“If something is true, no amount of wishful thinking will change it.” (Richard Dawkins) Conversely, “If something is false, no amount of wishful thinking will change it.” By Paul W. Introduction Chapter 5 of the Big Book, misleadingly titled “How it Works,” is an introduction to the Twelve Steps themselves … Continue reading
Review By Linda Farris Kurtz Many readers will recognize Katherine Ketcham’s name from the sixteen books she has co-authored with other writers: Under the Influence with James Milam and The Spirituality of Imperfection with Ernest Kurtz to name but two. The Only Life I Could Save: A Memoir is Kathy’s … Continue reading
By Eliza Radeka Originally published on December 21, 2017 in the Boulder Weekly On Wednesday nights, the basement of Boulder’s Pine Street Church fills to capacity for the Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) open meeting. Facilitators lead the group in an opening prayer or statement, before members go up one by one … Continue reading
By Roger C Introduction Should it re-publish “The ‘God” Word” (it has the permission of AA in Britain) here in North America? Should it develop its own pamphlet for and by non-theists in AA? These are questions that will be discussed and voted on at the 68th annual General Service … Continue reading
The Delegate for Southern California Area 05, Thomas B, is interested in your thoughts on the subject of “conference approved” literature for agnostics and atheists in AA. Both the re-publication of “The ‘God’ Word’ pamphlet, originally published by AA in Great Britain, and a request to create a new pamphlet … Continue reading
An unexamined life is not worth living. Plato’s Apology Part Two: Step Four (Pages 64 – 71) By Paul W. Prelude As life-J so aptly points out in his November 23, 2017 article, Standing on the Shoulders of Giants?, the Big Book should be shelved and used only as a … Continue reading
To reason effectively, we must have a feeling for the truth. Sam Harris, The Moral Landscape Part One: How It Works and Steps One through Three (Pages 58 – 63) By Paul W. Prelude This paper is not a revision or a rewrite of the first three pages of Chapter … Continue reading
By Paul W. To begin, let’s define “critique.” It is a critical examination or discussion; an examination of the merits or faults of a literary work. In my critiques of the Big Book, I focus on its faults. My critiques are intended to stimulate thought and discussion, especially from those … Continue reading
By Bill White Originally published on March 2, 2018 on The Selected Papers of William L. White AA is so decentralized that in a very real sense, there really is no such single entity as “Alcoholics Anonymous” – only AA members and local AA groups that reflect a broad and … Continue reading
A Review by Thomas B. According to Forbes Magazine, some 85 books are published in the US every hour. That’s hundreds of thousands of new titles each year — 744,600 to be precise, plus another 2,040 every four years during leap year! I spent an hour or so Googling memoirs, … Continue reading
By life-j Following up after Standing on the Shoulders of Giants? in this article I would like to open an in-depth critique of the Big Book’s logical fallacies. I have to confess I’m not as sharp as I used to be, so bear with me. Hopefully I get to at … Continue reading