Behind the Walls, Beyond the PageBehind the Walls, Beyond the Page
Alcoholics Alive!
Shank and Wayne review AA Corrections agenda items, including identity-focused and medication-related pamphlets, while questioning whether more paperwork really helps alcoholics. Their stories and humour keep the focus on the basic text, the steps, and direct service to anyone who wants to get sober.
56:03•2 Apr 2026
Behind the Walls, Beyond the Page: AA Corrections, Pamphlets and Plain-Speaking Sobriety
Episode Overview
- AA’s primary purpose is helping alcoholics through the book Alcoholics Anonymous and the 12 steps, rather than relying on ever more specialised pamphlets.
- Corrections work is valuable but no more special than any other AA service; effective help comes from direct experience, not bulky workbooks.
- Focusing on identity categories can distract from the central issue of alcoholism, as the same spiritual solution is offered to everyone.
- Pamphlets on topics like medications risk drifting into medical advice that AA’s basic text has already addressed in a simple, clear way.
- Home groups and business meetings are for serving others and carrying the message, not for “staying sober” through meeting attendance alone.
“Unless you have screwed a moose on the moon, you are not as unique as you think you are!”
What can we learn from those who have battled addiction? Alcoholics Alive! brings together Shank and Wayne, two recovered members of Alcoholics Anonymous, for a fast-paced mix of service talk, AA history, and sharp humour that’s aimed squarely at people serious about recovery and AA as a way of life.
This time they walk through the Corrections agenda items for the 76th General Service Conference, asking hard questions about how much AA really needs more pamphlets and committees versus simple one-on-one work with alcoholics. From the corrections kit and workbook to proposed changes to the “AA Member – Medications and Other Drugs” pamphlet, they keep coming back to the same point: “We’re helping Alcoholics.
We recommend reading the book Alcoholics Anonymous, taking the steps out of the book Alcoholics Anonymous, and being free.” A big chunk of the chat focuses on the long-discussed pamphlet for the transgender alcoholic. The hosts read out background notes about working groups, outreach trackers, and identity themes, then contrast all that structure with their own experience of just helping anyone who wants to get sober, regardless of labels.
They share stories of sponsoring people with different backgrounds and identities, stressing that addressing alcoholism through the steps comes first. Corrections work inside prisons also gets attention, with practical comments on what actually helps behind the walls versus what looks good on paper.
And in their “Meeting Shrapnel” segment, they unpack sayings like “Treat ’em and street ’em”, “Unless you have screwed a moose on the moon, you are not as unique as you think you are!”, and “I don’t know about you but I’m here to stay sober”, scrapping the ones that miss AA’s real purpose of helping others.
If you care about AA service, sponsorship, and cutting through jargon to get back to basics, this one might get you thinking about how you show up in your own recovery.
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