Originally Posted by
sthlm.bill
Dude, context is everything and you just took what I stated out of context. My point: This thread began in a self-rightous tone. I did not imply that people who don't drink are self-rightous because think they're better blah, blah, blah.. I have nothing but respect for those that are on the wagon, working through 12-step programs, or simply gain no joy out of the process. Frankly, I have nothing but respect for anyone who decides that abstaining from alcohol is what's best for them - no biggie. BUT this thread began along the lines of "I feel so much better, ride so much faster, spend so much so less, have a more meaningful life, drinking is evil, etc." - That's the self-rightous part that kinda rubbed me the wrong way.
See, that is exactly my point though! Expressions like that are a public revelation of PERSONAL experiences with quitting. In there is no comparative language relating the experience to that of anyone else. Without that necessary comparison to others there is no "self-righteous" tone. Yet time and time again people hear these words from people who quit and automatically interpret it as "self-righteous." Just because that is
their story doesn't mean it is
yours or that they think it
should be yours.
See the distinction? I know most people here probably respect folks who
need to quit. My concern is more with the all too common tendency of drinkers to automatically judge new "quit stories of success" as self-righteous even when they are not. Especially true when the story teller is not known to have quit due to a "problem..."