Rating: 
Summary: Death to Sacred Cows: AA, War on Drugs, Blaming Your Genes
Review: Stanton Peele has a controversial view of addictions, be it to substances or behaviors. The question he asks of those who believe that the drug itself hooks people is, "Even if the substance is incredibly euphoric or blocks pain, what makes the person favor that experience over other rewarding experiences?" He strongly disputes that addiction is biological disease and that the 12 Steps are the only treatment - indeed they may be worse than no treatment at all. I've always disputed that things like sex, food, and shopping could be addictions, without denying that people can clearly go overboard with such things to ignore inner turmoil or avoid responsibilities they can't cope with, or because they lack relationship skills. Peele's view is that this characterizes *all* addiction, and treatment should involve learning coping, communication and interpersonal skills. The biggest controversy surrounding Peele, however, is his assertion that most people gain life skills naturally as they mature -- when people get jobs or find something they care for and have better things to do then get smashed -- making clinical treatment unnecessary for addictions in young people. He sites sociological studies that show that most drug users "mature out" of drug use, even if the drug use involved drug binges or other obvious addictive behavior. Still think that some drugs are just more "addictive" than others? Is it the drug or the person taking them? What makes a person take a hard-hitting drug to begin with? I had never really thought before what it meant that crack was more "addictive" than cocaine. As crack is mostly consumed in poor, degraded environments leading most into dead-end lives, what motivation - what opportunity - does one have to put down the pipe get a life? This book makes a strong case for looking at environment, sociological and psychological factors in addiction, not brain chemistry. This book also opened my eyes to what happens to people who don't go through therapy or drug treatment. I only looked at the statistics that evaluated people *in* treatment, not those who never went! When you consider how most therapy, especially the 12-steps do not address life skills and in fact hinder them with their rhetoric of powerlessness and doomed childhood, its not really a surprise that untreated people have the same or better outcome as people in treatment.
Rating: 
Summary: Disturbing
Review: Stanton Peele has made a career out of a single issue: a serious ax to grind with the "alcoholism is a disease and only AA and its related 12 Step program will put the disease into remission" school of thought. Certainly those who believe AA and its canards are unassailable will cling to this belief. And those for whom AA was NOT a viable solution will pronounce Dr. Peele a genius and declare his work a revolutionary advance in the treatment and understanding of addiction. But what if the answer is in between these two poles of thought? I certainly had MAJOR reservations before I opened this book. Any work that claims to be THE definitive answer to an enormously complex problem should be approached with caution. Peele raises some critically important issues surrounding current thought on addiction. Foremost is the "disease" model itself. As Peele indicates, this allows people to abdicate personal responsibility for their addiction, a claim Peele says that is the backbone of AA--and the problems with the AA approach to addiction. But a careful reading of "Alcoholics Anonymous" and related literature published under the auspices of AA is more complicated than Peele acknowledges. It is not simply a matter of learned helplessness. On the contrary, AA literature stresses that the individual must take personal responsibility for their actions: no one forced an alcoholic to drink. It is not enough to "turn one's life over to a higher power" and wait for the miracle to happen. That is a simplistic reading of the AA program--one critics of the program seem to make again and again. On the contrary, the addict must take a proactive approach to recovery. Praying and meditating are all very helpful, yes, but only a small part of the total recovery process. And Peele does not, I believe, properly acknowledge that. Perhaps a more reasonable approach to the problem of alcoholism is to say that whether or not it is a chronic, lifelong "disease," it certainly acts like one. And then to discuss the ramifications of that. Simply dismissing it wholesale as Peele does again and again does no one any service. Peele's answer to this can be similarly reduced to the "pull up those socks and get a move on" approach to recovery. For example, certainly environment plays a factor in addiction, but Peele gives it too much weight. If environment were so all-determining a factor, why does addiction remain a problem at *all* socio-economic levels and environments? I agree that addictive behavior is the symptom of a life out of control. But then again, so does AA. But to state that crack is considered more addictive than powder cocaine because typical crack users live in poor environments with little chance of bettering their lives is a questionable conclusion. Furthermore, to state that most people who become addicted grow out it (oh it's just a stage), is as disturbing to me as the disease model is to Peele. Shall I use and use and use until, by some magical process of maturity, I don't have the desire anymore? According to Peele, I would have a better chance of recovery doing that than if I followed a 12-Step Program. Certainly there is much to criticize with the current AA and disease-approaches to addiction. And lumping in other behaviors like shopping and sex trivializes the problem. AA's insistence on it being the only effective approach to addiction is equally questionable. But AA does one thing Peele does not: it allows the individual to take what is useful *and to leave the rest behind.* As I stated earlier, I think the answer will eventually be found in between these two poles of thought. Peele's approach, while raising some issues that must be reconsidered, is not THE answer; it is just one answer, and a disturbing one at that.
Rating: 
Summary: Strong words to inspire and empower the reader:
Review: This book is for people who are serious about making changes in their lives. The author doesn't tread lightly;
instead while he acknowledges that many factors affect
our lives, only we have the ability to change for the
better; and that we can do this in spite of all obstacles
WHEN WE ARE READY. Whether you are heavily into drug
(or computer!) use, addicted to nicotine, or are just an
'average joe' with no obvious problems, I believe this book can change your life for the better.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Understanding and Analysis of Addiction
Review: This book trounces the idea that addiction is a biologically determined disease that requires 12 step treatment. Even herion addicts say that cigarrettes are the most addictive substance -- and most people quit smoking on their own. Most people who use cocaine (and other drugs) do not use it regularly, those who use it regularly do not become addicted and those who become addicted recover on their own. Sound outrageous? Citing several thorough sociological studies, this statement becomes more and more believable as you read this book. I used to think that behavioral compulsions, like addictions to sex and food, were different from substance abuse. Surely shooting heroin involves a chemical dependency, whereas overeating or spending all your money on porn and peep shows is a sign of psychological escape, right? Some say that all such behaviors are biological, but that sounded preposterous to me. This book drove home the idea that ALL addiction, be it abusing credit cards or smoking crack cocaine, is a symptom of a life out of control, not the cause. The book clearly illustrates how people become addicted when their lives lack meaning and hope, during painful transitions, and when they don't have the life skills or coping skills to ride out the rough edges of life. Why is smoking crack considered more addictive than sniffing powder? People who smoke crack are generally people who live in the desperation of the inner cities, so they have less *motivation* to overcome their addiction, not a stronger drug. Any serious student of sociology or psychology should read this book
Rating:
Summary: A dose of common sense is a cure for recoveryism
Review: This book was very helpful to me years ago when I was dealing with my own drinking and drug problems. It seemed that the cure (AA) was worse than the disease, from my standpoint. The cultishness, the massive cigarette smoking, not to mention the horrid coffee... Did I really need this? I had given up cigarettes on my own. Couldn't I lick this thing, too? With the help of a gifted counselor, and a good physician, I cleaned myself up, and have been clean now for over 6 years. Not that that makes me an expert or anything. But I do wholeheartedly recommend this book. Don't trade one addiction for another, folks.
Rating:
Summary: There is life after AA!!!
Review: This is NOT a book for people who are perfectly happy in AA; there are plenty of books out there for you. This book is GREAT, however, for those of us who have ended up feeling as though AA has outlived it's usefulness, or those who wonder if they ever really belonged in "the Program" at all. I spent nearly five years in AA, and that it saved my life at the time I joined I cannot deny. Eventually, I had to leave--I simply couldn't stand it any more. I began to wonder: was I truly diseased,or had I just been an immature, insecure person who drank to drown a mountain of fear? I began looking for alternatives, and found this book. I've been drinking again for five years, with no dire consequences; nobody would guess I ever needed AA! I can't recommend this book enough. There are NO miracles here, NO faith-healing, NO catchy little phrases--just lots of good, rational common sense for those who want to move on--whether you choose to drink again or not.
Rating:
Summary: A Kindred Spirit
Review: When one is searching for answers, whether for others or for self, a paradym begins to develop. Many times, this new way of thinking does not mirror that in normal acceptance. So it is with abuse/dependencies. One can read, and participate, in 12 Step philosophies, but there is always something seen or felt as 'lacking'. Rather than 'lacking', perhaps a better word (or companion word) would be 'longing'. A longing for something better. A longing that your new way of thinking about life, your paradym, is not ill-advised or unsound, much less 'psychotic'. 'Is there not another person on earth who believes the way you do?' I found a positive answer in Dr. Peele's book. And I must say, I found much, much more than I had envisioned thus far. Now I'm at a point in my life when I believe it is possible for current treatment modalities, based solely or largely on 12 Step, to be harmful. Belief in a system that inforces powerlessness is dangerous, if not deadly. Current drug/alcohol treatment must be changed and changed quickly.
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