Safety Wars

 Safety Wars – August 26, 2026 (Simple Sabotage Edition): How Saboteurs Hide in Plain Sight at Work

Jim Poesl opens with FSN Radio News: Meta's $18B child-safety settlement with 29 states, Canada's retaliatory tariffs on the US, Prince Harry and Meghan's return to Britain, and new US sanctions on Iran. He then digs into RFK Jr.'s public clash with PA Governor Shapiro over measles deaths and vaccine misinformation, questioning whether 2026's rising measles case counts reflect real trends or reporting shifts. OSHA news follows: a Pennsylvania brick manufacturer faces ~$500K in fines for willfully exposing workers to sil...

Safety Wars 8-25-2026 Dolly's Legacy, OSHA's Deadly Kettle Fines

This episode of Safety Words opens with a tribute to Dolly Parton, who passed away at 80, highlighting her advocacy for literacy and education. The show then covers international news: US Treasury sanctions targeting entities tied to Iranian oil smuggling and nuclear procurement, Pakistan's efforts to broker US-Iran peace talks, and China-India border negotiations. A segment on the Democratic Socialists of America examines the movement's growing influence within Democratic politics.

The host shifts to health and workplace safety topics, including...

Safety Wars 8-19-2026 AI Data Centers, Flock Cameras, and the War on Common Sense

Summary:

This episode of Safety Wars covers a wide-ranging mix of safety culture, tech policy, and current events. Jim opens with disclaimers and housekeeping before discussing how to handle difficult or psychopathic personalities in the workplace—stressing immediate, professional responses rather than escalating to HR.

The show moves into news headlines: Iran weighing strikes on U.S. assets in Europe, Harry and Meghan's return to the UK, a Meta wh...

**Summary:**

This episode of Safety Wars opens with a call to speak up—both in society and on the job—before diving into news headlines covering Iran-U.S. tensions, the Meta youth mental health trial, and Ukraine's drone strikes on Moscow. The host then shifts to the core theme: safety professionals often become "victims of their own success," letting bullying or intimidation from workers go unaddressed because past professionals stayed silent. Through personal anecdotes—including turning a complainer's own NFPA objections back on him and confronting a job-site intimidator named John—the host argues problems...

Summary: This Safety Wars episode covers Trump's executive order overhauling childhood vaccine recommendations, splitting the MMR shot into three doses and cutting recommended vaccines from 18 to 11. Only six vaccines retain full recommendations. Critics like Senator Bill Cassidy call the order unscientific and dangerous, while the White House cites comparisons to peer nations.

The host revisits a December 2025 hepatitis B deep dive, since ACIP recently ended universal birth-dose vaccination for infants of hepatitis B-negative mothers, shifting to individual decision-making. He reviews hepatitis B basics, declining infection rates since 1991, and CDC's rationale.

Title: Who Enforced the Pandemic? COVID-19 Accountability and the Safety Professionals Left Behind

Summary:

Jim Poesl examines Dr. Fauci's Senate hearing on COVID-19, where he invoked the Fifth Amendment 111 times despite a federal pardon. Rather than pursuing "pain for pain," Jim argues real accountability requires harder questions about evidence, authority, and decision-making. He critiques how "face coverings" were promoted instead of proper NIOSH-rated respirators, sidestepping OSHA's respiratory protection standards and creating dangerous confusion between masks, filtration, and fit. He also examines school closures, inconsistent vaccine messaging, and oversight failures in NIH/EcoHealth funding of Wuhan...

Summary: In this special live episode, Jimmy Poesl reacts to Dr. Fauci's Senate testimony, where Fauci repeatedly invoked the Fifth Amendment despite having immunity and a pardon. Poesl argues safety professionals were unfairly blamed for enforcing pandemic policies they didn't create, damaging trust between workers and safety staff. He critiques how COVID communication ignored established respiratory protection science (NIOSH standards, mask filtration mechanisms) in favor of unproven mandates, and how "zero" safety goals replaced honest messaging about capacity and resilience. Drawing parallels to behavior-based safety failures, he says workers were blamed instead of addressing systemic issues, and perverse incentives...

Jim opens Safety Wars with legal disclaimers before riffing on simulation theory, prompted by a Safety FM symposium with Todd Conklin, Nick Weatherly, and Jay Allen, exploring manipulation, behavior-based safety vs. human/organizational performance, and coincidences suggesting we're "living in a simulation." He covers Supreme Court security concerns tied to threats against justices, then transitions into world news: US strikes on Iran, EU gold sanctions on Sudan, World Cup semifinals, and Strait of Hormuz shipping fees. The bulk of the episode reviews recent OSHA/DOL citations — a fatal crawl-space excavation death, confined space violations at Fleet Pride, and cheap-fix sa...

Safety Wars 7-9-2026 

Safety Wars Recap: Paperwork, Fitness Tests, and Flock Cameras

Jim  opens Safety Wars with disclaimers on OSHA/EPA citations, then covers severe flooding in the Northeast, including the washed-out Palisades Parkway near West Point — a reminder to know local roads and have backup routes.

The main segment focuses on safety paperwork, invoking Marshall McLuhan's idea that "the medium changes the message." Jim argues records like OSHA 300 logs, SDS sheets, training matrices, and emergency plans aren't bureaucratic clutter — they're an organization's memory and evidence, becomi...

Safety Wars 7-8-2026 Safe+Sound Week, HHS News and the Presidential Fitness Test Returns

im opens this July 8th episode of Safety Words with a legal disclaimer about citations and news sourcing, then previews Monday's live Reality Shift event in Orlando featuring Nick Weatherly, Todd Conklin, and Jay Allen. He highlights OSHA's Safe+Sound Week (August 10-16), detailing program challenges and benefits for workplace safety culture, while criticizing behavior-based safety programs as subjective compared to objective hazard identification.

The show shifts to FSN news: Trump ending the Iran ceasefire, NATO tensions...

Whale Rescue, Building Collapse & the "Missing Middle": Safety Wars Breaks Down This Week's Wildest Headlines

Jim kicks off with a wild story from his home turf in New Jersey — Carteret firefighters had to be rescued after their Marine Unit boat was struck and sunk by a surfacing whale near the Arthur Kill. He riffs on the irony that whales and even pods of them are now returning to waters he grew up swimming and crabbing in during the polluted 1970s-90s, crediting cleanup efforts spurred partly by former NJ Governor Jim McGreevey's fight to sh...

Safety Wars Live 6-30-2026 Monsanto v. Darnell, Birthright Citizenship, and Why Demographics Are Destiny

On this episode of Safety Wars Jim opens with a legal deep-dive into Monsanto Company v. Darnell, a Supreme Court decision (6-3, opinion by Kavanaugh) holding that federal FIFRA labeling requirements preempt Missouri state tort claims requiring Roundup cancer warnings, since the EPA had approved the label without one. Justice Jackson dissented, arguing this expands federal preemption beyond congressional intent.

The host then covers FSN news briefs: the Supreme Court striking down Trump's birthright citizenship executive order (6...

Summary:

In this episode of Safety Wars, host Jim opens with a personal note about his son's middle school moving-up ceremony before diving into the week's regulatory news. He covers a Department of Labor consent order requiring three Maine sports bars to pay over $51,000 in back wages for wage and child labor violations, and a $1.73 million recovery for 1,666 workers at a Ford EV battery plant whose employer improperly excluded bonuses from overtime calculations. Jim also flags a call for public input from the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs on hearing loss evaluation methods.

Safety in Context — Explaining the "Why" to Build Compliance

In this episode of Safety Wars, Jim  opens with reflections on a Father's Day baseball tournament before diving into a core safety philosophy: the critical importance of explaining the "why" behind safety rules. Using real-world examples — a fatal confined space incident at the Valero refinery in Delaware, mercury vapor exposure on job sites, and PPE compliance challenges — Jim argues that simply issuing rules without context leads to non-compliance. He draws on Human and Organizational Performance (HOP) principles, emphasizing peer-to-peer communication over top-down mandates.

In this episode of Safety Wars, host Jim opens with personal reflections — marking four years since his father's passing and celebrating his Aunt Sophie's 90th birthday. He then dives into a Wall Street Journal story about a fermented food diet sweeping through Trump's cabinet, including RFK Jr., JD Vance, and others swearing by sauerkraut and grass-fed meat for dramatic health results.

Jim pivots to the New York Knicks' first NBA championship since 1973, using Karl Anthony Towns' journey from St. Joseph's High School to NBA stardom as a lesson for safety professionals: surround yourself with people who elevate yo...

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 im...

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. 

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 Cl...

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 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" se...

Overview: Jim Poesl hosts this episode of Safety Wars, a safety industry podcast/videocast with a satirical bent.

Key segments:

Safety Wars 5/20/26 Blame vs. Solutions,  NY Construction Deaths & WHO Update

In this May 20, 2026 episode of Safety Wars, host Jim Poesl opens with a discussion on the ineffectiveness of employee-blaming in accident investigations, advocating instead for systemic fixes rooted in HOP (Human and Organizational Performance) principles. He illustrates this with a practical story about ladder label compliance — showing how education and pragmatic problem-solving beat antagonism and job shutdowns.

Jim then covers breaking news, including OSHA's investigation into a worker fatality at SpaceX's Starbase launch site in South Texas, noting that a full rep...

Safety Wars  5-19-2026  Part 1 Interview with Jennifer Coffey President, NJ School of Conservation

This is part of our ongoing mission to educate, inform and motivate our supporters.

Today Jim welcomes Jennifer Coffey, Executive Director of ANJEC and board president of the Friends of the New Jersey School of Conservation, joins host Jim to discuss the proposed elimination of the NJ School of Conservation from Governor Cheryl's budget. Located in Stokes State Forest, the 77-year-old facility serves 5,000 students annually — 50% from Title I schools — offering outdoor environmental education, teacher continuing educat...

Safety Wars  5-19-2026  Part 1 Interview with Jennifer Coffey President, NJ School of Conservation

This is part of our ongoing mission to educate, inform and motivate our supporters.

Today Jim welcomes Jennifer Coffey, Executive Director of ANJEC and board president of the Friends of the New Jersey School of Conservation, joins host Jim to discuss the proposed elimination of the NJ School of Conservation from Governor Cheryl's budget. Located in Stokes State Forest, the 77-year-old facility serves 5,000 students annually — 50% from Title I schools — offering outdoor environmental education, teacher continuing educat...

In this episode of Safety Wars, host Jim covers a wide range of regulatory, safety, and current events topics. Jim opens with personal health reflections, advocating for seeking proper medical care for chronic conditions like high blood pressure rather than relying on home remedies.

The show features an FSN Radio News segment covering UK political turmoil, US-China trade talks between Presidents Trump and Xi Jinping, and rising European airfare costs tied to Strait of Hormuz disruptions.

On the regulatory front, Jim breaks down the Department of Labor's new guidance requiring English language proficiency for foreign...

Host Jim covers breaking news across safety, health, and current events. Top stories include Trump's trade summit with China's Xi Jinping, the U.S. potentially renaming the Iran conflict "Operation Sledgehammer," and the South Carolina Supreme Court overturning Alex Murdaugh's double murder conviction and ordering a retrial.

The main focus is a Hantavirus outbreak aboard the cruise ship MV Hondias, with three deaths and cases monitored in nearly two dozen countries. Jim warns that despite expert reassurances, a single school case could trigger union-invoked OSHA General Duty Clause actions and force widespread school closures — and questions whether th...

In this episode of Safety Wars (episode 544, May 12, 2026), host Jim Poesl.

Hantavirus Outbreak: Eleven cases have been confirmed linked to the cruise ship MV Hondias. Jim discusses Dutch hospital workers quarantined for six weeks after failing PPE protocols, criticizing media coverage for "blaming the worker" rather than examining systemic failures.

Jim emphasizes that hantavirus already exists in the U.S. (890 cases since 1993, ~40% fatality rate), urges proper PPE precautions during rodent cleanup, and calls on states and municipalities to establish clear public health protocols before emergencies escalate — rather than reacting after the fact.

In this episode of Safety Wars, host Jim Posel covers a wide range of topics connecting workplace safety, current events, and broader cultural commentary. He opens by revisiting a previous discussion on AI's limitations in reading safety hazards from photos, arguing that context — something AI lacks — is critical. He then raises concerns about proposed in-vehicle "fitness to drive" technology, questioning whether it infringes on privacy and whether the debate has been adequately revisited post-COVID.

Jim transitions to an unusual but thoughtful segment on UFO disclosure and Christianity, specifically through a Lutheran lens, arguing that the existence of extr...

In this episode of Safety Wars, host Jim Poesl argues that AI-based in-vehicle surveillance systems designed to assess driver fitness are inaccurate and invasive. He demonstrates this by running a job site photo through an AI safety audit tool, which produced multiple errors — proving that human judgment remains essential and that AI alone shouldn't make critical safety decisions.

Poesl also covers U.S. Department of Labor news, including new senior leadership appointments, a whistleblower case where a railroad worker was wrongfully suspended for reporting a train collision, and expanded pharmacy benefits under the Federal Employees Compensation Act.

This May 5, 2026 episode of Safety Wars, hosted by Jim Pozal, covers several interconnected topics through a safety and civil liberties lens.

Jim opens with a dramatic near-miss incident where a plane's landing gear struck a tractor-trailer on the New Jersey Turnpike near Newark Airport, sparking discussion about the dangers of Runway 29 and the chronic understaffing of air traffic controllers — a problem worsened by recent federal budget cuts that eliminated ~400 trainees.

He then shares an insider account of the March 2025 Air Canada/fire truck collision at LaGuardia, attributing it to hesitation in communication — a human organizational perf...

This episode of Safety Wars (April 30, 2026) opens with host Jim discussing root cause analysis and the "five whys" method, illustrating how it's often weaponized to blame individuals rather than expose systemic failures. He walks through examples — worker injuries, subcontractor PPE issues, fitness-for-duty failures, and budget shortfalls — showing how safety professionals can frame findings to drive real organizational change.

Jim then covers the news: unemployment claims remain steady, OSHA's Construction Safety Week focuses on fall prevention, and a government shutdown has ended. He analyzes FBI surveillance footage of a security incident at what appears to be a hotel ballr...

The Safety Wars episode for April 28, 2026, opens by recognizing Workers’ Memorial Day, emphasizing both recorded workplace fatalities (~5,000 annually) and the much larger estimate of 50,000+ deaths from occupational illnesses. The host highlights a key misconception: while workers have a “right” to a safe workplace under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, it is a statutory right enforced by OSHA, not an individually enforceable civil right. This shifts responsibility from individuals to regulatory systems and post-incident enforcement.

The episode then pivots into a Human and Organizational Performance (HOP) analysis of a recent assassination attempt, framing it not as indivi...

This episode of Safety Wars covers a Department of Labor leadership shakeup, broader leadership lessons, and several safety and regulatory topics. The host discusses the departure of Lori Chavez-DeRemer amid allegations, noting uncertainty about their validity but emphasizing the scrutiny that comes with high-level positions. He frames the situation as part of a larger pattern where leaders move from smaller, relationship-driven roles into large, complex systems and struggle to adapt. Using examples like Dean Barkley, the host highlights how mismatches between expectations and institutional realities can expose leadership limitations.

The episode transitions into safety and organizational insights...

We had some unforeseen emergent situations happening and had to cut this episode short.

The host expresses concern over undisclosed meetings among global leaders and emphasizes the importance of self-sufficiency and disaster readiness, recommending prioritizing essentials like food, fuel, and financial stability. 

International news highlights include a temporary ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, ongoing tensions with Iran, and warnings of potential military escalation. Energy concerns are raised, with Europe facing possible jet fuel shortages due to disrupted supply chains. Domestically, the discussion critiques U.S. industrial readiness for war, citing limited manufacturing c...

The episode centers on concerns about transparency, governance, and personal responsibility. The host questions the secrecy of a long-running global conference resembling the Bilderberg Group, where political leaders, corporate executives, and policymakers meet under strict confidentiality rules. He argues that the lack of media coverage and public accountability fuels distrust and speculation, especially given the high-level attendees and topics like AI, global trade, and warfare. While acknowledging that private discussions can be valuable, he raises concerns about whether such meetings influence public policy without oversight and whether laws regarding open governance are being sidestepped. 

T...

This Safety Wars episode focuses on a discussion around Human and Organizational Performance (HOP) versus traditional behavior-based safety, emphasizing the importance of context in understanding workplace incidents. The host critiques the oversimplification of HOP principles, particularly the idea that “blame fixes nothing,” explaining that context—such as management expectations, system pressures, and workplace culture—plays a critical role in shaping behavior. 

Through examples like a forklift operator using a phone or improper glove selection, the episode illustrates how responsibility often extends beyond the worker to include supervisors and organizational systems. Incentive structures, such as bonuses t...

This Safety Wars episode reflects on authenticity, recent travel experiences, and major regulatory developments, while reinforcing broader themes of realism and practicality. The host begins by emphasizing the value of genuineness over perfection, arguing that overly polished communication can disconnect from real audiences. Through a personal story about making a mistake while reading in church, he highlights the concept of “failing safely,” demonstrating that visible imperfections can build confidence and encourage participation in others. 

The episode then shifts to a recap of a West Coast trip, including visits to Vasquez Rocks, Santa Cruz, and San F...

We have a regular broadcast on Safety FM, listen to us on your favorite Podcast platform and video network as Safety Wars.

Tune into Safety Wars on your favorite podcast and video network for this and other safety stories. visit us at safetywars.com. like and share us on social media. 

If we run overtime our preferred network for video is Rumble :https://rumble.com/user/SafetyWars and you can see us there. Hour 2 will be uploaded to the regular podcast network.

ALL MUSIC IS...

Tonight Jim cautions people who might attend the "No King's Rally". We then report on the Laguardia Crash from Sunday Night.

For all your health and safety needs, visit us at our website safetywars.com, contact us at Jim@safetywars.com or 845-269-5772.

We have a regular broadcast on Safety FM, listen to us on your favorite Podcast platform and video network as Safety Wars.

Tune into Safety Wars on your favorite podcast and video network for this and other safety stories. visit us at safetywars.c...