Srinagar, July 28 -- There is a strange power in the word "everyone." When we say everyone believes something, we rarely stop to ask whether it is actually true. When a stereotype is repeated by an entire community, it slowly begins to sound like common sense. When a tradition is followed for generations, we assume it must be right. When thousands condemn someone, we often assume the person must have done something wrong. This is how societies can gradually lose the ability to distinguish between what is popular and what is true.

The majority possesses enormous power. It can shape governments, influence markets, determine social norms and decide what is considered acceptable. But the majority, like the individual, can be wrong. Numbers e...