Interesting and astute observation. When I frequented the rooms, on and off, over the course of a generation starting two generations ago, 13th step was the reference for guys with some time under their belt using that and their alleged wisdom to seduce newcomer women. I hear it's still an issue although now I've also heard that it's more like Tinder. The reason your reference to step 13 is on point is that the rate of relapse is extraordinarily high.

"Even AA’s self-reported statistics are abysmal. I will write in detail at a later date about how and why a program that preaches humility has such hubris to refuse to alter its ways in the face of lousy success rates. The short answer is a 42 BILLION DOLLAR industry has grown out of AA. The treatment centers preach AA as the only game in town so they keep sending people to AA and doctors keep sending patients to treatment and it’s a never-ending cycle. I am not blaming AA. I blame the centers, which even if not-for-profit, are paying executives what would be profits in salaries; and the doctors with addiction specialties who seem satisfied with results below the Mendoza line (a baseball reference to a batting average under .200)." That's from my https://medium.com/illumination/drilling-down-to-the-root-cause-of-addiction-7c57c5a3fd6c

I don't complain without trying to offer solutions. That first article focused on destigmatizing substance abuse so that all can stop the approach of either blaming the sufferer or blaming the disease and focus on treatment. Recently I revisted the topic and said what I hadn't said before.

12-step programs, which are supposed to be judgment free zones and without hierarchy, have devolved into cultures of shame with a groupthink and almost cult-like mentality that feeds the egos of those who rise to prominence within each group. This all stems from the absolute abstinence requirement that is not found anywhere in the original program as described in "The Big Book" and the "12 and 12."

https://medium.com/@marcus17043/efficacy-of-12-step-programs-for-addiction-treatment-c111fbffc10a

I say "The total abstinence requirement is a deep flaw. I do not mean that one should not seek to reach abstinence. That’s up to the individual. I mean the insistence that members must immediately practice abstinence in order to fully avail themselves of the program leads to the cycles of endless relapses or giving up entirely."

"Ok, so here’s how I solve the paradox and support my thesis of taking abstinence out of the equation. The Creators of AA did not require abstinence as a prerequisite to following the steps. They believed that the spiritual awakening that would result from the steps would solve substance abuse disorders.

So, let’s take God out of the steps for the non-believers.

Let’s remove the abstinence requirement so those that cling to their substances will still proceed on a spiritual journey. When they achieve awakening, they will lose their obsession with substances.

Abstinence does not lead to awakening. Awakening quells the obsession.

The program, as it’s been corrupted, is ass-backward."