They Assumed

Two members assumed A.A. was angry on their behalf, and the newspapers told the country it was. Bill W. told it (A.A. pamphlet P-17, p. 55): "A member, whose name and professional attainments are known on three continents, got hold of a letter which she thought damaged her professional reputation. She felt something should be done about this and so did her lawyer, also an A.A. They assumed that both the public and A.A. would be rightfully angry if the facts were known." They assumed. Nobody asked a group. "Forthwith, several newspapers headlined how Alcoholics Anonymous was rooting for one of its lady members — name in full, of course — to win her suit for libel." Forthwith means right away; a suit for libel is a court case over something false printed about you. A radio commentator then told the same thing to an audience Bill put at twelve million. A.A. was now one side of a lawsuit it had never heard of, and a drinker who knew the other party learned that A.A. was against him. The long form says the groups "oppose no one" (Big Book, p. 565). Today it is the statement that says what people in recovery want, written by someone nobody chose. Test it tonight: when you hear what A.A. members feel about something outside, ask who asked them.