I don't know that AA or recovery people in general say that all drinking is negative for everybody. It is just negative for an alcoholic because inevitably it leads us back to the place of destructive behavior that got us to the point where we felt we needed to quit in the first place. You seem to be struggling with whether you are one or not and that does not make you unique. Personally, I think you can be a binge drinker and not an alcoholic. I have many friends who went from drinking heavy in college to become light social drinkers now. I have others, including myself, who couldn't easily stop drinking heavily even once it became socially unacceptable to do so. I get the sense you are in the right place. Remember alcoholism is progressive, which means just because you can quit now without cravings doesn't mean that years from now you would be able to do the same. My favorite definition of alcoholism is the "allergy" the big book talks about--that once we have a little alcohol we lose the control to stop drinking. "The man takes a drink. The drink takes a drink. The drink takes the man." This sounds like what you were describing. Good luck on your journey.