Banning Four Loko is ignoring the root of the problem
Nobody teaches anyone how to drink responsibily anymore. Alcohol education in public school takes an abstinence-only approach. There’s no talk of how to drink in moderation, how to distinguish high-alcohol from low-alcohol drinks, or how binge drinking is defined. That’s why these kids get sick when they drink Four Loko - they don’t know what 12% ABV means in the context of a 23-ounce can. They don’t know the consequences of mixing alcohol and high amounts of caffeine. Nobody ever told them.
The resounding message of high school health classes is simply “drinking is bad. Don’t do it.” Sound familiar? It didn’t work for sex education, either.
