No offense, but by referring to AA and it's members as a "cult," "children," and "some idiot," it sounds like you are focusing on the inventory of others, rather than yourself. How can you be so negative about AA when you haven't even had the experience of having a sponsor or working the steps? AA is not about social interaction-- it's about people helping each other to stay sober. Friendships within AA are commonly found, but they are a bonus. You are very negative about AA for someone who hasn't even taken part in the very core of the program-- working the steps in order to practice the spiritual principles, and working with a sponsor in order to COMPLETELY "clean house" in the presence of another. Maybe you should try the steps. It's not like it's gonna kill you. If you hate it so much, they will refund your misery. I thought it was a cult, too... but I kept going back, and I love it. I am very committed to my recovery and practicing principles in all my affairs. When I talk with people who have relapsed, they say that they stopped going to meetings and stopped talking to their sponsor. Others do not relapse, but they are unhappy. I work with some people in AA who have 30+ years clean. They still go to meetings on a daily basis. I do not intend to ever stop going to meetings. Sobriety is fragile-- I don't intend on playing around with anything that could cause it to shatter. I want to protect it in every way possible, and I'm not going to fool around with complacency or arrogance. I don't think AA is another tool in the chest-- it provides us WITH tools-- tools that we don't have access to without working in AA.