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The theory of alcoholism as a disease has always mystified me. I chose this theory based on the fact that I do not believe that alcoholism is a disease. In my opinion alcoholism is an addiction brought about uncontrollable drinking. A human being has the right to drink or not. An alcoholic is someone who chooses to drink. A disease I think not; an addiction, most definitely. Before researching this paper I had a confused idea that alcoholism was a disease. A “disease” brings out a concept that society feels pity for the alcoholic. An implication of the disease concept is that what is held to be a “disease” is an involuntary condition. Drinking is a habit that may eventually cause alcoholism. The choice to drink or not is a personal one. An alcoholic causes may of their own problems by their behavior and the decisions they make, so why should they be viewed as a victim of a “disease”(Skipper 1)? The word disease by definition is “a consequence of infection, inherent weakness, or environmental stress, that impairs normal physiological functioning” (Houghton 404). The word addiction by definition is “to give habitually or compulsively” (Houghton 78). The American Medical Association (AMA) classified alcoholis