Why all the "AA bashing"?

ahhh...so cute...so 'innocent'...

it must be harmless!

So, for the record, and to respond to a handful of pouty
critics, I'm addressing why I spend so much focus on the
'bashing' (emphasis theirs) of Alcoholics Anonymous.

Well, let's Keep It Simple.

A.A. is a destructive and insidiously dangerous mis-used
tool that destroys as many lives as alcohol abuse itself.

It is a substitute addiction, and no, it is not a 'good one.'

It is a celebration of pretense and illusion, clinging to
dreamy ideals while avoiding realities and actual needs.

It sets people up to fail. It sets people up to be weak
and dependent. It creates a bullying and intimidation that
says you are 'less than' in its absence. It sets up people
to use externals to make themselves stronger and able to
face challenges.
(Hmmm....that seems familiar.)

I offer reasons why AA is a bad choice.
I promote other means of achieving sobriety.
I recount the horrible experiences I had and what I
witnessed  in the cult.
I 'attack' AA because AA has set itself up as a venerable
provider of something that it is not, and yes, I have taken
it upon myself to set the record straight so that no more
people have to be hurt by their many, many lies and
delusions.

I'm still against alcohol abuse. And drug abuse. And
religious addiction. And dependent relations. And
ego-minded controlling actions which intimidate and
shame scared, hurting people. And misrepresenting
truth. And substitutional addiction. And hypocrisy
and double standards.

Alcohol is not bad; alcohol abuse is 'bad.'
People are not bad; self-destructive behavior is 'bad.'
AA is thought to have started off halfway okay, but
has been twisted and reduced to a fanatical religion
that avoids rational thinking and truth. No, it was
always a means of expanding the Christian doctrine
stranglehold under another auspices.

AA is not used as a springboard for getting on your
feet and getting well. It is used as an indoctrination
to gain members, for without fresh blood the host
will wither and die. Thus the hyperactive pounce
on newcomers.

A holding pattern of mindless regurgitation is not
healthy, recovery, spiritual, or 'godly.' It is in fact
a bastardization of all those things. In life, change
and growth are the constant; if AA is a spiritual
kindergarten (which is being kind,) why does no
one ever graduate and MOVE ON!?!?

IF AA simply 'worked' for teaching people who like
the idea to change for the better--separate to
themselves--then so be it! But the entire organization
is about religious indoctrination and subversion,
which of course requires targeting new recruits
and repetitively demeaning and subjecting them to
lies. So much for autonomy. No wonder there's a
code of secrecy and silence.

You don't have to be religious or join AA to get well
from addictive and compulsive living. That is my
message; AA is at the foreground of disseminating
the antithesis of that message, and therefore needs
to be discredited and opposed.

Until their subterfuge and dangerousness are common
knowledge, I will continue to speak out.

Thanks for the request for clarity!

Why is AA a cult?

Well, an attacking dog isn't 'actually' safe just because
a guidebook tells you it 'is,' and AA is not a lovey-dovey
Godly program for helping and healing just because they
promote themselves as such (annnnnd have enough pull
and power and prominence to scare most folks from
standing up against them.)

But here's a good piece posted by "Raysny" on the
Yahoo! Question noards, in response to the 'question'
of whether or not AA qualifies.

***************************************

When they told me that if I left I would die, I had my first

doubts about the program.

*George Vaillant, member of AA's Board of Trustees, calls AA a

 cult in his book, "The Natural History of Alcoholism Revisited" on

page 266:
"AA certainly functions as a cult and indoctrinates its members in
ways common to cults the world over."

*AA historian, Dick B calls AA a cult.

*AA critic, Orange, calls AA cult:
The Cult Test:
http://www.orange-papers.org/orange-cult.html

I call it cult-like or cult-lite. Mainly because if I call it

a cult, people stop listening.

Whether it is a cult or not is irrelevant. Is it a destructive cult?

It does seem to meet the criteria set by Lipton for a a destructive cult:
-Milieu Control
-Mystical Manipulation
-Demand for Purity
-The Cult of Confession
-The "Sacred Science"
-Loading the Language
-Doctrine Over Person
-Dispensing of Existence
http://www.freeminds.org/psych/lifton.htm

Here's what others think:

The Cult Called A.A.
http://www.moonmac.com/Cult_Called_AA.html


The Twelve Step Cult:
http://www.bee.net/cardigan/attic/guest09.htm

Alcoholics Anonymous: Of Course It’s a Cult!:
http://www.positiveatheism.org/rw/ofcourse.htm


The copyright on the Big Book lapsed, a person can copy

it to their heart's content, even publish their own copy of it.

Source(s):

owner of the Yahoo group "without_aa":
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/without_aa/

AA's True Legacy

The Apostles of the Divine Reich

So, what are folks left with, in the grand scheme?

After the coffee pots are cleaned and the lights dimmed.

After the factions break up to gossip and seduce and
engage in all their existing compulsive addictions and
distractions.

After the posturing and lying and self-promotion and
pandering and typical church-impressions have been
doled out.

After newcomers and sensible folk and court appointees
have ceased attending.

The legacy of AA's doctrine, that sticks with a 'person
with alcohol addiction as a result of underlying problems,'
is as follows:

* You are a weak and powerless person.

* You are not strong enough to manage your own life.

* You are morally transgressed and a bad person.

* You are a sinner and a godless person.

* You are without the truthfulness to see what is good.

* You have made a fatal decision to leave the Program.

* You are sentenced to a life of constant drinking.

* You will never be free of the yoke of alcoholism.

* You have a 'disease' and you can't help yourself.

* You are guilty and shameful and confused.

* You cannot trust yourself.

* You cannot recover on your own or without
   spiritual transformation.

* You are not honest enough to be healed/saved.

* You are not smart enough to know what's good and right.
(or, You are 'too smart' for your own good.)

* You are not worthwhile on your own; you need an
eternal, external crutch to be okay.

CONGRATULATIONS!You are a graduate of the most effectively disabling
mind-control cult in the world!

It's the message that keeps on giving! Spreading like
a cancer throughout the land.

The ultimate Pyramid Scheme; Human Lives and souls
are the price of your acceptance and 'progression!'

Because if God 'Himself' is the (purported) co-author
of the divine Big Book, who are lowly, alcoholic, sinning
YOU to think you know anything about your own welfare?

You stupid, dishonest, egotistical, irresponsible, lacking,
immoral piece of garbage you!

Get in line with the shaming and authoritative process
and get your ass controlled!

(Translation of AA material exclusive courtesy of
Truth in Advertising.)

The Right Foundation

In order to become whole, I have to rid myself of conditional
love, self-doubt, and living for the approval of others.

I may need a connection to the world, but my primary
connection must be to the needs of my real self--someone
I have more often than not avoided and ignored entirely
through the years.

Survivors of childhood abuses proliferate the addiction
and recovery scene.

Most of us come from alcoholic/addict households.

Most of us come from shaming and dysfunctional
households.

Most of us come from some form of emotional,
physical, sexual, or other abuse.

There is a deep and abiding connection between one thing
and the other. Our addictive nature, our compulsive living,
is not only chemical addiction; it is a learned self-abuse and
lack of self love addiction.

There are common denominators between all these
survived phenomena; all of us kids-in-adult-bodies.
These issues don't go away from being dry
or going cold turkey. Being clean does not stop;

-Looking out for the needs of others ahead of ourselves
-Indecisiveness, inability to make decisions, passivity
-Being drawn to abusive people/situations (including
    in recovery)
-Being really gullible or really untrusting
-Constant emotional highs and lows
-Difficulty with intimate relations; tendency to sabotage
   when things    become 'regular'
-Difficulty holding down jobs
....and so much more....

Our use of external medications comes from a deep place
of hurt that wants to be avoided. If we focus primarily on
the external 'problem,' we don't heal ourselves; we merely
shift from one toxic supplement to another (sexing,
workaholism, religious fervor, fanaticism, etc.)
It's all the same thing.

These things aren't solved by dogma or suppressing self in
order to become more like everyone else.

The need of a repressed and undeveloped soul is to discover self,
love self, express self....not perform and win approval of others.

Most of us are rebuilding people from the ground up.
Be sure you start with the right foundation.

Things Which Used To Baffle Us......

I used to be naive about how something like
the Nazi regime could have taken hold of
so many everyday, 'normal', otherwise
good people.

Now I simply wonder how it doesn't
happen more often.

Hitler & Company took a defeated, frightened,
angry, shamed country of people and he fed
them the ideas of the inclusion, acceptance,
instruction, and discipline they were seeking.

They were broken so that they were willing
to do whatever it took to attain and to keep
these stilted promises of mock love. The lure
was enticing. The bill of goods was expertly
drilled into their minds with such ferocity
and repetition that the propaganda became
the realized 'reality.'

The strict parameters, the culture of fear,
the worry over losing face and place,
having thinking dictated, being under
authoritarian rule, being part of a falsified
elite....these are all the things that appeal
to children with unmet needs.

They are susceptible to shame and control.
And of course, for the abandoned child
who now has a taste of power and privilege
all their own, there is the ultimate wet dream;
The opportunity to impose shame and control
on another, and continue the pattern endlessly.

No, it's no longer a mystery how such things
occur in the world.

What else is out there?

That's a bigger question than one answer can
address, but let me start by saying that there
are a myriad of options.

All health concerns are improved by
addressing all components of an individual's
life; harmony is required in the areas of
physical, mental, psychological, emotional,
chemical,  and spiritual well being. Isolating
just one--proclaiming it to be the only area
in need of nurturing--is disingenuous and
hazardous.

All of our humanness is interrelated;
we are adversely affected in many ways
if we are not taking care of ourselves
by keeping up proper nutrition, exercise,
psychologically fitness, rest properly, etc.

This is given some minor lip service,
almost as an after-thought, in AA when
they reference the HALT model for
determining individuals' healthiness.
(The wellness field coined the acronym--
which stands for Hungry, Angry, Lonely,
Tired--to help people keep track of key
points of interest that are crucial
to good balanced health.)

In other words, if you find yourself going
without food, not getting enough sleep,
etc., then you need to STOP and do some-
thing about it, because missing out on
certain things is a slippery slope for leading
into other destructive behaviors. Our minds
become altered and more susceptible with-
out proper food, rest, companionship, and
calm.

These are things we must proactively
take steps to address, not simply pray about.

Now, avoiding becoming angry is touchy,
because there is such a thing as healthy
anger. It's an emotion that serves us well
in the correct time, place, quantity, and
method of release. It's when we hold on
to anger and seethe and manifest vengeance
and are adversely affected by it that it
is an issue.

One thing I notice in AA is that most
people are so busy trying to impress
everyone with how tolerant and spiritual
and 'godly' and benevolent they want to
appear to be, they shut down the naturally
occurring upset that takes place in life.

If you aren't honest, if you don't release
anger in a healthy and productive manner,
it doesn't simply dissipate; it simmers and
comes out in other areas. It can be more
detrimental to pretend you aren't angry
when you are.

There's also nothing at all wrong about
seeking a good counselor (no, not a priest)
to guide you through your psychological
issues.

Again, not as a guru or a source of depen-
dency, but as part of a larger framework
of positive outlets. If you choose to use AA
as your shrink, you are going to be sorely
disappointed (unless having your business
spread all over the group and the town is
therapeutic to you.)

You can and should explore other options
of sources of strength as well as spiritual
paths, treatment of chemical addiction,
sources of alcohol abuse, and more.
Knowledge is power, despite what AA
promotes.

Just because people smile and say you
can trust them doesn't mean it's true.
Remember; these are sick alcoholics who
believe that being a lying, manipulating,
thieving bastard is all part of their identity
and make-up, unavoidable even. Even if
they are 'working on' improving, that's not
a ringing endorsement. Maybe other drunks
can empathize with a drunk's problems
best, but as for helping you to get better?
That's why they do have qualified medical
people.

Unfortunately most of them have been
convinced by either the insurance companies,
the courts, or social pressure to believe AA
is a cure-all. I wouldn't ask a crazy person
to tell me how to stop suffering from bi-polar
disorder, no matter how pulled together they
may appear for an hour a day. Explore. Ask
questions. Investigate. Your well being is
certainly worth it.

Here are some other sources for other
means of help, and I'll have more to follow.
You can also search most of these organi-
zations on youtube for video presentations.


http://www.orange-papers.org/


www.blamedenial.co.uk


http://www.rational.org/(or you can search 'Rational
Recovery' on wikipedia)


www.SmartRecovery.org


http://www.morerevealed.com/


http://www.sossobriety.org/


http://www.lifering.org/


http://www.womenforsobriety.org/


http://www.aaalternative.com/


Most of these sites or non-profit, but I
included a few for-profit because the
information on these sites is good
and can give you some insights even
if you don't have the funds to participate.

There are also a boat-load of online
forums where you can visit and speak
with people who don't require you to
submit to their dogma in order to get
well. I've never had a doctor tell
me I had to speak and act and think
like him/her in order to get
rid of a kink in my back. Funny, that.

AA's trademarked phrase of "If you
don't do it our way and keep coming
to meetings, you'll 'go back out' and
you'll die!!" is not only fictitious,
it is alarmist, purposely misleading,
and dangerous.

Think for yourself...and allow others
to do the same.

Independence is power; dependence is death.

"Expecting a Different Result"

A Blast from the Past...
but still relevant, unfortunately.


Bit of a purge here, so if your are disinclined to
partake in one, you have been forewarned!

"Turn around now for the safety of you and
 your passengers!"

I attended my local AA meeting last night, against
my better judgment. I was so lonely and wanted
some face-to-face interaction. I thought it would
be good for me to work on my interpersonal
skills (being diplomatic, managing differences, etc.)

Things were okay and casual before the meeting.
Light humor, chit chat, sharing some general
stories. Then the meeting started. I had to, of
course, listen through all the talk about how I
can't do anything myself, how the 'one' is God
and may I please be 'blessed enough' to find
HIM now, and how those that can't comprehend
this simple program just don't have what it takes;
there's something wrong with them!

And then it really happened.

Everyone broke into their old canned spiels
from every catch-phrase ever uttered from
program-speak or that they had memorized
from passages of Big Book.
"All you have to do is turn it over to God."
"God will help you if you just LET Him."
"I can't do nothing for myself--it's all God."

I just sat there listening, and realizing how little
I have in connection with these people. I felt
so displaced. I also knew that if I spoke up, it
would only receive the same anger and
condemnation of the past, and I am really so
tired of conflict and fighting.

I have learned something else, too, and I have
a healthy respect for it. These particular folks--
I will refer to them as zealots, not intending
criticism, merely identification--they are
completely consumed by their idea of a savior.
Their identity is wrapped up in it. Their purpose.
Their future.
Their sobriety.

I have no wish to inflict pain, hurt, or criticism
on anyone. Not anymore.

I may feel like I am engaging in normal explor-
ation of the purpose of the program and the
alternatives available, but these people are
unable to separate me 'having a differing
opinion' from me 'condemning and attacking
their position.' And as I think Churchill said,
"Don't ever try and take away a man's beliefs."

I didn't need to be right, or a 'better' AA,
or show my discontent. I simply listened
politely, excused myself before the prayer
circle, and quietly left.

I don't belong there, and that saddens me
greatly that I no longer feel at home with
people I had thought of as friends. But I
need to be where I can either relate or at
least be respected for what I do believe.
Thankfully, such a place exists.

I am a whole and complete human being
unto myself; I have no need of anyone or
anything external. We are all the perfect
self-contained machines of organic
construct. We need only renounce the
dependent conditioning and weakness
that permeates this culture.

I do not want what I have not got.

Life is good and perfect exactly as it is,
and part of my universe is doing what I
can to improve my lot...but to be accepting
of what I am in the meantime.