Unfortunately Mill was unaware of the fact that most people are simply too ignorant and intellectually constrained to be capable of considering what they really want, never mind what may be good for them. It would be over a century before studies began to show how frail and inconsistent human cognition truly is, and how easily we're gulled by those who understand how to manipulate us with simple-minded soundbites and memorable visuals. Mill imagined a "will of the people" that is in fact logically impossible, and in consequence he envisioned an approach to governance that is at odds with human reality. Hence the endless self-harming and ceaseless catastrophes that representative democracy has unstintingly delivered over the last 150 years.