Why is AA so fond of espousing success rates, but can't qoute a single number?

Question

I was also wondering why the big book doesn't have one single, verifiable reference in it. It's all anecdotal, and chock full of OPINIONS. You know the opinions to a--holes ratio on this planet??? 1:1!

Answer 1

Because the second "A" in "AA" stands for "Anonymous"!
It's THE ONE rule of AA that your anonymity remain intact!
That's why you always read or hear stories from Bill W. or John F.
NO LAST NAMES!
Think about it....how can you really get an accurate census without recording each members name in full,much less a social security number or drivers license info?There must be thousands of Bill W's and John F's out there! And I'm sure that a good number of them attend the meetings.
Read an AA pamphlet.It makes mention of avoiding most kinds of media exposure.Their sole purpose is to be there for each other.As a group they're not interested in doing anything other than furthering the cause of sobriety for the members.