The Observer, April 13, 2007
Volume XXXIX, Issue 24
World and Nation
'Cocaine' energy drink marketed illegally
WASHINGTON — Cocaine is a drug, federal health officials say.
So what's the news?
This Cocaine is an energy drink produced by a Las Vegas company. It contains no actual cocaine, but is being marketed as "The Legal Alternative" to the illegal drug, according to its website. Its logo appears to be spelled out in a white powder that resembles the drug.
The Food and Drug Administration said Redux Beverages LLC is illegally marketing the drink as both a street drug alternative and a dietary supplement, according to a warning letter dated April 4 but publicly released Wednesday. The FDA cites as evidence the drink's own labeling and website, which include the statements "Speed in a Can," "Liquid Cocaine," and "Cocaine–Instant Rush," according to the letter.
In addition, dietary supplements cannot carry claims to prevent or treat a disease. The Cocaine website lists an ingredient called inositol and says it reduces cholesterol and helps prevent hardening of the arteries, among other health claims, the FDA said.
Cocaine was one of roughly 500 energy drinks launched worldwide last year, capitalizing on the craze for the typically sugar-and caffeine-laden beverages.
Last year, Hannah Kirby, wife of Redux Beverages founder James Kirby, told the Associated Press the product's name was a bid to stand out in the crowd of competing energy drinks.
An opposition to James Kirby's year-old attempt to trademark "cocaine" is now pending at the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, according to the U.S. Patent and Trademark office.
Gates announces longer tours in Iraq
WASHINGTON — Saying the Pentagon wants to provide "long-term predictability for soldiers and their families," Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced Wednesday that active-duty Army units will be deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan for 15 months at a stretch.
Although that is longer than the 12-month standard deployments, Gates said that once soldiers return home, they will not be sent back to the war zone for at least 12 months. Up to now, some units have been sent back much sooner than that.
The secretary said the decision is not a sign that the Army "is broken" by long, unpredictable deployments that are stretching its resources.
"If the Army were 'broken,' " he said, retention levels would not still be high.
The Pentagon wants to make the lives of soldiers and their families more predictable, according to Gates. "We ask a lot of our troops and families," he said, and they deserve more predictability.
Monday, Pentagon officials said about 13,000 National Guard troops were receiving orders alerting them to prepare for possible deployment to Iraq – meaning a second tour for several thousand of them.
Word has also emerged that Defense Department officials were considering a plan to extend by up to four months the tours of duty for as many as 15,000 U.S. troops in Iraq as a way to maintain the buildup past the summer.
There are 145,000 U.S. troops in Iraq, and when the buildup is completed by June, there will be more than 160,000, officials calculate.
