I wrote this letter to a member of MIP tonight, and want everyone to clearly understand my position and that it is not up for negoiation, nor will I allow it to be compromised.  I will not identify who it was sent to.
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 Hi (Omitted),

Just been very busy lately.  Been stopping in the room nightly for a while now, usually late at night just to keep a thumb on its heart beat.

I must admit, I am a bit concerned about some of the things I am hearing from a variety of members, and a few things I have read on the message board.

I'm going to put a few of them on the table with you, because they relate to you.

First, should my nickname and thus my room registration and foundership ever expire because of my absince from the room, there will not be a room take over by any one. 

At any time this should be attempted, the room entrance will be removed from the MIP website, which is how 95% of new people find us, and it will not be put back on the site until the person who has re-registered it in their nick, turns foundership/ownership back over to me. 

If, for any reason there is a refusal to turn it back over to me, the Al-Anon groups home page, message board and chat room will be permanently removed from the MIP web site.  I'm not going to entertain any ones drama, or play any games with the rooms on my website.  In short, whoever may try such a thing will be taking over a room that will no longer provide quick, user friendly access to people searching the internet for Al-Anon chat rooms.  In short, this room would be unavailable to the majority of its current users, and all new users, and shortly thereafter, the person trying to do a take over, will have taken over a relately empty room, that is no longer available to any one via a link related to MIP. 

Any one want to send a complaint about this to WSO, are welcome to but again, they do risk my simply taking the room and everything else related to Al-Anon off MIP web site, I won't spend any amount of time debating it, explaining or justifying my decision to do so.  Al-Anon members have the priveledge of using the material,(home page, message board, ect.) space (chatroom) and time (my work on both the site and the search engines that result in people easily finding us) that MIP provides, not a right to it, not any more than we have a right to the rooms provided to us where we meet f2f. 
Any attempt by any one to do something as foolish as suggest to others or impliment a take over will result simply in the door to Al-Anon on this site being closed, locked and the privledge removed.

I say this directly to you because three members have indicated that it has been talked about, or insinuated to them by you.

Secondly, I don't personally care if a member gets their religious beliefs from Joesph Smith, Jesus Christ, Mohammad, Budda, or a spring chicken revealed their message of faith to them.  I do care greatly about the men in my recovery homes.  They all celebrate Christmas based on their own religious upbringings, or even adulthood alignment, so when I ask, (not require) that they be sent christmas cards, its because they align themselves with the holiday. 

Not at any time have I asked "Al-Anon members" or any 12 step group of members on the site to particate in sending them Christmas cards.  Nor do I request your groups aliment or affliation be mentioned on the card, but that it is simply signed.."Another Miracle In Progress".  If I had one resident or a whole house that was aligned with another religion, I would do exactly the same thing in their behalf; ask those willing and more specifically those in aliment with their beliefs to send them a card in accordance with the holiday(s) they celebrate.  Not one person has ever been condemned or judged for not participating in this, for whatever reason they choose not to.  For you or anyone else to take such a kind gester, and try to turn it into something ugly and unacceptable and attempting to utilize the traditions to do so truly disturbs me.  MIP (which is owned and operated by Rose and myself) will continue to do what we have done for years in this regard, and we do not need or do we ask for your approval.

In closing, if you are so sure that what we are doing here is so wrong, unacceptable or offensive to your senses, we do welcome you to go do the work we have done with love, start your own version of the "right way" of doing this, else where.

The traditions are for the benefit of the group, you nor anyone else was nominated to be the traditions police for Miracles In Progress.  We are a mix of individuals (Over 15,000 of us) that come from many different walks in life, with a variety of different issues, aligned with a variety of groups, religions, political parties, affiliations, organizations etc.  MIP tries to cater to the needs of many, not just a few in one select group. 

Should the group elect to step outside of MIP and do something different somewhere else, it would go with my very best and deepest regards.

I started MIP as a whole on Oct. 19th, 1998.  That was 11 years ago.  If everything I did as its founder was so off course we would not have survived online for over 11 years now.  When I am perfect as a human being, I will make a video of it and put it on YouTube.  I wouldn't suggest you start watching YouTube to catch it any time soon.

Sincerely,
John Freifeld

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