I was "essentially required" to attend some AA meetings after a "Wet and reckless". I do see the correlation and overall, I like AA and its cousins. I've seen that they're good for those they're good for.
BUT, there are some things I really dislike about it. From my experiences:
- "This is the only thing that will work".
- There was a part where we were told that we weren't good enough.
- There is a part that essentially requires a religious belief.
- States can, in essence, require attendance and this promulgates certain religious beliefs.
Those are real big problems for me.
Given who and how I am, one of the most important things about the United States is the idea of separation of state and religion. Some of my religious / ceremonial-type beliefs and practices seem very much unlike the practices of Abrahamic religions *and I want mine protected just as much as the others*.
The first three are anathema some other, basic, ideas that I hold:
- I -- and also you -- *am* good enough. I am good enough to be able to do everything I *can*. I'm not limited by someone else's thought or speech. Instead I'm limited merely by my limits.
- I am responsible for everything I do. If I do something badly, then it is upon me to make it better. (Because no one else will.)
- There are always options. A new option for action may require changing original parameters, but short of death, there are always options, always choices.
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I'm not saying what AA and such do are bad things, I'm saying there are real big problems there for me. I see that it works and it just might work because it helps people give up some guilt so that they can take responsibility. If so it's a good thing.
I'm just built differently.
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OP, were you actually trying to create a thread for that community and the camaraderie here? If so, it might help to break this out into two threads: 1) the C and C thread and 2) the meta-discussion about 12SP's thread.
she sounds like someone I might know.