AA is a cult more or less. It was founded by low-bottom drunks for low-bottom drunks, primarily. If you read the first 164 pages of the AA book (the actual program) you would find out that Bill Wilson and Dr.Bob believed that the alcoholic drinks more or less for the effect. "Bad" character is only addressed as a means of staying happily sober. The idea is that alcoholics are overly sensitive people and cannot afford to be as selfish and dishonest AND stay happily sober. I am by no means an AA success story, but then AA admits that the true alcoholic is more or less hopeless until a spiritual awakening occurs. I don't like it, but I've tried everything else.