We’ve seen it happen in other states, but we were hoping it would never happen here. That’s right, it looks as if N.C. might be getting ready to ban alcoholic energy drinks like Four Loko.
Gov. Perdue issued a press release last week asking manufacturers to voluntarily stop selling malt liquor beverages containing stimulants “until they are found to be safe.”
If the state does decide to ban Four Loko it probably won’t make a difference.
It only took a couple of high profile news stories for Four Loko to become the symbol for every alcohol-related problem that college students might encounter.
It should come as a shock to no one that college students have been drinking irresponsibly for a lot longer than Four Loko has been available at the gas station.
Nine out of nine editorial board members agree that a Four Loko ban would not make it prohibitively more difficult to mix alcohol and caffeine.
It’s up to consumers to regulate their own alcohol intake. In the words of Andy Dobson, beer manager of TJ’s Beverage and Tobacco: “If you’re too stupid to realize you can’t pound four 12 percent beers in 20 minutes … you deserve what you get.”
If anything, talk of a ban will only make Four Loko sexier. The proportion of empty Four Loko cans in campus recycling bins seems to be directly correlated to the number of mentions in the news.
Furthermore, we can all agree that the governor has some bigger problems to deal with. She should focus on the multi-billion dollar state budget deficit, N.C.’s above average unemployment rate and the federal investigation into her own campaign finance practices.
