False Advertising

I have a gaming website that I regularly visit called “Home of the Underdogs.” To get there, you have to type “www.the-underdogs.org” into your browser. Home of the Underdogs is an abandonware pc game website that allows you to find classic games, many which were underappreciated in their day.

Today, I accidentally typed www.the-underdog.org (notice that I forgot to type the “s”) into my browser. And, oddly, it took me to amazon.com. Apparently, Amazon owns “www.the-underdog.org.” I don’t know how or why they own that domain name…but try it out and you’ll see.

Since when is Amazon an underdog? I love the convenience they provide, but they aren’t even close to being an underdog in the bookselling industry. Maybe they were 10 years ago. But no longer. They dominate. That is like many pastors I know who lead seeker-sensitive churches and still refer to themselves as “outside-the-box.” It is like mega-churches selling themselves as a place where people can feel at home. False Advertising. There is a psychological need for us all to identify with innovation, with obscurity, with the underdogs of this world. We all want to feel like we are fighting for something that is underappreciated. That is why many conservative cultural Christians enjoy feeling persecuted. That is why mega-churches act as though they are missional outposts–struggling to shine their light into a dark and oppresive world.

for further reading . . .

• None Found