Stupid Fails: 20+ idiotic things people genuinely believed once upon a time

Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor

Dec 2, 2022 4:00 PM EST

People once believed the dumbest things. In this r/AskReddit thread, various Redditors shared what they thought were the silliest things everyone took as facts at one point in time that have since been proven to be woefully incorrect. If you want to put a positive spin on this, you could say that humanity and society have progressed and we know so much more these days. If you want to be realistic, however, you could just laugh at how dumb we humans can be. Keep scrolling below to see what people had to say. For more, check out these relatable memes and fails.

01
Here we go...

via u/Salsa_Amigo
02
Mad Men says otherwise!

via u/Salsa_Amigo
03
Literally why would they be crying all the time then?

via u/Salsa_Amigo
04
Oh, I bit straight into that Tootsie Pop

via u/Salsa_Amigo
05
Ok but what about a REALLY bad smell?

via u/Salsa_Amigo
06
Who actually thought this though?

via u/Salsa_Amigo
07
Only gullible parents believed this.

via u/Salsa_Amigo
08
They're still gross though!

via u/Salsa_Amigo
09
This explains quite a bit.

via u/Salsa_Amigo
10
Don't shame, me @Dangerous_Ahole!

via u/Salsa_Amigo
11
I definitely told many people this.

via u/Salsa_Amigo
12
Oh hey, Columbus!

via u/Salsa_Amigo
13
Wow, people really are dumb.

via u/Salsa_Amigo
14
It doesn't?

via u/Salsa_Amigo
15
Be right back. Calling my Mom to tell her she's a liar.

via u/Salsa_Amigo
16
Never believed this one.

via u/Salsa_Amigo
17
Hippocrates was savage, though.

via u/Salsa_Amigo
18
Fewer* teeth. Consider Grammarly when talking about people's stupidity.

via u/Salsa_Amigo
19
Cersei and Jaime are screaming somewhere under those rocks

via u/Salsa_Amigo
20
Well, now we have screens everywhere so that's unavoidable.

via u/Salsa_Amigo
21
And THAT, folks, is branding

via u/Salsa_Amigo
22
Simple, clear, and to the point

via u/Salsa_Amigo