Suppose that Tom, Dick and Harry have been asked to choose between the three
programmes mentioned before. The choices they make are, unsurprisingly, as follows: Now, Tom, Dick and Harry have all made rational choices, for their own reasons - in the
example here, because they have chosen programmes according to their immediate
personal interests. However, the combined effect of these choices is inconsistent.
The majority (Tom and Dick) prefer A to B.
The majority (Dick and Harry) prefer B to C.