Slogan Roundup vol. 2 - Jails, Institutions and Death

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Jails, institutions, and death. Anyone in AA or NA will hear this slogan rattled off at nearly every meeting. The three words themselves don't seem to be much of a slogan, but like most slogans, they stand for much more than their literal meaning.

We know that in most stories in the Big Book, there is some element of institutionalization. Whether that was getting locked up for a spell, going to rehab or detox, or hitting up a psych-ward for as long as your insurance will cover it - the addict usually landed in an institution. Truthfully, I have no idea if this is accurate at all. I know in my own tale, I enjoyed several institutionalizations, and not all of them were mandatory or imposed by others.

For those who are keeping score, although NA literature is rife with references to this slogan, as are the meetings, the phrase "Jails, Institutions and Death" does not appear in the Big Book itself, but in the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions (commonly called the 12&12). This helpful wikist shares:

It's in the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions book (the one dictated to Bill Wilson by the manifested spirit of the 16th century monk Boniface ~ or so he claimed). 
It's is in the chapter describing Tradition 9 and reads as follows: 

"Each AA member is to follow the 12 steps to the best of their ability or face jails, institutions or death. Therefore, we are disciplined by the spiritual principals of the steps and a higher power of our own understanding. Just as every AA member takes the steps to the best of their ability, each AA group as a whole must follow the traditions…"

The glaring flaw with this slogan is that it is entirely fear-based. Hang those swords of Damocles just above one's neck, and you ensure that they will lie perfectly still. But that's hardly any way to be 'restored to sanity' - in fact it sounds almost suicidal. Jails, institutions and death are very real consequences, but they are not unavoidable, nor are they inevitable. Internalizing this slogan can be dangerous as well, as if and when one might happen to lapse from total abstinence, this slogan could quickly become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Jails, Institutions, and Death

I give this slogan a rating of M - misleading. The ends of sobriety (or maybe allegiance to AA - an institution all itself) do NOT justify the means of fear, and it may lead you to believe that you are no better than the worst of yours. I had a mentor in the program many years ago who insisted that at any moment we were being motivated by a zero-sum mix of love and fear. Promoting one diminishes the other. "You either come from the Fear side of the street, or the Love side of the street." 

Fuck being institutionalized. But also, seriously fuck fear and fuck this misleading slogan.

Slogan Roundup vol. 1 - This too shall pass

Gam zeh ya'avor - This too shall pass

Welcome reader to our first edition of the Slogan Roundup. Slogans are an important part of every ingroup. They reinforce modes of thought. They distill world views. They also identify members of the group to each other. Words that are quite simple and ordinary, when placed together and repeated with deeply implied significance instantly communicate a world of meaning to the informed listener. They hold great power, and they are an important tool for communal support and coherence.

I begin with a slogan I first encountered in the rooms of Alcoholics Anonymous: this too shall pass. This too shall pass. This, and this, and also this. What I loved about this slogan is its evenhandedness. It struck me as profoundly accurate, comforting, and even empowering. It means that not only will whatever difficulty that now blocks you up will pass, but that all difficulties will, eventually pass. Implicit in this is the fleeting nature of relief as well. Good times, like the bad, will eventually pass. Life is good, and life is bad.

Is it Jewish? Our slogan, as the picture indicates, has at the very least been translated into hebrew: Gam zeh ya'avor. We see that while the saying perhaps has Turkish or Persian origins, that stories in Jewish folklore tie the saying to King Solomon. Some sources say that beyond having Jewish roots, GZ"Y belies a deeply Jewish perspective on the universe. Sunrise, sunset. It might be feared that this attitude would incite a passive, defeatist way of operating. But to the contrary, it is an accurate assessment of the world around us, without which we live in a clouded fantasy of best guesses and wishful thinking. We trust that whatever we are up against, it is there to benefit us. If you believe in Gd, you would go the step further and say that it also serves a role in the grand drama of cosmic existence. If you aren't a believer, or are vaguely agnostic, there is a wonderfully practical benefit to accepting the abiding nature of change.

This slogan offers solace in times of pain, and bids prudence when times are fat. It accepts that anything worth building is also worth maintaining - be that something physical, a relationship, sobriety, or your spiritual fitness.

I'll share one personal story dealing with this slogan: There have been a handful, perhaps more, maybe less, of significant dreams in my life. Literally dreams, not my aspirations, but those fictitious images that dance before your consciousness in those dim hours of semi-reality while our eyes move rapidly.

I had this one while I was in high school - boarding school. I think it was some time during my senior year. I was dreaming. sitting in the back seat of a sedan. I think I was traveling down a street in my hometown. It could have been somewhere else though. All I know is I was more visually and sensorially struck by the sunlight passing through the elm and oak trees. I could see the light flash between shade and direct contact. I could almost pick out the individual leave-shapes that had instantaneously blocked the suns rays before they burst forth in a white bliss that enveloped all my visual range. I knew there were drivers of this car. I assumed it was my parents, but as an adult I remember no direct evidence of this fact. I remember only a sense that whomever drove knew exactly the route and manors to get us wherever it was we were headed. I know now it was simply that the destination did not matter.

All of these observations took but an instant. And almost as soon as these realities congealed in my consciousness, I began to sense some panic. It was a panic that could find no solace in what I had heretofore experienced in the dream. My mind raced with all sorts of ill-outcomes. "How could we be simply driving down the street when people were starving?!" came one thought. "But there's so much to do, I will never finish it all!!" came another.

But then, almost as instantaneously as these moments of panic arrived, a comforting wash came over my whole being. I knew instantly that everything would be ok. I knew that this, whatever it was, would pass. That its successor, whatever it was, would pass as well. I knew that through all those passages, that someone, this light, these leaves, the car's driver, this simple warm feeling of faith, would protect me, no matter what would come my way. I knew absolutely that I would be fine, as each scenario and instance passed, safely behind me in my experience.

This dream stayed with me. The sense of comfort and faith has abided for years. I know very little about how Gd operates, but I know there is biblical precedence for dream communiqués - and I am happy to assume that the Almighty reached me in a similar way this one time (it wouldn't be the only one, but more on that in another post...)

This too shall pass. Gam zeh ya'avor. גם זה יעבור

I give this slogan a solid rating of T - truth. This too shall pass is pure T, to be followed, repeated, shared and pursued. It's the "T.'

Grading Slogans - Slogan Roundup Administrativa

Not every slogan is as positive and powerful as another. I think it would actually be a service to rate the effectiveness and morality of any slogan coming our way here at Prodigal Punim. For the purposes of Slogan Roundups, we will make recommendations according to the following scale:

T - truth - follow it, repeat it, share it, pursue it; it's the T.
H - helpful - it might be conceived in nonsense, but it has practical value, given the right interpretation.
N - neutral - believe it, don't - what do we care. Like music taste, this is a matter of style and we endorse it insofar as it makes us cook.
M - misleading - perhaps good intentions clearly pervade a bad suggestion, or maybe there is good to be learned from the wild-goose-chase necessitated by implementing some slogan or idea
C - only a Cretin would believe such a thing - some slogan exists only to keep people in line. They aren’t there for you, they’re there for everyone else. If and when we find these, we hope to keep you aware. Steer clear of any slogan ranking a C.