Tradition 4 and the Right to Be Wrong – Web S.

About This Speaker Tape

11th International AA Convention - 2000

A collection of service-minded alcoholics grapple with the digital frontier debating how to translate the 'table in the back of the room' to the internet without compromising anonymity. Tom J. from GSO explains the cautious evolution of the official website while Brooke H. warns against the 'trap' of creating outdated meeting lists that no one knows how to update. The conversation shifts from the technicalities of IP addresses and unregistered domains to the gritty reality of scrubbing full names from reports at midnight. They weigh the risk of 'bootlegging' literature against the need for accessibility ultimately concluding that while 14-year-olds can build sites the fellowship must ensure these tools serve the primary purpose of connecting a suffering alcoholic to another alcoholic without turning the process into a bureaucratic nightmare of four-inch binders and rigid guidelines.

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:00 Burke opens the session with the AA preamble and anonymity statement.
• 4:15 Tom J. discusses the cautious, 'dull' beginnings of the GSO website.
• 12:30 Discussion on copyright infringement and the 'bootlegging' of the Daily Reflections.
• 18:45 Brooke H. introduces the concept of the website as an extension of the 'table in the back of the room'.
• 26:10 Laughter: Brooke H. shares the horror story of the outdated Napa Valley website.
• 34:20 Brooke H. describes the struggle of scrubbing last names from reports at midnight.
• 45:10 David K. warns about the risks of 'zinging off' email replies to professionals without group conscience.
• 55:30 Richard discusses the need for low-resolution versions of sites for those with vision problems or old computers.
• 1:05:15 George talks about the lifeline that cyberspace meetings provide for invalids and those in remote areas.
• 1:15:40 Jim from Dallas describes the 'cry for help' emails he forwards to 12-step volunteers.
• 1:25:10 Tom E. compares the public face of AA to Disneyland, hiding the 'underground' bureaucracy.