Have some ‘Cocaine’? How about some ‘Blow’?
I had thought to write an entry about energy drinks from the perspective of ‘do you know what you are putting into your body? And what you are addicted to?’ Was I surprised to stumble upon these new energy drinks…‘Blow’ a white powder that is packaged in a vial and comes with its own mirror is a powered energy drink, just add water. ‘Cocaine’ a canned energy drink was taken off the market by the FDA last year and as of this month is back on the market. These products are packaged and marketed to appeal to our youth…. . Seems that business is so eager to make money on the backs of our youth that they have little regard for the messages that they are sending to them. ‘Candy cigarettes’ have been abolished but ‘Cocaine’ in a can is okay? Seems odd to me….. Oh by the way, energy drinks contain large concentrations of caffeine, are loaded with sugar, man-made chemicals, vitamins and amino acids. Too much caffeine and sugar isn’t good for you even if the product claims to be ‘all natural’. The marketing hype is that caffeine is a stimulant that it’s cool to be addicted to – personally I don’t think its cool to be addicted ……
The Food and Drug Administration is threatening to take legal action against the energy drink mix “Blow,” if they don’t clean up their image….
March 7th, 2008 at 10:59 am
This is so scary, what will they think of next? Boy, it seems the media’s job is to keep our youth “hooked”! They continue to offer a smorgesboard of substances and behaviors that keep our young folks from developing a healthy relationship with their reality. Coming from an old-timer, it takes a very long time to adjust to reality, no matter when you begin the journey! I believe we all need a break.
March 7th, 2008 at 11:22 am
When I was using cocaine and drinking, I remember how socially acceptable I thought it was. I was a fairly self-righteous addict and alcoholic. I thought the people with real problems had needles hanging out of their arms and lived in a gutter.
I liked to glorify my drug use, thinking that cocaine use was “classy” and that it’s what celebrities used.
The truth is that there was nothing “classy” about the people I hung out with, and the situations I put myself in. Crashing cars and getting DUI’s, and of course self-hate I had because of where my life was going.
I think it’s a shame that there are company’s in today’s society that use substances that destroy people’s lives to promote their products. It would seem they are only concerned about making a buck, instead of how they may be contributing to the continuing drug problem today.
March 7th, 2008 at 10:41 pm
Jacquie– I couldn’t agree with your stance more. As a young person in recovery, I see sober young adults and teens “using” energy drinks all the time and sometimes openly talking about the “high” they get from them. Not only are these company’s glorifying the drug culture by using these names, but they encourage a life of excess simply based on their portion sizes. Most energy drinks have 2, 3 or 4 servings per can, but they are gulped down in a single sitting. I am glad to hear that the FDA is trying to get the energy drink craze under control. I’ll continue to do my part by being a party pooper by bringing up the facts about what these drinks do to your body while my friends are drinking them.
March 8th, 2008 at 5:02 am
It’s interesting to see the marketing attempts around the energy drinks as pointed out by Jacquie.
Over the years that I have been dealing with youthful drug abusers they have consistently demonstrated to me their love of the two movies “Blow” with Johnny Depp and “Scarface” with Al Pacino. Both movies deal with cocaine and both were commercial failures - but had fanatic followings among the drug-addicted young.
So what the energy drink marketing campaigns tell me is that a primary target of their efforts is young drug addicts and those young people who are fascinated and enamoured of what they perceive as a glamororous and “cool” lifestyle.
One of the responsible marketers is quoted as saying that he wishes to do nothing except to act as a responsible parent - such a statement is either woefully ignorant, or stupid, or cynical - or all three!
March 10th, 2008 at 12:21 pm
I remember Cocaine always made me feel dirty because of the association i had around it (Crack, poverty, desperation, murder, obsession). When i started using cocaine i felt even dirtier in the sense that it wasn’t socially acceptable with my friends and i knew every bit about the high was false and and short-acting. Just like cocaine though energy drinks can give you a quick jolt of euphoria and energy, but then comes the crash, then a dependence, and then a tolerance.
I think it’s horrible that someone would choose to market a drink after an illegal substance to kids, like how cigarette promoters back in the 40’s and 50’s would hand out cigarettes at high schools, or launch campaign adds about how smoking will help to eliminate cough and flu symptoms or increase your life span. At the time it was cool, and promoters helped to make it cool, now 50 some odd years later it’s common knowledge that smoking weakens your immunce system and shortens your life span. If you market an energy drink as an illegal substance as “cool” or “hip”, in this case cocaine, it sends out a message that cocaine is good and acceptable. It’s not, it’s a quick trip from reality, a lot of wasted money, and a waste of time.