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I generally find that, while there are a worrying amount of people with insane takes on things, often reaching 30% in various polls when something becomes "political", that the majority generally gets it right. If only there was a bit more democracy, a lot of bad things could be avoided.

Having said that, I looked up the polling on lab leaks and American democracy loses on this one:

https://morningconsult.com/2021/06/09/coronavirus-lab-leak-w...

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I know "nearly half" is not quite a majority, but it's still a plurality of Americans getting it right. Don't count out American democracy just yet.

Sadly, it wasn't a binary choice:

48% "The Coronavirus spilled from a Virology lab in China"

28% Don't Know / No Opinion

26% "The Coronavirus moved naturally from animals to humans"

Read up on selectorate theory for a good argument as to why majorities often don't matter. It's a well developed elaboration of the truism that politicians prefer to pick their voters, and it is absolutely employed strategically.

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