PapaHotel, I have to disagree with your example in that in your scenario the failures are completely unrelated to each other (ATC and Engineering), whereas with this disaster the failures (both systemic and human) are related and cumulative.
Yes and no. A NAV track change is unrelated (or at least, should be unrelated) to a descent from MSA and subsequent low altitude VFR flight. These errors were not related or cumulative. But persuading the general public (or Mahon, Holmes et al.) who can't see past the emotive "the aircraft was programmed to fly into a mountain" logic, is well nigh impossible.
This is where I have a problem with the oft-quoted "swiss cheese" analogy of accident analysis. It implies that all the factors, and errors (ie. holes in the cheese) are of equal causation and interrelated relevance. Whereas usually nothing could be further from the truth.