The Problem of the Jews: a Lesson in Brainwashing Propaganda

The Nazis were masterful with propaganda.  If you would question a well-intentioned German citizen on his political beliefs and Nazi policy, he might respond: “Perhaps some of your criticisms are valid.  But vat else can ve do about ze problem of ze Jews?  If you have no solution, zen you are just part of ze problem.”

Of course, there was no problem.  Thus, no “solution” is necessary.  Nevertheless, they succeeded in framing the issue in these terms through effective propaganda.  It was obvious that the Jews were the problem, and anyone who might question this article of faith was a traitor.  Millions of innocent people were killed, and we’re still trying to understand how it happened.

Alcoholics Anonymous has done the same thing with its propaganda machine, which kicked into gear around the same time.  They have succeeded in convincing this country that there is a “problem with alcoholism”: the insatiable craving for alcohol is a real disease or disorder and real people suffer from it.  And anyone who criticizes AA or questions alcoholism must be an angry resentful person, possibly in denial of his own addiction.  The members of AA themselves, who should know best whether or not alcoholism exists, think this is beyond question.  If you criticize AA without offering a better solution to alcoholism and addiction, then you are just making things worse for the poor victims of the disease.  The brainwashing is so deep that even prominent experts such as Dr Drew and Dr Carl Hart, who are intimately familiar with alcoholism and addiction, and readily admit the typical addict has a history of lying and crimes preceding the onset of their ‘disease’, will defend AA even while they offer tempered criticism.  Millions are spent yearly to study the ‘Science of Addiction’.

But alcoholism doesn’t exist.  It is a completely fake disorder/disease/pathology.  It is simply a lie: a modern delusion created by AA, nor did it exist before AA. But we all believe it.  Well, most of us.

(Yes there were chronic excessive drinkers before AA, but they didn’t claim ignorance as to the reasons they drank, even if they didn’t openly admit them.  Furthermore, medically supervised detox is usually reported as being a ‘surprisingly comfortable’ experience.)

The fact is, AA is a drinking club for some and brainwashing cult of powerlessness for others.  None is a true alcoholic (or addict).  But as I’ve shown, some men use alcohol or drugs as cover for their mischief (sex, crime, etc), and then try to brainwash vulnerable people to kill themselves to “prove” their powerlessness to the same substances.  The victims effectively vindicate the cult by dying for the sins of its members.

The Newcomers

The rooms of AA receive a steady flow of impressionable and vulnerable people ripe for brainwashing.  Mostly they have discovered that alcohol and drugs have become ineffective in treating the pain of loneliness (or any of life’s persistent disappointments), and have come to the rooms in search of companionship.  Some arrive at the behest a friend or family member who sees that their loved one is suffering, but doesn’t know what else to do.  Some are referred by professional counselors or are required to attend by their rehab discharge plan.  And some are ordered to attend by the court in response to a DUI, in the mistaken belief that this experience is more effective in preventing substance abuse than community service, a fine or jail time.  Many of these people are really struggling with various mental and emotional problems, as most of us do at various times in our lives.  Unfortunately, they are easily abused by the cult.

The primary goal of the cult is to brainwash the victim into self-destruction, and it’s not hard to exploit the newcomer’s mental state to achieve this goal.  A hundred middle age women destroy themselves daily with painkillers, and it is no coincidence that most of them were introduced to AA/NA during their youth and young adulthood, either because of a family history of involvement, or through friends, or even through school programs.

Newcomers are encouraged to choose a sponsor from the group.  It should be “someone who has what you want”.  These would be charismatic people who seem to have the answers to life’s questions.  The sponsor may use the following lines to brainwash the new victim:

  • You are a danger to yourself and I am scared for you.  You don’t know what you are capable of.
  • You must be an alcoholic.  Otherwise what are you doing here?
  • You are obviously in denial.  I was once, too.
  • You seem angry, ignorant, and hateful.  I feel sorry for you.
  • Look at how well your own program is working.
  • If you don’t like the program then go home and drink and keep blaming the world for your problems.
  • You think you are your own Higher Power — this is the height of pride and narcissism.  No wonder you are miserable.
  • Alcoholism if left untreated always results in ‘jails, institutions, or death.’
  • You are too smart for your own good.  (Turn off your brain.)
  • You are too much ‘in your own head’.  (Turn off your brain.)
  • Keep coming back.  It works if you work it.  (This is recited in unison while holding hands at the end of each meeting.)

Newcomers may also be exploited for sex using these tactics (13th Step).  The rooms of AA are rife with such stories, and many web sites are dedicated to exposing the truth.  However, even those sites don’t acknowledge that the addiction was created by AA, and that they too have fallen for a modern delusion.  They still insist that addiction is a real phenomena — just that AA is not an effective treatment for it.  Most likely they prefer to think of themselves as an addict instead of a lonely person.  The solution is not to destigmatize addiction: it is to destigmatize loneliness.

The Powerlessness Trap

The steps are designed to make the victim believe he has a disease to which he is powerless, and which will kill him (as it almost did his sponsor).  To be rescued, he must undertake the steps vigorously:

  1. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable.
  2. Came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
  3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
  4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
  5. Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.

After taking the first step, the newly self-proclaimed alcoholic is in a precarious position.  His willpower is insufficient to resist the cravings, and yet he has no other means to defend himself from them.  We’ve all experienced a failure in willpower and we can relate to the struggle.  These people are sometimes encouraged to experiment with ‘controlled drinking’ to demonstrate their helplessness (and not to return until they are certain).  See:  Candy Addiction and the Power of Suggestion.

AA demands ‘rigorous honesty’, and if you are not willing to provide this, then come back when you are.  Ready now?  OK admit your deepest faults, sins and insecurities.  These are the ‘keys to the kingdom’.  For example, if they feel lonely, abandoned, or mistreated the sponsor will say, “You feel lonely/abandoned/mistreated because you have not fully admitted powerlessness to your disease and/or you think you’re your own HP and/or you are too smart for your own good.” At this point they will turn off their brain and believe whatever the sponsor tells them and do whatever he says. Even if they are not at the point where they are ready to choose a HP (which normally doesn’t happen until middle age).

At this point there are 3 basic paths: Trouble makers will use these years to indulge their powerlessness and collect stories for their future AA careers, dropping in periodically to collect chips. Young people may get sexually exploited by the older men in the club. Depressives will sometimes kill themselves, believing that they had no choice in the matter.

Mischief and Demon Possession

The mischief-maker’s story goes as follows: “I drank, I got drunk, I got high, I had sex/homosex/killed someone, and yet I wasn’t satisfied”.  Rinse/repeat through middle age.  He may report attempting the steps but being insufficiently honest with himself and others.  Or he may have attended AA and thought it was for losers. Or that it seemed too “Christian” and judgmental.  But then suddenly in late/middle age he realizes he prefers ‘peace and serenity’ to ‘mischief and debauchery’ (as if he had a better option), and ‘realizes’ that he was powerless to alcohol all along.  It was as if he was possessed in his youth by the demon spirit of alcohol, and now he’s ready for an exorcism.  He then performs the steps with new-found vigor, sometimes reuniting with abandoned family members (not all of whom appreciate the miracle).  These are the typical AA speakers and subsequent ‘old-timers’, who are AA’s most persuasive apostles, having had years to refine their drunkalogs for maximum impact.  As with any good cult, its members are required to recruit new ones: they fulfill the Twelfth Step’s requirement to carry the message to ‘the alcoholic who is still suffering’.

The old-timers are also the main promulgators of the Craving Lie foisted upon the general public: “I needed alcohol to live.  I was unable to resist the temptation no matter how hard I tried, and I tried everything.  AA was the only thing that ever worked for me.  Now I am happy, joyous, and free.™”  Interestingly, ‘craving’ is never mentioned as an issue during a 12 Step meeting, nor do people ever talk about struggling with it, resisting it, or giving in to it.  This explanation is offered only for public consumption.  Attend your local AA meeting and see for yourself!

Nevertheless, the Craving Lie is the drinking club’s great innovation and the linchpin of its success, because it efficiently deflects the ‘willpower/moral failing’ argument:  “You think that it’s just a matter of willpower?  Well I was almost killed by my own cravings.  Go preach to the people who died!”  But unfortunately, only the good die young.  The members of this group invariably escape their close calls with the grim reaper, living to tell their stories in merry drunkalogs.  Don’t be surprised to find them enjoying a glass of wine with dinner.

For women this stage generally ends by the early 20’s, when they decide to stop drinking at mom for perceived neglect.  At least, until mom stops giving in to it.  But they may continue going to meetings to hold the family hostage to their ‘disease’: “Cosign my car loan or I’ll drink and get drunk and have sex with another alcoholic and have a baby and you’ll have to raise it while I’m out partying.”

AA defenders universally refuse to post their drunkalogs, the same ones they recite at meetings, knowing they would immediately demonstrate these simple dynamics.  But don’t get me wrong: there is nothing wrong with mischief and fun.  It makes the world go round.  The problem is first of all they exploit the Christian sensibility of forgiveness and redemption to protect and propagate the cult (AA is a Pagan Cult), and innocent people are sacrificed to justify their ‘sins’.  Most of us are sinners, but we don’t blame alcohol, and we don’t demand that innocent people die for us.  We may be embarrassed or feel guilty, but we’ll get over it.

Human Sacrifice

The lonely and vulnerable, enjoying a sense of identity and belonging that they may not have experienced in some time, are happy to proselytize for the cult.  However, the brainwashing propaganda of the steps may result in abuse, exploitation, overdose, and sometimes death.  Essentially, they are asked to ‘prove’ that they really are powerless, at risk of rejection by the group.  They may tolerate the abuse for some time — sometimes for years, and the lucky ones will eventually leave in anger, without fully understanding why.  (Their ‘resentment’ towards the group is used against them as further proof of their disease.)  The remainder contribute only to the morbid statistic that is exhibited as testimony to the severity of their disease.  See: You Are So Brainwashed It’s Funny.  Big Book dogma dismisses the fresh victims as ‘constitutionally incapable of being honest’, and the fellowship shakes its collective head in self-righteous pity.  But this is interesting: even though alcoholism is a disease, their death resulted from a moral failing.  Of course, AA dogma is rife with such hypocrisy, and thus the need to suppress critical thinking and other brain-based shenanigans.

Members may defend AA’s cultish environment: “AA helped me learn to become a responsible adult.  If there is brainwashing, well my mind was dirty and needed a good washing.”  What they don’t realize is that they are now ticking time bombs.

Actors like Cory Monteith and Phillip Seymour Hoffman are good examples of this strategy.  Though not ‘lonely and vulnerable’ in the typical sense, they are actors who love drama and are trained to believe the part.  If they have performed a role as a drug addict, and have 12 Step experience (as both did), then they are likely to really believe that they can be powerless.  They are convinced their ‘disease’ can and will kill them, but they are not yet ready to accept a Higher Power that would be their only hope of rescue.  They may then realize AA’s self-fulfilling prophecy of doom.

AA touts itself as a solution for millions of people with a dire affliction.  In reality, it has killed millions: like a reverse Christianity in which the innocent die for the sins of the group.  It is also a haven for criminalsplayground for abusers, and a nursery for psychopaths.  The comparison to Nazi Germany is apt (most members are well-intentioned but misguided), and years from now we will struggle to understand how we legitimized and medicalized garden variety demon possession.

 

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214 thoughts on “The Problem of the Jews: a Lesson in Brainwashing Propaganda”

  1. @Addiction Myth, the vitriolic irresponsible will howl at this, but this comment is written for you, not them. To the point, the lying culture has for a long time now, been relabeling various kinds of sin, what used to be called moral failings, they now call ” disease” or “inborne,” conveniently spreading the lie of no moral responsibility, because after all, you ” can’t take responsibility for something you can’t change.” These lies have been putting people into bondage, where they believe they can’t be free, and become slaves to their own lusts, not knowing that they can change their minds, make a new choice, and live new lives . They buy into their delusion of choice, not knowing they are being played

    1. Agreed. It’s a huge issue. But I would argue that they give in to their lusts. And the irony is that they know they are wrong to do so but do it anyway! That’s why they are compelled to seek a pseudo religious justification (alcoholism/demon possession/god of your understanding).

      If it really was a disease they wouldn’t have to join a club to indoctrinate themselves into a religion to convince each other they have it.

      Not to mention, satan is a popular HP, and they won’t deny it because to them all that matters is ‘getting sober’ regardless of hp (Father of Light). 🙂

      This is not new. It was the dream of Alestair Crowley to justify “Do as thou wilst” as a religion based on science and magic: Argentium Astrum (AA).

      Does addiction take away free will?

      1. Of course, they give in to their own lusts. That’s the whole point of what you so insightfully said–

        ” That’s why they are compelled to seek a pseudo religious justification (alcoholism/demon possession/god of your understanding).

        “If it really was a disease they wouldn’t have to join a club to indoctrinate themselves into a religion to convince each other they have it. ”

        Not only do I agree with you, and am dumbfounded by the discerning term, ” pseudo religious”, but they don’t realize that paganism really is involved, or what that means. And as to your comment about satan being a popular HP, I really don’t think they understand. I know when I was younger, I wouldn’t have understood some of the things you say. As to your” Father of Light”, I think you mean Father of Lies, masquerading as an angel of Light. Yes?
        I do think there are a few that really do want to break free, but they don’t realize the trap that’s been laid for them there. I believe that’s where your blog comes in, Yes? Trying to reach the few that can hear you? I believe your motives are good, but your direct style is just the excuse that the many want to use to discredit your words. I would hazard a guess that you have lived enough years now, not to want to mince words.

      2. But please don’t misunderstand me. My problem with them is not moral or religious. My problem is that they are slimy lying hypocrites. And that’s a sin in any religion, not to mention the lowest circle of hell. 🙂

      3. But please don’t misunderstand me. I think that people are fundamentally good even if they need a reminder every now and then when they stray. E.g. prodigal son 🙂

      4. @ Addiction Myth, I think people are very largely devoid of understanding. And that that serves as a huge handicap against what could otherwise open other options of choice for them. If they can’t perceive the truth, then they can’t choose it. So then how can they choose good, if that good is not perceived by them. Blindness is ruling the night of people’s lives. They do not see, they cannot hear, so how can choose aright? They do not perceive truth from false.

      5. ifalcoholisadiseaseimthemaninthemoonmaybeusingcanleadtosomesortofdiseasebutidonotthinksoalsoitssadthepeopletakecontroloveryourelifelikeyouareazombie

    2. And that they are being played to their own enslavement, every time they are told they have no power. This is one of the worst kinds of social engineering. I think this is something that deeply grieves you, like it would them if they were awake and realized what was being done to them. Of course, the problem is they are believing it, they are buying in, so until their ears are opened, they are trapped. It’s so sad. People have a way of choosing their own delusions, the ones that cater to their pet vices, the delusion/ excuse that gives them room to continue in it. They don’t realize they are the only ones that can stand up and refuse themselves. No one else can make the quality decision for them, no one else can follow through for them, no one else will suffer the consequences if they don’t, they alone are the one to choose Life. It was nasty ugly trap they laid for themselves when they gave place in their lives to this repetition of what their body and mind learned to expect. I wish they could hear that they can be free, but that requires willingness.

      1. I don’t grieve for them. Like I said, I think it’s a choice, even if that choice is to be a lying hypocrite. I grieve for the brainwashed victims who ‘accidentally’ kill themselves because they believed the brainwashing during a fit of depression. Whose death is exploited as evidence for the ‘disease’ that ‘explains’ the mischief of the other cult members!

      2. @ Addiction Myth, I meant that I thought that the social engineering ploy/ lie grieved you. The lie of powerlessness, so- called. And yes, I know that Aliester Crowley made satanism for the masses with his ” Do what thou wilt” idolatry teachings. And this is that. His bait snares the unwary, along with the uncaring. His kind have always been involved in that. You should email me. ( And now, R. Warren has brought it into his follower-” churches”, with prettier terminology.)

      3. Yes the lie grieves me immensely! We are so enthralled with computer technology and biology that we believe we are just computers washed in neurotransmitters which explains all our behaviors. Which is true but says nothing about our true nature. Religion is just as relevant today as it was 2000 years ago (very unfashionable thing to say) and Saddleback is bringing back paganism with “Celebrate Recovery” and his son’s suicide as example fruits of this “theology”. We reap what we sow.

      4. @Addiction Myth, Very few are aware of these things. He is a god unto himself. The lies grieve me very much. They have no understanding of who they are following when they let CR and Willowcreek into their properties. And just try to tell them. Deaf ears all around. ” Friends” following blindly who cannot hear or see. ( headshaking.) ( Sigh.)

      5. I suspect they know more than they want you to think. My goal is limited to dispelling the myth of addiction. If that happens then I think people will start to question other beliefs. But I believe strongly in freedom of religion (and freedom from religion — just ask the Christians in Mosul).

      6. @Addiction Myth, So you believe people understand a lot more than they let on? But play dumb to continue their charade? Even the ” friends” I’ve tried to warn about CR, Warren, et al? I think they’re very deceived. If they love not the Truth, then they are guaranteed grand delusion. (2 Th.2:10-12)

      7. I haven’t had a drink for several months, after treatment it was chipped in our brains if we didn’t go to AA we would drink again. News flash…..I still might. I didn’t find strength in those meetings. I felt fear and loathing. I never knew how much I didn’t need AA until treatment. What a money making proposition. If it makes others have a better life, so be it. I am a Christian who believes I don’t have a desire to drink right now. The simple step for me is to believe in myself today. Enjoy all the comments.

      8. @ Anonymous of July 26.
        The great thing is that you don’t have to live your life according to your desires or moods or emotional state. THAT’S GREAT NEWS! You can hold to your quality pre- determined Decision to focus on what is constructive, helpful, excellent, and good, by taking Action that short- circuits any other offer. Since you are a christian, memorizing empowering scriptures on the go is a good tactic, because it short- circuits ” navel- gazing”. In this culture,, we are taught backwards. We are taught not to be forthright before God, but on the other hand,, we are indoctrinated to practice introspection, and focusing on ” feelings”. That drives a person deeper into the lie, don’t go there. Facing the truth is vital, WITHOUT navel- gazing. You can choose to walk free, without regard to feelings. We are to be masters over these things. Your ” feelings” are not to be given lordship over you. You choose your thoughts, even if you have to take ” the bull by the horns” with yourself to do so. You are not a puppet. You are free to live in Power and truth. That reality needs to be embraced solidly, and what you’re telling yourself about yourself and your power of choice is EVERYTHING. De- empowerment can ONLY breed fear and victimhood, which is why you discerned it as you did. You are free. Live in joy= a Decision, not a feeling, and be at peace. You are whole, you are not an emotional invalid, you are Not broken, WALK IN POWER. ( God has not given us a spirit of fear, but Power, Love,, and a Sound mind. – That’s His Word.) 🙂

        It’s 2 Timothy 1: 7, so you know.

        And we need to Guard our ears and hearts and minds from anyone else telling us that we don’t have power. A person cannot walk in the truth and power, while listening to lies. We remove ourselves from people who would deny our power. They are no more healthy for us than a batterer would be. !

      9. And of course, batterers deny and refuse to show due respect to their victim’s will and personal power. As far as they are concerned, you have none. That’s the SAME LIE that the alcoholism industry puts out. You want to tell me I have no power over my own self? I’m walking away while they are in mid- sentence. It’s a very healthy rebellion to have and exert against lies. We choose.
        One of the problems with those who run in a self- defeating direction when in discomfort, frustration or pain, is a lack of, shall we say, ( an old fashioned word) Forbearance. It means having the stamina to bear up under emotional trials. Now, grant you, such times are a trial to Everyone. Such times are no fun for any of us. But we all have to decide How we’re going to deal with those times. Are we gonna scream and yell? Cry? Pound the table? Say ” Why me, God?!” Light up a smoke? Give somebody an earful? Beat the wife? Kick the can? Reach for a drink? NO. Emotional stability means Exercising Forbearance, CHOOSING TO SEE A CHALLENGING SITUATION THROUGH TO RESOLUTION WITHOUT BEING DESTRUCTIVE OR HURTFUL. THIS IS OUR CHOICE. THIS IS OUR ADULT DUTY. Every mature adult has had to learn forbearance under stress. We are Well Able to exercise this. Note the word ” Exercise”. Choosing self- control under stress doesn’t just happen automatically. We CHOOSE it. We Choose it because we are sick and tired of being jerks, and are determined to grow up and pull our flesh into line. We recognize that we won’t have any credibility with anyone including ourselves or God, unless we learn to exercise Forbearance, and grace, under pressure. That means that I deal with the unpleasantness of fixing problems without reaching for something counterproductive. Instead, you let the fixing of the problem, be the relief, the Genuine escape, because the problem is now fixed. With counterproductive fantasies ( and that’s what they are), nothing is fixed, harm is done, and denial of the pain causes the pain to go something like forever. Because denial never fixed anything. According to denial, there’s no problem, because we don’t want to face it. But the JOY IS THAT FACING IT ALLOWS IT TO BE RESOLVED, WITHOUT EXTRA PAIN, AND QUICKLY, AND SALVAGES RELATIONSHIPS, SELF- RESPECT, AND RELATIONSHIP WITH THE TRUE GOD. This is our JOYFUL CHOICE OF VICTORY FOR PEACE AND LIFE. We can’t control all circumstances or people, but by God, we CAN control us, and CHOOSE our choices. Because, Truth is, even if we ” don’t”, we’re STILL CHOOSING BY DEFAULT. Choosing cannot be avoided. We do it with every breath, whether Actively OR Passively. But we’re STILL choosing, and WE get to live with the outcome of our choices, whether good or bad. The CHOICE IS OURS.
        Peace be with you.

      10. Out of the mouth, the heart speaks. What you are thinking, has EVERYTHING to do with the choices you’re about to make. Guard your heart, because out of it spring the issues of life. Does that mean guarding our heart from people? Sometimes, especially when they are lying or being abusive. But what it more greatly means, is guarding our thoughts. Because our thoughts are the foundation onto which comes beliefs, followed by emotions, followed by actions. Your thoughts are the predictor of the emotions and actions that follow. So it’s vital to guard your heart with the truth, and focus on the truth in your thoughts. Emotionally unstable people tend to catastroph-ize things in their thoughts, believing an exaggeration of the reality. What follows is a great deal of upset, worry, fear, anger, which in turn, freaks them out. You can guess what their next action is going to be. It is essential to back off from fear and untruth, and to determine to refuse extremes, to step back and unemotionally, WITH YOUR CALM PERSONAL EMPOWERMENT WELL IN HAND, Survey the landscape for the DO- able reality. Choose wisdom, and calmly address the do- able reality, step by step. We cannot give place to emotional thinking. It takes us where we don’t want to be, into pain.

      11. Regarding thoughts:
        ( and this is from Philippians 4: 8 ) whatever things are true, whatever things are honest, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report; if there is any virtue, and if there is any praise, think on these things.

      12. Re:the Truth Matters
        You are the most moronic, run-on sentence babbling, blithering idiot since…
        AddictionMoron!!
        Wow, check your drool bucket, I believe it overfloweth…

      13. Actually, you seem to do a fine job of that all on your lonesome.
        Even with well spoken, reasonable people like Julie you simply cannot be civil.
        That and the repetition of your time worn, hackneyed insults…
        Not my monkeys,
        Not my circus!

      14. @ Anonymous @ 7:14a July 27

        You obviously don’t know what run- on sentences are, but any excuse against the Truth will do, for a dishonest antagonist. After all, such a one has no truth with which to fight. You name- call pretty well for someone without any truth to stand on. Are these two tactics your standard operating procedure? How weak.

      15. They can’t actually counter any of these truths with truth, so what else can they do, but holler and yell, call names, dump anger, get mad, and otherwise rage in their Emotional-god response to these things. = a Temper Tantrum.

      16. Re:”Truth??”
        Well now…for someone who hates insults, you fling them pretty well.
        As to run on sentences, I have sufficient education to recognize many in your posts. If a sentence can be cut into two or more sentences with greater clarity and ease of reading, it is considered run-on. No extra charge for the information.
        As to truth, some things I know about myself:
        1) I cannot safely put drugs or alcohol into my body without creating a cycle of craving. This is what I consider powerlessness.
        2) Once started, this cycle takes my life right down the rabbit hole.
        3) The best thing I can do for myself is just stay sober for today.
        4) The only way I can do that is by working on a closer walk with my God constantly.
        5) The only way I can work on the personal defects that led to my becoming alcoholic is cooperation with God. My thinking is not normal, so I cannot fix my own thinker. That is what the Program is designed to do.
        I am sorry you can’t write well. Perhaps some night classes would help you.
        Anyway, can’t but help consider you as rabid a hater as the fellow who runs this blog. Your ideas seem to run to the “everyone is wrong but me” side of the street.
        I have become sort of a live and let live type, myself. If it works for you, fine with me.
        Why do you suppose people like the blogger here has to piss on everybody elses’ Wheaties? Ego problem? Savior complex? Low self-esteem? Anger?
        Ta ta…
        Have a lovely day, and work on thise run-on sentences!

      17. @ Anonymous @ 5;55A.M. , July 28
        Thank you for ” sharing.” I use quotation marks because you seem to be trying to pull dishonest power punches, dishonestly focused on the petty and unimportant, and on the dirty pool of mean- spirited name calling. Run- on sentences is not only a petty criticism, but dishonest because the appropriate punctuation and conjoiners are well in place. Your condemnation is coming from someone writing incomplete sentences, so I will consider the source. I was not ” insulting” you, I was acknowledging your overt and aggressive antagonism and your name- calling.
        Your personal steps sound wise, so I’m pleased for you. Keep in mind, that the Powerlessness that AddictionMyth speaks of, is not the way you are interpreting it, but instead, he is referring to the lie that AA pushes about people having no personal power to refuse the vice. You are using your personal power in exercising sobriety, so that’s great. You seem to 1. have a desire to communicate, but 2. also seem to be driven to strife and antagonism. The latter doesn’t serve. And pettiness is only a ruse, for deeper defensiveness. You are revealing a need to exalt yourself, evidently in a sense of self- defense. From what are you defending yourself? It appears your thoughts may be suggesting you feel a need to defend yourself against AddictionMyth’ s statement of fact that drinkers do have personal power, and against my statements of truth. But such a thought on your part would not be accurate. AddictionMyth’ is not rabid or of ego. He has clearly stated his heart’s intent and motivation by stating that he is determined to reveal the Lies of Powerlessness. He is not a person to coddle dishonesty. That doesn’t make him rabid. Powerlessness is a Lie from the pit of hell. You are exerting your power to refuse the drink. THAT’S GREAT! 🙂 You would do well to realize that you have no need to defend yourself through the aggression you’ve been dishing out. He is working to expose the Lie that sucks people into powerlessness. And I have simply been offering important truths in an effort to help readers that want it. Aggression doesn’t serve you. But I’m very glad to hear you are privately making wiser choices for yourself and your well- being. CONGRATULATIONS. But then, Self- mastery has long been a valued and expected trait of Adults.

      18. To all to whom this applies:
        If someone is name- calling, hateful, aggressive, antagonistic, That doesn’t make those of us that notice and call it out, ” rabid.” That SIMPLY makes us observant, honest, and straightforward for saying so. If any of you CHOOSE to call that ” Rabid”, then you’re just not being honest with yourselves, but instead trying to transfer responsibility.

      19. Follow- up to Anonymous of 5:55A.M., July 28

        1. Do not ascribe hate to someone that has not shown any. To do so, is a rank Lie.
        2. You have said you have become a live and let live kind of person. If that were true, you wouldn’t have issued such exalted ” concern” over my writing. Such pettiness is not ” Live and Let Live”. Obviously, your concerns run much deeper, but you are not matching your narrative.

        I have never shown you hate, nor anyone here. I know what is true, I speak it in an effort to assist those that want it. If you don’t want it, don’t lash out. Obey your own narrative, and Live and Let Live. You will not succeed with anyone by being hostile. Even though I care I will not give ground to hostility. Drinkers tend to forget that the rest of the world functions with boundaries in place. If you want to dump over those boundaries, I will know that you do not want respect. And I will not give it. Manners and boundaries are the result of self- respect and self- responsibility. If you don’t treat others with respect, you don’t respect yourself. I don’t need to be here; I am here to help. If you don’t like the truth, that’s your choice, and you will suffer the outcome of your choices, whatever they are. I will not coddle you either. That isn’t hate. That’s you needing to grow up and be honest. If you want to be abusive, as you have been, I am putting you on notice that you will be creating disrespect for yourself. I will not be a receptacle for your abuse and immaturity. I am not being ” rabid”, and you are not 8 years old. Wise up.

  2. The writer’s view of a.a. is blinded and limited, he is obvisously only been to aa in the usa, and then only one version. Aa has MANY mtgs for all kinds, including atheists and agnostics. It demands nothing.
    A.a. is in every country in the world, it therefore by the very nature of its only objective, (an alturnative to drunkenness) can not be Christian, or Buddists or Islamic or Jewish, Or misdwestern or eastcoast or west coast, or latino or russian. It is meant as one only platofrm, to carry a program of recovery to the person who may need. It deamnds not a cent, nor attendance nor pledges.
    Also keep in mind that in his own comparison to hilter and the Jews, the writer places himself in the ironic possition of the beig the alcoholic hating person that degrades that which most reflects himself; just as hitler was a jewish boy who grew up being a jew hating man, so this person is clearlt an acholic hating boy who has grown up to be an alcoholic hating big boy, unable to let others enjoy the peace and love that he himself, can not obtain. Riley, elgin il.

    It does not demand beliefe in a higher power nor the crap he wrongfully inturepts after accurately quoting literature. He quotes the first 5 steps correctly however refuses to print the EXPLAINATION ON THESE STEPS, as set forth in the 12 and 12 book of the program. This book includes in great detail what each step does, and what it doesnot do. They are each subject to the individual’s needs and interpretation. Thats all. He also conviently excluded the printed statement that reads ‘these are meant as only suggestions only, we do not demand any adherents to these principles. ‘ that is fact and not my twist, it is fact. Check your aa liturature, then check what he wrote AND WHAT HE DID NOT WRITE.

    1. The Steps are meant only as suggestions, but if you relapse it’s because you didn’t follow them correctly. Welcome to AA, the drinking club founded on hypocrisy. You must believe you’re an alcoholic, and that your god (any will do, or even none at all) will save you from it. Not ready to believe it? That’s fine. Keep drinking and having fun, and for the depressives out there, try not to kill yourself!

      Please, just post your drunkalog. This will be obvious.

    2. How about you check your own facts. Hitler wasn’t raised Jewish. Can’t wait until ignorant, stubborn Baby Boomers like you are 6-feet deep.

  3. Here is the dilemma. If you are not an Alcoholic, how would you know what being an Alcoholic felt like? To me there are 2 angles to this……mental craving and physical addiction. The physical addiction is well documented. Jitters, seizures, hallucinations, wet brain…. the mental craving is simply that of desire to not reside in reality. I’m sorry to burst your conspiracy bubble here, but AA is neither a cult, nor brain washing. It is merely a self help process by which people get better. First addressing the physical illness with the help of medical care and second to begin the process of accepting life as it is without the crutch of drinking.

    I offer one piece of advice to the Author – ask yourself why you are so angry about a self help guide that costs the taxpayers and the participants nothing?

  4. Doesn’t take a genius that all this guy wants is attention and is crying to be heard from by the “zionist media”. If no one responded on here he would grow tired. Stop arguing with him!

  5. Addiction Moth, You might be articulate and possibly well read. But you still come across like a fast talking con artist. I have traveled all over the world and of all the really good bullshit masters I have heard,…….you rank about 5,897. Your kind is common . You are obviously ranting about a subject you have no first hand experience with, so what is your motive. Are you such a pathetic, pitiful little man that your best idea of doing something that draws attention to you, is to fling trash at what brings others solace? Do something of worth with your life ,…so you can truly believe you have a reason for sucking air and to help you stop your trembling fear of being a nobody.

    1. It brings you solace to brainwash people into powerlessness and watch them die? OK to each his own. As they say in AA, take what you like and leave the rest.

      1. When faced with an honest assessment of your dishonesty and lack of subject knowledge, donehat you do best, addictionmoth, dive headfirst into fantasy!!

    2. Bingo. On the NOSE.
      the person who wrote sited no scientific notes for the un verifies statements made. In 1992 the molecule for alcoholism was isolated on the dna site in the brain. Its been proven since that time, over 20 yrs ago, to be real, medical and treatable, it DOES exist. Its real. I challamge the writer of this crap to back up his/her statement with real midecal evidence.
      I also challange him to produce evidence of demons or ‘mischiefe’ where its claimed that alcoholucs are willing to die for the advancement of a, a.;
      Keeping in mind that when people die from alcoholism it is because they are NOT IN THE PROGRAM, NOT BECAUSE THEY ARE!!
      There is not one human soul on this earth who has dies, ever, because they are in AA, but rather because they are OUT OF IT.
      MK RILEY, ELGIN, IL.

  6. And John answered him, saying, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name, and he followed not us; and we forbade him, because he followeth not us. But Jesus said, ” Forbid him not; for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name , that can lightly speak evil of me. For he that is not against us is in our part” From KJV, Holy Bible, Mark, Chap 9, vs 38, 39.
    Not all of us join religious bodies, but most of us favor such memberships. From “Big Book”, p28.
    So many have been helped and many have found Christ. Is it better to heal on the sabbath, or not? Peace.

      1. It is so hard for you to see anything clearly with your severe and chronic Recto-Cranial Impaction….pobrecito…

    1. If you are alcholic and know it do want a better life for yourself and the ones you love DONT BELIEVE THE CRAP THIS GUY WROTE. AA IS NOT A CULT ITS A WAY OF LIFE!!!!!! Alot of what is in the AA BIG BOOK quote to GODS INSTRUCTION BOOK “THE BIBLE” THE person who wrote this article has got to have his own demons because he is sure choping AA down.

  7. Very well written description of AA! I was a very heavy party boy in my youth and twenties. Lots of drama and damage. Went thru treatment and into the AA cult where I stayed active 22 yrs??? Why? I was not the most educated and came from a cult like family hence the AA dogma felt familiar. The last 5 yrs of my involvement with AA I began to come out of the fog and rational reason returned to my mind. It was very difficult leaving given all the scare tactics of my friends in the program as well as the group in general. I continue to have periods where I feel drawn to the sense of community however insane that it is, but am gradually healing and educating myself to understand how I could have believed all that irrational books and materials and in particular the absolute crazy things said by people in meetings. If you are having problems in your life because you are drinking too much and cannot seem to stop, you may in fact need an inpatient or hospital detox as did I. After that, there are many good after care groups and counselors that can also help post detox. Beware of the instructions to go direct to AA and beware of listening to the gospel they preach. It is powerfully seductive for those less educated like myself and for those who are vulnerable emotionally after the removal of drugs and alcohol from their bodies. I wasted 22 yrs of my life believing and practicing very crazy and irrational routines and then passing them on to others. However difficult it was to leave my friends and the familiar beliefs that provided irrational cultish comfort, I am very grateful that information is always available to help educate a person like me to finally understand the situation they find themselves in and the self delusional thinking they have adopted as truth. There is a way out of the addictions and there is a way out of AA the cult!

  8. One thing that creates a situation in which it’s strategic to claim one is suffering an incurable, life-long disease called “addiction” is drug prohibition’s draconian punishments (both those from the criminal justice system, and the extra-judicial punishments, such as being barred from getting student aid, kicked out of housing, losing one’s job). If one has a choice between going to jail and having a permanent criminal record of an infraction that has been demonized for decades, or claiming to have a disease and agreeing to go to rehab, oooh, that’s a tough choice.

    Interestingly, Bain Capital is now buying drug treatment centers – there’s money to be made in rehab (this actually surprises me, since I can’t figure out how they will outsource the jobs….)

    If drug prohibition was ended, then how many people who use drugs without also committing assaults, robberies, theft, or any other still-on-the-books crimes would feel the need to claim to have this incurable disease that makes them unable to control their drug consumption? I’m betting that if prohibition ended, demand for drug rehab would drop like a stone.

    1. You make some good points, Trish. The court-mandated individuals certainly would decrease in the rooms if drug prohibitions were dropped. Being a Libertarian I see this as a matter of personal responsibility.
      However, a lot of people in the rooms end up there without legal consequences. They just see the need to change how they are living their lives.

      1. “The court-mandated individuals certainly would decrease in the rooms …“ No disrespect to your input but its not like the whole room is full of mandated individuals. The amount of those individuals are quite diminutive compared their counterparts. Its more like 2 through 4 people out of 40 in a room.

      2. Depends, Kev, on the room. Sometimes in my local clubhouse, it can be more like 25%. Especially at daytime meetings. It tends to be an environment where folks with less long-term sobriety/clean time congregate.
        Didn’t feel you were disrespectful. Agree with your overall point that the numbers of mandated folks are pretty small.

      3. I agree that It varies. For those who do have a problem with AA NA, there are a lot of alternative programs such as SMART RECOVERY. Its the new up and coming program for those who believe in science based recovery. good for those who struggle in believing a higher power, and the program itself has received nothing but positive feedback. Just putting the options out there for the non believers.

      4. Certainly is a problem for some folk.
        Have known atheists, Buddhists and many others who have been successful long term in the rooms of AA, however.
        It is an inclusive program, that is why most groups offer the option to join in prayer or not.

    2. People still claim alcoholism even though alcohol is legal. I think the same for drugs. The problem is groups like NA/AA that teach powerlessness and the Craving Lie. This religion will continue to have great appeal to trouble makers and depressives even if drugs were legal. They would still commit crimes and blame their disease. In fact, interest in the cult could increase as more people experiment. Therefore I would support decriminalization over full legalization, at least until all the drug addiction myths are exposed. (Such as stealing for drug money. Yes people steal for drug money. But it’s not because they are addicted, it’s because they are thieves with a history of sociopathy preceding the use of the drug, and really don’t have anything better to do. Just like people steal for lots of other reasons unrelated to drugs.)

      1. Blah, blah, blah…
        Why don’t you find a subject you have some personal experience in to blog about. Never can discern among your lies…are you an addict/alcoholic or not? If not, then you can’t possibly understand the subject matter and ought to go back to writing bad “B” movies or children’s stories.
        Classing everybody with addiction as sociopaths is a completely unjustified conclusion. That seems to be your M.O. so I suppose we ought to get used to your poor reasoning and logical skills!!

      2. LOL Oh brother do I feel sorry for you, AddictionMyth, and by God I hope you can get thoroughly informed on the FACTS behind addiction.

        First off, your premise of alcoholism seemingly being a “false claim” due to the fact that alcohol is LEGAL right off-the-bat proves that you are absolutely CLUELESS about addiction( be it to drugs or ALCOHOL). The LEGALITY of alcohol/drugs has NOTHING to do with DEPENDENCY and/or ADDICTION. The fact that you tried using legality as an argument to prove your jaded “point” proves that you literally have NO CLUE about anything addiction & alcoholism related.

        In my honest opinion, until you take the time to at least research the BASIC facts on the topic you are trying to prove, you REALLY should stop parading around making ignorant and frustratingly inept claims on a topic you know absolutely NOTHING about!

        Addiction, be it to DRUGS or ALCOHOL ( which is a drug imo), is a SERIOUS problem that steals hundreds of thousands of lives WORLDWIDE every damn day. It is not a joke nor is it just some kind of “excuse” that addicts use to get a free pass out of their issues. The fact that you even REMOTELY consider this to be a REALISTIC idea solidifies the fact that you have had ZERO experience with any form of substance abuse and thus, have no real grounds to insult addicts/alcoholics & 12-step groups in the manner which you choose to do so.

        Finally, does your incomprehensibly absurd opinion on legality also apply to Prescription Drugs? Seeing how narcotic prescription pain-killers are in fact LEGAL (with a prescription, of course), is it safe to say that you deem Narcotic Addiction a “myth” as well since Prescription Narcotics (such as Oxycodone & Dilaudid) are, for lack of better words, LEGAL? If this is true (and I see no reason why it wouldn’t be), then you TRULY need to go read up on OPIATE dependency and/or go interview some people who are going/have gone through a life-shattering opiate dependency before you come to ANY more ignorant conclusions. Someone who is dependent on prescription Painkillers like Oxycodone/Dilaudid/Percocet is in the SAME boat as someone who is suffering through a HEROIN dependency due to the fact that both substances are OPIATES.

        So please, before you make yourself look and sound any dumber than you already have, go do some ACTUAL research so you can at least appear to be somewhat educated in the topic at hand…

      3. Yes opiate addiction is fake too. Check out Dalrymple: Junk Medicine: Doctors, Lies And The Addiction Bureaucracy: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-476208/Heroin-addiction-isnt-illness–stop-spending-millions-treating-it.html And: http://addictionmyth.com/some-assembly-required-dan-mager-chooses-addictionism/

        You misunderstood my point about legality. I wasn’t saying that it made drugs non-addictive. Quite the opposite: I was saying that it had no effect on their addictiveness. Try turning on your brain before you start to read.

      4. I know for myself and several others who stole for drugs,but never stole before using drugs, and haven’t stolen anything since getting clean

      5. So, once again you contradict yourself, saying legalization will have no effect on the addictiveness of drugs…does addiction exist or not?
        “Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive!”

      6. Do you have an affordable, accessible answer to the diahnosis of sociopathy that you just nade of 11 million people WORLDWIDE.? If not then if the a.a. model is keeping the prison population down to a mere 20 percent in this country alone, whats your beef with it? Without the court’s mandated mtgs to address crime, and without the nationwide overhaul of 13000 rug laws on the books, in this nation, tell me…
        what is your instant answer to that instant diagnosis you just gave?
        It seems that if this a.a.- probation-law for pety crimes- system is doung nothing but elevating a prison crisis, then LET IT. IT WORKS WHEN YOU WORK IT, and no, I’m not talking the a.a. closing, I sm talking the way courts have been using a.a. as a stop-gap to overflowing prisons.
        America has the highest orison population in the world, it would be 35% higher if nit for the life changing programs of 12 steps, plus probation, allowed. So, yes until you change some drug laws, and consequences, this dual platform works better than any lighthanded offthecuff crap whiney sheeeeet you’re drolling out, in complaint of it. Not saying to gelieve in the a.a. message as a change of beliefe or a way of lufe, I’m speaking strictly on the sociological- economic impact these indivisuals have on us, as a nation.
        I challage you, or the auther to come up with any other program, if only to teach simple, proven coping and living skills to chronicly arrested low-criminal impact people, other than the already used 12step/ probation/ parole system we have used for 40yrs. Put up or shut up. Riley, elgin.

  9. Anyone this angry at AA cannot be taken seriously. I’m laughing hard at all the effort it took to spew such insanity. Then to state that comments are angry in their replies is a lexicon of hypocrisy. I didn’t read one success story from your point of view, nor did I see a viable solution which is laughable considering you stated that AA has deceived not only doctors but America, the insurance industry and last but not least the experience of millions of AA’s whose experience (their truth) speaks volumes against your toxic and obvious resentful bullcrap.

    Don’t bother to respond as it’s my personal and professional belief that anyone who takes as much time to respond vehemently as you did on this post and thread is seriously emotionally involved on a level that can only be described as ALCOHOLICALLY!!!!!

    1. This keeps getting better and better. LOL!! I haven’t been clean that long, but this thread is interfering with my sobriety. 😉

      1. Troll…probably by the site, since AM’s lies and BS have been so thoroughly noted and discredited by so very many comments…

      2. I’m not a troll. I stumbled on this page after a Google search of AA. I don’t care much what you think though. I wouldn’t use the same approach as the blogger but some of what he says is right on point. The ugly defensive comments don’t appear to go along with living life through the Big Book. I don’t much care for the gang mentality of meetings, we all have our own needs regarding sobriety.

      3. How does somebody rather gently putting MY in his place endanger your sobriety? Are you responsible for that or not? My sponsor would say yes, you are. If you feel at risk, go to a meeting, pray, talk to your sponsor.

      4. I was making a joke! Have you all lost all sense of humor, giving up drinking doesn’t mean you cant have fun.

      5. Dear Miss MY, frankly happy for you if you are sober and well. This blogger is neither. Hence not much of a sense of humor about his lies and exaggerations.

    2. Agree with you wholeheartedly. This individual is at minimum a pathological liar. 95 % of the stuff on this site is either lies or distortions of the truth.
      I wonder if he has permission from AA World Services to reprint the steps and other copyrighted material here?
      Anyway, this guy is an angry mess. Almost sad, if he didn’t act so nastily.

    3. Please, just post your drunkalog. State the activities you engaged in while “powerless” to drugs and alcohol. Your stories will vividly demonstrate the points in this article one right after another. Of course you won’t. Behind all your sanctimonious bluster you are a coward and hypocrite.

      And now you demand an admission of powerlessness from others. How many of these people are still alive? Your ‘solution’ actually destroys people.

      You say I don’t offer a solution? I certainly do! It is this: stay away from people like you!

      “You shall have no other gods before me.” Your defense of AA’s blatant paganism is sacrilege and hypocrisy. I can’t imagine how you justify it.

      1. Blah blah blah…blah, blah blah blah.
        Blah, blah blah, blah blah blah.
        You sound like a broken record.

      2. Behind all your lies and bullshit, you are just a liar and a bullshitter.
        This site is the saddest collection of horseshit since the cleansing of the Augean Stables.
        And you wouldn’t know the truth if it bit you squarely on your ass, so I don’t much care what you say about me.

      3. As long as you continue showing yourself for the angry child you are, I will be content.

  10. I think there is some emotional argument in your comments but I understand where you are coming from. I wish there was an alternative to this program.

    The fact that all the commenters so far have reacted so strongly makes me wonder why they are so upset. If AA is working so well in their lives why are the afraid of what you are saying? I think it is because they are so unresolved in their identification as alcoholics that they get angry at anyone who makes them question their position.

    I think you have some valid points but my suggestion is to not exaggerate so much. A persuasive writing should present information accurately and also address any weaknesses in one’s position. I think you would be better off reaching out to others who want to better their lives and are ready to do so without AA. Individuals who have chosen to stay in AA because it is the only way for them usually become enraged at dissenting opinions. I predict an angry response to this post. Watch. I haven’t insulted anyone, just shared my position and raised a question.

    In fact, that is a good question for commenter. If AA is a helpful program and creates positive changes it should speak for itself. The positive changes should be enough evidence that it works. Why then do commenters feel the need to so passionately defend it? If it is a sound program you don’t need to. Why do you feel the need?

    1. I am one of the AA folks. The reason people reply so passionately here is the nature of this site. If the individual writing this garbage has a reasoned and intelligent argument to make, he will never recieve consistently reasoned and intelligent comments if he wants to start with lies and twisting the truth to suit his purposes.
      His writing is ill informed, his own story about himself inconsistent and he is insulting to others. While I do not believe this justifies the vitriol, I am just saying that in life you reap what you sow.

  11. I think it’s fairly obvious that AA isn’t a cult got a good laugh out of this loved your rhetoric and somewhat enjoyed your writing style but, despised the awful introduction. The nazi comparison was the poorest analogy that you could’ve came up with by far. You made one valid point and, that is that just like with any other addiction or disease people use it as a excuse to reek havoc way too often than not and, don’t even try to change however I do think that alcoholism is a real issue. The reasons behind it don’t change the fact that it is a disease.

  12. AddictionMyth, I’m very sorry.

    I’m sorry for whatever happened in your past that took you to such a dark and negative place. I’m sorry that you don’t have the ability to understand why AA has worked for millions of people. I’m sorry that you feel the need to bolster your own ego by impugning the character of those of us born with this disease. It must be very difficult going through life every day with nothing but pure darkness in your head and heart.

    AA teaches us to find a higher power of our own as we know it. We also have something called the “prayer for the sick,” wherein we pray to our own higher power to help those still sick and suffering in any way. I will pray for you.

    1. You don’t have a disease. But your belief in your own powerlessness puts you at great risk of accidental overdose. What happens one day when when you beg your HP for relief for one of life’s occasional disappointments, but he’s out to lunch? Will the bottle of vicodin in the bathroom become an irresistible temptation? Mixed with a little alcohol, and it can be deadly.

      I realize that your HP is probably Dionysis, and you are praying for my inebriation. Well thanks but no thanks. I hope that people reading this will realize that they are just pawns in your deadly brainwashing game. To justify your ‘sins’. Please, post your drunkalog and this truth will be obvious. Of course you won’t. So let me summarize: “I drank, I got drunk, I got high, I had sex. And yet I was disappointed.” Rinse/repeat until middle age. Then discover AA and your HP. Turns out, you were powerless all along. The drinking and sex wasn’t really your fault after all! The irony is that you even need to justify your behavior, which was supposedly caused by a disease, by turning to a religion (AA). But its only because deep down you feel you are wrong!

      1. I realize you probably won’t grasp any of this, but maybe it will help someone else.
        You have no apparent comprehension of the fact that an admission of powerlessness and acceptance of God into an alcoholic’s life leads to relief from the obsession over drinking. That is power in cooperation with my God. I am responsible for my past and future actions while drinking. Addiction does not remove this responsibility.
        This is why we do inventory, then make amends. Then we continue to take personal inventory. This is no maudlin process, simply honest self –
        examination.
        I do not expect you to get it. You seem bent on distorting everything people say here. Go on and twist this, I personally believe you are seen for what you are by almost all the folks who visit your little “shop of horrors” here. Good luck overcoming your addiction to lying.

      2. How can you be both powerless and responsible? What is a ‘relapse’ other than forgetting that you are responsible for your behavior while drunk? If you are responsible for your behavior, why does it usually take years to acknowledge it and make amends? The answer is that you were not responsible: you had to join a club/religion to teach it to you. Which is fine, except that it also teaches you that you had a disease that made you irresponsible, and that you were responsible at the same time, and if you don’t understand that it’s only because there you go trying to use your brain again.

      3. Yep, just like talking to a wall…
        Perhaps your next class should be one in reading comprehension.
        I am powerless over the amount I drink once I get started. And then I do some bad things…that does not absolve me of what I do when I drink.
        You won’t find anyone who has quality sobriety making that claim. This also makes me responsible to not do it all over agaain.
        And, again, were you an addict or not? You say so many different things here it is hard to know.
        Those are the facts. Just because you don’t understand AA doesn’t qualify you to dissect it. The fact that you also tell a less than consistent tale and some obvious whopper style lies about people makes you a far less than reliable commentator.
        Also would like to say this…if I recognized you in meeting, I’d make damn sure you were shown the door. Reason why: simple, you repeat peoples stories from meetings you attended almost word for word, including their ages and some desciptive terms about them. That means you apparently either don’t respect or follow the principle of anonymity. All this makes you a lying loser who doesn’t belong in the rooms.

      4. “I do some bad things.” Lol thank you.

        I’ve done some bad things too. The difference? I don’t blame it on booze. Gosh, sure would be nice if I could.

      5. Seems to be a typical response from you. Ignore what was actually said and respond to what you think was said.
        I made it clear that I take responsibility for my actions. That is what I have been saying all along. You don’t want to hear it because it will undermine your precarious position.
        Hey, a question for you? When will you take responsibility for your actions? For instance, all the lies you tell here. Or the ways you contradict your own story?
        Won’t happen, I know. Liars like you just become defensive when called on their horseshit.

      6. After the first drink, I CHOSE to have a second, knowing full well that it might lead to a heartache, as it had before. And yet I drank it anyway, hoping this time would be different. (And sometimes it was.)

        Why did you take the second drink? Do you take responsibility for this choice, or do you still insist that a disease make you drink it and then “do bad things”? Over and over again for years? And if you were not responsible for the second drink, were you at least responsible for the first?

      7. Dear “Clueless in the Blogosphere.”
        You are clearly just too wrapped in the “myth” of all your lies and deceptions to have a reasonable conversation with.
        Excuses are just “reasons wrapped in lies.” I don’t make excuses for my past or present behavior. I am responsible to not start drinking now so I don’t start the cycle again. You say you are not an alcoholic, that is why you cannot understand.
        What are the excuses you tell yourself for your outrageous lies and fabrications? Must be convenient to not be accountable.
        I know I am today. Why don’t you try it, it’s liberating. Tell the truth about your experiences. Right the many times you have contradicted yourself here….
        While you are pondering becoming an honest person, I will be out, living a fulfilling and happy life of service.
        You just sit here in your little tiny pond, telling yourself you know everything.

    2. 1. Let’s be honest: the author does in Other articles, use a bold and truthfully confrontive manner, even being wrong about toxicity, but he isn’t angry, bitter, resentful, but just trying to raise your understandings to the Truth of your own power.
      2. You don’t have to ” be born” with a generic propensity for addiction to know and experience serious cravings, and here’s why: When a person ingests a substance repeatedly, and then routinely, whether it is alcohol, sugar, cigarettes, a drug, the cell- receptor- sites learn to Expect it, and when it’s not following the routine, it doesn’t appreciate that, and instead throws a biological fit. Routine, habit, cell dependency can INDEED be, and often is, a TRAINED effect, a consequence, if you will.
      3. He is trying to draw your attention to the fact that all these things are predatory industries to all who are willing to cover their eyes, and give up their personal power. But he’s exactly right about the fact that while you Feel powerless, you actually DO have power to CHOOSE. Now granted it may not be the easiest thing to stand up and REFUSE the hissy fit your cell- receptor- sites are having, the fact is, that you DO have the ability to make QUALITY CHOICES FOR YOUR OWN FREEDOM in this life, and you do not have to remain conned into being a powerless victim. Powerlessness is ALWAYS a predatory tactic, and if you agree to FORFEIT your power, then you’ve just signed off on a seriously destructive ploy against your own life. These industries have a vested interest in your victimhood, and you can buy in, or you can stand up and own your power and make your own decisions. Now what do you want? You have to be purposeful and very conscious of your choices, and then honor your will by holding to that excellent choice. They con us the same way about cigarettes. But how many of us have bucked that saddle

      1. Self- correction: TRAINED, Yes. Not ” often”, but always. A babe doesn’t come into this world demanding alcohol. It becomes ” addiction” through repetition to the point that the cells of the body EXPECT it to be there. If you don’t Train that expectation, then it simply won’t be there. Now, like the 400 lb. ice cream glutton ( or whatever), you are going to have to make new choices that are very different from what the body and mind have learned to expect. You’ll have to stand against those cravings. But our will is a powerful thing, and it’s to be your Chooser, not by mood, but by intelligence and purpose.
        What you’re telling yourself is vital. You DO have power over yourself. You are not your own victim. You are making whatever choices that you are, you need to face that, and own up. They used to have a saying about making your own bed, and then lying in it. You are the one doing the choosing here, not someone else, not when it comes to alcohol.
        Humans can take to the power of suggestion WAY TOO EASILY. BE VERY CAREFUL who and what you listen to about your power. Your power over yourself is really the only thing you have. You must Not forfeit that!
        And btw, I wrote ” genetic” in my above post, but it came out ” generic”. I meant Genetic. And btw, we have power OVER our genetics too.
        We have been trained to listen to ” experts”, and to forego our own abilities and intelligence and ” common sense.” We shouldn’t make a habit of doing that. Following such ” experts” can often lead you where you don’t want to go, suffering consequences that you don’t want. And some of us bucked the saddle on our own, quality decision, finito. You are not a horse to be saddled and ridden. Remember that. Bucking the unrighteous, is a righteous thing to do. And the poster that talked about predatory group dynamics is right. You are not a horse to be ridden by either a craving, OR duplicitous predatory people. Neither is healthy, neither is appropriate, neither is alright. Commit your heart and mind to a series of CONSTRUCTIVE actions that will strengthen your will, your health, your self- respect, and your overall life. I’m remembering a time when I set my heart to get a particular job, where physical condition was vital. I utterly committed my myself to getting in shape, working out and running everyday. This bred a healthy focus, better condition, self- respect to know I followed through. You don’t need the low life. In defensive driving, there’s a saying- ” Aim high in steering.” Navel gazing is low. Self pity is low, but committing your heart to the truth is a much higher path. Choose well.

  13. Seriously, lay off the illicit drugs, they are absolutely destroying any benefit you might get from all those psych meds you so obviously need.

    1. You are all over the place with your arguments here. You really should get some education. Comparing a self-help program which aims to help people (no matter how misguided you claim) to Nazi German policies for “the Final Solution” is offensive to any thinking person. I should think that any Jewish people in the program would be particularly offended.
      We really shouldn’t expect too much here on the BlogoSphere, but your childish and inane reasoning certainly stretches the bound of credulity.
      Your lies and outrageouly immature accusations show you to be a contemptible example of the fast and fancy free attitude toward truth to be found on the internet. Reasonable people will see you for what you are and dismiss you as of little interest.

      1. The “Jewish” people in the cult would do well to understand that they are actually pagan idolaters of Alcohol. And “The God of the Chosen” is none too happy with them.

        Anyway, AA has killed millions (to justify your ‘sins’). I stand behind the comparison.

      2. Wow, you are such an asshole!!!
        Look up hubris in the dictionary, you will find your picture there.
        No wonder people insult you here, you snotty, insulting little loser.

  14. The person who wrote this article is dropping with bitterness and hate. There are no scientific facts to support what he says. If alcoholism is not a serious socials problem in the world why does the NIH spend millions of research dollars to understand the seriousness of this problem. Forget going to an AA conference go to the conference on Alcoholism that happens every year where over 3ooo scientist, therapists meet to discuss Alcohol and addiction research. Or is this just another delusional group to you. On the other hand, I have been a proud member of aa for over thirty years. It has been the family I never had. My aa friends gave me emotional support for my whole life. In the process I resumed a lost life I was spending in a bar. I finished college and now I am a research scientist. I am a molecular biologist. There is no conflict in my mind between the science I practice and the twelve steps I practice. How shallow you are because you cannot see the real simplicity of aa: caring about other people. Ashame that you live with such bitterness.

  15. even the almighty RUSH Limbaugh has an addition you nimrod. Obviously your balls are bigger than your brain

      1. You are a fucking ignorant moron. Shut the fuck up if you have nothing better to talk about than something you don’t even understand. FUCKING IGNORANT! YOU need some real therapy, oh whoa, hold on, maybe you don’t have a brain to treat, or maybe psychology is a lie too, to take people’s money. YET, no money comes from AA and nobody should be in an AA meeting unless THEY believe they have a problem. And if works for them, then who the fuck are you to say what’s right? You aren’t GOD as ANYONE sees, except maybe your small minded self. I agree that it usually is part of an aftercare plan from treatment, but if the person does not want to go, they don’t. As for the people that are MANDATED BY COURT to go, I think they should set up meeting that are specifically for those people because it is supposed to be voluntary and anonymous! But then the courts get involved and the people go just to have their paper signed and this violates the intentions of the meetings. I would actually like to start a petition to abandon this method of getting people to go to the meetings. As for you, GO HAVE ANOTHER OF WHATEVER THE FUCK YOU ARE SMOKING, DRINKING, or USING, because you are nitwit who is definitely in denial of something. OR go to a meeting and find out what the fuck you’re talking about…oh, wait, you were probably someone who was COURT APPOINTED and now you’re PISSED OFF. Go commit another crime you freaking idiot! There should be an IDIOT ANONYMOUS and then you can all sit around spewing your ignorant shit there. Asshole.

      2. Interesting to me how you are always chasing down what you call others’ lies, but your writings are rife with them. What hypocrisy.
        You like to quote Gandhi. Assume that means you admire his philosophy and actions. Funny, then…you never saw him creating out of whole cloth like you. For instance, you never saw him saying: “Oh, my goodness, the British are eating our children”, or some such nonsense. My point here is that decent, moral folk with true altruistic motives don’t find it necessary to lie to support their positions. Those positions are naturally admirable and need no lies to support them. He practiced non-violence. What you could learn is that your lies are just another type of violence.
        Perhaps if you hadn’t chosen something more closely aligned with the devious likes of a snake like Saul Alinsky to promote your agenda, people would feel you to be a reasonable person with some integrity.
        Just saying, lies don’t ever serve the truth. That is one eternal truth you seem to have absolutely no grasp of.

      3. Wow, that makes you a real lying “Hall of Famer!!”
        Only half of what Rush Limbaugh says is lies. Batting average of .500…
        What are you hitting, .950 or so? You lie nearly constantly. Guess we could at least admire your consistency!!

  16. “AddictionMoron”, you are so full of yourself. If, as you claim, you have never met anyone who says that AA or NA has helped one of their loved ones, then you can’t have possibly investigated these programs as you claim you have “thoroughly” done.
    Any attendee at any of the Jamborees, conventions, Alkathons and other events which feature both AA and Al-Anon speakers will meet many, many families who have been saved by these programs. I personally have met hundreds of people who say their loved ones were helped. Wives, husbands, children…Why don’t you do some real research rather than spouting your bogus lies and fabrications?
    And you wonder why people are so rude to you? Poor baby!!
    Maybe it is because you are a lying sack of shit…

    1. Totally agree, this is a pissed off person who was MADE to go or their sorry asses would go to jail, or perhaps they have already been, but they are so ignorant, that I don’t usually post on any of this and I saw this and just had to. What a fucking idiot. Anyone who knew what they were really talking about would not have said any of that bullshit. So whatever, there aren’t even numbers that could count that have been helped by this methodology so I hope this person doesn’t have anyone in their own family plagued with the DISEASE OF ADDICTION, because if it’s up to this person, they are going to have to keep hiding it!

      1. You are spewing hatred. Earlier you told him to shut up. If you don’t like his blog, you can read elsewhere. It’s not like you are forced to read his words. It’s not like you can tell somebody to shut up on their own blog. It’s not like you are forced to take responsibility for your own choices. Or are you??

  17. @ AddictionMyth…I am confused and hoping you can clarify for me. You
    state that addiction is a myth and yet you endorse being ‘addicted to Ativan’
    in your conversation with David Sheff. So which one is it?
    I have read your entries, attempting to keep an open mind, after all you
    have the right to your opinions. The thing is, that’s all they are. Opinions.
    You present said opinions as truth and I am offended by that. I feel like this
    website is a dangerous place for an active addict looking for a way to help
    themself. Both AA and NA have been the saving grace for several people
    that I love. So now you have met someone who claims ‘AA has saved my loved one’s
    life’.

    1. It is a treatment for a sleep disorder and I am on the same small dose for the last 12 years. I can go without if necessary, though I won’t sleep much. I am certainly not powerless to it. As I’ve said, once I allowed myself to take it regularly I was able to sleep again. If the treatment had side effects that were worse than the ‘disease’ I would stop taking it immediately. And look for something else. It took me 2 years to discover the treatment, and I’m very thankful I did.

      “Active addicts” are simply liars who discovered that taking drugs makes it easier to lie. Nic Sheff is a good example, and amazing his father didn’t see it, even as he glorified his own sons confabulatory skillz in his book Beautiful Boy.

      If you would post your drunkalog as you recite it at meetings it would demonstrate the same simple fact. Of course you won’t.

      1. Your a fucking ass. ATIVAN? #1-is addictive #2-is a narcotic, #3-stop taking it because I would love for some seizures to shut you the fuck up. I think you are pissed off and you created this website to make people accidentally find this stupid shit. Get some help, because this shit is not helping anyone but you. You are a narcissist just looking for attention. I say nobody should post anything because we are giving you what YOU are ADDICTED to, which is getting attention and trying to sabotage people looking for help. And you’re an ASS.

      2. “I say nobody should post anything because we are giving you what YOU are ADDICTED to, which is getting attention and trying to sabotage people looking for help.”

        You’re so right …I’m done talking to this hypocrite.
        Thx!

  18. Great article! As I read it, I realized why I never felt good about AA! I was forced to attend years ago! I am a very strong person, I have just become alone and lonely! Thank You!

    1. Yay! Finally someone gets what I’m trying to say. 🙂

      Many people struggle with loneliness from time to time. I don’t have a simple answer. But it’s much easier to fix than powerlessness!

      1. Man….you are so full full of ego that I can’t believe you are not “der Fuhrer” of something. AA has helped millions of people recover and if you don’t believe it, attend an AA convention and hear the stories. And, if you had been listening at a meeting, you would have heard that AA is not there to force people into sobriety but hopefully show them a way of living without alcohol and NA and Al anon are there for the same reason. If you really want to see some lying about results go to your next available political meeting and listen to the promises they make. I was told at the first meeting I went to that I could try AA and if I didn’t like it go out and drink some more. Fortunately, the program has survived worst attacks and you are probably some bullshit shill for those recovery centers that charge thousands of dollars a week for worst results. AA doesn’t and never has charged a single penny. Most meetings get massive contributions from the members of a whole dollar to pay for coffee and rent. You must be miserable and if you carefully read the post above yours the person says they are lonely and miserable also. My suggestion is that you pick on something other than AA because the millions who are in AA would quickly tell you that we don’t give a damn about opinions from embittered losers like yourself.

      2. Beautifully said!! AddictionMyth apparently knows better than millions of grateful recovering addicts…..thank god for all the critical thinkers out there who see through this bullshit. Leaves me with some hope for humanity.

      3. My comment of ” True” is in reply to Addiction Myth, when he says that loneliness is easier to deal with than powerlessness..

      4. But still a difficult problem, and I will give AA some credit for alleviating it. So for that reason I hope it survives in some form. Without the brainwashing of course.

  19. The guy who wrote this proabably got fucked in his ass his whole life by his father. Look at some of the other things he’s wrote. Hes a lost scared little boy who is broken inside and is living a miserable life by pointing out how anyone happy must be brainwashed…..How did your fathers johnson feel when it slid in your tender little ass cheeks? Did you scream, or just weap as he slowly took away your pride????

  20. “Furthermore, medically supervised detox is usually reported as being a ‘surprisingly comfortable’ experience.” – that sentence, all by itself, is enough to disqualify the author of writing anything about addiction. I hope he has to go through real detox once and has to find out for himself what it’s like.

    1. Dan Mager (opiates) and Heather Kopp (alcohol), both books reviewed here (see entries on the right column), report detox as being surprisingly easy. You have probably watched too many reruns of Dr Drew’s Rehab.

  21. It is amazing to me that someone so clearly ignorant would take the time to write an article about a program they so obviously disagree with but knows nothing about. This program has absolutely changed my life. I hope anyone reading this and considering joining a 12 step program does more research than this buffoon. And to the author, why don’t you find better ways of spending your time than condemning the noble actions of others. If you don’t understand something it means you’re either blind or uninformed, not that there’s a problem with said something.

    1. Noble ? there s nothing noble about taking advantage of people who are in a vulnerable position . . . Noble is to empower. not render powerless . . . noble is to educate and inform and welcome questions . . not stifle and prohibit them . noble is to always be in the process of learning and being aware of the latest research and supporting further research. . noble is all of these . . a a is none of these .

      1. Hey, AssholeMyth, if you are going to reply on here, at least have the honesty to identify yourself as the asshole who runs the site, rather than trying to make it appear as though there are more than two people in the US who agree with you!!

      2. My “YAY!” is in response to Anonymous’ post on What is Noble, and What is Not. Not the profane antagonist in between.

  22. We are not brainwashed, we are programmed. I’ve been programmed for the past 29 yrs. If I wasn’t I would have faced a certain death. Meeting makers make it!!

    Randy W.

    1. you dont even realize what point you made do you ? I ll leave it at that . But If sometime down the road you feel differently, there are specialists who can help you become deprogrammed. just keep that in the back of your mind should you ever think you have the right to think again.

      1. I don’t drink , been to meetings. The funny thing about all these posts is the vitriol of folks in recovery. Bill W. would blush. Talk about taking moral inventory!!! Relax people, not everyone needs AA. God speed.

    2. Hurray! You chose Life! You chose it well! That’s YOUR CHOICE, choosing Life, NOT theirs. Congratulations! Don’t give the credit to another who DIDN’T make your good choice. It was YOUR CHOICE,! How awesome! 🙂
      You need to reclaim your personal power. It’s essential. ( Speaking the truth with kindness. )

  23. All I have to say is wow, “a cult to slow self destruction”? Aa is an amazing program in which each member has their own free will. It does nothing but help better peoples lives. Things don’t get much more ignorant than this article.

    1. OK well then just remember you have a ‘cunning and baffling’ disease that can strike when you least expect it. So please remember to pray to your HP every day. And I hope it doesn’t ever take a vacation!

      1. What? It would seem you never went to a variety of meetings. Sure, there are plenty where many aren’t healthy but there are plenty where the members are. How do you regard any spiritual activity?
        You said, “Interestingly, ‘craving’ is never mentioned as an issue during a 12 Step meeting, nor do people ever talk about struggling with it, resisting it, or giving in to it. This explanation is offered only for public consumption. Attend your local AA meeting and see for yourself!” Many of the meetings have newcomers and old timers alike discussing times when the craving returns.
        “There is a principle which is a bar against all information, which is proof against all arguments and which cannot fail to keep a man in everlasting ignorance — that principle is contempt prior to investigation.” ~~ in the BB.

        Investigation is the close and systematic study of ____. Perhaps you could do further investigation before you denounce a program which has saved the lives of countless people whose loved ones, families, etc. had given up on them.

      2. Wow you are actually challenging a simple fact. How unusual for an AAndroid! Fortunately this is easy enough to resolve. Just go to your local meeting and see for yourself.

        I have investigated AA carefully. Sorry my conclusion is different from yours. I have yet to meet a single person who claims AA helped a ‘loved one’. Often AA is used as an excuse to escape a relationship that the drinker is too cowardly to terminate directly. “The relationship threatened my sobriety.” Then repeat the 13th Step.

    1. Oh, yeah…I work in my local Central Office as a service job. We take in billions of $$ daily…not.
      As far as “propaganda” goes, it is a program of “attraction, not promotion.”
      If you buffoons want people to show you any respect here, try telling the truth. It works, it really does!

    2. Yep. And ” victims” who have forfeited their personal power, will, and critical reasoning skills, make far better followers for the system. That’s a double- win for the system and a double- loss against the individual. Forfeiting personal power is just what satan wants. And if a person does it in one area, chances are he’ll be willing to do in the others as well. People have NO understanding of how very harmful it is. Not stubborn for the sake of being stubborn, mind you, but using one’s head, making their own choices, steering their own ship, with thoughtful purpose.

  24. The above essay does not represent my experience in the rooms of AA. In fact, I find it baffling. I hope that the curious will explore thoughtfully before making a determination about their path to recovery. It is my feeling that the author is ill-informed.

    1. The author of this blog, in all his guises,
      (Say that because he writes here under multiple pseudonyms) is worse than ill informed. He is a liar. He hung around AA with a friend who “dabbled” in it.
      He was never a member. What real knowledge of the program he has would fill a teaspoon. He is a person of little integrity who fabricates a whole lot of lies to pursue some personal vendetta. Probably is a schizoid with some warped savior complex.
      While it is fun to puncture his balloon, it is probably better just to ignore the little wanker.

      1. Oh there you are.. What??? Hi. It’s me Cammie again! Just so you know….This is NOT another pseudonym the Blog writer is using. I am a real person, with a real problem. I stumbled upon this blog while researching A.A. alternatives. My experience in the program was not good. There are so many more stories for which I could share, but there’s not enough space in this “Comments” section to cover it all… And just so you know, this isn’t the only site that is “Anti-A.A.” http://www.recoveringfromrecovery.com/leaving-aa-staying-sober/. Or this one http://leavingaa.com. So clearly there are quite a few people whose experience in AA was less than successful.. Oh but that’s right… It’s not that the program didn’t work…It’s that they weren’t “working the program…”

      2. Fine with me, Cammie, that the program wasn’t for you. And I am fully aware that this is not the only anti AA site. That’s fine, too. Glad you have dealt with whatever your problem was, and seem to be doing fine. I also do not feel the need to label you with the whole “they weren’t working the program” thing.
        So my question: If you all are doing fine, why the need to come here with lies and exaggerations and attack something which is apparently working for others? You generalized from the example of your sponsor and your grandsponsor to try to point to the whole program being wrong. Bad argumentation, reason and logic. AddictionMoron here makes outlandish claims and condemns a program he clearly doesn’t understand and never was really a part of. No proof of the science he quotes is given. What justifies attacks which, clearly being based on lack of knowledge and pure fancy, or because you had a bad experience?
        How can people think lies might be made to serve a greater good?
        I have had some bad experiences in AA. I look at it like a buffet. Just don’t eat the fried food! There are some people there who don’t get it, some who are clearly very ill and never will. I understand today that I just don’t want what they have. So I also understand that as a slice of society, they don’t represent those kind of problems at any higher frequency than any other slice. I associate with those who are well, and live the kind of life I admire.
        I feel I could have a somewhat reasoned discussion with you, where with the site author it seems impossible because of his total lack of honesty. All you have to do to see that is look at his outrageously confabulated stories about AA.
        Good luck to you!!

  25. AA defenders may not post their drunkalogs, but I suspect that “A Million Little Pieces” was a drunkalog that that James Frey was dumb enough to publish.

    1. The reason to not post a drunkalogue is not a negative. Anyone with real recovery lives in the solution, hence the refusal to spend a lot of time wallowing in the past. This is something the twink running this site will never understand.
      Since he has never had problems with addiction himself, it invalidates his ability to understand, much less judge the program.
      His obvious and egregious lies are a whole other matter. Chronic liars are slippery characters to have a reasoned debate with.
      Go ahead with your blah, blah, blah response. Do you really believe anyone takes you seriously? Really??

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