No doubt we all heard about the tragedy that happened over New Year’s Eve in Switzerland. Around 1:30 a.m. on New Year’s Day a fire ripped through Le Bar Constellation in the Alpine Ski Resort Town of Crans-Montana killing 40 persons and injuring more than 100. A tragedy to be sure.
In the ensuing investigation, the details revealed a number of mistakes on the part of the bar ownership as well as the oversight council responsible for carrying out safety reviews of establishments such as Le Constellation. First of these was a history of a lack of inspections. This particular location had not had a fire inspection in over five years. Next, as the age range of the victims was 14 to 39 years, questions were raised about lax ‘age checks’ at the establishment. Then there was a question about the possibility that the fire exit in the basement was locked. In all, there were a number of clearcut mistakes made. And that leads to plenty of culpability on the shoulders of those in charge.
What stood out to me amid all of this was a statement that was made by a Mr. Nicolas Féraud. Féraud is the president of the Crans-Montana council. This is the entity responsible for ensuring safety reviews are taking place in establishments such as Le Constellation. Féraud told journalists at a press conference that the council “bitterly regrets” the discovery of the lack of inspections at the establishment. “We will shoulder all the responsibility that the justice system attributes to us,” he added.
Read that last sentence again.
Féraud’s ownership of the problem and his willingness to accept any and all responsibility for what happened is incredibly admirable. He even went one step further by signaling it’s his duty to accept any and all repercussions that the justice system will dole out. Imagine that.
In September 2025, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba abruptly resigned from office. He took office in in late 2024 but faced challenges including inflation, a weak yen, and security threats, with his leadership questioned after election defeats, leading to internal calls for his resignation. And he did. Only Ishiba knows this for sure, but I wonder if his sense of honor contributed to doing the right thing for his party and for his country.
I can’t help but compare these two offshore illustrations to the culture of accountability that exists here in the U.S. Or lack thereof. I don’t think I’m off base to point out how lacking we are nowadays when it comes to owning our mistakes. We can automatically fill in the blank when a story breaks surrounding a crisis, a scandal or a tragic event. The individual(s) at the center makes a statement denying any wrongdoing and that they look forward to vigorously proving their innocence.
Okay, surely, any of us would do the same thing if we indeed were not responsible for what took place. I get that. But all too often this standard response is boilerplate. It becomes an attempt to forego accountability, point the finger elsewhere and simply not own up to the problem. Our politicians on both sides of the aisle could write a book about how to deny responsibility, create confusion surrounding the facts and distract attention away from them. It’s as if they are saying: Surely I can’t be wrong.
When our leaders shun accountability, it serves as an example for others to follow. Those being led learn that this behavior is normal and acceptable. Our youth grow up learning to deny wrongdoing. No doubt, our society pays a price in the long term.
We all remember the famous American legend of George Washington and the cherry tree. Young George chopped down his father’s cherry tree and then when asked if it was he, Washington came clean and admitted it to his father. Washington’s father then declared that George’s honesty was more important than the tree.
I’ll end with this. The gap we have in our culture around owning up to mistakes won’t change overnight. It takes time and it takes leaders who are willing to set the example. One mistake at a time.
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