I'm surprised there hasn't been a thread about this. What are your thoughts?

To my mind, she was very clearly a political prisoner and thus deserving of state department intervention and negotiations. It would have been wonderful to have been able to get Paul Whelan out as well, but that just wasn't going to happen. For one thing, Whelan's charge (whether true or not) was espionage, which is a whole different ballgame than having THC/hash.

The amount Griner had (as admitted by the Russian prosecutors) was 0.7g. The typical outcome for this small amount is a fine, probation (and for someone else in her situation) most likely deportation and a permanent ban on re-entry. Instead, the Russians decided to charge her with intent to distribute across borders (e.g., smuggling), which carried the maximum 10 years. And we all know the rest.

I've read comments from people who are losing their minds about this. The whataboutism and flat-out cruelty is insane. It has apparently never crossed their minds that the reason she was prosecuted and sentenced to 10 years in the first place is because she is who she is, and the Russians wanted a bargaining chip. Apparently they feel that a 10 year sentence in the gulag is appropriate punishment for having 0.7g of THC on your person. Or maybe it's appropriate punishment for "being stupid." Or "you do the crime, you pay the time" -- without realizing or caring that a 10 year sentence is outlandish for this crime, and clearly politically motivated.

Yes, she was caught with THC or whatever. Yes, that was stupid. Yes, she had a doctor's prescription. My point in bringing this up is that she (and countless other professional athletes) use THC to manage pain. Yes, it's legal in the USA in most places. Yes, she wasn't in the USA. That's just white noise. To me it boils down to the fact that she was given a ridiculous sentence for what would normally have resulted in a slap on the wrist, a fine, and deportation. That's the bottom line.

I was coming here for this too!

I am super relieved! I got tears in my eyes when I saw the news.

Why was she in Russia with THC? Because female professional b-ballers don't get paid as well in the US. Why the THC? Because being a professional athlete is hell on bodies.

I'm glad she's home.

I don't know a lot about Whelan but I hope they can get him out too. I am sure the people involved in get BG out knew this would be criticized, and I think they're doing the best they can.

I think you're mostly preaching to the choir here.

We will clearly be on the lookout for Viktor Bout in the future. He should not feel safe traveling.

This is also a lesson to Americans (high profile or otherwise) traveling in ANY country that might feel inclined to take hostages for political purposes. No American should feel safe traveling to Russia, or Iran. No American should do it.

quote:

Originally posted by Piano*Dad:
No American should feel safe traveling to Russia, or Iran. No American should do it.

I'm glad I checked Russia off my bucket list right before Covid - I don't envision ever feeling safe going there again.

Complaining about Griner's release is exactly the kind of criticism I object to with any president. The administration achieved the possible. An American is on her way home. It's a god thing.

I just wonder when (if?) this scorched earth partisanship will end. It started with Clinton and has gotten worse with each succeeding president.

quote:

Originally posted by Piano*Dad:
This is also a lesson to Americans (high profile or otherwise) traveling in ANY country that might feel inclined to take hostages for political purposes. No American should feel safe traveling to Russia, or Iran. No American should do it.

This. +one gazillion.

Mik

quote:

The administration achieved the possible. An American is on her way home.

Yep.

Anyone who thinks Biden could have brought Whelan home but chose not to is just delusional.

I saw Bill Richardson interviewed this morning. He was involved in negotiations (for Griner and others) and talked a little about what happened.

https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/New...role-secure-94841576

quote:

Originally posted by jon-nyc:

quote:

Originally posted by Piano*Dad:
No American should feel safe traveling to Russia, or Iran. No American should do it.

I'm glad I checked Russia off my bucket list right before Covid - I don't envision ever feeling safe going there again.

I have always wanted to go there. And Kiev, too. Studied Russian language, history, and literature from ninth grade through college. Passed on a school trip there during the Soviet era because we were told we would not be allowed to meet any ordinary Russians. Probably was the right decision. I'm not as interested in monuments and museums as I am in getting to know people.

I have a friend here in Helena who got to go skydiving with cosmonauts in the Soviet Union back in the 70s. He bunked with them at their headquarters. He has maintained those friendships to this day. (It's a totally crazy story which he wrote about in a collection of essays called "Regarding Willingness"--other great stories in there, too.)

Possibly Putin will be overthrown and Russia will take another stab at democracy. If that happens, and I'm still alive, I will definitely go visit. However, based on what I know about Russian history and character, any stab at democracy is likely doomed to be short-lived.

And in the "you can't make this stuff up" category, it looks like there was some sort of fake news regarding Putin having fallen down the stairs and involuntarily soiled himself (like it would ever be voluntary)?

What's interesting to me is how many websites picked up the story, which appears to be a total fabrication. Google "putin falls down stairs" to get a glimpse. I refuse to link to any of this.

Whelan got a bad conduct discharge from the Marine Corps.
Whelan was head of global security for a car parts firm.
He was convicted of espionage. Wonder what was really going on.
Whelan's brother: "David Whelan said in a post on Twitter that Trump seems to have mentioned his brother’s wrongful detention more in the past 24 hours than he did during the two years of his presidency during which Whelan was imprisoned."https://news.yahoo.com/paul-whelan-brother-slams-trump-234345973.html?fr=sycsrp_catchall

quote:

Originally posted by Nina:
And in the "you can't make this stuff up" category, it looks like there was some sort of fake news regarding Putin having fallen down the stairs and involuntarily soiled himself (like it would ever be voluntary)?

What's interesting to me is how many websites picked up the story, which appears to be a total fabrication. Google "putin falls down stairs" to get a glimpse. I refuse to link to any of this.

Yeah, it has that Pravda feel to it. Everything you read is Ukrainians are glorious and brave and winning, and the Russians are falling on their faces. Makes you wonder what the unvarnished truth is.

+2 but back to the original topic-- outrageous sentence; glad she's not there now.

quote:

“And she said, ‘Oh no. I’ve been in prison for 10 months now listening to Russian, I want to talk. But first of all, who are these guys?’ And she moved right past me and went to every member on that crew, looked them in the eyes, shook their hands and asked about them and got their names, making a personal connection with them. It was really amazing. And then later on, on an 18 hour flight, she probably spent 12 hours just talking and we talked about everything under the sun.”

This is both heartening and heartbreaking.

More on Griner and also other Americans still being held.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/11...ens-cnntv/index.html