A Small Minority
Created | Updated Feb 19, 2004
Why is it that a small minority must always spoil it for the rest of us?
It was always the reason at school, wasn't it? Sorry class, we were going to go on a field trip to the fireworks, slide and sweet factory but, because a small minority misbehaved on the last trip, we've decided to cancel this one.
It is the same everywhere. A small section always spoil the experience for the rest of us.
Football
Most people know that the vast majority of football supporters (over 99%) are law abiding citizens who simply enjoy the game. But that small minority of trouble makers gives them all a bad reputation. 'Tarred with the same brush' as my grandfather would put it.
Due to the small minority, England football supporters have a very bad reputation abroad. Hooligans infiltrate the crowd and stir up trouble. Many years ago Scotland had a far worse problem but, through the idea that this was socially unacceptable, have managed to bring it under better control.
The Internet
Many years ago, before spamming became so big a problem, I subscribed to a few newsgroups and forums and regularly posted to them. I became very despondent when several of the groups were closed down by their moderators because a few individuals were abusing them by posting abusive remarks or selling unrelated items.
Spamming itself is another example. A few years ago, the number of unsolicitated emails was much lower and easier to manage. When I first got email, SPAM was unheard of, and I certainly never received any. Indeed most people did not find spam a particularly big problem back then but again, due to a small number1 of abusers, the whole system is out of control. SPAM currently accounts for more than 50% of all emails worldwide and it is still increasing. Just think about that for a moment.
More than half of all emails being sent all over the globe RIGHT NOW are SPAM2. At the current rate of increase, experts say it is only a matter of time before emails you send to your friend are no longer delivered almost instantly, but may take hours or maybe even days to reach their recipient.
Lions and Sheep
Psychologists talk a lot about lions and sheep. Essentially lions are people who lead others and sheep are people who are led. This raises an interesting question:
What if the lion is a jerk?
What happens if the lion is the kind of person who only cares about themselves and doesn't care if his/her actions spoil the fun of others? This is certainly true with so called 'professional' football hooligans. They deliberately provoke anger and violence3 and lead other people into actions they normally would not do.
And it is because the rest of us let them.
Think about the last time someone pushed infront of you in a queue. Did you complain? Did the people behind you complain? In most cases people tend not to complain when this happens because they don't want to make a fuss. Professor Winston explained it best in the BBC TV series 'Human Instinct',
'Imagine building Stonehenge. Each block requires 12 people to lift it. Lifting it is dangerous, you could strain yourself or it could fall on you.
Now imagine that one person only pretends to lift the stone. The others would not notice the difference, but the individual saves himself from the danger.
But imagine if all 12 people decided to pretent to lift. Then the stone is never lifted into position.'
This is intended to demonstrate that a small minority of the population will always try to cheat, because they can usually get away with it.
This has led psychologists to a startling and shocking conclusion. The reason that most people do not steal is not because they are moral people or that they know it is wrong, but because they fear being caught.
So the question is: The next time someone pushes infront of you in a queue, are you going to let them get away with it?
