Can the majority be incorrect?

Question

Can the majority be incorrect, or does it depend upon what the issue or topic is?

Answer 1

You can usually get the wrong answer by asking the most people, otherwise everyone would be a doctor.

Answer 2

Yes. The majority is incorrect frequently. Especially lately with news no longer being news. It used to be that news came from newspapers, TV, and radio which mostly just presented the facts. Now - everything is a spin. FOX makes it sound one way, and CNN has a conservative give his opinions and a liberal give his. And the news media leads the majority into believing a certain way.....often incorrect. Example: throughout U.S. history - we have always talked with our allies AND our enemies. Even during the cold war we talked to Russia and China. But today - Barrack Obama says he would talk to our enemies. And the media has made it sound like he is naive for doing what every American president prior to GW Bush did all the time.

Answer 3

OK, so it's only my opinion, but I would have said can the majority ever be right. Actually it does depend on the topic, they're pretty good on how to do things, get things, uuuh not so much. You have to already know the answers to dig out the wisdom everyone has, they just mess it up with the next sentence. See what you thing about this. Oh, and here, check people's profile. You learn a lot about where their answers are coming from.

Answer 4

First I would like to point out that Flat Earth, Hitler and Jim Jones were NEVER the majority in their time and place. As unreasonable as it sounds the public opinion is usually shouted by some minority rather than the majority. The reason they usually get their way is that they yell the loudest.

The majority usually appear to be incorrect because their opinion doesn't take in to account the minorities that are influenced or left out by what the majority want.

If, for example, the majority of the US want Bush to be impeached then he should be right? But it won't happen because there is a very vocal religious faction that will protect him to the end. Are they right? No, but they are very loud.

If, for example, the majority of Americans want gang members to be jailed because of their gang affiliations then they should be in jail right? No, because most gang members are black or hispanic and therefore are protected by very loud groups that "protect their rights".

Is it fair that 16% or 10% of our population should be afforded special rights and considerations....NO. Will those special rights continue???? YES Why....because they yell louder.

Squeaky wheel gets the grease..... 3/4 get ignored.

Answer 5

Yes, the majority can be incorrect. Case in point...look at the majority that followed people like Hitler or Jim Jones, All it takes is a charismatic speaker and some easily influenced people.

Some follow out of fear, some follow because they want to be a part of the "gang". But a majority can be influenced in to the wrong direction.

Answer 6

The majority has had a long history of being wrong on numerous things !! "The accepted norms" at various points through time have given way to new knowledge or concepts that have proven the old ways to have been Very Wrong !!

Preceptions within the masses come from a number of things and in modern times -- a lot of these preceptions are shaped by government and media --- and as we recently found out (in the Iraqi WMD "thing") governments AND media can be outright wrong in how they shape public opinion and the public can be big time wrong in how they allow their concepts and precepts to BE easily lead !!!

Answer 7

It's actually true both ways. It so happen, sometimes, that a topic is misunderstood which contributes to have people incorrect. It also happens that the topic is unclear which gives the same result or chaos.

Answer 8

it depends. sometimes the majority can be right sometime wrong. but you ask as a either or yes statement. then certainly the majority could be incorrect. there can be no better example than hitlers tremndous popularity in germany before he unleashed whatever he did.

Answer 9

If it comes to matters of the heart I believe that the majority can be incorrect.

Answer 10

I think the majority is often wrong. It is always easy to fall short of what you know is right or wrong. Most teenagers know its not ok to have sex with multiple partners, but they say it is because that's how society has programed them. Parents have stopped spanking children because society says its mean and bad. Look back 50 years and see how much better behaved those children were than today's children. Just because a majority says so don't listen. I sure as heck don't.

Answer 11

The majority can always be incorrect because in twenty years everyone should learn from past mistakes. This can happen to many incorrect,,,,etc. Mine could be economics Boink head to activate my economic political problem.