One of the best episodes of Bluey is ‘Perfect’ (https://www.bluey.tv/watch/season-3/perfect/).

Isn’t it strange that we work so hard on teaching our children the realities of fallibility and then when they come into Safety they are told they have to be perfect.

Just look at the invitation to the Global Zero Congress approaching in November in Sydney. What language is repeated the most? Zero! The symbol of perfection.

So here is Safety, obsessed with measurement and injury rates inviting people to a conference that denies fallibility and thinks zero is a vision. Of course, we all know that perfectionism is a mental health disorder and that Zero is a delusion (https://www.humandymensions.com/product/zero-the-great-safety-delusion/).

Poor old safety, unable to manage the fact that humans are vulnerable, mortal and fallible and then run a congress so everyone can see how unprofessional safety is. Why is safety unprofessional? Well, it’s quite simple, any quest for perfection is unethical. Any demand on imperfect people to be perfect must end in brutalism.

One of the best scenes in the Bluey episode ‘Perfect’ is when Bluey tries to draw the perfect painting and can’t. The real frustration is through impossible expectation, something DuPont thinks it is perfect at (https://www.consultdss.com/content-hub/belief-in-the-impossible/). Of course, belief in perfection and the impossible is both delusional and dangerous because, it can never have an ethical outcome. This is not surprising once one learns that DuPont knowingly killed thousands of people and tried to cover it up (https://safetyrisk.net/dark-waters-the-true-story-of-dupont-and-zero/). Such is the mythology that it continues to market itself as safety excellence.

Then when Bluey’s painting gets covered up by Bingo’s painting, Bluey is devastated (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZoI9RI0DgY).

This is what happens when perfection is fused with measurement, performance, expectation and competition. This is what Zero fosters.

Whilst the sentiments of the episode ‘Perfect’ are good (wanting to make the perfect card for Father’s Day), Bluey learns that the best in life and living is when we accept our fallibility, do our best and accept the fallibility of others (https://www.humandymensions.com/product/fallibility-risk-living-uncertainty/).

How strange that children ‘get it’ but Safety doesn’t!