GROUP AUTONOMY

Some may think that we have carried the principle of group
autonomy to extremes. For example, in its original "long
form," Tradition Four declares: "Any two or three gathered
together for sobriety may call themselves an A.A. group,
provided that as a group they have no other affiliation. "
. . But this ultra-liberty is not so risky as it looks. 

A.A. COMES OF AGE PP 104-05


As an active alcoholic, I abused every liberty that life
afforded. How could A.A. expect me to respect the "ultraliberty"
bestowed by Tradition Four? Learning respect has become
a lifetime job.
A.A. has made me fully accept the necessity of discipline
and that, if I do not assert it from within, then I will pay for
it. This applies to groups too. Tradition Four points me in a
spiritual direction, in spite of my alcoholic inclinations.