Nine Central Washington University students were hospitalized after drinking Four Loko, but students at the University of Maryland, College Park, say they're aware of the drink's effects and know their own limits.So it's no surprise that impending bans on the caffeinated malt liquor in Washington state and Michigan are hard to swallow.Aaron Feierstein, a 21-year-old student at Maryland, said the drink is similar to another crowd favorite and shouldn't be banned."You could go to the bar, and you could have a vodka and Red Bull, and it could have the same effect as a Four Loko," he said. "I don't see the difference."Feierstein's friend, Luke Alexander, also a 21-year-old student at Maryland, agreed.Students are "more concerned with how it helps them get where they want to be while they're partying than what it does to their body," he said.Senior Ben Present, a journalism student who covered Four Loko use for the student newspaper, took a more neutral approach."They treat it just like any other type of alcohol," he said, but "it's gained a decent notoriety over the month that it's been popular here, and students know at this point that if they're going to drink it, keep it to one."
