I wanted to point out that because alcoholism is considered a disease of addiction, many people who would typically be present at AA meetings are not currently indulging in drinking - aka: “dry people”. Typically, everyone in a meeting is sober, just for varying periods of time. My uncle, for example, has been dry for 25 years, but since part of the program is to “give back” (they have words for that, but I can’t think what they are), in order to keep the giver in line. Even alcoholics who don’t drink continue to work the program in this way, always identifying themselves as alcoholics but merely with number of hours/days/years in sobriety. So they have addressed many of the challenges the newbies would encounter and are apparently quite helpful. My uncle is what they call a “sponsor” to those trying to clean up. So I suspect that AA is a great route for people to go when ready to put down the bottle. Naturally, only the alcoholic can put down the bottle, just as only the overweight person can push back from the table. Noone can wave a magic wand. But nothing is more helpful than someone who has been there and can easily recognize the error in your “stinking thinking” and quickly identify your excuses that stand in your way.

In short (I’m not so good at “short” am I?), AA is a very successful program that has helped millions of people and I’m confident it saved my uncle’s life.