Is There An Official Alcoholics Anonymous Stance On Illegal File Sharing?
My roommates are all in 12-step recovery programs. Two of them download music and movie files from torrent sites nearly 24/7. One of them feels it is unethical to do so, and will only use a pay-per-download service. I’m on the fence about the whole thing. Frankly, I’d love it if they stopped the constant downloading, because it eats up the bandwidth for everybody else in the house.
Don’t think they’ve yet decided their official position.
That’s an outside issue, AA has no opinions on outside issues. Dwelling on outside issues diverts members from the primary purpose of AA.
If you feel you are going to drink over this, you need to talk to your sponsor pronto!
That’s the official AA stance. Here’s mine:
AA doesn’t care except on how this affects AA as a whole. It doesn’t. As long as a person can claim, “I didn’t drink over it” he or she will be forgiven from a laundry list of minor and major crimes. Some AA members have admitted to murder in the rooms and expected it to be kept quiet.
It is a spiritually based program that is based on moral standards set fourth by the guidelines of the bible, but it is a belief in a power greater than yourself, most choose God but it is up to the individual to determine what this power is. some choose the group as their higher power. Ask him if he has had a spiritual awakening and if so then what is his higher power. If he claims it’s God then he should adhere to the 10 commandments (thou shall not steal). But there is no set standard or rules to being in a 12 step program. It says in the traditions that the only requirement for membership is a desire to quit drinking.
Even though there is nothing in writing about stealing it is pretty much a given that this should not be done. If he was truly working a good program he would know better than to do this.
It even says in the chapter How It Works: No one amongst us has been able to maintain anything like perfect adherence to these principals (the 12 steps). We claim to grow along spiritual lines rather that claim spiritual perfection. But in step 10) Continued to take personal inventory and where we were wrong promptly addmitted it.
Strictly speaking NO. And so is the ‘official’ line in AA that membership is voluntary and that members cannot be compelled to observe any rules, even where it is preferred.
Unofficially, many AA;s run and interfere in the lives and morals of others. Quite unhealthily so.
To answer your question, This really has no more to do with AA than if they were involved in any other crime. Neither as AA members are they specially protected from the law. The law applies to them as anyone else.
Oh gee whiz, of course not. But, tell you what. I know the AA mindset pretty well. Say the following to the freeloaders:
“If you two were really working the program of rigorous honesty set forth in the Big Book of Alcholics Anonymous, you would not be stealing intellectual property from others! You need to call your sponsor right away and figure out a way to make amends to the people you’ve ripped off, or you might drink!”
Seriously, give it a shot.
No.
However, file sharing is one of the few things that redeems my faith in humanity. People do this at great risk to themselves to provide entertainment for others out of a feeling of mutual respect and contempt for the business tactics of the markets.
Yes. If you’re addicted to illegal file sharing, turn that additction over to a higher power.
It is illegal, as it is stealing. You don’t need a AA to tell you that stealing is wrong.
The courts certainly do. Some guy just got a huge settlement against him for using Limewire.
I dont think they involve themselves with anything besides booze
Shoot you need to drink more,,LOL
just have a drink