There Are "Real Alcoholics"

by Danny Schwarzhoff - RLRA*

Alcohol abusers fitting AAs description of the alcoholic, possessing obsession AND allergy are classified in AAs book, for AA's purposes, as "Real alcoholics", "Alcoholics of our type" and those of the "Hopeless variety". AAs Program is designed EXCLUSIVELY for THIS classification of drinker.

Alcohol abusers NOT fitting AAs description - who for some other reason - have CHOSEN to drink problematically, yet have the ability to stop, using the POWER they already possess are referred to as non-alcoholics by AAs co-authors.

BOTH those passing and those failing this litmus test presently comprise AAs "membership" and these appear as a de facto sub-culture within AA separating itself from AAs real alcoholics.

This "subclass" of non-alcoholic AA "members" promulgate NOT AA's Program of recovery, but its' own alternative recovery methods of subtle mind control techniques like sloganism, guilt, and distractive technique like "over-Fellowshipping".

Non-AA "cultish" methods, like "Just don't drink and go to meetings" become offensive to anyone insightful. It repels some OUT of AA to alternative treatments, ultimately "unhooking" them from a fellowship, for which they never qualified as members anyway, yet
now they are dry and able to seek alternatives. This is good.

These ex-AAs are angry at AAs who mislead and attempted to coerce them into staying. Who can blame them?

Haven't they themselves failed to investigate AAs Program outlined in AA's Book. Haven't they been gullible in accepting direction from people who don't even practice AAs published Program of recovery?

Wasn't it THEY who failed to make the distinction between AAs Fellowship, and AAs published Program?

In this, they are themselves at fault.

Alternatively some of these non-alcoholics (i) remain IN the AA Fellowship, embracing others who, like them, do not need AAs Program to solve their drinking problem, yet bizarrely blend into a "meeting dependant" prison. Or (ii) allow themselves to be, in effect, self-"jettisoned" through their own sensibilities, fueled by the lame Fellowshipping of those unwitting, "Cultish", non-alcoholic AAs themselves. This frees them to find appropriate help. Ergo, they HAVE BEEN unwittingly HELPED, even they do sometimes fall prey to the charlatan Anti-AA cult leaders like the Trimpeys, Peeles et al.

For the non-alcoholic, learning that one can STOP without changing their very being is a valuable lesson, for NO ONE has EVER recovered from ANYTHING they didn't have in the first place.

Combine millions of the real alcoholics AA has helped over 70 years with those form whom AA has NO SOLUTION, and are forced OUT of a program useless to them anyway, and we see that Alcoholics Anonymous has done more good than harm. And that harms upon others has been brought on not by AA, but by those themselves claiming harm.

Peace,

Danny S

* Real Live Recovered Alcoholic