Originally Posted by
PalmerSage 
I think the AA dogma can be a bit much sometimes. I'm definitely not a fan of publicly shaming people for what they posted in the past. Dee and Anna, thank you so much for your vigilance, it is so sincerely appreciated.
The quoting past threads has always turned me off, and there's a few here that seem to frequently use this as a form of "tough love" (not sure what else to call it because I'd like to assume it's being done with the best intentions) or respond with what I perceive to be a self-righteous tone. I've sometimes seen posters respond positively to this, but I can also understand why others would feel disheartened.
From my perspective...I'm embarrassed about my addiction. And, I know all my faults...every. single. one...believe me. I know exactly the amount of time that has gone by since I've been a member here, and don't want to feel even crappier that I still "haven't gotten it". I think that for many alcoholics, the issue of self-esteem plays a role. To me, bringing up the past and reminding me again of my mistakes/history is counter-productive.
Someone had posted before about banning the repeat offenders and I honestly thought about this for a while. And my feelings are that unless someone is completely out of line, that wouldn't be fair. So many of the views expressed here so far resonated with me and what I've been feeling when I've seen some responses to posts the last few months, but perhaps these "tough love" approaches help some people. Maybe they're not what I want to hear, or need, but maybe it's what someone else does?