing so, it obscures the most uncomfortable truth in safety leadership: safety does not fail; people abdicate responsibility.
