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Safety Wars

James Poesl

Safety from a point of view that you didn't see coming.

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  • 25 episodes
  • Avg 55 min
  • English

Episodes 25

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  • S5 · E466
    June 18 · 1 hr 34 min

    Title: Safety Wars June 17, 2026: Labor Violations, EPA Cleanups, Iran Deal Fallout & More

    Safety Wars — June 17, 2026: Labor Violations, EPA Cleanups, Iran Deal Fallout & More In this wide-ranging episode of Safety Wars, host Jim covers breaking news and regulatory updates across labor, environmental, and geopolitical fronts. On the labor side, the U.S. Department of Labor secured a $750,000 federal court judgment against four Washington State restaurants for wage theft, overtime violations, child labor law infractions, and retaliatory termination. Jim also covers DOL demands to governors across all 53 states and territories to crack down on unemployment insurance fraud, spotlighting California's $20 billion in alleged federal debt, New York's 20%-plus improper payment rate, and a $512 million recovery from Maryland. EPA coverage includes a Deputy Administrator tour of cleanup sites in Seattle, a milestone at the Raymark Superfund site in Connecticut, a lead paint settlement with a Vermont contractor, a proposed arsenic and lead cleanup in Vineland, New Jersey, and a Jacksonville septic tank phase-out project. Jim also discusses a contentious EPA review of pharmaceuticals — including the abortion drug mifepristone — in drinking water. The episode dives deep into the U.S.-Iran ceasefire memorandum of understanding, examining tensions within the MAGA coalition over perceived concessions, Trump's mixed signals on Iran's uranium stockpile, and comparisons to the Obama-era nuclear deal. Hour two features stories on AI robots going rogue, a sharp drop in CDC trust, declining confidence in courts, the challenges of self-employment, Finland lifting its ban on nuclear weapons, Elon Musk's corporate war with Delaware, and a rogue employee allegedly hiding uranium samples at the Hunters Point Superfund site in San Francisco. Music: Falling, 25821615, Eric B. USA National Anthem (Star Spangled Banner Use), 155546928 Supernova Music Matrix, 166797566, Encomia Front Page Pulse, Jim Poesl, 6a19097bb3e919218f59a681 (c) Jim Poesl Safety Professionals, Get Off Your Knees!, Jim Poesl 695f0b5368eab6e0057ca0d6 (c) 2026 Jim Poesl The Kiss of Safety, Jim Poesl (c) 2026 Jim Poesl Pond5.com Licenses Piano Serious Cinematic: Narration Ambient Dramatic Documentary Background P-5 96480894, LindsjoMusic. Documentary Ambient Background, 115055242, Andrew Weiss Historical Discovery Documentary 229556173, The_Mountain For all your health and safety needs, visit us at our website safetywars.com, contact us at Jim@safetywars.com or 845-269-5772.

  • S5 · E465
    June 17 · 51 min

    Safety Wars – June 16, 2026: US-Iran Ceasefire Deal, Nyack Tunnel Girls, and Rising Antisemitism

    Safety Wars – June 16, 2026: US-Iran Ceasefire Deal, Nyack Tunnel Girls, and Rising Antisemitism In this episode of Safety Wars, host Jim Poesl covers three main topics. First, he breaks down the emerging US-Iran memorandum of understanding, walking through a 12-point framework reported by the New York Post and Al Arabiya that outlines a ceasefire, temporary sanctions relief, Strait of Hormuz passage guarantees, and a 60-day negotiation window. He notes mixed reactions from Iranian dissidents, Israeli officials, and G7 leaders, and raises questions about whether Iran — despite devastating losses — has come out politically stronger. Second, Jim discusses the incident where 71 Hasidic schoolgirls from Monsey walked half a mile through a storm drainage tunnel in Nyack, New York, emerging at a local restaurant. He examines the safety hazards involved — confined space, atmospheric risks, and flash flood danger — while noting the group lacked a permit. Finally, he addresses the wave of antisemitic comments that flooded social media following the incident, condemning it as reflective of deeper community prejudices. The episode closes with a report on an alleged explosive drone plot targeting a UFC event in Washington, DC, disrupted by the FBI. Music: Falling, 25821615, Eric B. USA National Anthem (Star Spangled Banner Use), 155546928 Supernova Music Matrix, 166797566, Encomia Front Page Pulse, Jim Poesl, 6a19097bb3e919218f59a681 (c) Jim Poesl Safety Professionals, Get Off Your Knees!, Jim Poesl 695f0b5368eab6e0057ca0d6 (c) Jim Poesl Pond5.com Licenses Piano Serious Cinematic: Narration Ambient Dramatic Documentary Background P-5 96480894, LindsjoMusic. Documentary Ambient Background, 115055242, Andrew Weiss Historical Discovery Documentary 229556173, The_Mountain

  • S5 · E464
    June 11 · 50 min

    June 10, 2026 Safety Wars: Get Off Your Knees — Backbone

    Host Jim opens with a rallying cry for safety professionals to develop backbone and resist servile behavior on the job site. He promotes Safety FM's upcoming Reality Shift symposium featuring Todd Conklin, Nick Weatherly, and Jay Allen, and reviews breaking world news — including U.S.-Iran tensions, rising inflation, and the EU's ruling against Meta. Jim covers Acting Labor Secretary Sonderling's G7 appearance in Geneva, highlighting a pro-American negotiating posture on workforce and trade. He previews "Ancient Safety Professionals" Episode 2, a satirical take on the "Cult of Zero" incident reporting culture. The show also reviews EPA cleanup actions in Cleveland and Billings, Administrator Zeldin's New York tour, and efforts to advance the Constitution Pipeline. Jim closes with a reminder that real safety is about risk reduction — not protecting numbers. Music: Falling, 25821615, Eric B. USA National Anthem (Star Spangled Banner Use), 155546928 Supernova Music Matrix, 166797566, Encomia Front Page Pulse, Jim Poesl, 6a19097bb3e919218f59a681 (c) Jim Poesl Safety Professionals, Get Off Your Knees!, Jim Poesl 695f0b5368eab6e0057ca0d6 (c) Jim Poesl Pond5.com Licenses Piano Serious Cinematic: Narration Ambient Dramatic Documentary Background P-5 96480894, LindsjoMusic. Documentary Ambient Background, 115055242, Andrew Weiss Historical Discovery Documentary 229556173, The_Mountain

  • S5 · E463
    June 11 · 58 min

    June 9, 2026 Safety Theater is Killing People

    Safety Wars 6-9-2026 Safety Theater Is Killing People Host Jim Poesl returns after a hiatus to address listener comments and cover recent safety and news topics. He opens by critiquing micro-level accident prediction models, arguing they're inherently flawed because safety professionals correct hazards as they find them, skewing any data. He stresses that without authority to hire, fire, or discipline, safety pros have limited power to change workplace culture. Jim shares a story about a roofing subcontractor who threatened workers for enforcing fall protection, illustrating how cost-cutting overrides safety. He covers a OSHA case against a Piggly Wiggly franchisee fined ~$196,000 after an employee lost four fingers due to lockout/tagout failures. A satirical "Ancient Safety Wars" segment mocks zero-incident culture and safety theater — the practice of prioritizing appearance over actual risk reduction. News segments include: MSHA receiving $10.5M in training grants, RFK Jr. announcing Lyme disease initiatives in New Hampshire, and an HHS elder fraud prevention campaign. Jim also reviews a 205-page Congressional report alleging Minnesota Governor Walz and AG Ellison ignored widespread fraud in federally funded social service programs, while expressing skepticism that prosecutions will ultimately follow. Music: Falling, 25821615, Eric B. USA National Anthem (Star Spangled Banner Use), 155546928 Supernova Music Matrix, 166797566, Encomia Front Page Pulse, Jim Poesl, 6a19097bb3e919218f59a681 (c) Jim Poesl Piano Serious Cinematic: Narration Ambient Dramatic Documentary Background P-5 96480894, LindsjoMusic. Documentary Ambient Background, 115055242, Andrew Weiss Historical Discovery Documentary 229556173, The_Mountain

  • S5 · E462
    May 29 · 56 min

    May 28, 2026 The Numbers Don't Lie — But We Do: Safety, Statistics, and the Cult of Zero

    Safety Wars Live 5-26-2026 Jim critiques "zero incident" culture through a satirical "Ancient Safety Professionals" video segment, arguing that zero-injury programs often suppress reporting rather than prevent harm. Jim challenges the safety industry's over reliance on trend data and statistics, using a roulette analogy to illustrate how injury patterns are often unpredictable — focusing on hand injuries won't prevent the next foot injury. He warns against treating workers as machines to be fixed and emphasizes understanding systemic context over individual blame. A "Safety Tarot" segment creatively walks through accident causation using tarot cards: The Fool (new/overconfident worker), The Devil (production pressure), The Tower (catastrophic event), and Justice (OSHA investigations) — arguing that the safety statistics are often manipulated and used to generate great graphics for presentations, that Taro Card readings likely pedicts outcomes as well as behavioral statistics do in most corporate cultures. News coverage includes a US-Iran ceasefire extension, a DOJ investigation into E. Jean Carroll, EU trade defenses against China, the Congo Ebola outbreak, EPA withdrawal of Biden-era emissions rules, and a New York Times piece on predictive genetic medicine and workplace discrimination gaps. Jim promotes the July 13 "Reality Shift" symposium in Orlando featuring Todd Conklin, Nick Weatherly, and Jay Allen, synthesizing HOP and behavior-based safety frameworks. Falling, 25821615, Eric B. USA National Anthem (Star Spangled Banner Use), 155546928 Supernova Music Matrix, 166797566, Encomia Front Page Pulse, Jim Poesl, 6a19097bb3e919218f59a681 (c) Jim Poesl Piano Serious Cinematic: Narration Ambient Dramatic Documentary Background P-5 96480894, LindsjoMusic. Documentary Ambient Background, 115055242, Andrew Weiss Historical Discovery Documentary 229556173, The_Mountain For all your health and safety needs, visit us at our website safetywars.com, contact us at Jim@safetywars.com or 845-269-5772.

Showing 21–25 of 25 episodes