Ooops! 'Outings' backfire!

Anyhoo..... someone tells us there's a site out there trying to ape us (our emphasis) although simians generally show a deal more intelligence than is exemplified by the rather flaccid output on display! Seemingly one of the pointed head ones has actually managed to scrAPE together slightly more than the standard issue brace of brain cells and is attempting to 'out' the aacultwatch team online.... Well we should be grateful .. at least it's finally dawned on them that there's actually considerably more than one of us! It only took them eight or so years to figure it out! Still we decided to take a gander and much to our surprise it seems that the team is larger than we thought …. that is if the site is to be believed … (a bit of a long shot we know!). Most of the entries seem to have been cobbled together from our listing of Twitter followers (some of whom by no means support our efforts) to which have been added a few random web searches (easy enough if you know what you're doing) the whole 'bulked' out with some highly imaginative 'biographical' details.... But interestingly one entry in particular stands out … a couple based down in the Herne Bay area.... According to one of our many correspondents far from this duo being supporters of aacultwatch they are in fact somewhat the opposite... quite rabid cult members by all accounts! Both are ex-Tankerton (what used to be the local cult 'hotspot'). Even more interesting though is the woman's connection with the current chairman of East Kent Intergroup …. one Mark F (otherwise known as Poetry Mark). Now by all accounts Mark is something of a wanderer .. he likes to travel about a bit. Fiirst it was Strood (West Kent's local branch of the cult).... but then quite unaccountably he decided to transfer his attention to Tankerton in East Kent …Now these perambulatory habits might have to do with Mark's somewhat amatory not to say predatory inclinations.. but then they might not..... Either way we're told that Mark really likes to hit on women newcomers .. and when we say hit we mean HIT! (geddit!).... And it would seem that one of the women Mark really liked to HIT was the very same woman mentioned on the 'ape' site..... It's all pretty unfortunate .. and not a little sleazy ...(a bit like the site) but there you have it.....But we won't be posting any contact details, phone numbers etc... We like to keep it just a little bit classy!

So keep up the good work 'ape'man (or woman)....! Long may the 'outing' continue!

Exeunt to the strains of the Kinks “Apeman”.....

“I think I'm sophisticated
'Cos I'm living my life like a good homosapien.......... 

Cheers 

The Fellas (Friends of Alcoholics Anonymous)

Bullying in East Kent

We quote:

“Dear fellas.

At last weeks East Kent Intergroup AGM which I attended, there was a report from a woman who had been subjected to bullying by a male member of the fellowship in East Kent.

This is not a new problem and one where it was suggested that guideline 17 be read out at the beginning of every meeting. If matters continued, outside organisations like the police should be involved.

What is noted is a group member can call a group conscience at any time during a meeting but what also should be noted is this bully sometimes corners his female victims outside meetings.

The treasurer of the intergroup also read out an email from someone who decided to leave a group where this bully was bullying female members. It was sent to the treasurer as he was requesting a receipt for a contribution but was leaving as a group treasurer.

The content was :-

My Dear …...

Just a question of a receipt for £### sent by me on behalf of ###### Wed.

I have now left this meeting as I could no longer accept the personal behaviour of a member.

He was someone I was powerless over,who I come to realise I certainly could not change.

He was a bully to female members and that was unacceptable, that I found quite shocking because he should of known better, and was talking the talk but his ego it would appear,stopped him walking the walk, if you can understand. I also know that he was economical with the truth.(Dallas)[a reference to the Primary Purpose movement - see below]

Any way mate that was my shit and I decided that it was best to go before I smacked him in mouth! not PC AND IN NO WAY SPIRITUAL 'EH?.

This bullies behaviour is not acceptable and he evidently has bullied officers of EKIG as well.

What was also shocking on the evening is directly after this was read out a member of another Group felt it an appropriate time to advertise in a 'matter of fact' way a forthcoming convention.

Eh HELLO! - it seems some group members in EKIG think its OK to gloss over this behaviour.

I don't know what's more shocking - the bully, them or both.

Please can you publicise this on your website - for the record this bully is an American who clearly sponsors himself.

Women - please watch out for him and remember he is a bully and his behaviour is unacceptable.

Keep up the good work fellas”

Comment: Well three guesses who this might be! No.. Give up! OK then.... It's none other than the local guru-in-residence and Big Book aficionado (or one of them at least!) Harry K... aka Batman. However Harry's reputation has spread far and wide already so this is hardly news! Still we're happy to do our bit in bringing such malefactors to the fellowship's attention. It is so often the case that those who preach the loudest seldom live up even to the most modest of expectations .. and Harry is no exception! Still the word is that he's defected to Cocaine Anonymous where apparently he's busy lecturing them on recovery … leather bound Big Book and all.... As they say - our gain is their loss!

Cheerio

The Fellas (Friends of Alcoholics Anonymous)

PS Guidelines are all very well! But they're not much use unless they're IMPLEMENTED!

PPS Apparently Dover Monday is still ruminating about whether to break its affiliation with the Primary Purpose movement. Its group details are still listed with this outside organisation (together with the contact details for both Harry K and Harry A (otherwise known as Harry the Handbag aka Robin – see Batman above)). Until such time as it does Dover Monday may not refer to itself as an AA meeting. Herne Bay Wednesday however has decided to remain listed with Primary Purpose and similarly therefore may no longer be considered - or refer to itself as - an AA meeting.

WESTGATE MORNING BIG BOOK STUDY SUNDAY Meeting (East Kent IG)

Well it would seem that one - or possibly two - of the East Kent "Harrys" (they're multiplying at an alarming rate!) has set up shop at the above mentioned meeting. Both of these are widely acknowledged as 'experts' on the recovery programme of Alcoholics Anonymous (as indeed they will unceasingly remind anyone who happens to stumble into their path!). It would seem that the rest of the fellowship in East Kent (and even adjacent intergroups) have been barking up the wrong tree completely and have somehow managed to stray from the “Road of Happy Destiny”. Fortunately for us (and here you cannot even begin to comprehend the depth our gratitude!) 'Batman and Robin' have now come to the rescue and have set about with considerable vigour to guide us back to safety. But enough already of the irony! This meeting joins a number of others in East Kent where the cult has set up Primary Purpose franchises. viz.

Dover

Monday at 7.30pm
Rear Room
Our Lady of Dover RC Church
Roosevelt Road
Dover
All meetings ‘Open’
Contacts: Harry K …..Harry A

Herne Bay

Wednesday at 7.30pm
The Retreat, RC Church
2 Clarence Road
Herne Bay
All meetings ‘Open’
Contact: Harry K …....

Both of these groups have formed affiliations with an outside enterprise ie. the Dallas Primary Purpose gang – a semi commercial operation (does a nice little sideline in leather bound Big Books – a snip at £40 so we hear!) which presents - additionally - entirely misleading information on AA recovery rates. The Westgate meeting does not yet appear in their directory (but this surely is merely an omission on the part of the Caped Crusader and his 'humble' side kick - soon to be rectified!).

So if you want to get the 'low down' on how to do the programme PROPERLY then get on down to one of these meetings and join the 'enlightened ones' - or even: “AS HARRY SEES IT!”

Cheerio

The Fellas (Friends of Alcoholics Anonymous)

The Canterbury AA convention which is … not an AA convention!

Yep the cult is busily “running the show” again at Canterbury University. In July, or so it appears, we can all look forward to “A weekend of open AA meetings and fellowship” - but then it's not entirely clear which AA we might be talking about here! Would that be the AA that adheres to its principles, observes the Traditions and doesn't encourage the abuse of newcomers, or would that be the cult which does precisely the reverse? We suspect the latter in this instance. The flier 'promoting' this event (in Word document format) came to us from a source well distanced from the convention's Kent location which suggests that it is being widely 'touted' throughout the region (if not nationally). When we passed the information on to our various contacts in East Kent they seemed entirely ignorant of the forthcoming 'gig' (which would suggest that East Kent Intergroup too is none the wiser). But if you look carefully at the small print at the bottom of the flier there is that soooo telling statement:

“This is not an official AA Conference Approved Event”

Now if you refer to Guideline No. 15 “Conventions” (Revised April 2002) in the handbook for 2010 you will find the following:

“ORGANISATION

The decision to hold a convention ought to be made by the group conscience of the appropriate Intergroup or Region (the Sponsoring Body).

A committee should be elected for the purpose of planning, organising and running the event. The convention committee should have overall responsibility and be accountable to the Sponsoring Body for financial and all other matters. They should bear in mind the need for conventions to be self-supporting.”

ie. this is effectively NOT an AA convention. Moreover its financing is quite unclear. There is no mention on the flier of a registration fee or “voluntary contributions” although there are references to accommodation costs, and an “optional” dinner dance at £20.00 per head. Ah well they do say “misery is optional” so we'll be giving that a miss! Well actually we'll be giving the whole thing a miss. If we want to go to an AA convention then we'll go to an actual AA convention and not some fraudulent copy.

Cheers

The Fellas (Friends of Alcoholics Anonymous)