Abbr. Enth.

I’m not sure if it’s just Americans or if it’s a worldwide phenomenon, but I’m willing to bet that it’s just part of being human, that wanting to see the underdog win is something everybody experiences from time to time.  We love to hear stories about the guy who came back from cancer to be a seven time Tour de France winner, or pitch a no-hitter, or just for being a black guy and running for president.  Seeing people overcome this type of obstacle can reassure our faith in humanity, and even allow us to put off thoughts of our own mortality for just a brief while.  These stories will surface in the news, in our movies, in our music, and by word of mouth, bringing smiles to faces all around.

At some point over the last few years I started noticing a shift from people loving the underdog to people trying to be the underdog.  Some people have managed to convince themselves that they are up against huge odds, when in reality they are not.  I’ve recently been listening to a Christian rock band called Skillet (I know it seems silly, an atheist listening to religious music, but some of it is really quite good if you can get past any bias you may have).  One song stuck out a bit, and as I started thinking about the lyrics I realized why.  Here’s an excrpt from Skillet’s Best Kept Secret:

You’re the best kept secret in my generation
The best kept secret of all time
You’re the best kept secret in my generation
And I found you out

I’m not sure how 85% of Americans can claim to believe in the Judeo-Christian god an have it still count as a secret, never mind a well kept one. It really has nothing to do with that, it’s all just a front to get the underdog appeal. Not only that, but far too many people are just plain loud about their “secret”.

Here’s another example of this from the Audio Adrenaline song Underdog:

I’m in this race to win a prize
The odds against me
The world has plans for my demise
What they don’t see
Is that a winner is not judged by his small size
But by the substitute he picks to run the race
And mines already won

So pretty much this:

I hope I don’t have to point out the irony here (or how easy it is to make pie charts look like PacMan). Maybe running around screaming “Help, help, we’re being repressed!” is just good marketing. You see the same thing in any conspiracy theory, people will claim that the government is trying to keep their secret from getting out, and it’s them against the big bad government, or whoever is conspiring against them this week.

I’m sure there are other examples of this out there, but I can’t think of any others worth mentioning.  If you can think of any feel free to mention them in the comments below.