Yeah, we had a thread about this just a couple of days ago. To me, it's just semantics so far as the alcoholic goes. If thinking of it as a disease helps them in their recovery, then great. But, when it comes to the friends and family standpoint, it's all about the behavior and I've seen alcohol blamed for rotten behavior, when in reality, the person is just a natural jerk.
Like the saying goes, you sober up a drunk thief, and you're still stuck with a thief.