Full Idea
By themselves the people always will what is good, but by themselves they do not always discern it.
Gist of Idea
The general will is always good, but sometimes misunderstood
Source
Jean-Jacques Rousseau (The Social Contract (tr Cress) [1762], II.06)
Book Reference
Rousseau,Jean-Jacques: 'The Social Contract', ed/tr. Cranston,Maurice [Penguin 1972], p.83
A Reaction
This sounds like a can of worms. It invites someone to step in as interpreter - a spin doctor, perhaps, or a newspaper proprietor. The first proposition strikes me as absurdly optimistic. Think of the people of Europe in August 1914.