The internet (and my college friends) has been in uproar this week as Four Loko is being banned (or petitioned to be banned) across the country. People are mourning this huge loss. This transition has happened literally in a flash.
The government is concerned because people are dying/being hospitalized by consuming the drink, which is being compared to "liquid cocaine" and "blackout in a can" because of it's 12% alcohol content and relative cheapness ($2/3 bucks a can).
I don't mean to be insensitive to the people/families who have been casualties of the drink, but I don't understand how this makes sense from a legal standpoint. It's prohibition. (note: this is fully the Boardwalk Empire influence in me) There is no rule on what type of alcohol can be sold, mixed with what, in what content, etc. Selling Four Loko is no different than selling Red Bull and Vodka, the latter just can't be bought directly - yet. Are they going to stop the sale of Red Bull and Vodkas in bars? Are they going to ban Red Bull all together for the fear of people combining it with Vodka?
It's even more confusing because of the "dangers" of caffeine combined with alcohol. The FDA - the government regulated agency in charge of the food and drugs served in our country - didn't have a problem with it until people were dying. It seems a little twisted. Four Loko is now going to be re-made without the caffeine, which should hopefully calm down the critics. I'm not a caffeine addict - I only drink soda as a mixer and avoid coffee at all costs - so I don't even care the lack of it - but will it make a difference in the product?
People are dying/being hospitalized by drinking Loko. They could still drink any liquor/beer/wine/whatever and be just as damaged. Albeit they need to drink more of the other items listed. I think this says more than just "Loko is killing kids." It's about alcohol responsibility. Maybe the government should take a more proactive role in actually teaching how to drink responsibly. I'm not talking about the D.A.R.E. crap, I mean honest (read: "real talk") open conversation about limits and differences between the various options.
In college, I felt like every September I would see so many ambulances late on a Friday or Saturday night, and around a college campus, it's pretty obvious that it was related to drinking. Freshman don't really know their limits because no one taught them. They're technically not able to drink by law, but it's 99% positive that they are doing it anyway. So why not give them an understanding that you shouldn't drink this much or that much. And I'm talking about a real conversation, not a "It's bad to drink, because it's illegal!" pep talk. It needs to be acknowledged as a real entity and so kids really get it. Scruff McGruff isn't gonna cut it here. It's like the sex-ed conversations - abstinence sounds good, but it's not realistic (especially when combined with alcohol) so let's actually teach and help prevent this.
[I'm debating going on to a 21-to-drink soap box, but I'll let it slide. Let's just say my first sentence was going to be: young people like drinking because it's illegal until they are 21.]
To me, banning Four Loko is illegal. It wasn't "unsafe" for a few years, but now that it's popularity has risen, people are in a literal uproar. It's their choice to or not to drink it. I personally have had it, and based on the night I had, will not drink it again. That's my choice. The whole point of our supposed "freedom" is that we have the choice to drink Four Loko or have a beer or drink no alcohol at all. It's our choice.
Going loco over the loko.
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