I’m an alcoholic and sober today thanks to Alcoholics Anonymous. Our Fellowship is called Alcoholics Anonymous that is who we are, we are alcoholics who help each other get and stay sober, one day at a time and we don’t tell anyone who we’ve met at meetings. If I tell someone outside AA that Maggie, who lives next door to them or Tam who’s in a TV programme come to meetings, I’m breaking their anonymity. That’s quite straight forward. What wasn’t clear to me for a while was that if I tell a fellow AA member that I saw someone at a meeting, I’m breaking their anonymity. Just because someone has come to a meeting doesn’t mean they want people they haven’t yet met in AA to know what there’s doing. This is of great importance, especially to the …show more content…
Tradition 11 reminds us that ‘we need always maintain personal anonymity at the level of press, radio and films’. We do this to protect AA from our egos and also, though this is more the Programme’s job, to protect ourselves from our egos. In the long form of Tradition 11 it says ‘Our names and pictures as AA members ought not be broadcast, filmed or publicly printed.’ And this means social media sites too. My full name and my picture are there on a public site. If I post on a social media site that I go to AA meetings I’m going against Tradition 11. Social media sites don 't have to know about our Traditions but we do and the onus is on us to understand them and work them in our sobriety. If someone is thinking of coming to AA and they see AA members identified as such on social media sites they might not come to AA for fear that their anonymity will be broken – and if they are alcoholic and don’t get sober they can die a slow or maybe not-so-slow horrible death. I’m not an expert on the inner workings of social media/networking sites but I did find out that a ‘closed group’ is not as private as I thought it would be with full names and profile pictures available for me to view before I had joined the group. Although I’m careful about my privacy settings I am still unsure about how it all works. I found the card printed by AA GB called ‘Hints and Suggestions on Internet Safety’ very helpful. The leaflet ‘Understanding Anonymity’ also available from AA GB, is great
The word “privacy” has a different meaning in our society than it did in previous times. You can put on Privacy settings on Facebook, twitter, or any social media sights, however, nothing is truly personal and without others being able to view your information. You can get to know a person’s personal life simply by typing in their name in google. In the chronicle review, “Why Privacy Matters Even if You Have ‘Nothing to Hide,'" published on May 15th 2011, Professor Daniel J. Solove argues that the issue of privacy affects more than just individuals hiding a wrong. The nothing-to-hide argument pervades discussions about privacy. Solove starts talking about this argument right away in the article and discusses how the nothing-to-hide
I introduced myself. I learned that the facilitator for the night is actually a member, a 30-year sober member. I was asked to enjoy refreshments and was greeted cordially by present members. The meeting was held in a church reception hall and the room was set up with 3 tables parallel from each other. I participated in this group as an observer, although, I did introduce myself at the beginning. The issue of this group was alcoholism and how to stay sober. The purpose of the group is to be a support system for those who are struggling with sobriety and those who have been successful in sobriety. The group focuses its healing around the 12-steps of Alcoholics Anonymous. This support group is open and provides no limit to the attendee
Alcoholism is as prevalent in my family, as blood is in our veins. When previously asked to observe 12-step groups, I ritualistically flocked to Alcoholics Anonymous, without consideration of the possibility that other groups had any potential to make an impact on me. I always pride myself in my ability to identify as an individual that is not ensnared in alcoholism, but unfortunately am an individual that was highly tormented by alcoholism. Through observation of the group and how it processed, as well as identifying how I felt as a new attendee, I was able to understand why self-help, support groups are so vital for individuals in recovery. I finally realized, I too am in recovery.
I attended the Alcohol Anonymous (AA) twelve step meeting on Friday December fourth at 8:00 p.m. at the community center at Roxbury Park in Beverly Hills. The people were middle aged men and women of different ethnic backgrounds. The meeting started in an arranged fashion. I sat in the back and was addressed by an elderly man who wanted to know who I was to and I replied that I was a student writing a paper for school. He was fine with my answer and departed. The meeting started with people presenting themselves. First, there was an open conversation that started was with the storytelling of one member’s endeavors with alcoholism. After this heartwarming account, other people in the group provided how the
A major question that has been asked ever since the creation of AA, people have questioned Bill Wilson’s theory on Alcoholism; whether it’s a disease or a spiritual problem. In addition to the question of the origins of alcoholism another question is if the “Big Book” and 12 step program about alcohol or about finding God. This paper is about Alcoholics Anonymous and how the organization treats alcoholism as a disease that it impossible to cure unless the individual finds God. I believe that AA operates in a fashion similar to that of a cult because of what the book teaches and the message that AA members are instructed to carry out.
It was on January 24, 1971, that Bill, a victim of pneumonia, died in Miami Beach, Florida, where he had delivered at the 35th Anniversary International Convention what proved to be his last words to fellow A.A.s: “God bless you and Alcoholics Anonymous forever” (Pitman 120). Since then, A.A. has become truly global. This has revealed that A.A.’s way of life can today transcend most barriers of race, creed and language (Wekesser 87). A World Service Meeting, started in 1969, has been held biennially since 1972. Its locations alternate between New York and overseas. It has met in London, England; Helsinki, Finland; San Juan del Rio, Mexico; Guatemala City, Guatemala; Munich, Germany and Cartagena, Colombia. These meetings and their locations have gone to show the global impact A.A. has achieved. The Akron A.A. team of Dr. Bob, Bill, and Anne has never been equaled in personal, spiritual recovery outreach. It was truly the heart of A.A.’s spiritual beginnings (Pitman 124).
Security versus privacy is becoming a major issue in today’s society. Recently, the National Security Agency has been the victim of scrutiny due to allegations of espionage. Similar claims not only stem from the authority, but also come from the public as well. For example, one is enjoying a night out in a restaurant when a group of teenagers arrives. Before it is noticed, some of the teenagers take photos with a cell phone. The picture encompasses most of the area occupied; therefore, every person in that general area is included in it. A few moments later, one teen uploads that picture to various social media websites to share along with captions stating the current location. Although not a single person gave consent, pictures are being circulated with thousands of strangers in the innumerable realms of the internet. Not only are these pictures all over the web and an invasion of privacy, but people viewing those pictures are able to discover recent whereabouts with the simple click of a button. Due to technology’s rapid advancements, similar acts such as these are becoming nearly inevitable. But, these are the very same advancements that help us live in a free and open society. In order to avoid intrusions yet maintain safety, restrictions should be put upon consumer devices, capabilities of security devices, and government abilities.
I have never experienced what it would be like to be a part of an AA meeting. The only time I have had seen or heard someone mention meetings for alcoholics has been TV shows and movies, which would portray these meeting as a circle of strangers just deliberating stories of their life and how this disease has changed them forever. Therefore, I had no idea what to expect. I felt intimidated and had a sense of nervousness, so I decided I would not go alone and brought a friend. My expectation upon entering this meeting was to see beat up people with bad hygiene and a homeless appearance. As a matter of fact, the expectations I had upon walking towards this place was that I was going to get hit on and even get kidnapped. As crazy as it sounds, all these thoughts came through my mind particularly because of the type of environment I expected it to be. For the most part, I was wrong. I was actually surprised at what I witnessed and I came to realize that I was over-reacting. Upon arrival, there were people spread out; some talking together and some sitting alone. The room was nothing like I imagined. It wasn't an auditorium or a gym like they showed on TV. This place which I had imagined to be a dreadful enclosed surface with maniacal individuals turned out to be a small room with sofas and tables to make guests feel welcomed, with regular looking men and women appearing to be middle-aged. I thought "There has to be something wrong, I can’t be convinced that all these people who seem normal to me have an addiction problem with alcoholism". My friend and I took a seat by the door just in case we wanted to make a quick exit.
This was evident in the meeting as well. Of the ten members, only one was attending their first ever A.A. meeting (two others were attending their first Brown Bag Meeting). Ann declined to speak the first time they went around the circle, but she seemed very nervous. She later decided to speak, and related her experience to us. She had been sober for 10 days now, and when she woke
When the term alcohol anonymous is said most of us think of a group of drunks that can’t seem to get themselves together and stay clean. For the student nurse this is the view that she had going into her first alcohol anonymous meeting. As bad as it sounds, it is kind of hard to imagine what goes through the minds and lives of people who deal with this struggle on a daily basis. Innervison was the eye opener that the student nurse needed to clear all the stereotypes, and negative thoughts about people that just seemed to want to drink and never get their lives together. Innervision is a non-profit organization that specializes in help with recovery patients, helping consumers find employment, education, and provides resources for patients with psychiatric disabilities.
The group I chose to attend was an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting in the city of Van Nuys, California. I heard about this group through my agency as the meeting was located a few blocks away from my job, therefore, it was not difficult to locate. I decided to pay an initial visit before the scheduled group meeting in order to inform the group facilitator that I was a social work student and that my intention was to attend one meeting in order to observe group dynamics. The group facilitator agreed to let me attend the group with the discretion of not using recording devices or breaking any confidentiality rules. The group facilitator seemed very welcoming despite the fact that I did not share in the group’s
If a stranger would approach someone on the street, would one casually offer personal information to him? Would one allow him to follow and record one’s activities? Although it may be obvious in the concrete world that one would not allow it, the behavior of the general population on the Internet is strikingly different. While surfing websites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Google, many people provide personal details to enhance their online profile? These websites retain vast amounts of personal information from their users. Although this practice benefits the user as well, unrestricted profiling can become an alarming catastrophe. Unless the threat to internet users privacy are shown to exceed the benefits, we should not regulate the internet, rather we should educate the public how to be more responsible about their identities.
With media communication on the rise, it is important for humans to remember the basic respect levels that come with both media and face to face communication. In my opinion, media communication requires the same amount of respect as face to face communication. If a person is unable to confront or criticise a person face to face, they should not be able to do it in a media conversation. In my experiences, I have found it much easier to deal with confrontation over a phone, but I also find that some of the rudest comments I have made are over text. In many cases, I would rather have an argument over texting than face to face. Along with some cases where it is easier to be rude on media conversations, certain times, I have found myself saying better
Anonymous communication online has become a point of contention as more people are using the Internet to post information without taking ownership. This type of communication is being used to explore identity, but it is also being used as way for more people to engage in negative online activity. While there are many issues with anonymous posting, the risks of allowing for anonymity do not outweigh the benefits. Allowing anonymous online posting creates opportunity for those uncomfortable with expressing themselves publicly to experiment with their identity in a safe way as well as providing a level of protection for those who wish to expose negative realities without fear of punishment.
The question relates to Anonymity, this is when a person is unknown and unacknowledged, so others cannot know their identity. In the old law in the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 1976 it stated that a victim and defendant of an alleged sexual offence were both granted anonymity. So, with regarding to the media it destined that the victims and defendants of rape and other sexual offences could not be identified or published in the media, including photos or any other details that could lead to their identification. However, the anonymity protection for defendants was removed by the Criminal Justice Act 1988 S.158(5) and remains the same today, with much debate due to unfairness seen as victims still hold their lifelong anonymity protection.