I wouldn't call myself a santaist. But, I suppose he's likeable.
A lot of Santaists do meet fairly often, as seen here:
I'm not sure how many are in recovery.
There is a theory that he is supposed to be shaman because of the red and white clothes. And shaman's supposedly would drink reindeer urine after the reindeer ate mushrooms to have a psychoactive effect. That was a theory explaining the flying reindeer.
The cacophony society was the first I remember to organize a gathering.