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[RufusACanal]

Origin of AA coins, chips, tokens or medallions?

Question: Where did the chips system originate and why were those specific time periods chosen as times for awarding a chip?


Answer: Sometimes referred to as coins, medallions or tokens, the practice of giving out a chip of some kind to mark a period of sobriety actually predates A.A.

Well before A.A. began, organizations such as temperance societies, gave out medallions or coins to people who pledged to quit drinking or for marking periods of sobriety. This common custom was taken up by individual A.A. groups as each saw fit. Eventually private companies began to make "A.A." chips and began selling them to groups.

There is no codified system for giving out chips in A.A. What might be given out, how it is done and for what lengths of sobriety varies from place to place and even group to group. The periods of sobriety denoted by the chips are determined by their manufacturer. In most cases the medallions given out in A.A. are made by private companies who have no affiliation with A.A.

The term "chip" is often used because in many places it was or is common to use inexpensive colored poker chips to mark periods of sobriety.

Circle & Triangle - Trademark, Origin & Meaning.



Question: Why did A.A stop using the circle and triangle symbol?

Did we lose the trademark on it?

What was its origin and meaning?


Answer: What happened was that after many years of using the symbol and claiming it as a trademark, A.A. World Service tried to stop non-A.A. companies from using it on things link anniversary chips.

In this process they learned that the symbol had been in wide spread use, even in temperance societies, well before A.A. existed. Because of that AA never had a legitimate claim to ownership of the symbol and stopped using it.

From the start of the symbols use in A.A. it was recognized as dating back hundreds of years. Page 139 of A.A. Comes of Age describes its start, meaning and history this way:
Above us, at the International Convention at St. Louis in 1955, floated a banner on which was inscribed the then new symbol for A.A., a circle enclosing a triangle. The circle stands for the whole world of A.A., and the triangle stands for A.A.'s Three Legacies: Recovery, Unity and Service
It is perhaps no accident that priests and seers of antiquity regarded this symbol as a means of warding off spirits of evil.


Origin of the term "pigeon?"



Question: I am familiar with the the terms prospect and protégé but do you know where the term pigeon (not sponsee) comes from?


Answer: As noted in Dr. Bob and the Good Oldtimers, p.146, Dr. Bob was known to use quite a collection of slang terms in his everyday vocabulary. According to early accounts Bob was intrigued by the various slang terms used for drunks and being drunk.

The most famous list of synonyms for "drunk" was a collection of 200 terms compiled by Benjamin Franklin. Among the synonyms is found "pigeon-eyed." Perhaps Bob thought in order to "pigeon-eyed" one must be a "pigeon", but that is a bit speculative.

Wherever he picked it up from, the term seems to have started with Dr. Bob's creative use of language and caught on as a term used for "a newcomer to A.A." and was in use by 1940. In current A.A. usage "pigeon" typically refers to sponsees. The term is somewhat limited to the eastern USA and used sporadically in other places. Though more modern non-A.A. slang typically uses "pigeon" as a synonym for mark, easy target, dupe, chump, sap, sitting duck, and sucker it clearly seems that was not the original intended connotation as that wouldn't be in line with Dr. Bob's well known good character. The use of "pigeon" was never intended to be any more derogatory than calling a newcomer "a drunk."


Who wrote the Big Book?

Question: Who wrote the Big Book?


Answer: While AA co-founder Bill W. is often credited with writing The Big Book in a talk Bill gave in 1954 he describes his role as more like that of an editor. In part he said
So, the preparation started and some more chapters were done and we went to A.A. meetings in New York with these chapters in the rough. It wasn't like chicken-in-the-rough; the boys didn't eat those chapters up at all. I suddenly discovered that I was in this terrific whirlpool of arguments. I was just the umpire - I finally had to stipulate. "Well boys, over here you got the Holly Rollers who say we need all the good old-fashioned stuff in the book, and over here you tell me we've got to have a psychological book, and that never cured anybody, and they didn't do very much with us in the missions, so I guess you will have to leave me just to be the umpire. I'll scribble out some roughs here and show them to you and let's get the comments in." So we fought, bled and died our way through one chapter after another. We sent them out to Akron and they were peddled around and there were terrific hassles about what should go in this book and what should not. Meanwhile, we set drunks up to write their stories or we had newspaper people to write the stories for them to go in the back of the book. We had an idea that we'd have a text and all and then we'd have stories all about the drunks who were staying sober.

[bugsworth]

Interesting read Rufus! Thanks.

That "pigeon" thing still irks me...lol...guess I'll have to deal with it.

The triangle symbol is used by many organizations...for example I am a martial artist and my dojo uses it on our uniforms placed over our hearts. It represents mind, body and spirit...it was nice to see it when I entered the rooms.

Again, nice read.

[nandm]

Thank you for the interesting post. I was familiar with the coins, author and symbol but not to the depth you posted. The pigeon term was interesting. I had always wondered where that came from.

[mike_mass]

My favorite Dr. Bob slang is in referring to dollar bills as "frog skins". My kids always got a kick out of that.

[bugsworth]

Why did he refer to them as frog skins? Other than the obvious, that they have the same color?

[mike_mass]

Originally Posted by bugsworth

Why did he refer to them as frog skins? Other than the obvious, that they have the same color?

That's my guess too.

[savoy]

Originally Posted by RufusACanal

[B]Answer: While AA co-founder Bill W. is often credited with writing The Big Book in a talk Bill gave in 1954 he describes his role as more like that of an editor. .

I think his term was "referee",
good post though.

Now, do you know the origin of the 90 in 90 ?

Its an interesting story with a warning to be heeded.
As related by chief Blackhawk, an Indian ,who sat on Dr Bobs step on Ardmore and told the story to my sponsors sponsor.

Clarence S. got the sallies involved (Salvation Army) in Cleveland.
They agreed to give the alkies a bed for 90 days but only if they attended daily AA meetings.
What they discovered was the message became watered down or innefective because the alkies were being compelled to attend.

So Clarence disassociated from the sallies and thats why its in the preamble, "A.A. is not allied with any sect, denomination, politics, organization or institution".

But they were and lesson learned !

90 in 90 is alright if done as free choice, but enforced attendance isn't in the spirit of AA, it might rub off but its still not AA until a free choice is made.

[mike_mass]

Originally Posted by savoy

90 in 90 is alright if done as free choice, but enforced attendance isn't in the spirit of AA, it might rub off but its still not AA until a free choice is made.

By golly, I completely agree with you on this one. Attendance needs to be an act of the free will, IMHO.

[yogurt75]

That story attributed to Clarence is nowhere near the truth. Clarence DID help found the first AA meeting held at the Salvation Army in Cleveland but that 90 day thing is just bull. Just another urban legend with no basis in fact