The fight against Four Loko has led many consumers – especially young ones – to defend their favorite party pop – and stock up....It's hard to believe the government gets involved in such matters. It's almost a kind of snobbery. It's not a classy product, by design. It's like Smucker's Goober. Some people think you seem like an idiot not being able to get peanut butter out of one jar and jelly out of another... and why are you eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches anyway? Why don't you make a sandwich with thinly sliced turkey and fresh greens? You... goober!
"Every time I drank a Four Loko, something terrible happened," one person told the website Gothamist at a tribute march to the drink in New York City. "And each time I grew from it."
Facebook groups, petitions and even YouTube videos have also sprouted up in support of the drink.
"Get the government out of my Loko!" wrote one petitioner.
So, without Four Loko, what will you do? Let alcohol have its effect without the offsetting effect of a cup of coffee? Eh. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that you can drink coffee with your alcohol. I'm sure simpler approaches easily occur even to drunks. You could take a big swig out of a can of Red Bull or DoubleShotEspresso and top it up with vodka. Or you can do what I observed Ohio State fans doing here last month:
They drink beer and guzzle 5-Hour Energy in berry and grape flavors. Run yourself down with alcohol and then pep yourself up again with that awful glop?See? I'm a snob. "Awful glop." But I'm not the government enacting my snobbery into law. I'm just insulting your taste, exercising my free speech. It seems to me that if I can sip French-press coffee with a single-malt Scotch, you should be able to slug Four Loko.
And, in honor of Black Friday, here's a Christmas present idea: a nice case of Jolt Caffeine Energy Gum. Or: Penguin Caffeinated Peppermints.
Posts
106 comments:
First they came for the Four Loko drinkers and I did nothing...
I should join them in their vigil. Not that I have ever even tried that product. But I feel their outrage. Because you will have to take my expresso sambucca from my cold dead hands...
It's hard to believe the government gets involved in such matters.
Huh?
What have the do-gooders and nanny staters not gotten involved in? They think they have the right to tell us what to eat, drink, speak, think, how to wipe our butts (remember Sheryl Crow - she claims it was a joke but was it?), and more.
@Fred4Pres Yes, Sambucca in the espresso. There's also Irish coffee.
Well, the folks who make drinks like Four Loko didn't hire lobbyists and secure their trade deal with the appropriate Washington bureaucrats before bringing their product to market.
This is what happens when you don't. It's a reminder to other companies to play by the rules-- that is, pay off Washington first before you think of doing anything out-of-the-ordinary.
The rules apply to everyone. You've got to follow them.
DADvocate Yes, of course. I'm being sarcastic, but I actually do think it's especially weird to go after a particular product when it is not that different from alternatives and to target the form that is preferred by a group -- young adults -- that the government thinks it has a special power to intrude on.
Or this. A Jamaica Coffee.
3/4 fluid ounce dark rum
3/4 fluid ounce coffee flavored liqueur
1 cup brewed coffee
2 tablespoons whipped cream
1 chocolate covered coffee bean
Mmmmm. And not illegal. Yet.
Trey
We do need a big, powerful central government to stand tall and do big powerful things. But that is not what this government does. It is a government that legislates about toilet flushes and the salt content of Mickey D's burgers, never mind the big, powerful stuff.
In Honor of Black Friday, allow me to share the conference call this morning among consultants working for the Democratic Party:
Me: I do not see any chance of anyone in the GOP coming close to even having a probable victory in 2012 Presidential election. Is there a gap in my analysis?
Consultant from Chicago: We should aim to encourage Palin in the race. That will ensure our victory in most easy manner.
Consultant from DC/MD: The only problem would be if the jobs situation gets worse. Or, if the war conflicts lead to problems. We got to keep in touch with our friends in the media.
Consultant from NYC: This 2012 election will be the easiest re-election. Thank God that we lost the House. This helps us to make sure we keep the WH to keep the GOP in check. Let them get the Senate in 2012. We will keep the WH no matter what.
Me: So, no matter what, the Administration will re-elected?
Consultant from DC/MD: You got it. What is next on the agenda?
++++++++
Ohio State fans are a trip, aren't they?
They travel with their football team to every game.
I sat in the middle of tens of thousands of Ohio State fans the last time I attended an Illinois football game in Champaign. A sea of crimson and silver.
They were very nice, but many of them had consumed a hell of a lot of alcohol and caffeine. They really raised hell.
It was a good time. They didn't seem to mind having a few Illini fans in their midst.
And Four Loko hadn't even been invented.
Should the gov be banning Loko? Probably not. Customers probably know what they're getting into.
Back in the day, the strategy was often to use ludes offset by coke to achieve a similar, but far more dramatic outcome.
Consultant from DC/MD: You got it. What is next on the agenda?
Lay off the drugs. Get sober. Try to connect with reality.
That way, maybe you don't get your butts kicked.
Has Michelle let us know what we can eat today?
My kids, mid-twenties, report having had a great time with this product. They'll get along without it fine, but, well, another small loss of freedom. One more every day. Except when there's two.
Pogo:
Just heard from Michele- no food for us today until we run around the block a thousand times or so.
"Every time I drank a Four Loko, something terrible happened...and each time I grew from it."
Sounds like another step towards self-actualization. Kind of like an Indian sweat lodge, only cheaper and more portable.
Four beers' worth of alcohol in one can. What could possibly go wrong?
Get crackin', AJ.
young adults -- that the government thinks it has a special power to intrude on.
Yeah, they think so because we let them think so. I still can't figure out why not allowing legal adults to drink from 18-21 isn't outrageous. But it isn't.
The Four Loko ban is especially stupid, because it's the amount of alcohol in 1 can that's the problem.
deborah said...
Four beers' worth of alcohol in one can. What could possibly go wrong?
It's ok, there's a cup of coffee's worth of caffeine in it.
Michelle should put out a daily menu of State Approved Foods for each meal.
That would be very helpful.
Plus enforcement. Can't let folks just eat any old thing.
Remember, Barack Obama will require you to work. He is going to demand that you shed your pounds. That you put down your second helping. That you come out of your basement, that you move out of your comfortable jeans. That you push yourselves to be slimmer. And that you eat what we tell you to. Barack will never allow you to go back to your lives as usual, fat, lazy, and bitterly clinging to your freedom fries.
Take your hands off my Four Loko you filthy government.
I don't understand this development. By what authority do they single out a particular drink if none of the substances in it are illegal?
It's good see a fellow former hippie who still gets it. Nothing more pathetic than a boomer who protested in the 60's and who now supports the government nannies.
I will fight to the death any ban on running with scissors too. Don't scoff - it's coming.
Banning 4 Loko!
It's what all the trendy governments are doing!
Put down the Four Loko and walk away from the table. Do not try to fight this. Everyone knows, some beaurocrat knows how to live you life better than you.
Verification word: policiri...is this code/foreign language for police state?
ShoutingThomas:
You are totally missing the point. Are you like York (http://washingtonexaminer.com/politics/2010/11/obamas-poll-numbers-point-his-defeat-2012)?
You guys are so clueless that I feel sorry for you.
Obama-Biden will DEFEAT anyone in the GOP in 2012. The consultants I spoke to this morning are the best, the BEST. I am honored that I was in the call and that I could ask a question.
You cannot handle the truth. Yeah, keep believing that you will win the WH, yeah, go do that. It will only make our path easier. What a waste. I was trying to educate you, but you are a lost cause.
@ Allen: Phew, that was a close one.
is indicates a soon coming need for useless and very expensive equiptment called 4-Loco Detectors.We do want a safe America, don't we?
Is there a gap in my analysis?
There is a gap between your ears.
In reality, the problem with a lot of the nannny crap that irks people lately on both sides is to be expected and even desired.
For example with the TSA screenings: People given the responsibility of preventing planes from blowing up, can't say don't worry about it - it's very unlikely, even it that was the truth and they completely believed it.
They are charged with doing something, so they do something, and make it clear they are. They are concerned that if something does happen, nobody can say they didn't try. It's human, and actually they are being responsible. It's up to the rest of us to push back and give them cover for not playing nanny. To let them off the hook from being overzealous. That's our job and the constitution's which needs us to give it voice.
Even in cases where I disagree on where the line should be drawn, I respect both the nannies and those protesting and fighting them. God Bless America!
I don't understand this development. By what authority do they single out a particular drink if none of the substances in it are illegal?
By the authority of "If you oppose this, you must be ok with kids dying".
And, by God, it's amazing that even a posting about alcohol and caffeine invokes the name of our great Sara!
Even her enemies (especially her enemies) can't stop talking about her.
This woman is pure fire!
All hail Sara the Great!
This is inspirational to my followers.
@deborah- well, you don't want them drinking and then falling asleep.
And, to add on to my Sara bit:
That woman's got to be dynamite in bed!
If only... If only...
If the PTB are worried about mixing alcohol and caffeine, why not go after premixed Jack Daniels and cola?
http://www.jackdaniels.com
/CountryCocktails/Default.aspx
And Crack,
Thanks for even more proof that Cher is a dumb cunt, as if we really needed it.
New Democratic party credo:
“We do think at a certain point you’ve made enough money.
We do think at a certain point you've had enough pie.
We do think at a certain point you've combined too many legal substances.
We do think at a certain point you've had enough privacy.
We do think at a certain point you've had enough health care.
But we do not think you have reached the point that you've paid enough taxes.”
Another example of nanny government. And yet another reason to take the $1.58 study to heart. The study's conclusion is that for every dollar of increased tax revenue, Congress has historically managed to increase spending by $1.58.
If you can't decrease the deficit by increasing taxes, the alternative is to lay off the stoopid parts of government. The problem that presents is that there are so many targets. Anyone associated with this effort is an easy RIF. It is un-American to deny our youngsters the opportunity to experiment with wretched but legal beverages, as the Boomers did with Boone's Farm and their grand parents did with Thunderbird and Sneaky Pete. It's right there in the Constitution somewhere....
It'll perk them up for driving, Allen. It's all good.
Professor, your services are required over at bhtv:
Scher and Lewis puzzle over Drudge's popularity
The Cher bit, Crack, is inspired idiocy, isn't it?
I'm in the entertainment biz, albeit at a pretty low level, and her assumptions are just the standard fare. If you work at any level of show biz, people just assume:
1. You're a Democrat
2. Sara Palin is the Wicked Witch of the West
3. President Bush is the devil
4. Americans are all wicked racists, sexists, homophones, etc.
5. America is the evil empire
6. Communism just needs to be given another chance, with the right leaders (them)
7. Government is the solution to everything
8. Homosexuals are sainted
9. Men should be ashamed of themselves
I could go on and on.
Believing these things, or keeping your mouth shut about not believing these things, is a job requirement in the world of the arts.
You've got a gun to you head, if you're an artist. Upchuck this crap and you won't work.
And, hysterically, the SOBs are always crying about "McCarthyism!"
And what about the time-honored Cuba Libre? Ernest Hemmngway must be turning in his grave. One of the reasons I drink rum & coke (a double in a tall glass): the caffeine keeps one awake. Same result may be had by taking "no-doze" which has 200 milligrams of caffeine. Two of those with the first drink of the night and you're good to go. The possibilities are endless. The Nanny State bureaucrats will have to work over-time banning all possible permutations.
Coming soon to a neighborhood near you. Michelle O mess-halls where ALL will eat the approved "master menu" of the day at the designated time of day for your block--just like the other two highly authoritarian/totalitarian institutions America has do--the prison system and the military.
I've had Four Loko. It's a horrible concoction, especially in Lemonade flavor.
One of the problems is the size of each individual drink in combination with the alcohol content. It's 12% ABV in a 24 oz. can. By contrast, the premix Jack and Coke products are only 6% ABV (and are probably more expensive than the relatively cheap Four Loko at $2.50/can.)
Hey Crack, I sent you little sugar for the holidays. Not because of today's post, it's just that in general, I greatly appreciate what you are trying to do, and feel it definitely needs done. And I like your peculiar style of MachoResponseness. Good luck.
PV BELLA: There was no reason to be personal. Or, is this the normal way for The GOP?
Read and weep:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-11-25/can-sarah-palin-mitt-romney-or-anyone-else-win-2012-white-house-nomination/?cid=topic:mainpromo1
You in the GOP are finished. You are done. It is Nov. 2010 and you already have lost in Nov. 2012 WH race. What does that say about your party? What a joke of a group? Instead of "destroying" each other, why not join us? Support us. We will win, no matter what. At least, then you can say you are part of the winner's party. Think about it. And, no need to get personal.
Although I don't want our nannies doing this kind of thing. I do think that Four Loko should not have put that much alcohol in what is sold as a single serving. They should be allowed to, but it's asking for public relations problems. Smaller cans would have been my vote. People could still have abused it, but four beers sold as one is asking them too.
I've never tried Four Loko but I have tried Joose, a similar concoction with slightly less alcohol. It has a wonderful taste, that is if you're a 14-year-old with a smuggled can outside the junior high school dance. It will never be mistake for a fine lambic hand-crafted by Belgian monks. It also gave me a wicked headache, or as an Englishman would say, "a soddin' 'ead."
Not long ago some Bronx ghetto gangbangers used forced Four Loko consumption as a means of torturing a man they thought was gay.
Peter
My favorite upper-downer mix has always been to chew coca leaves. There are 24 different alkaloids in coca, only one of which is cocaine, so the effect is a lot like mixing espresso and chamomile tea.
It provides energy while suppressing both hunger and the effects of altitude. Cops all over the Andes carry it to give to tourists with soroche (altitude sickness), and though I never chewed it for that reason, it was a common social drug in the far back-country areas where I was working.
Never touched cocaine in my life, and have no interest in ever doing, but some days at the end of a long season, and the end of a long day harvesting something really heavy (like cabbage or turnips) I wish I could find some leaves to chew.
You in the GOP are finished. You are done. It is Nov. 2010 and you already have lost in Nov. 2012 WH race. What does that say about your party? What a joke of a group? Instead of "destroying" each other, why not join us? Support us. We will win, no matter what. At least, then you can say you are part of the winner's party. Think about it. And, no need to get personal.
Listen, AP, this kind of talk is always the preamble to getting your ass kicked.
I'd shut up, keep my head down and try some degree of humility, if I were in your shoes.
But, I'd enjoy seeing you get your ass kicked. So, keep it up.
I assume Cher is at best a high school graduate or got her G.E.D.
That makes her a highly informed Hollywood liberal and entitled to tell us how to think.
I do think that Four Loko should not have put that much alcohol in what is sold as a single serving. They should be allowed to, but it's asking for public relations problems.
Is it?
I agree that the size is more problematic than the caffeine, but it's comparable to a bottle of wine. Is wine asking for a PR problem?
Temperance goes along with austerity.
This is the dawning of the Age of Austerity.
Mrs Obama will deliver her daily caloric recommendations from the White House Garden at 9:00 am.
This will be followed by calisthenics at 10:00. Sweat is not optional!
3 p.m-another beer summit...definitely no Four Loko.
4 pm-Halal beer summit with Muslims. No beer. No women.
6 pm-Barack meet and greet. MTV causal. Discuss ways that may/may not vastly increase the size and scope of geovernment so that we can achieve equality and a more perfect union.
Atone for your sins through the political process.
Wake up cleansed and do it again!
Michelle's Daily Menu.
It's catchy.
Enforcement is key.
Once you kill off a few tubbies and noncompliers, well, in this country it is a good thing to kill a few refuseniks from time to time to encourage the others.
Seinfeld was on Letterman this week and did a funny bit about 5 hour energy drinks.."Does anyone work 8am-1pm? Don't you all work 8 hours? Are we required to provide our own energy for 3 hours?"
"I agree that the size is more problematic than the caffeine, but it's comparable to a bottle of wine. Is wine asking for a PR problem?"
Let me know the next time kids are out buying up Chardonnay to down at their next party.
Listen, I don't think Four Loko should be banned, but I am not surprised by the backlash with a product that is designed the way it is designed and is marketed the way it is marketed.
It is un-American to deny our youngsters the opportunity to experiment with wretched but legal beverages, as the Boomers did with Boone's Farm and their grand parents did with Thunderbird and Sneaky Pete.
Grandparents? Thunderbird is alive and well.
Money quote:
If your taste buds are shot, and you need to get trashed with a quickness, then "T-bird" is the drink for you. Or, if you like to smell your hand after pumping gas, look no further than Thunderbird. As you drink on, the bird soars higher while you sink lower. The undisputed leader of the five* in foulness of flavor, we highly discourage driking this ghastly mixture of unknown chemicals unless you really are a bum. A convenience store clerk in Show Low, AZ once told me that only the oldest of stumbling indian drunks from the reservation buy Thunderbird. Avaliable in 750 mL and a devastating 50 oz jug.
* = the other four bumwines are Cisco, Mad Dog 20/20, Night Train Express and Wild Irish Rose
Peter
""Across the country, Four Loko 'vigil' parties...have been held to say goodbye to the drink.""
Elsewhere across the country, Four Lips 'rainbow' parties...have been held to say goodbye to the practice.
Vigil parties? I can only suppose they've either never heard of the drinks mentioned here (my God, what a pack of sots /sarc) or they're too lazy to mix their own (probably).
Since Mrs O feels we need her dispensation to have a slice o' punkin pie over the holidays, we'll undoubtedly see more of this in the next 2 years.
PS AP, considering the Republicans are stronger in the House than they've been in 60 years, you may want to find some better consultants. I mean ones who actually studied poli sci and stats instaed of social work or something.
When I was a teenager, we would make a bong out of a bottle of Thunderbird or Mad Dog 20/20. If the weed was good, we might even drink the bong wine afterward. I know - I'm foul.
Sure, kick me, you will send me to WH. :) Remember, the daily beast analysis. All GOP candidates for 2012 are lousy. Obama-Biden will have to do nothing. The GOP will "kill" or "defeat" itself just fine. Okay, so you take the Senate (as my colleague from NYC said this morning). Fine. We will still have the WH in Jan. 2013.
How do you like your Black Friday?
You'll take my bottle of Kahlua away when you pry it from my cold, dead, fingers. Still have a taxfree bottle from my last trip to Mexico, pre-drug lord takeover.
How do you like your Black Friday?
I still associate those words with Steely Dan, not shopping.
http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=q1ZV4Mx7tw8
When Black Friday comes
I'll stand down by the door
And catch the grey men when they
Dive from the fourteenth floor
The White House web site needs a Petition page where we can request dispensation from Michelle for birthdays and other celebrations.
But her plans for reducing obesity are bound to be a success.
See, the Obama financial destruction with the attend increase in food costs will mean we cannot afford as much food as before.
This was a boon for obesity management in Cuba.
With their economic collapse, daily caloric consumption in Cuba fell from 3,052 calories per day in the 1980s to 2,099 calories per day in
1993, reaching a low of 1,863 calories per day. (recommended minimum 2,100-2,300 calories per day).
For children and the elderly, who were most dependent on state rations, consumption fell to 1,450 calories per day. Some people went blind from vitamin deficiencies, but overall the fight against obesity was a big success!
Yes we can!!!
Let me know the next time kids are out buying up Chardonnay to down at their next party.
Kids!
I'd say actual kids buying alcohol is a problem.
But adults should be able to choose between Four Loko and Chardonnay.
Treating young adults like kids is also a problem to me. Especially when the argument against doing so is if we don't, they will die.
It's waivers Pogo not dispensations. The White House can grant a waiver to big companies so they can get around Obamacare regs and Michele can grant you your birthday waivers- just get in line but fix that bad attitude of yours first.
Big friends get permanent waivers.
The little people get one-time dispensations. A religious thing.
I'm tempted to buy a few cans of Four Loko to put next to my Billy Beer.
But I do apologize for being insufficiently supportive and cheerful about our new food overlords.
Anyone know what America's Politico said about the last election? Just to get some perspective on his predictions.
Trey
Isn't this just a Black Russian with beer instead of vodka?
I was trying to educate you, but you are a lost cause.
As a first step toward demonstrating your savvy at educating the masses, how about learning how to do a hyperlink? (You don't want to make people feel sorry for you on account of your "cluelessness," do you?
America's Politico's Byron York link
; )
Has Michelle let us know what we can eat today?
I'm having pumpkin pie for breakfast.... with my coffee
Screw Michelle Obama
TMINK:
Okay, so I had an error in House. The Senate was by one-seat (54). The bottom line is still: The GOP will be devastatingly defeated in Nov. 2012. No doubt about it. Even Charlie Cook on Politico today said:"Republicans to nominate Sarah Palin." You cannot win. You are finished. The GOP field as my colleagues have said is nothing. See also Daily Beast. The only thing that will happen in your favor - possibly - is that you will get the Senate. That is all. Okay, done, finished, comprehendo.
You in the GOP are finished.
So says someone a mere 3 weeks after the GOP picked up 630+ state legislative seats.
Fittingly, it seems you are Loko.
The GOP will be devastatingly defeated in Nov. 2012.
Then,
The only thing that will happen in your favor - possibly - is that you will get the Senate.
I guess you've been pounding Four Loko's since about 8am...
You'll take my bottle of Kahlua away when you pry it from my cold, dead, fingers
@ fls
Never fear. You can make your own.
home made Kahlua
And here I'll side with the get the FDA out of peples business people. If it's just the equivalent of four cups of coffee and some liquor, why couldn't someone just pour four cups of coffee and pour some liquor into it?
Why ban that? Has there been some massive outbreak of deaths from the use of Loko?
I remember fondly my college days when they used to have Jolt cola, which advertised themselves with all the sugar and twice the caffeine. Worked great when cramming for finals, but the took it off the shelves there (though I hear it's still available in certain locations, just not near me).
Four beers' worth of alcohol in one can.
A can the size of a bottle of wine (well, 24 oz vs. a wine bottle's 25.36).
Have you seen how big those boxes of wine are? Kids raised on juice boxes might be confused. They should probably be illegal.
Food Overlord say Pogo apology not sincere. Get to back of birthday waiver line or come back Monday. And have a nice day!
O ye mighty Food overlord,
With most reverent and obsequious apologies, i truly grovel in your presence. i shall grind my teeth and don the hairshirt for a fortnight.
Yay, i will chew on gravel and give thanks when my teeth grind down to stubs, and the exposed nerves will throb in praise to your quiet magnificence.
Of thee i sing, for all that a lower-case 'i' can offer belongs to you. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive our borborygmi.
"Every time I drank a Four Loko something terrible happened...And each time I grew from it."
Note the passive voice. Every time I drank a Four Loko I didn't do something terrible, something terrible happened, or more likely Four Loko made something terrible happen. "And each time I grew from it," but not enough to admit that I was responsible for something terrible happening.
AP,
Your are no top tier, mid tier, or even low tier political consultant. You have a very rich imagination probably due to the bong.
As to getting personal, remember your beloved Democrats are the party of hate. Live with it now. Just doing to others what they do.
Are kids able to buy these and skirt the age requirements for buying alcohol? If so, then that could be a reason to ban these. Only, why not then just make people show id to buy them.
The main thing is keeping those malevolent SUVs away from the Four Loko. Given the track record of those curb hopping pedestrian hunting SUVs there's no telling the damage they'd do all hopped up.
jr565 said...
Are kids able to buy these and skirt the age requirements for buying alcohol? If so, then that could be a reason to ban these.
"Kids" are no more able to buy these than any other alcoholic beverage. How could that even be possible?
Unless you are describing kids as someone over 21. As many people do these days.
ChuckR/
For my money MD20/20 packs the most potent punch. In the 50s the refrain for T-Bird went: "Thunderbird: Whats the action? Satisfaction. What's the price? Thirty twice. Who drinks it most? Us colored folks." (Sorry Crack, others, that was, historically what was, simply put..no value judgment intended)
edutcher/
I AM (or was-I'm 66, today my duties are largely ceremonial) a PARTY ANIMAL from a PARTY SCHOOL (LSU) plus a denizen of New Orleans; plus being an ex-fighter pilot--no slouch at the bar
they--to boot. I know my way around 3rd-world dive-bars--be they in the bayou wilds of Cajun S.W. Louisiana swampland or in the more uncharted parts of the globe outside the US--TRUST ME on this..
Pogo:
You show worth for space at re-education center. Avoid rabble- they disrupt acceptable neuron flow. Perhaps even some rabble are here on this blog- the names Palladian and New Ham how you say ? Ring a bell?
cc: Overlord Cental
So I'm thinking. How can I twist this issue into "professor is a right winger". Let me ponder that for a while. Damn it professor, stop being so damn complex!
Banning caffeinated alcohol is dumb, but not nearly as dumb as banning marijuana. The latter is safer, both in terms of risk to the consumer and risk to others.
Still have a taxfree bottle from my last trip to Mexico, pre-drug lord takeover.
From the *sixties*??? :)
I'm having pumpkin pie for breakfast.... with my coffee
That's what I had, minus the coffee. Doing another periodic caffeine purge.
Then I went to Victor Allen's on Monroe, with the wife, and she had coffee and I had oatmeal with apples that was surprisingly good.
It's silly for the gov to ban Four Loko; I think given time the marketplace would have done the same thing.
@America's Politico
I distinctly remember you swearing you'd never post at this blog again if your predictions about the last election were wrong.
I'm just saying.
But I'm sure this time you're right...
"How can I twist this issue into "professor is a right winger". "
I don't see why that seems difficult. Govt regulation. Nanny state. The notion that lefties are about letting us live and enjoy life... is that what afflicts you? Get over it!
What I don't get is why "Four Loko" is singled out for nanny state intrusion. Why not lottery tickets, which is a very wasteful and irresponsible behavior?
Alex said...
What I don't get is why "Four Loko" is singled out for nanny state intrusion. Why not lottery tickets, which is a very wasteful and irresponsible behavior?
Alex, you know the answer: the government makes too much money to give up the lottery addiction.
As for Four Loko... I hate the taste of alcohol (even the stuff everyone insists has no taste). I hate the taste of coffee. I would never even think of buying Four Loko.
But I hate Prohibition more. (Didn't we have an amendment where we decided Prohibition was a dumb idea?) So now I have the urge to go buy some Four Loko just as a protest.
Of course it's snobbery. Do you think they'll ban Red Bull and vodkas from bars?
Though it's true that people can mix caffeine and alcohol on their own and get a similar effect, if products combining the two are sold on the open market, it's like the government is promoting the mixture. People will start to believe it's safe to drink mass quantities of caffeine+alcohol which is when you end up with deaths and injuries as have been reported from Four Loko. Usually I'm for limited government, but with dangerous and/or immoral activities, I'm always conflicted. The government sets the example and much of the nation follows it unquestioningly. Therefore, I think I can justify this case of government involvement.
if products combining the two are sold on the open market, it's like the government is promoting the mixture
This isn't the Soviet Union. "Legally available" doesn't mean "promoted by the government".
shoutingthomas said...
And, to add on to my Sara bit:
That woman's got to be dynamite in bed!
If only... If only...
++++++++++++++++++++++++
If only... If only I could get it up.
There, I finished your sentence for you.
You're welcome.
Stephanie said...
The government sets the example and much of the nation follows it unquestioningly.
Only in the dreams of the statists. Thinking like this is why Nancy Pelosi will no longer be Speaker in January.
We're adults. Treat us as such.
if products combining the two are sold on the open market, it's like the government is promoting the mixture
This isn't the Soviet Union. "Legally available" doesn't mean "promoted by the government".
OTOH, given our Comprehensive Regulatory State, citizens can reasonably deduce that if something was truly dangerous, the government would have it taken off the market. Thus market availability can be taken as some level of government approval.
FLS:
So when your 19 year old son comes home with his new 1000cc crotch rocket motorcycle, you and your wife think "no problem- it is perfectly safe or the govt would ban its sale". Same with chain saws, backyard trampolines, jet skis and on and on.
1000cc crotch rocket motorcycle, chain saws, backyard trampolines, jet skis and on and on.
These seem to all be things that are dangerous to untrained and/or unskilled users. Even a cub scout knife can be dangerous to such users.
OTOH, given our Comprehensive Regulatory State, citizens can reasonably deduce that if something was truly dangerous, the government would have it taken off the market. Thus market availability can be taken as some level of government approval.
Isn't that an indictment of the Comprehensive Regulatory State, that it induces otherwise reasonable adults to surrender their own good judgment in reliance on that of the state?
We needed a constitutional amendment to ban alcoholic beverages. Then we repealed the amendment. So where is the authority for this?
And yes, I know the same question applies to heroin. The constitutional authority issue came up just the other day on The Volokh Conspiracy.
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