Not sure if you've been paying attention, but the "in" drink these days is Four Lokos, a 23.5 ounce energy drink containing 12 percent alcohol.
Drinking just one Four Loko is said to be equivalent to consuming a six-pack of beer and two cups of coffee.
Just one. And that one can only costs about $2.
Four Loko, named for its four main ingredients--taurine, guarana, caffeine and alcohol--comes in nine different flavors, everything from fruit punch to strawberry kiwi, but it's not a drink you sip for taste.
Students drink Four Lokos for one reason--it gets you drunk, posthaste.
"It sneaks up on you," said Caleb Reeves, senior in building science (from "Four Loko popular despite sobering health concerns," A1). "You don't feel like you're that drunk, then all of a sudden, it's like being hit by a ton of bricks."
As Four Loko is a large, brightly-colored can that looks similar to a regular energy drink, one meant to be consumed quickly for energy boosting, the tendency is to down one Four Loko and reach for another.
Bad idea.
The caffeine masks the effect of the alcohol, giving the impression of relative normalcy.
That is, until the caffeine wears off.
At that point, you're loco.
Like Reeves said, a ton of bricks.
Probable outcomes for the rest of your evening: public nakedness, calling your girlfriend various synonyms of strumpet, multiple trips to either Checker's, Taco Bell or Waffle House.
Four Loko has another name, "blackout in a can."
In all likelihood, Four Loko is a fad.
A mixture of word-of-mouth buzz and vague rumors over legality in Alabama has piqued the curiosity of many students.
It is no doubt a drink aimed and marketed for college students.
The colorful can resembling a normal energy drink, the massive amounts of alcohol and the added caffeine to decrease the effects of alcohol while increasing energy levels for prolonged partying are all alluring to the college-aged seeker of debauchery.
Four Loko isn't a "bad" drink. No more than any liquor or beer is "bad."
Students, and people in general, should simply know what they're drinking.
Realize what you are consuming and the effect it will have on your body, both during and after.
Consume your Four Lokos in moderation or suffer the consequences.
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