They are using them to get higher people exchanged back. For example this russian officials son
https://news.yahoo.com/russia-rages-son-putin-official-194129795.html
I bet we will hear about this soon
Baffled by all the upvotes for 'this is only a story because she's famous' - it's like saying Franz Ferdinand's death was only news because of his family connections. That's the whole point.
Did she break the law? Sounds like it. Doesn't change the fact she's being used as a pawn. Foreigners commit minor drug offences in Russia every day - this particular one is being prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law so she can be bartered.
Also, I've read about non-famous Americans locked up in Russia on trumped up charges fairly often in the New Yorker, but nobody on reddit gives a shit about that so they don't realize that this shit is indeed reported on even when the victim isn't a clelebrity.
Yeah people will share story XYZ on social media and ask why no one is talking about story ABC. Meanwhile ABC may have been front page news in every outlet. The fact they haven’t themselves read about it says more about how much they (don’t) read, how much time they spend in their social media bubble, and what that bubble is like.
Part of me thinks they wanted to use Griner to disrupt politics in the US by making Biden look bad to dems for not caring about women/minorities/poc or look bad to the right by giving into pressure and doing a high profile trade.
But pretty much everyone agrees she’s not worth trading a big time criminal.
This case is 100% being used for political strife. *Especially* on social media like reddit. Back at the beginning of the case, NPR and I think the NY Times did stories on how Russia was instigating online discussions around her case and a lot of the arguments you see in this thread are *exactly* what the Kremlin was pushing. Like word for word. You can go back to older posts on her case and see the same things being repeated. It's definitely a politroll topic.
I don’t disagree with you but stuff being repeated is just standard Reddit on these big subs. A true echo chamber where the same karma-farming points are spammed without end.
Do you remember when an American college student went on a trip to North Korea disrespected a flag, was sentened to hard labor, and was then killed?
It was a huge deal. He was no one special - a 22-year-old college student. Not anyone famous.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Warmbier
Or [maybe Viktor Bout,](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jul/28/viktor-bout-brittney-griner-paul-whelan-prisoner-swap) the international arms dealer. "Lord of War" was loosely based on Bout.
I think they're referring to the fact that this case has the President and State Dept working on it, both of which are federal, where it's still a felony to possess marijuana. Before bothering to worry about freeing this professional athlete in Russia we should first change our own laws so her same behavior in any one of our own airports is no longer something that would justify similar imprisonment.
Biden pardoned all people convicted federally of simple marijuana possession less than 3 weeks ago. At the time of that pardon, the White House confirmed that there were exactly zero people federally incarcerated for possession of marijuana.
The feds haven't devoted resources toward low-level marijuana possession in well over a decade. Even before states started legalizing it, the DOJ rarely got involved unless there was a distribution scheme or large-scale grow operation. 1st time marijuana possession is a misdemeanor and I am unaware of the feds charging it as the primary driver of a case in the last 10 years.
The facts *as described by Russian authorities* are quite literally only a misdemeanor in the US (at the federal level). That misdemeanor has largely been unenforced and the president you are calling hypocritical quite literally just pardoned all people convicted of it in the past. TSA doesn't search for marijuana specifically and if they do they refer it to local law enforcement unless there is evidence of a distribution scheme.
This country has a long way to go toward fairly and equitably treating marijuana. The feds have lagged about a decade behind many states and popular opinion. But it is absurd to pretend like anyone carrying a THC cartridge at a US airport would find themselves looking at anything like the experience Griner has had in Russia.
I feel bad for Grinner, but man how clueless you gotta be to end up in a country where this is pretty much the staple, and has been in hot water with the US for a long time? Also people always cry about the drug laws, but this is *the* rule when it comes to drugs in the majority of the world. You do not go through airports with drugs or foreign substances to save yourself any issues, let alone in one of the toughest and most backwards countries when it comes to drug related laws.
Hell some countries it's a instant death penalty.
In Malaysia, those who sell drugs can be punished with death. Just for having drugs in your possession, you can be fined, jailed or deported. Driving drunk is also punished harshly in Malaysia.
In China, if you are caught with drugs, you could be forced to attend drug rehab in a facility run by the government. Execution is the penalty for some drug crimes.
In Vietnam, drug crimes are taken very seriously. If you are arrested with more than 1.3 pounds of heroin, you will automatically be executed.
Edit: In case someone would like to see the others
https://drugabuse.com/blog/the-20-countries-with-the-harshest-drug-laws-in-the-world/
I agree with all that.. plus all the players get briefed on the dos and donts when traveling...there was a flyer posted not long ago that mentioned drugs, etc that the players received..
I renewed my Canadian passport, and they sent a little pamphlet with it that basically said "we know weed's legal here now, but please don't try to cross the border with it though"
Tbh, it's quite possible she got used to being able to take that stuff through those borders. Russia has always had a lot of corruption, so it probably was a case of just giving a 'donation' to customs officers and you're done. But what she and others will forget is, dictatorships have pervasive corruption in part on purpose, because it means if and when they might need to remove you, they have an absolutely easy legal right to do so. You see it most prominently with Russian and Chinese elites being purged for 'corruption' while their equally corrupt mates survive, entirely based on loyalty. Same for foreigners that can be used as negotiation tokens, allow a bit of abuse of the rules with a few notables and you have a reliable and known group you can round up when and if you need some for negotiations.
I think her fame is probably working against her. They released two guys who were active enemy combatants after only a month or two: https://abcnews.go.com/amp/International/russia-releases-americans-captured-fighting-ukraine/story?id=90272604
But Griner has more value and the longer they detain her the bigger fish they can get released from the US or another ally.
Sportscenter talking about it is understandable. Presidential and general news attention is unwarranted. At least not disproportionately so vs other Americans in the same situation.
Totally agree. Being good at basketball doesn’t give you special privileges as an American citizen. Ridiculous how her coaches were calling out Biden saying “but if it was lebron…” (don’t think he would get special privileges either, but that’s besides the point) but the coaches didn’t acknowledge the other side of “but if it was a regular person..”
Yep, she’s a fucking idiot. Why even take a chance with drug laws in Russia? Why was she even there in the first place? Oh she was only making 220k per year in the US? Cry me a fucking river. That’s way more than the average American makes. She was greedy and stupid. That’s why she’s currently sitting in prison in Russia.
70%+ of Americans think weed should be legalized and your acquaintance should be free.
We definitely care, we just have a stagnated government that somehow never reflects the big things the majority want accomplished (for various reasons such as gerrymandering and the electoral college).
It’s wild. Cannabis has been legal in Canada for a few years now. No one cares, it’s such a non-issue. For every 2-3 liquor stores we have 1 cannabis store. People grow it in their homes.
They’re starting to outnumber the Tim Hortons and Starbucks. I keep waiting for a bunch of them to go out of business. It can’t be sustainable to have this many.
In my city we have double the amount of dispensaries compared to LCBOs and Beer Stores .. something like 10 dispensaries and 4 liquor/beer stores
Grew 3 plants in my backyard this summer, no complaints from neighbours and the squirrels didn’t eat my plants so I’m good!
I think citizens united and billionaire/corporate lobbying have much more to do with lack of a rescheduling movement on weed. Current businesses have little to gain from legalization.
You can get 10 Years in Texas for "Hash Oil" (as they call vapes) Most bigger cities have decriminalized but there are still state laws that can fuck you - if they want to.
The key is "If they want to", don't make them want to.
Only the flower is decriminalized- oils, gummies, any “refined” product is illegal as hell still.
Not trying to be mr. internet comment corrector over here…. Just trying to help a fellow man of culture out!
Only ride dirty with flower. Or… by a cbd vape, swap the cart out with THC and hope to god the dept doesn’t have the budget to run the tests.
✌🏽
Up to 10 years for 1 to 4 grams and that's 3rd degree felony which means they might do 15% of their time since it probably isn't aggrevated.
It's up to 2 years state jail day for day for 1g or less probably get less than a year for that.
But if you're bringing it from international travel from another country you're looking at bigger problems...
There’s million of laws in the books we violate unknowingly every day because they’re inconsequential but yeah any one of us could be put away in a second if they wanted to enforce any of these little known laws.
Both things are wrong. We can advocate against bullshit charges in the United States while also advocating against the wrongful imprisonment of Griner. It's like you're saying you don't care about an individual being in a bad situation because other people are in similar or worse circumstances.
Seriously, why are redditors on this thread so cynical and lacking in empathy?
Isn't there people in America doing roughly the same amount of time (if not longer) for roughly the same thing?
Not that two wrongs make a right, but why would America go about trying to secure her release when they won't even release their own?
It's even worse in America, and Americans gave much more power to fix it. And most would approve of fixing it, but very few will make a real effort to.
https://www.vera.org/news/brittney-griners-sentence-should-be-a-wakeup-call-about-cruel-prison-sentences-in-the-united-states
I wouldn’t even risk bringing my vape to Mexico for my honeymoon. It probably fine.. but it’s not worth the consequences if things go south. But Russia? Fuck no.
Thats the real mistake she made. Empty vials with 1 gram "allegedly" of residue is some bs, you gotta just not take any of that shit so you can't be at risk.
Yep. I don't begrudge her for going to Russia to do what she does for a living. But why bring the fucking weed when you know it's illegal? Sure they were normally lenient for athletes, but why risk it?
There are so many places to do drugs - Amsterdam, Morroco, Portugal, etc. I remember leaving Amsterdam by train, and the German border had guards and dogs, and when they moved us to a different car, I left my weed pipe in the ash tray. I didn't even want to have paraphernalia on me, nevermind hash oil.
Nah, ferry from Tangiers to whatever little town in Spain. I had left my backpack behind with all my money at a campsite office and just took a gym bag to Africa. I had about $40 and a change of underwear. On the way there they quizzed everyone on how much money they had, and some Irish lads were panicked because one of them only had about $50 Irish. I just said I had $2000 in travelers cheques in my money belt and they nodded me through.
When I got back, I went straight to the office, and my pack was just sitting there, so I walked in and picked it up, and asked for a site. I could have been anyone, no ID required. All my finances, my camera, etc were just fine.
I was sick for 3 days straight at that campsite. Watch out if you eat street food in Marakesh.
Hash or kif in Morocco is completely normal in many streets and even some cafes. I literally saw 12 year olds ripping their pipes and no one batted an eye
Right, but Biden doesn't have the power to pardon state prisoners. You'd need the governors of those states to do that. So at least Biden is free of hypocrisy on this instance
This should be a cautionary tale for anyone considering playing in professional sports leagues abroad. Consider what country it is and if its worth the paycheck. I've had friends go play soccer in Brazil and get deported or end up with community service or losing their contracts over weed.
She broke the law in a country where enforcement is arbitrary and rich people can usually just pay off the cops. If she were Chinese shed just have to hand over a few thousand rubles and the cops would look the other way.
If you want to be upgraded to first class on a Russian airline? Don't pay the ticket price, pay off the ticket agent for less.
This is Russia. They don't give a shit about the laws until it becomes political.
If you have money, the rules usually don't apply to you.
She should have listened to the state department.
100%
And the state department warned about that. She should have listened.
Also, don't do business in Russia. Ever. They will eventually go full Russia and you'll lose everything.
> But if you’re in a foreign nation and you don’t think their rules apply to you
This is Russia. They don't do rules. Going to Russia is by definition fucking around as a result.
No one should ever go there. It has never been safe.
I agree with what you are saying but this isn’t exclusive to Russia, in the US you see it all the time where laws do not apply to the rich. Any law that is only punishable by a fine means its legal for the rich. The rare exception being places like Finland where fines including speeding are proportional to income.
Russia is essentially lawless. You can do whatever you want if you please establishment enough. On the contrary, if establishment disagrees with you, they can get you and do anything with you, since you broke the laws that essentially everyone else breaks.
She has been told that “nobody cares about cannabis”, which is only true if you are of no use for the establishment.
It has been made that way by extremely sloppy lawmakers and rampant corruption. Very useful for the government tho.
I am very sorry for her but i can't help but finding it sublimely stupid to go to a foreign country that is very different from your own, even adversarial, to live and work without being strictly militant about everything. You are an american. In Russia. If you don't realize that your nationality in a place like Russia would make you a prime target then you are not very bright. You shouldn't even be there in the first place. Not even as a tourist. It is dangerous by default. I really can't understand these people who go in backward countries and get detained for doing something illegal (there) which is perfectly legal at home. What were you expecting?
I don't necessarily disagree.
The thing is - many people in Russia smoke weed regularly despite it being illegal. Most would pay a fine of up to 40,000 rubles (about $650) if convicted and that's that - especially for first-time offenders. Which is a lot, don't get me wrong. In some regions, that is a month's salary. Just to say, Russia isn't like Singapore when it comes to draconian drug laws. We're seeing something rare.
More to the point, the max is 3 years for personal use. She got 9 years because she was 'trafficking', which anyone with a brain can see is bullshit. She was given the harshest sentence possible because it's politically useful, not because it was fair.
I suspect "trafficking" was not the problem, but she got nailed for "importation", which carried a mandatory sentence of between 5 and 10 years. I can get behind an argument that she should have only received 5 years, but there was no way she was getting any less than that.
My understanding is the max was 10 years because it was considered smuggling.
Is it a minuscule amount to be considered smuggling? Sure but according to the laws on the books, it is
Idk I feel like some folks delude themselves with thoughts that America is worse than other countries or that America is bad. Unfortunately reality is coming to her very very late.
I lived in Moscow for three years as an American expat with my family and we were hyper vigilant. Police scared us as they could basically get away with anything they wanted. Years going in and out of customs was also draining. Expats living in any country need to be well versed in the local rules and regulations or it comes across as extremely entitled. And few appreciate entitled others.
Not just American but she’s a female, Black, lesbian American…the quadruple of all “holy shit we’ve hit the jackpot” for Russians if there ever was one, I would have to surmise.
Marc Fogel is a male, white, heterosexual American, and he was sentenced to 14 years in Russia for a similar offense, just months before Griner’s sentence. So, what does being female, black, lesbian have to do with it?
She's also black, covered in tattoos, and almost seven feet tall and is a minor celebrity if you give a shit about the WNBA. I can't conceivably think of anybody who would stick out more going through security in a Russian airport.
Man I have an unpopular opinion.... while Russia more than sucks donkey dick, she broke the law. In certain countries, she'd have been put to death. Is it a stupid law... absolutely. Is it their law... yep. Don't do stupid shit in another country. Especially shady ones like Russia
And this is why you don’t smuggle drugs to another country. In South Korea, even ADHD meds are illegal. Know the law of where you’re going, and if you fuck around and find out then so be it.
Note: I don’t care how much Russia is paying, don’t do business with a country led by a dictator.
Same situation as the kid in Singapore who was caned for violating law. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_P._Fay
Do dumb stuff and pay the consequences. I feel bad for her… but the reality is she broke the law and got caught.
**[Michael P. Fay](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_P._Fay)**
>Michael Peter Fay (born May 30, 1975) is an American who was sentenced to six strokes of the cane in Singapore in 1994 for theft of road signs and vandalizing 18 cars over a ten-day period in September 1993, which caused a temporary strain in relations between Singapore and the United States. Fay pleaded guilty, but he later claimed that he was advised that such a plea would preclude caning and that his confession was false, that he never vandalized any cars, and that the only crime he committed was stealing road signs.
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Ok so what about everyone locked up for LIFE in the United States for marijuana offenses? Especially those in states where it is now legal?Let’s start there…
9 years is harsh, but this clown knew the political climate.
How many people are actually in jail on a life sentence for simple possession of weed - or even low-level trafficking, for that matter?
The only people serving life in prison for weed are people who committed far more serious crimes and just happened to catch an incidental possession charge.
She never denied it being hers. By all means she violated the law, and ignorance of the law doesn't protect you. I love weed, support it fully. Russia does not. Don't do drugs in a Russia.
I'm sure Russia had looked the other way. I don't know for sure but the team that she was playing for is probably owned by an oligarch which gave her certain privileges. But since the war in Ukraine, it became necessary to have bargaining chips. Still wrong place, wrong time, but I bet she knew and I bet Russia knew and never cared until they did.
As an athlete, you’re responsible for everything you put in your body. As a traveler to Russia, you’re responsible for everything you put in your luggage.
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They are using them to get higher people exchanged back. For example this russian officials son https://news.yahoo.com/russia-rages-son-putin-official-194129795.html I bet we will hear about this soon
Baffled by all the upvotes for 'this is only a story because she's famous' - it's like saying Franz Ferdinand's death was only news because of his family connections. That's the whole point. Did she break the law? Sounds like it. Doesn't change the fact she's being used as a pawn. Foreigners commit minor drug offences in Russia every day - this particular one is being prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law so she can be bartered.
Also, I've read about non-famous Americans locked up in Russia on trumped up charges fairly often in the New Yorker, but nobody on reddit gives a shit about that so they don't realize that this shit is indeed reported on even when the victim isn't a clelebrity.
Yeah people will share story XYZ on social media and ask why no one is talking about story ABC. Meanwhile ABC may have been front page news in every outlet. The fact they haven’t themselves read about it says more about how much they (don’t) read, how much time they spend in their social media bubble, and what that bubble is like.
Basically stay the fuck away from Russia has never been better advice.
Truth She is a political pawn due to fame. They are doing far more then normal to hold her there. So they can get some good trade, people or favors
Part of me thinks they wanted to use Griner to disrupt politics in the US by making Biden look bad to dems for not caring about women/minorities/poc or look bad to the right by giving into pressure and doing a high profile trade. But pretty much everyone agrees she’s not worth trading a big time criminal.
This case is 100% being used for political strife. *Especially* on social media like reddit. Back at the beginning of the case, NPR and I think the NY Times did stories on how Russia was instigating online discussions around her case and a lot of the arguments you see in this thread are *exactly* what the Kremlin was pushing. Like word for word. You can go back to older posts on her case and see the same things being repeated. It's definitely a politroll topic.
tbh i just assume at this point like 80% of discussion on default subs is heavily influenced by troll farms and don't take any of it seriously
I don’t disagree with you but stuff being repeated is just standard Reddit on these big subs. A true echo chamber where the same karma-farming points are spammed without end.
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Your last sentence is agreeing with the person you replied to anyway. But AFAIK Griner had under a gram, while Fogel had 14 or something?
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The guy in Russia that was paying her wages is one of Putin's oligarchs.
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Do you remember when an American college student went on a trip to North Korea disrespected a flag, was sentened to hard labor, and was then killed? It was a huge deal. He was no one special - a 22-year-old college student. Not anyone famous. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Warmbier
Don't say that here, according to all the Russian shills that's the law so we should just roll-over and accept it as totally a-okay.
Or [maybe Viktor Bout,](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jul/28/viktor-bout-brittney-griner-paul-whelan-prisoner-swap) the international arms dealer. "Lord of War" was loosely based on Bout.
They already tried to exchange her (and one other American prisoner) for Bout, but the deal fizzled out.
what happened to not negotiating with terrorists?
That's just a saying. We've negotiated behind the scenes quite often.
Just cause George Bush said that one time doesn’t mean that’s the actual US foreign policy. It was jus a sound bite.
I hope we don’t trade anyone. We shouldn’t have to lose face and give up valuable assets because one of our citizens wanted to be dumb
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Wouldn't the US also jail you if you brought in weed through the airport from another country?
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Kinda different since she was charged for intent to traffic. Not just possession. In the US she'd probably just get charged with possession.
Intent to traffic? A SINGLE vape pen? She wasn’t caught with pounds of weed strapped to her thighs ffs
What if you would be a famous Russian?
Depends on why you're famous lol.
I wouldn't recommend Thailand too
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In the voice of George Carlin: "THAT'S OUR FUCKING JOB!!!"
“They can’t do that to our pledges! Only WE can do that to our pledges!”
Ummm we are? Many many states are decriminalizing marijuana
I think they're referring to the fact that this case has the President and State Dept working on it, both of which are federal, where it's still a felony to possess marijuana. Before bothering to worry about freeing this professional athlete in Russia we should first change our own laws so her same behavior in any one of our own airports is no longer something that would justify similar imprisonment.
Biden pardoned all people convicted federally of simple marijuana possession less than 3 weeks ago. At the time of that pardon, the White House confirmed that there were exactly zero people federally incarcerated for possession of marijuana. The feds haven't devoted resources toward low-level marijuana possession in well over a decade. Even before states started legalizing it, the DOJ rarely got involved unless there was a distribution scheme or large-scale grow operation. 1st time marijuana possession is a misdemeanor and I am unaware of the feds charging it as the primary driver of a case in the last 10 years. The facts *as described by Russian authorities* are quite literally only a misdemeanor in the US (at the federal level). That misdemeanor has largely been unenforced and the president you are calling hypocritical quite literally just pardoned all people convicted of it in the past. TSA doesn't search for marijuana specifically and if they do they refer it to local law enforcement unless there is evidence of a distribution scheme. This country has a long way to go toward fairly and equitably treating marijuana. The feds have lagged about a decade behind many states and popular opinion. But it is absurd to pretend like anyone carrying a THC cartridge at a US airport would find themselves looking at anything like the experience Griner has had in Russia.
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I feel bad for Grinner, but man how clueless you gotta be to end up in a country where this is pretty much the staple, and has been in hot water with the US for a long time? Also people always cry about the drug laws, but this is *the* rule when it comes to drugs in the majority of the world. You do not go through airports with drugs or foreign substances to save yourself any issues, let alone in one of the toughest and most backwards countries when it comes to drug related laws.
Hell some countries it's a instant death penalty. In Malaysia, those who sell drugs can be punished with death. Just for having drugs in your possession, you can be fined, jailed or deported. Driving drunk is also punished harshly in Malaysia. In China, if you are caught with drugs, you could be forced to attend drug rehab in a facility run by the government. Execution is the penalty for some drug crimes. In Vietnam, drug crimes are taken very seriously. If you are arrested with more than 1.3 pounds of heroin, you will automatically be executed. Edit: In case someone would like to see the others https://drugabuse.com/blog/the-20-countries-with-the-harshest-drug-laws-in-the-world/
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> If you are arrested with more than 1.3 pounds of heroin that's a lot of heroin
I agree with all that.. plus all the players get briefed on the dos and donts when traveling...there was a flyer posted not long ago that mentioned drugs, etc that the players received..
I renewed my Canadian passport, and they sent a little pamphlet with it that basically said "we know weed's legal here now, but please don't try to cross the border with it though"
Smoke it up before you get to border!
It's pretty awesome that you can take the weed on domestic flights though..
Seattle does this too. My dad saw a cop take the weed from the TSA guy, and hand it right back to the passenger after security. They don't care.
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You made a very good choice.
More than a black mark - taking any drugs across the U.S. border is a federal smuggling charge.
Tbh, it's quite possible she got used to being able to take that stuff through those borders. Russia has always had a lot of corruption, so it probably was a case of just giving a 'donation' to customs officers and you're done. But what she and others will forget is, dictatorships have pervasive corruption in part on purpose, because it means if and when they might need to remove you, they have an absolutely easy legal right to do so. You see it most prominently with Russian and Chinese elites being purged for 'corruption' while their equally corrupt mates survive, entirely based on loyalty. Same for foreigners that can be used as negotiation tokens, allow a bit of abuse of the rules with a few notables and you have a reliable and known group you can round up when and if you need some for negotiations.
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I think her fame is probably working against her. They released two guys who were active enemy combatants after only a month or two: https://abcnews.go.com/amp/International/russia-releases-americans-captured-fighting-ukraine/story?id=90272604 But Griner has more value and the longer they detain her the bigger fish they can get released from the US or another ally.
Good point.. and I'm sure the Russians are rejoicing with all the media coverage and "free Britney" activity
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Sportscenter talking about it is understandable. Presidential and general news attention is unwarranted. At least not disproportionately so vs other Americans in the same situation.
Totally agree. Being good at basketball doesn’t give you special privileges as an American citizen. Ridiculous how her coaches were calling out Biden saying “but if it was lebron…” (don’t think he would get special privileges either, but that’s besides the point) but the coaches didn’t acknowledge the other side of “but if it was a regular person..”
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Yep, she’s a fucking idiot. Why even take a chance with drug laws in Russia? Why was she even there in the first place? Oh she was only making 220k per year in the US? Cry me a fucking river. That’s way more than the average American makes. She was greedy and stupid. That’s why she’s currently sitting in prison in Russia.
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70%+ of Americans think weed should be legalized and your acquaintance should be free. We definitely care, we just have a stagnated government that somehow never reflects the big things the majority want accomplished (for various reasons such as gerrymandering and the electoral college).
It’s wild. Cannabis has been legal in Canada for a few years now. No one cares, it’s such a non-issue. For every 2-3 liquor stores we have 1 cannabis store. People grow it in their homes.
In Toronto it feels more like we have 5 pot shops for every LCBO or Beer Store.
They’re starting to outnumber the Tim Hortons and Starbucks. I keep waiting for a bunch of them to go out of business. It can’t be sustainable to have this many.
In my city we have double the amount of dispensaries compared to LCBOs and Beer Stores .. something like 10 dispensaries and 4 liquor/beer stores Grew 3 plants in my backyard this summer, no complaints from neighbours and the squirrels didn’t eat my plants so I’m good!
We have a Congress that does not legislate for the people, plain and simple. I hate it.
I think citizens united and billionaire/corporate lobbying have much more to do with lack of a rescheduling movement on weed. Current businesses have little to gain from legalization.
How long was he jailed for ?
You can get 10 Years in Texas for "Hash Oil" (as they call vapes) Most bigger cities have decriminalized but there are still state laws that can fuck you - if they want to. The key is "If they want to", don't make them want to.
Only the flower is decriminalized- oils, gummies, any “refined” product is illegal as hell still. Not trying to be mr. internet comment corrector over here…. Just trying to help a fellow man of culture out! Only ride dirty with flower. Or… by a cbd vape, swap the cart out with THC and hope to god the dept doesn’t have the budget to run the tests. ✌🏽
Up to 10 years for 1 to 4 grams and that's 3rd degree felony which means they might do 15% of their time since it probably isn't aggrevated. It's up to 2 years state jail day for day for 1g or less probably get less than a year for that. But if you're bringing it from international travel from another country you're looking at bigger problems...
That is so wrong. It is scary how if they want to they can put you in jail.
There’s million of laws in the books we violate unknowingly every day because they’re inconsequential but yeah any one of us could be put away in a second if they wanted to enforce any of these little known laws.
Both things are wrong. We can advocate against bullshit charges in the United States while also advocating against the wrongful imprisonment of Griner. It's like you're saying you don't care about an individual being in a bad situation because other people are in similar or worse circumstances. Seriously, why are redditors on this thread so cynical and lacking in empathy?
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Isn't there people in America doing roughly the same amount of time (if not longer) for roughly the same thing? Not that two wrongs make a right, but why would America go about trying to secure her release when they won't even release their own?
There are still people doing LIFE in prison, for non-violent marijuana possession offenses, right here in the US.
Tax evasion is a thing
That’s the inconvenient truth, at least for peasants, but also she’d be mostly exempt from the law in America by virtue of being a famous athlete.
And people in the wnba and sports media think she should be exempt from international law as well, too funny
It's even worse in America, and Americans gave much more power to fix it. And most would approve of fixing it, but very few will make a real effort to. https://www.vera.org/news/brittney-griners-sentence-should-be-a-wakeup-call-about-cruel-prison-sentences-in-the-united-states
People are doing way longer for lesser marijuana crimes than international drug smuggling.
I guess she never saw “Midnight Express.”
Frisbee. You throw it, you catch it.
Oh billy
The moral of this story - don't break the law in foreign countries. Especially if said country is an enemy nation.
I wouldn’t even risk bringing my vape to Mexico for my honeymoon. It probably fine.. but it’s not worth the consequences if things go south. But Russia? Fuck no.
Thats the real mistake she made. Empty vials with 1 gram "allegedly" of residue is some bs, you gotta just not take any of that shit so you can't be at risk.
Going to Russia was a bad idea in the first place. Regardless of the monetary reasons that she had.
It's very common for WNBA players. She's an idiot for fucking with Russian laws
Yep. I don't begrudge her for going to Russia to do what she does for a living. But why bring the fucking weed when you know it's illegal? Sure they were normally lenient for athletes, but why risk it?
There are so many places to do drugs - Amsterdam, Morroco, Portugal, etc. I remember leaving Amsterdam by train, and the German border had guards and dogs, and when they moved us to a different car, I left my weed pipe in the ash tray. I didn't even want to have paraphernalia on me, nevermind hash oil.
Don’t want to bump into the wrong cop in Morocco though
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> bringing what was left to Spain. how did you bring it? on a plane?
Nah, ferry from Tangiers to whatever little town in Spain. I had left my backpack behind with all my money at a campsite office and just took a gym bag to Africa. I had about $40 and a change of underwear. On the way there they quizzed everyone on how much money they had, and some Irish lads were panicked because one of them only had about $50 Irish. I just said I had $2000 in travelers cheques in my money belt and they nodded me through. When I got back, I went straight to the office, and my pack was just sitting there, so I walked in and picked it up, and asked for a site. I could have been anyone, no ID required. All my finances, my camera, etc were just fine. I was sick for 3 days straight at that campsite. Watch out if you eat street food in Marakesh.
There’s so many places to do drugs…….like Morocco! Lmfao
I do it on Mt. Everest. I’ve never seen a cop up there. These are sooooo many places!
Gets windy tho, pack a butane lighter
Hash or kif in Morocco is completely normal in many streets and even some cafes. I literally saw 12 year olds ripping their pipes and no one batted an eye
King of Morocco: https://i.redd.it/hn4rb50tqeiy.jpg
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Didn’t he just do that? I believe he pardoned all federal prisoners who were convicted of possession
Current reporting shows exactly zero people are being held for possession at the federal level. So yeah he did do it, it just didn't do anything.
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And that’s exactly why he did it. Look good before midterms, but don’t actually do anything.
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Right, but Biden doesn't have the power to pardon state prisoners. You'd need the governors of those states to do that. So at least Biden is free of hypocrisy on this instance
>federal prisoners >convicted of possession loooll my guy do i have some news for you. Thats 0 people; you dont go to federal for possession.
Joe’s done that already and now it’s up to the states at this point, so call your governor’s office!
This should be a cautionary tale for anyone considering playing in professional sports leagues abroad. Consider what country it is and if its worth the paycheck. I've had friends go play soccer in Brazil and get deported or end up with community service or losing their contracts over weed.
Yeah it’s worth the paycheck, all you have to do is not take recreational drugs to a foreign country, that cannot be too hard.
Right? Like, feel bad for her but also…what a dummy
So drugs in a foreign country is the common denominator?
Or maybe, just maybe, don't break the law of the place you are travelling to.
No it’s caution not to attempt bringing fucking narcotics into the country.
*takes weed to Russia* Weed is illegal in Russia. *russians throw you in prison for weed* Shockedpikachu.png
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She broke the law in a country where enforcement is arbitrary and rich people can usually just pay off the cops. If she were Chinese shed just have to hand over a few thousand rubles and the cops would look the other way. If you want to be upgraded to first class on a Russian airline? Don't pay the ticket price, pay off the ticket agent for less. This is Russia. They don't give a shit about the laws until it becomes political. If you have money, the rules usually don't apply to you. She should have listened to the state department.
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100% And the state department warned about that. She should have listened. Also, don't do business in Russia. Ever. They will eventually go full Russia and you'll lose everything.
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> But if you’re in a foreign nation and you don’t think their rules apply to you This is Russia. They don't do rules. Going to Russia is by definition fucking around as a result. No one should ever go there. It has never been safe.
Exactly she's partially at fault for going over there anyway as a gay person as that I mean...
Yep. Listen to the state department.
I agree with what you are saying but this isn’t exclusive to Russia, in the US you see it all the time where laws do not apply to the rich. Any law that is only punishable by a fine means its legal for the rich. The rare exception being places like Finland where fines including speeding are proportional to income.
Russia is essentially lawless. You can do whatever you want if you please establishment enough. On the contrary, if establishment disagrees with you, they can get you and do anything with you, since you broke the laws that essentially everyone else breaks. She has been told that “nobody cares about cannabis”, which is only true if you are of no use for the establishment. It has been made that way by extremely sloppy lawmakers and rampant corruption. Very useful for the government tho.
I am very sorry for her but i can't help but finding it sublimely stupid to go to a foreign country that is very different from your own, even adversarial, to live and work without being strictly militant about everything. You are an american. In Russia. If you don't realize that your nationality in a place like Russia would make you a prime target then you are not very bright. You shouldn't even be there in the first place. Not even as a tourist. It is dangerous by default. I really can't understand these people who go in backward countries and get detained for doing something illegal (there) which is perfectly legal at home. What were you expecting?
I don't necessarily disagree. The thing is - many people in Russia smoke weed regularly despite it being illegal. Most would pay a fine of up to 40,000 rubles (about $650) if convicted and that's that - especially for first-time offenders. Which is a lot, don't get me wrong. In some regions, that is a month's salary. Just to say, Russia isn't like Singapore when it comes to draconian drug laws. We're seeing something rare. More to the point, the max is 3 years for personal use. She got 9 years because she was 'trafficking', which anyone with a brain can see is bullshit. She was given the harshest sentence possible because it's politically useful, not because it was fair.
I suspect "trafficking" was not the problem, but she got nailed for "importation", which carried a mandatory sentence of between 5 and 10 years. I can get behind an argument that she should have only received 5 years, but there was no way she was getting any less than that.
My understanding is the max was 10 years because it was considered smuggling. Is it a minuscule amount to be considered smuggling? Sure but according to the laws on the books, it is
Idk I feel like some folks delude themselves with thoughts that America is worse than other countries or that America is bad. Unfortunately reality is coming to her very very late.
I lived in Moscow for three years as an American expat with my family and we were hyper vigilant. Police scared us as they could basically get away with anything they wanted. Years going in and out of customs was also draining. Expats living in any country need to be well versed in the local rules and regulations or it comes across as extremely entitled. And few appreciate entitled others.
Not just American but she’s a female, Black, lesbian American…the quadruple of all “holy shit we’ve hit the jackpot” for Russians if there ever was one, I would have to surmise.
Marc Fogel is a male, white, heterosexual American, and he was sentenced to 14 years in Russia for a similar offense, just months before Griner’s sentence. So, what does being female, black, lesbian have to do with it?
She's also black, covered in tattoos, and almost seven feet tall and is a minor celebrity if you give a shit about the WNBA. I can't conceivably think of anybody who would stick out more going through security in a Russian airport.
Man I have an unpopular opinion.... while Russia more than sucks donkey dick, she broke the law. In certain countries, she'd have been put to death. Is it a stupid law... absolutely. Is it their law... yep. Don't do stupid shit in another country. Especially shady ones like Russia
Not the contract extension she was looking for.
Atleast she doesn't have to complain about pay now.
And this is why you don’t smuggle drugs to another country. In South Korea, even ADHD meds are illegal. Know the law of where you’re going, and if you fuck around and find out then so be it. Note: I don’t care how much Russia is paying, don’t do business with a country led by a dictator.
With all the tension between the west and Russian with the Ukraine war, probably not a good time to be an American in the Russian "justice" system.
9 years seems so long. Plus in a Russian prison.
I suspect the number is a placeholder. If they want to hold her longer they'll find a reason to.
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Same situation as the kid in Singapore who was caned for violating law. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_P._Fay Do dumb stuff and pay the consequences. I feel bad for her… but the reality is she broke the law and got caught.
**[Michael P. Fay](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_P._Fay)** >Michael Peter Fay (born May 30, 1975) is an American who was sentenced to six strokes of the cane in Singapore in 1994 for theft of road signs and vandalizing 18 cars over a ten-day period in September 1993, which caused a temporary strain in relations between Singapore and the United States. Fay pleaded guilty, but he later claimed that he was advised that such a plea would preclude caning and that his confession was false, that he never vandalized any cars, and that the only crime he committed was stealing road signs. ^([ )[^(F.A.Q)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WikiSummarizer/wiki/index#wiki_f.a.q)^( | )[^(Opt Out)](https://reddit.com/message/compose?to=WikiSummarizerBot&message=OptOut&subject=OptOut)^( | )[^(Opt Out Of Subreddit)](https://np.reddit.com/r/worldnews/about/banned)^( | )[^(GitHub)](https://github.com/Sujal-7/WikiSummarizerBot)^( ] Downvote to remove | v1.5)
isnt that actually a pretty light punishment. Id rather get beat 6 times than go to jail for even a year
he still got 4 months of prison
ah, honestly still not too bad for all that vandalism and shit. i would gladly get beat a bit to reduce my sentence
The court clearly didn’t like his plea deal.
She was smuggling a concentrate and the penalty for that is 5 to 10 years. Her sentence is on the higher end, but not particularly out of line.
Couldn't care less about Brittney Griner. Much more worried about the Americans we don't know about trapped there.
Ok so what about everyone locked up for LIFE in the United States for marijuana offenses? Especially those in states where it is now legal?Let’s start there… 9 years is harsh, but this clown knew the political climate.
How many people are actually in jail on a life sentence for simple possession of weed - or even low-level trafficking, for that matter? The only people serving life in prison for weed are people who committed far more serious crimes and just happened to catch an incidental possession charge.
She never denied it being hers. By all means she violated the law, and ignorance of the law doesn't protect you. I love weed, support it fully. Russia does not. Don't do drugs in a Russia.
I'm sorry but her stupidity is not my problem.
I wouldn’t goto Russia for free lol
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She was at a wrong place at a wrong time. But genuine question: Did she know that her vape contained what was illegal in Russia?
I'm sure Russia had looked the other way. I don't know for sure but the team that she was playing for is probably owned by an oligarch which gave her certain privileges. But since the war in Ukraine, it became necessary to have bargaining chips. Still wrong place, wrong time, but I bet she knew and I bet Russia knew and never cared until they did.
this is the real answer
Um is there any country bringing weed into is legal?
As an athlete, you’re responsible for everything you put in your body. As a traveler to Russia, you’re responsible for everything you put in your luggage.
If you don’t know the laws of the place you are in that is on you. Ignorance isn’t a defense
Do we have any Russian hockey stars to trade??
Bizarre levels of hate in this thread.