Here's a table showing the number of hours one would have to attend meetings given their age at time of entry into AA...

The calculations are based on a one-hour meeting five days a week. This leaves two days free, does not take into consideration travel time, or "coming early" and "staying late"... It is based on a life-expectancy of 70 years. (I've whittled down a few years to account for the physical damage done by alcohol, and the relapses caused by continued attendance)

Age 20 - attends for 50 years, 260 meetings a year = 13,000 hours of meetings
Age 25 - attends for 45 years, 260 meetings a year = 11,700 hours of meetings
Age 30 - attends for 40 years, 260 meetings a year = 10,400 hours of meetings
Age 35 - attends for 35 years, 260 meetings a year = 9100 hours of meetings
Age 40 - attends for 30 years, 260 meetings a year = 7800 hours of meetings
Age 45 - attends for 25 years, 260 meetings a year = 6500 hours of meetings
Age 50 - attends for 20 years, 260 meetings a year = 5200 hours of meetings
Age 55 - attends for 15 years, 260 meetings a year = 3900 hours of meetings
Age 60 - attends for 10 years, 260 meetings a year = 2600 hours of meetings
Age 65 - attends for 5 years, 260 meetings a year = 1300 hours of meetings

Why are so many meetings necessary? Because AA fails to acknowledge the fact that people have the capacity to CHANGE and ADAPT. It is only reasonable that once an individual learns new living skills, and that once s/he elminates self-defeating behaviors, life can be managed nicely without the use of meetings as a crutch. It is only AA's idea that members need a daily reminder of "where they came from". For heaven's sake, we outgrew diapers without the need for a daily reminder of "where we came from". Most of the people who leave the fold simply outgrow the limiting environment of the program.

P.S. Ever wonder why the Big Book gets read so often? You may think that it is because alcoholics are forgetful, however the real reason is that the book is just plain difficult to absorb. It was written by Bill Wilson when he had only 3 years sober. According to AA's own definition, it takes three years to get your brain out of hock and two more to unscramble them. This means that Bill had scrambled brains at the time he wrote his infamous work.

Something to think about.