My best friend was killed but why would someone drive a vehicle down a pedestrian walkway? The answer isn’t as simple as you might think.

In this episode of How Did It Make Sense?, I sit down with investigative journalist and author Jessie Singer to challenge the way we think about accidents. Inspired by her book There Are No Accidents. Jessie shares the story of her best friend’s death, a so-called accident that, years later, played out in near-identical fashion with devastating results. But was it really just down to bad luck and poor choices, or was something bigger at play?

We explore the uncomfortable truth about how blame obscures the real causes of harm, from road safety to workplace incidents. We unpack how narratives of individual failure let flawed systems off the hook, and why real change only happens when we stop treating accidents as inevitable. Whether you're in safety, leadership, or just want to see the world differently, this is an episode that will change the way you think about risk, responsibility, and the structures that shape our lives.

Resources Recommended:

Work Accidents and the Law" by Crystal Eastman: This seminal work is available for free online through the Internet Archive.
Unsafe at Any Speed: The Designed-In Dangers of the American Automobile" by Ralph Nader: You can find this influential book on Amazon.
Killed by a Traffic Engineer" by Angie Schmitt: This insightful book is available on Amazon.
On the Escape of Tigers: An Ecologic Note" by Dr. William Haddon Jr.: This classic paper can be accessed through the American Journal of Public Health.

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Work-accidents and the law

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