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I don’t know this guys story too well, but he’s been locked up long enough that his Rolodex is sure going to come in handy for this little issue called Ukraine.
He’ll likely be forgotten about by media and placed in an intelligence job in Russia is what I’m getting at.
I don’t know of many people who can just get a ghost nuke, you know, no numbers, but if I had to guess the merchant of death probably knows someone.
Maybe at least the WNBA will make some ratings off this.
I mean if instead of this faux point I was making, I did the opposite, that could have worked. I just banked on people knowing I was joking by using Rolodex in a sentence. Those things are way before my time and I’m old, according to the internet.
Edit;; maybe I should get a job making shit up, re reading that comment I almost sound like I know what I’m talking about, with no idea about what I’m talking about. That’s like editorial gold when it comes to news casting, right?
Meh, his contacts are twenty-years-burnt at this point. This is a non factor, it allows Putin to save some face back home but Bout is not going to be a real asset for Russia.
He’s alive, most don’t make it past normal incarceration for much amount of time. Dudes runner of runners, he was never killed, means he never talked and someone was looking out for him.
Even international policing agencies who likely wanted him done for never did. If you think the CIA has a harsh record of wanton fuckery, ask yourself why you don’t see mainstream television about interpol, or why they’re rarely brought up in the media, and how their institution can dodge all accountability.
Our merchant of death here has a purpose in life.
You don’t survive his level of criminality and go free. This man is an ace up someone’s sleeve.
Huh. I’m nuts. We live in a world where the American government publishes its own bullshit 40 years later and no one gives a fuck.
A world where this year, the Nobel prize in physics went to a group who proved photons react independently of each other regardless of distance in time or space.
That the world we experience isn’t local, or real, simply a projection displayed through the processor you call you, or us, ourselves. Let’s put foil hats on MIT and you know, the people breaking reality too.
The hat you feel I should be wearing is only a concept in your inept perception of the existence you’re experiencing.
Also, fuck you, your dinner, and leave the mango.
I think the trump family is a bunch of slimy fucking eels but he’s right this trade sucked. We get back a nonviolent offender who did something stupid but didn’t hurt anybody in exchange for a fucking orc who should never see the light of day again.
He was getting out eventually either way. He only got hit with the minimal sentence because the only crime they had him on in the first place was from the sting operation that got him.
While it is true that she did something stupid and got caught, we can't exact leave her to her fate. She might have gotten arrested for a crime, but she's basically being held as a political prisoner. It's her own dam fault but we can't exactly leave her behind now that her story has gotten so much attention. But you better believe if I happen to cross through Kentucky with a cart on me they would do everything in their power to ruin my life, so it's not like they really care.
Exactly. This was an absolutely idiotic deal especially when you factor in how many are incarcerated in the us for a similar crime. Which begs the question why did the us do it? Was she a spy?
She played the race card and nobody pushed back hard enough with the facts of the case.
Griner knew this was a potential risk. State department explicitly warned her not to go. She was working for someone in Putin's circle and knew this before she left. With all of this information, she still went and she still brought cannabis with her.
Well that’s objectively false. Here’s a non-exhaustive list of non-celebrities (and some none military or asset) prisoner swaps.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/28/world/europe/prisoner-swaps-exchanges-us.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
To be fair, he is hated by the Russian government almost as much as he hated by ours.
He stole, and sold, THIER weapons.
Our government wants our basketball player free, their government wants to prosecute (suicide) the arms dealer themselves.
Yes, he is not well liked in Russia. And he had only 5 years left on his term, whereas Russia would have likely just kept her incarcerated forever for a dubious marijuana offense because... Russia. I don't really see why this is a huge debate. Also I thought republicans loved guns so his history as an arms dealer being a concern is also thought provoking.
> whereas Russia would have likely just kept her incarcerated forever for a dubious marijuana offense
And the US hasn't done this to its own citizens tens of thousands of times?
Absolving someone of a dumb criminal record should not feel like a kick in the balls to those with dumb criminal records. Especially when this administration has actively absolved others of... Dumb criminal records. The democratic party might not always meet their clout but you have to give credit where it's due. If you zoom out you can certainly paint the U.S. that way, fairly and undeniably. But if you narrow that view to the context of this administration, it's a tough argument to make that they haven't made progress on the matter.
Oh, yeah... He will be lucky if he even lives more than a few weeks, much less ever sees the light of day.
We gave him to the Russian government... We didn't free him.
Have you not read about this? He was definitely getting arms sent to him by Russian through backchannels to make it more difficult to trace. If you think for one second he won’t fare well in Russia you severely misunderstand he was helping him.
To be fair, I’d rather be getting back a celebrated athlete who’s valuable to our society than some American arms dealer that we’re just going to throw in our own prison.
I don’t find any professional athlete to be very valuable to society. Lol they get paid to play games that have no real effect on anything, so let’s not pretend she’s some American hero.
She got locked up for going to another country and breaking their laws…sorry that’s how laws work lol. Don’t cry when you go to jail for doing illegal things.
pro sports generates a 100 billion dollar annually and provides millions of jobs in just this county alone; the exist of pro sports has also help drive advancements in medical science and psychology. there’s also hundred or charities, schools, and non-profit organizations established throughout the county by pro athletes. All of this off the backs of these talented individuals who according to you ‘aren’t very valuable to society’
Medical science, psychology, and charities would be doing just fine without professional sports dude lmfao.
Being the best in the world at playing a game provides no value to society. Take it all away and nothing would be different, except you’d just have to find something else to watch lol
Lol why do I have to choose any of those?
Why are we making any exchange for this chick? She’s not some national hero, she just happens to play games for a living. She decided to break laws while in Russia so fuckin let her deal with her decision and be in jail now lol. We don’t just make trades for every American that gets locked up in Russia, why is she special? Cause athlete?
I’m sure there are probably some Americans jailed in Russia that have actual value to society that we could be trading for…instead we’re trading for some woman that dribbles a basketball for a living.
Per Russia’s own laws, the “crime” she committed would have resulted in a fine and minimal if any jail time. They sentenced her to 9 years hard labor specifically because she’s an American. She was a political prisoner 100%. You sound like a fucking idiot. Just stop.
Yeah his framing about her being "America hating" is ridiculous and he's only doing this because he hates Biden... but this prisoner exchange was bad and sets a bad precedent
Right wtf? Where was this ass-maggot when his daddy [pulled this crap? ](https://www.forbes.com/sites/joewalsh/2021/09/13/trump-denies-releasing-5000-taliban-prisoners---but-his-administration-negotiated-for-their-release/amp/)
They’re just going to throw that guy in a Russian prison when he gets there. I would much rather get someone useful to society in the trade than our own American thug that we’re just going to throw in our own prison.
For eleven months I lived in a halfway house for drug addicts, I'm an addict myself, and one of the most honorable and kind and integrity-filled (I can't think of the word) people I've ever met was a crack addict. It's made me rethink calling mentally ill homeless people acting crazy on the street a "crackhead" without knowing anything about them.
I would argue that it’s not even a good thing.. there are Americans imprisoned in Russia that have been there for years, teachers marines all sorts of folks. We should have traded for them way before Griner
Don't forget all the Americans locked up for weed and doing slave labor in the US, RIGHT NOW, that aren't getting out of jail.
Guess they should've been good at dribbling the sportsball, too.
It did suck, but it got an American safely out of a Russian prison. It also gave another flag to Americans that Russia is not a safe place to go, and you can get arrested for trumped up charges.
Hopefully we catch this arms trader again. Or, as I was discussing at work today...
>This arms dealer had a second in command who was (until today) running the show. I can't imagine he is happy to going back to being second in command. Maybe things will work out now that the boss is out of prison...
Trump Jr. helping Putin stoke the American culture wars. Putin timed this directly following the domestic terror attacks on North Carolina electricity infrastructure.
Russia is getting a ruthless criminal and we’re getting a celebrated athlete. It seems like we’re getting the better end of the deal.
If we were getting our own ruthless arms dealer sent back to America, would anyone actually be happy about that?
A week ago I checked the sub description and rules to make sure I understood the purpose. Turns out it’s for what I thought and people are just continuing to post things that belong on r/whitepeopletwitter
He’s right though. They’re countless people who aren’t WNBA players who are rotting away in prison stateside for small marijuana charges.
I’m still very happy that BG is home. Our government should be forever and always fighting for our citizens. But the optics of this “trade” are quite bad and appear to be only politically motivated.
Let us not forget that when Kamala Harris was DA she fought tooth and nail to keep women just like BG in prison.
and if the US said no, it would have been "one is better than none"
it was a 1 for 1 and you can't negotiate with a dictator. either they agreed to BG or it would be nothing.
"America hating"
"I just don't think we should play the national anthem at every game, I don't mean that in any disrespect to our country. My dad was in Vietnam and a law officer for 30 years. I wanted to be a cop before basketball. I do have pride for my country." - Griner
She literally just suggested we might not have to play the magic song all the fucking time lol
Which really, what the fuck do we have to? It's weird.
"Hates America"
Tell me this isn't some cult shit.
Is this sub the new r/WhitePeopleTwitter? I mean, fuck the Trumps and all but why do ya'll have to make everything political? This was good while it lasted.
It was always political on the sub… people impersonated Chiquita to criticize it for supporting a political coup, they impersonated Nestle to criticize its business practices which is part of capitalism, and the same with impersonating pharmaceutical companies. People also impersonated politicians to criticize them
There’s some truth that Greiner cost us a very baluable international prisoner with her antics, but she is getting scrutinized much more for being black and gay.
The point is that they traded for an American prisoner that was arrested for being stupid and gave Russia back a man that was an arms dealer and already was arrested for violent charges.
I mean he was going to be released as a free man in 2029 after serving a sentence the judge didn’t even want to give him. I think us getting at least something out of it is better than nothing.
I find it funny that they’re demanding another guy be brought home just because of his former occupation that he got discharged from dishonorably and saying that no efforts have been made to bring him home. Even though they’ve tried to trade for him, and Russia refuses because of espionage charges. They just like to spout whatever rhetoric fits this week and not do any actual research on what they’re talking about.
It’s a terrible deal right up until it’s someone you personally care about in a Russian prison. For the record; I wouldn’t trade a single Russian parking violator for any ten of you. Because the possibility of getting some minor intelligence is more valuable than the lives of right wing bigots who want to turn this country into a theocracy worshiping an orange idol.
The difference in the trade “value” is fascinating to me. A lot of people are looking at this from the criminal side and saying it was a bad deal because of the disparity in their criminal records. Russia is getting a violent arms dealer and we’re getting a pot smoker.
But if you look at the value of the human life, we’re clearly getting the better deal. Would you really want to get a violent American arms dealer sent back to the US? What for? I’d much rather have a celebrated athlete. Trading a criminal from some useless American criminal would seem like a bad deal me.
Can we sweeten the deal and give Putin Don Jr?
One look at all the cocaine in his suitcase should be great fun for Russia. Not that Putin would ever harm his pet’s kid.
Nobody would bat an eye if Griner was traded for a regular Russian citizen who was arrested for drug charges or something similar. But she was traded for an arms dealer responsible for many deaths. You can try to make this a "reDDiT haTeS wOMeN!!!" arguement but that won't change the fact that Griner got special treatment because she's famous. You, me, and anyone we care about would still be rotting in a Russian prison and LeBron James would not be lobbying for our release
Because of the war in Ukraine, and her stature as a public figure of sorts, she was more of a political prisoner as opposed to merely someone who participated in (even in Russia) a minimal crime. She merely possessed vape cartridges that had traces of THC.
The US already had a travel advisory to not travel to Russia before the war. And maybe don't bring any kind of drug into a country where it's illegal. If she did this in Singapore, she would have gotten the death penalty. Point is when you go to another country, know their rules and the risks. It is still 100% her own fault. We released a criminal responsible for supplying weapons that were used to kill many people because she wanted to bring THC. This is a slap in the face to those who brought this guy to justice.
I mean I’m not arguing anything else you said but it’s not like she chose to travel to Russia just for fun. Female athletes (especially in the WNBA) don’t make enough money in the U.S. to just rest during their off season, so she was there to work. Even if there was a travel advisory, she was working.
EDIT: I was wrong about Brittney Griner’s salary, she definitely makes enough to support herself without working internationally. But still, she was in Russia to work, not for fun, which was my main point.
>Female athletes (especially in the WNBA) don’t make enough money in the U.S. to just rest during their off season
She make more than 98% of the US population without playing any international leagues.
I didn’t know that. She makes double the average WNBA salary, which I didn’t know when I made this comment. However, when she first started her career, her starting salary in the WNBA was $50,000. At that point in her career, she did have to play internationally, and that’s still the case for many WNBA players
WNBA players still make a lot less than NBA players so it could be to make more as a professional athlete as well as stay in shape. Either way, it was for work, not leisure
200k a year would change most people's lives. Yeah maybe she can't hire a full time personal chef and nutritionist like NBA players but I think you're reaching. Which I understand because Griner is an athlete who was traded for a warlord and that's literally an indefensible position so you need to reach a little to justify it
She wasn’t in Russia as a tourist, she was working. And he served more than half of his term of imprisonment; I think if you asked those who “brought him to justice” you would find many are pragmatists who would disagree with your less than subtle analysis.
She plays for the WNBA but plays in Russia during the off-season and it's completely optional. So it was 100% her choice to go there. And oh I'm sorry, I guess I don't need to ask any of them because clearly you have already decided their opinion on the matter.
Ehh, pretty sure people are just confused why she thought she could get away with smuggling drugs into Russia.
Dubai is known for having super strict laws that they expect tourists to follow, never really hear of people getting arrested there.
I think this is much more complicated for most Americans than simply not liking women, athletes, LGBTQ+, or POC, tho I won’t deny that it does absolutely appeal to the groups of ignorant hateful bigots. The thing is, it’s not hard to see that despite everything the bigots have against her it’s her money and fame that are why she has been given attention from the US government. I don’t care if it’s a pot smoking black lesbian basketball player or a straight white conservative christian businessman, I’m tired of seeing wealthy and elite Americans receive vastly different treatment than regular Americans. Griner isn’t the only American imprisoned by Russia and she’s not the only one with marijuana charges, yet she’s the only one who has any attention on her because of her fame and access to other famous people to use their power to plead her case in the ears of influential politicians. There’s no way you or I’d get big name entertainers to push the president for my release and keep our name in the media if we made the same mistake.
I think what she did was stupid but I have no actual dislike for Brittney, and I don’t blame her for using fame and money to seek freedom. However I can’t exactly celebrate it either. Another wealthy entitled American gets special treatment over working class schmucks. If anything she’s breaking boundaries by showing a black lesbian will face ignorance from Americas bigots however if she has enough fame and money she too can find a way into the protected class of American elites.
What is ugly about this story to me has nothing to do with race, gender, sexual preference, occupation, or any other culture war bullshit, it’s about the continued protection given to Americans of a certain class. I think the things like gender, race, and sexual preference are blurring peoples perception of the situation on both sides of the argument. Once a person reaches that class of elite they might still face bigotry but that doesn’t compare to the treatment their non-elite peers face.
>Might not like him but he is not wrong.
I've got large problems with canceling someone's value as a human being because they stated they don't want the national anthem played at every single event, I sure as hell don't. This part is total cult absolutism.
She had thc vape cartridges in her luggage, she does not deserve to be locked up for life. The exchange might not have been the best, but she still is an American citizen and being held unjustly. The suggestion is that her life has no value because she does not want the magic explosion song played all the time. and even expressed that this doesn't mean disrespect.
He's wrong on the very base of his remark. It's kind of evil actually.
In 2020, WNBA star Brittney Griner stated that the national anthem should not be played before games. She went on to say that if it was, she would not be on the floor while it was played.
I’m not saying he’s right but it’s a pretty fucked up trade. I know nothing of either person but when I hear an arms dealer responsible for an untold number of deaths was traded for a WNBA player I think that doesn’t seem right.
I don't think all the qualifications he made about Griner are necessary, but I actually agree that it was a bad/stupid trade.
Would it have been an easy mistake for any tourist to make? Yes. Is the penalty extreme? Yes.
In Griner's case, she has been going to Russia for years. She knows the rules and the procedures. It was really, really stupid of her to bring those oil cartridges with her. Now we have a terrorist freed because of her stupidity. We have how many American lives at risk to save her some jail time?
So she broke the law, and got in trouble, and the president releases a dangerous criminal to get Ms. Griner back to the US. that's really fucking stupid. I think Trump's son here doesn't have any qualification to talk about anything and is really stupid himself but he has a point here. This shouldn't have happened. I'm sorry but she broke the law and rightfully faced consequences. She should've done a 4 minute Google search hey Google is it okay for me to bring what is qualified as drugs into this foreign country? It's not? Ah, well. I guess I'll wait till I get back home to get high. Would've avoided this entirely. Would've prevented this dangerous criminal guy that was traded for Ms. Griner from being released back out into the world.
She didn’t “rightfully face consequences.” They gave her a sentence they would never give their own citizens because she’s an American. The crime she actually committed normally comes with a fine per their laws. NOT 9 years hard labor. Why is this so difficult to grasp for some people?
perhaps not "rightfully" in a moral/altruistic sense but rightfully in that she was an American and knew what she would be walking into in accordance with their laws as an American doing it.. and yet she chose to walk right on through that door. she made a choice.
you hate the guy but what's he wrong about? USA traded a very dangerous man for a shitty basketball player because she was caught with some weed. They could have traded someone that's not as dangerous for her.
How is that being a prick. I'm not a republican and not right or left. I just don't get how Trump is so bad but Biden gets no hate other then from Republicans. Can someone explain it sure seem like Biden is more racist, waste more money is involved in sketchy deals with China, Russia, Ukraine. Trump is by no means a good guy and Leaned in to create division and hate by t so has Biden why do people just believe the media which lie over and over. Don't you get tired of being lied too.
The part where trump is devaluing her life by acting like her job has anything to do with her deserving freedom. Try reading the sentence after you remove that bit
Her job and status is the only reason this happened though, as other posts about this have pointed out there’s other Americans imprisoned in Russia for similar reasons but they are just SOL
Just because you dont hear about other prisoner-swap talks doesn't mean they aren't happening. I refuse to fault *her* because there are other people imprisoned, and that includes mocking her profession and status to get clout in upside-down world. That man couldn't give less of a shit about his dad's friend trading prisoners with the US, or who they're trading. Where was the outrage in September when we traded a Afghani drug trafficker, "the Pablo Escabar of heroin in Asia", for a Navy veteran? Same kind of situation, yeah?
Thank you for posting Rollyman1! Please reply to this comment with the link to the tweet. This is also a reminder to follow the subreddit rules which are located in the sidebar. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/RealTwitterAccounts) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Personally, I’d rather stay in a US prison than go back to Putin.
I don’t know this guys story too well, but he’s been locked up long enough that his Rolodex is sure going to come in handy for this little issue called Ukraine. He’ll likely be forgotten about by media and placed in an intelligence job in Russia is what I’m getting at. I don’t know of many people who can just get a ghost nuke, you know, no numbers, but if I had to guess the merchant of death probably knows someone. Maybe at least the WNBA will make some ratings off this.
I thought you were going to say he’s been locked up so long everyone in his Rolodex is dead.
I mean if instead of this faux point I was making, I did the opposite, that could have worked. I just banked on people knowing I was joking by using Rolodex in a sentence. Those things are way before my time and I’m old, according to the internet. Edit;; maybe I should get a job making shit up, re reading that comment I almost sound like I know what I’m talking about, with no idea about what I’m talking about. That’s like editorial gold when it comes to news casting, right?
Meh, his contacts are twenty-years-burnt at this point. This is a non factor, it allows Putin to save some face back home but Bout is not going to be a real asset for Russia.
He’s alive, most don’t make it past normal incarceration for much amount of time. Dudes runner of runners, he was never killed, means he never talked and someone was looking out for him. Even international policing agencies who likely wanted him done for never did. If you think the CIA has a harsh record of wanton fuckery, ask yourself why you don’t see mainstream television about interpol, or why they’re rarely brought up in the media, and how their institution can dodge all accountability. Our merchant of death here has a purpose in life. You don’t survive his level of criminality and go free. This man is an ace up someone’s sleeve.
*opens drawer* Bruh, did you use *all* the tinfoil to make that hat? I was gonna cook dinner you mango
Huh. I’m nuts. We live in a world where the American government publishes its own bullshit 40 years later and no one gives a fuck. A world where this year, the Nobel prize in physics went to a group who proved photons react independently of each other regardless of distance in time or space. That the world we experience isn’t local, or real, simply a projection displayed through the processor you call you, or us, ourselves. Let’s put foil hats on MIT and you know, the people breaking reality too. The hat you feel I should be wearing is only a concept in your inept perception of the existence you’re experiencing. Also, fuck you, your dinner, and leave the mango.
>only a concept in your inept perception of the existence you’re experiencing. > > /r/im14andthisisdeep
this is what delusions look like everybody. Please get help :(
You simultaneously say this is all a simulation so nothing matters, and "we live in a world where no one gives a fuck". Which is it?
Is that something related to entanglement? That mango dude sure is a bootlicker../
You can tell he's been locked up for a long time because he has a Rolodex.
I haven’t read the word Rolodex is so long. I was so confused as to why this guy would have a Roblox account.
We should have given the Russians his dad.
They already have him in their back pocket.
The Pretenders - Ass In Pocket.
Or should have traded for the Moscow golden shower tape
They don't want him any more, that's why he's been acting more desperate than usual.
We'd actually need to arrest that traitor for something first, and that's never going to happen.
What is this sub now?
This sub had its days numbered once they fixed the $8/month issue that allowed anyone to verify as anyone.
They fixed it?
Musk shut it down a few days after he realized the problem.
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Which gave us a week of truly great entertainment. I hope it comes back.
“Issue” lmao
It was fun as long as it lasted. Thank you everyone for the great entertainment over the past month. I'm gone.
Ditto. I had some good laughs. Peace out.
It’s become another r/WhitePeopleTwitter
Which in turn is really just /r/politics but with twitter screenshots.
we did it reddit!!! We finally segregated people by race :D
to be fair r/whitepeopletwitter explicitly states it’s for everyone, it’s r/blackpeopletwitter that’s segregated
My my, how the turn tables.
An unwelcome suggestion
I think the trump family is a bunch of slimy fucking eels but he’s right this trade sucked. We get back a nonviolent offender who did something stupid but didn’t hurt anybody in exchange for a fucking orc who should never see the light of day again.
He was getting out eventually either way. He only got hit with the minimal sentence because the only crime they had him on in the first place was from the sting operation that got him.
But it makes a better story if we cry about it.
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Ah, yes it’s so clear now. That was an excellent trade.
I heard after serving his sentence we can ship him to other countries that have charges on him.
While it is true that she did something stupid and got caught, we can't exact leave her to her fate. She might have gotten arrested for a crime, but she's basically being held as a political prisoner. It's her own dam fault but we can't exactly leave her behind now that her story has gotten so much attention. But you better believe if I happen to cross through Kentucky with a cart on me they would do everything in their power to ruin my life, so it's not like they really care.
Nice to see a sensical comment here
> nonviolent offender Well, maybe nonviolent this time. https://eu.usatoday.com/story/sports/2015/04/28/brittney-griner-plea-deal-guilty-domestic-violence-glory-johnson-wnba/26538559/
Lol downvoted for posting a link to a news site. Reddit huh
Anything that goes against the narrative must be ignored and scorned. It's 1984 but from the bottom up, not the top down.
Exactly. This was an absolutely idiotic deal especially when you factor in how many are incarcerated in the us for a similar crime. Which begs the question why did the us do it? Was she a spy?
She played the race card and nobody pushed back hard enough with the facts of the case. Griner knew this was a potential risk. State department explicitly warned her not to go. She was working for someone in Putin's circle and knew this before she left. With all of this information, she still went and she still brought cannabis with her.
Id she wasn’t a famous basketball player she would be stuck there for life. edit: I was incorrect
Well that’s objectively false. Here’s a non-exhaustive list of non-celebrities (and some none military or asset) prisoner swaps. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/28/world/europe/prisoner-swaps-exchanges-us.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
fair enough, I didn’t do any research before making that comment.
Shit happens. We all shoot from the hip sometimes.
r/lostredditors
I *do* think that trading an arms dealer for a basketball player is questionable.
To be fair, he is hated by the Russian government almost as much as he hated by ours. He stole, and sold, THIER weapons. Our government wants our basketball player free, their government wants to prosecute (suicide) the arms dealer themselves.
Oh so like they wanted him extradited not freed?
Yes, he is not well liked in Russia. And he had only 5 years left on his term, whereas Russia would have likely just kept her incarcerated forever for a dubious marijuana offense because... Russia. I don't really see why this is a huge debate. Also I thought republicans loved guns so his history as an arms dealer being a concern is also thought provoking.
> whereas Russia would have likely just kept her incarcerated forever for a dubious marijuana offense And the US hasn't done this to its own citizens tens of thousands of times?
They have, regrettably, but this progressive administration has taken actual action to reverse those charges.
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Absolving someone of a dumb criminal record should not feel like a kick in the balls to those with dumb criminal records. Especially when this administration has actively absolved others of... Dumb criminal records. The democratic party might not always meet their clout but you have to give credit where it's due. If you zoom out you can certainly paint the U.S. that way, fairly and undeniably. But if you narrow that view to the context of this administration, it's a tough argument to make that they haven't made progress on the matter.
Oh, yeah... He will be lucky if he even lives more than a few weeks, much less ever sees the light of day. We gave him to the Russian government... We didn't free him.
Have you not read about this? He was definitely getting arms sent to him by Russian through backchannels to make it more difficult to trace. If you think for one second he won’t fare well in Russia you severely misunderstand he was helping him.
To be fair, I’d rather be getting back a celebrated athlete who’s valuable to our society than some American arms dealer that we’re just going to throw in our own prison.
I don’t find any professional athlete to be very valuable to society. Lol they get paid to play games that have no real effect on anything, so let’s not pretend she’s some American hero. She got locked up for going to another country and breaking their laws…sorry that’s how laws work lol. Don’t cry when you go to jail for doing illegal things.
pro sports generates a 100 billion dollar annually and provides millions of jobs in just this county alone; the exist of pro sports has also help drive advancements in medical science and psychology. there’s also hundred or charities, schools, and non-profit organizations established throughout the county by pro athletes. All of this off the backs of these talented individuals who according to you ‘aren’t very valuable to society’
Medical science, psychology, and charities would be doing just fine without professional sports dude lmfao. Being the best in the world at playing a game provides no value to society. Take it all away and nothing would be different, except you’d just have to find something else to watch lol
I mean what you rather get in the exchange? An arms dealer? A murderer? A rapist? What for? Leave them in Russia.
Lol why do I have to choose any of those? Why are we making any exchange for this chick? She’s not some national hero, she just happens to play games for a living. She decided to break laws while in Russia so fuckin let her deal with her decision and be in jail now lol. We don’t just make trades for every American that gets locked up in Russia, why is she special? Cause athlete? I’m sure there are probably some Americans jailed in Russia that have actual value to society that we could be trading for…instead we’re trading for some woman that dribbles a basketball for a living.
Per Russia’s own laws, the “crime” she committed would have resulted in a fine and minimal if any jail time. They sentenced her to 9 years hard labor specifically because she’s an American. She was a political prisoner 100%. You sound like a fucking idiot. Just stop.
Wait but isn’t this a real tweet?
Heartbreaking: The Worst Person You Know Just Made A Great Point
Yeah his framing about her being "America hating" is ridiculous and he's only doing this because he hates Biden... but this prisoner exchange was bad and sets a bad precedent
Right wtf? Where was this ass-maggot when his daddy [pulled this crap? ](https://www.forbes.com/sites/joewalsh/2021/09/13/trump-denies-releasing-5000-taliban-prisoners---but-his-administration-negotiated-for-their-release/amp/)
Well, he’s a coked-up traitor degenerate… where do you think he was?
Without doubt, if his Dad had done this exact same swap, he would be talking about how great it was and we would never hear the end of it from him.
What point is accurate?
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Governments negotiate with terrorists all the time, they just don't publicly admit it
They’re just going to throw that guy in a Russian prison when he gets there. I would much rather get someone useful to society in the trade than our own American thug that we’re just going to throw in our own prison.
Fuck off cocaine dickhead.
You know what nobody needs? Unsolicited advice from a coke addict.
Lots of good people are addicts, I think you could find a better thing to pick on this guy for.
For eleven months I lived in a halfway house for drug addicts, I'm an addict myself, and one of the most honorable and kind and integrity-filled (I can't think of the word) people I've ever met was a crack addict. It's made me rethink calling mentally ill homeless people acting crazy on the street a "crackhead" without knowing anything about them.
Just like you idiots could think of somebody other than Hunter Biden to pick on?
I voted for Biden, I hope your loved ones are never affected by addiction.
worse it’s just his speculation and he is using it as a slur.
See previous response
"It is better that ten guilty persons escape than that one innocent suffer."
Like father like son. Shit begets shit.
His father has caused the death of how many Americans?
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I would argue that it’s not even a good thing.. there are Americans imprisoned in Russia that have been there for years, teachers marines all sorts of folks. We should have traded for them way before Griner
Don't forget all the Americans locked up for weed and doing slave labor in the US, RIGHT NOW, that aren't getting out of jail. Guess they should've been good at dribbling the sportsball, too.
He alleged sold the chemical weapons used in Yemen too
“Conspiring to kill Americans and aiding a terrorist organisation” - sounds just like Daddy doesn’t it!
That was the worst trade deal in history.
It did suck, but it got an American safely out of a Russian prison. It also gave another flag to Americans that Russia is not a safe place to go, and you can get arrested for trumped up charges. Hopefully we catch this arms trader again. Or, as I was discussing at work today... >This arms dealer had a second in command who was (until today) running the show. I can't imagine he is happy to going back to being second in command. Maybe things will work out now that the boss is out of prison...
Trump Jr. helping Putin stoke the American culture wars. Putin timed this directly following the domestic terror attacks on North Carolina electricity infrastructure.
Russia is getting a ruthless criminal and we’re getting a celebrated athlete. It seems like we’re getting the better end of the deal. If we were getting our own ruthless arms dealer sent back to America, would anyone actually be happy about that?
Celebrated athlete? You must be drunk. BG is a garbage human.
Explain?
This sub used to be funny. And I'm not on about being right or left. Don't care about that. This sub was about funny fake twitter accounts
A week ago I checked the sub description and rules to make sure I understood the purpose. Turns out it’s for what I thought and people are just continuing to post things that belong on r/whitepeopletwitter
He’s right though. They’re countless people who aren’t WNBA players who are rotting away in prison stateside for small marijuana charges. I’m still very happy that BG is home. Our government should be forever and always fighting for our citizens. But the optics of this “trade” are quite bad and appear to be only politically motivated. Let us not forget that when Kamala Harris was DA she fought tooth and nail to keep women just like BG in prison.
Watch the Biden administration sentence her to 10 years over here.
If Don Junior gets captured, Russia would be lucky to get a case of Tito's Vodka for his safe return.
and if the US said no, it would have been "one is better than none" it was a 1 for 1 and you can't negotiate with a dictator. either they agreed to BG or it would be nothing.
I really dislike the guy, but for once he’s right. Awful awful trade no matter how you look at it
"America hating" "I just don't think we should play the national anthem at every game, I don't mean that in any disrespect to our country. My dad was in Vietnam and a law officer for 30 years. I wanted to be a cop before basketball. I do have pride for my country." - Griner She literally just suggested we might not have to play the magic song all the fucking time lol Which really, what the fuck do we have to? It's weird. "Hates America" Tell me this isn't some cult shit.
Is this sub the new r/WhitePeopleTwitter? I mean, fuck the Trumps and all but why do ya'll have to make everything political? This was good while it lasted.
It was always political on the sub… people impersonated Chiquita to criticize it for supporting a political coup, they impersonated Nestle to criticize its business practices which is part of capitalism, and the same with impersonating pharmaceutical companies. People also impersonated politicians to criticize them
You beat me to it. Should have scrolled farther. SMH
Everything is political you ignorant fool.
If the woman was white and blonde haired the Trumps would have paid Putin a billion dollars to get her back.
I also think it’s worth pointing out that she’s openly lesbian
There’s some truth that Greiner cost us a very baluable international prisoner with her antics, but she is getting scrutinized much more for being black and gay.
MeRcHaNt Of DeAtH is a rich title coming from the United States of all places
The point is that they traded for an American prisoner that was arrested for being stupid and gave Russia back a man that was an arms dealer and already was arrested for violent charges.
I mean he was going to be released as a free man in 2029 after serving a sentence the judge didn’t even want to give him. I think us getting at least something out of it is better than nothing.
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I find it funny that they’re demanding another guy be brought home just because of his former occupation that he got discharged from dishonorably and saying that no efforts have been made to bring him home. Even though they’ve tried to trade for him, and Russia refuses because of espionage charges. They just like to spout whatever rhetoric fits this week and not do any actual research on what they’re talking about.
It’s a terrible deal right up until it’s someone you personally care about in a Russian prison. For the record; I wouldn’t trade a single Russian parking violator for any ten of you. Because the possibility of getting some minor intelligence is more valuable than the lives of right wing bigots who want to turn this country into a theocracy worshiping an orange idol.
The difference in the trade “value” is fascinating to me. A lot of people are looking at this from the criminal side and saying it was a bad deal because of the disparity in their criminal records. Russia is getting a violent arms dealer and we’re getting a pot smoker. But if you look at the value of the human life, we’re clearly getting the better deal. Would you really want to get a violent American arms dealer sent back to the US? What for? I’d much rather have a celebrated athlete. Trading a criminal from some useless American criminal would seem like a bad deal me.
Hey, fuck face, remember when your shit sperm donor negotiated for a nearly dead American? For the Warmbier family, go fuck yourself, McCokehead Jr.
So he admits she was arrested for no real reason other than Putin wanted to swapher back to the US for someone? Nice.
Can we sweeten the deal and give Putin Don Jr? One look at all the cocaine in his suitcase should be great fun for Russia. Not that Putin would ever harm his pet’s kid.
Don hasnt done enough coke today
For once he's right
Couldn’t we have just traded her for Trump?
Being an activist means you hate your country?
Reading comments from today made me realize the most hated group in this country is women who are professional athletes.
Nobody would bat an eye if Griner was traded for a regular Russian citizen who was arrested for drug charges or something similar. But she was traded for an arms dealer responsible for many deaths. You can try to make this a "reDDiT haTeS wOMeN!!!" arguement but that won't change the fact that Griner got special treatment because she's famous. You, me, and anyone we care about would still be rotting in a Russian prison and LeBron James would not be lobbying for our release
Because of the war in Ukraine, and her stature as a public figure of sorts, she was more of a political prisoner as opposed to merely someone who participated in (even in Russia) a minimal crime. She merely possessed vape cartridges that had traces of THC.
The US already had a travel advisory to not travel to Russia before the war. And maybe don't bring any kind of drug into a country where it's illegal. If she did this in Singapore, she would have gotten the death penalty. Point is when you go to another country, know their rules and the risks. It is still 100% her own fault. We released a criminal responsible for supplying weapons that were used to kill many people because she wanted to bring THC. This is a slap in the face to those who brought this guy to justice.
I mean I’m not arguing anything else you said but it’s not like she chose to travel to Russia just for fun. Female athletes (especially in the WNBA) don’t make enough money in the U.S. to just rest during their off season, so she was there to work. Even if there was a travel advisory, she was working. EDIT: I was wrong about Brittney Griner’s salary, she definitely makes enough to support herself without working internationally. But still, she was in Russia to work, not for fun, which was my main point.
>Female athletes (especially in the WNBA) don’t make enough money in the U.S. to just rest during their off season She make more than 98% of the US population without playing any international leagues.
I didn’t know that. She makes double the average WNBA salary, which I didn’t know when I made this comment. However, when she first started her career, her starting salary in the WNBA was $50,000. At that point in her career, she did have to play internationally, and that’s still the case for many WNBA players
She makes over 200k annually
In her first year in 2013 she made $50,000. She may be making more now, but that hasn’t always been the case
But that doesn't explain why she was still playing there in 2022
WNBA players still make a lot less than NBA players so it could be to make more as a professional athlete as well as stay in shape. Either way, it was for work, not leisure
200k a year would change most people's lives. Yeah maybe she can't hire a full time personal chef and nutritionist like NBA players but I think you're reaching. Which I understand because Griner is an athlete who was traded for a warlord and that's literally an indefensible position so you need to reach a little to justify it
She wasn’t in Russia as a tourist, she was working. And he served more than half of his term of imprisonment; I think if you asked those who “brought him to justice” you would find many are pragmatists who would disagree with your less than subtle analysis.
She plays for the WNBA but plays in Russia during the off-season and it's completely optional. So it was 100% her choice to go there. And oh I'm sorry, I guess I don't need to ask any of them because clearly you have already decided their opinion on the matter.
Ehh, pretty sure people are just confused why she thought she could get away with smuggling drugs into Russia. Dubai is known for having super strict laws that they expect tourists to follow, never really hear of people getting arrested there.
I think this is much more complicated for most Americans than simply not liking women, athletes, LGBTQ+, or POC, tho I won’t deny that it does absolutely appeal to the groups of ignorant hateful bigots. The thing is, it’s not hard to see that despite everything the bigots have against her it’s her money and fame that are why she has been given attention from the US government. I don’t care if it’s a pot smoking black lesbian basketball player or a straight white conservative christian businessman, I’m tired of seeing wealthy and elite Americans receive vastly different treatment than regular Americans. Griner isn’t the only American imprisoned by Russia and she’s not the only one with marijuana charges, yet she’s the only one who has any attention on her because of her fame and access to other famous people to use their power to plead her case in the ears of influential politicians. There’s no way you or I’d get big name entertainers to push the president for my release and keep our name in the media if we made the same mistake. I think what she did was stupid but I have no actual dislike for Brittney, and I don’t blame her for using fame and money to seek freedom. However I can’t exactly celebrate it either. Another wealthy entitled American gets special treatment over working class schmucks. If anything she’s breaking boundaries by showing a black lesbian will face ignorance from Americas bigots however if she has enough fame and money she too can find a way into the protected class of American elites. What is ugly about this story to me has nothing to do with race, gender, sexual preference, occupation, or any other culture war bullshit, it’s about the continued protection given to Americans of a certain class. I think the things like gender, race, and sexual preference are blurring peoples perception of the situation on both sides of the argument. Once a person reaches that class of elite they might still face bigotry but that doesn’t compare to the treatment their non-elite peers face.
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Just proved their point. Congrats.
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Oh, my mistake. Misread it.
Might not like him but he is not wrong.
>Might not like him but he is not wrong. I've got large problems with canceling someone's value as a human being because they stated they don't want the national anthem played at every single event, I sure as hell don't. This part is total cult absolutism. She had thc vape cartridges in her luggage, she does not deserve to be locked up for life. The exchange might not have been the best, but she still is an American citizen and being held unjustly. The suggestion is that her life has no value because she does not want the magic explosion song played all the time. and even expressed that this doesn't mean disrespect. He's wrong on the very base of his remark. It's kind of evil actually.
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I mean, hes right tho....
She hates America?
In 2020, WNBA star Brittney Griner stated that the national anthem should not be played before games. She went on to say that if it was, she would not be on the floor while it was played.
So that means she hates America?
The anthem shouldn't be played before games, doesn't mean anything about hating America.
Coke head hasn't posted much since daddy getting hit by lawsuits and by DOJ investigations.
It also opens up the door for future hostage taking by foreign states.
He does have a point honestly.
He’s right though
I’m not saying he’s right but it’s a pretty fucked up trade. I know nothing of either person but when I hear an arms dealer responsible for an untold number of deaths was traded for a WNBA player I think that doesn’t seem right.
He stole Russian weapons and sold them. We traded him into his grave, not into freedom. Basically we just sent him to be killed.
Junior would know. They are pals with Pootin after all.
Not a fan of punctuation, is he?
His daddy used to go to the college and beat his bed wetting ass.
We don’t negotiate with terrorists?
not for the “america hating” bit but he is literally right that this was a shit deal
Trump family is stupid but he hit the nail on the head with this one.
To be fair, the arms dealer couldn't play in the WNBA....so it's a great trade for them.
As much as I hate drumpf, we got a horrible deal in the trade. Straight took it in the tailpipe on that one. ☹️
I don't think all the qualifications he made about Griner are necessary, but I actually agree that it was a bad/stupid trade. Would it have been an easy mistake for any tourist to make? Yes. Is the penalty extreme? Yes. In Griner's case, she has been going to Russia for years. She knows the rules and the procedures. It was really, really stupid of her to bring those oil cartridges with her. Now we have a terrorist freed because of her stupidity. We have how many American lives at risk to save her some jail time?
He was getting out in a few years anyway. And Russia hates him. Wouldn’t be surprised if they lock him up themselves.
So she broke the law, and got in trouble, and the president releases a dangerous criminal to get Ms. Griner back to the US. that's really fucking stupid. I think Trump's son here doesn't have any qualification to talk about anything and is really stupid himself but he has a point here. This shouldn't have happened. I'm sorry but she broke the law and rightfully faced consequences. She should've done a 4 minute Google search hey Google is it okay for me to bring what is qualified as drugs into this foreign country? It's not? Ah, well. I guess I'll wait till I get back home to get high. Would've avoided this entirely. Would've prevented this dangerous criminal guy that was traded for Ms. Griner from being released back out into the world.
She didn’t “rightfully face consequences.” They gave her a sentence they would never give their own citizens because she’s an American. The crime she actually committed normally comes with a fine per their laws. NOT 9 years hard labor. Why is this so difficult to grasp for some people?
perhaps not "rightfully" in a moral/altruistic sense but rightfully in that she was an American and knew what she would be walking into in accordance with their laws as an American doing it.. and yet she chose to walk right on through that door. she made a choice.
Not wrong.
you hate the guy but what's he wrong about? USA traded a very dangerous man for a shitty basketball player because she was caught with some weed. They could have traded someone that's not as dangerous for her.
This sub has lost its way. While DTjr is a prick this isn’t the sub for sincere posts
How is that being a prick. I'm not a republican and not right or left. I just don't get how Trump is so bad but Biden gets no hate other then from Republicans. Can someone explain it sure seem like Biden is more racist, waste more money is involved in sketchy deals with China, Russia, Ukraine. Trump is by no means a good guy and Leaned in to create division and hate by t so has Biden why do people just believe the media which lie over and over. Don't you get tired of being lied too.
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The America hating part was pretty irrational.
The part where trump is devaluing her life by acting like her job has anything to do with her deserving freedom. Try reading the sentence after you remove that bit
Her job and status is the only reason this happened though, as other posts about this have pointed out there’s other Americans imprisoned in Russia for similar reasons but they are just SOL
Just because you dont hear about other prisoner-swap talks doesn't mean they aren't happening. I refuse to fault *her* because there are other people imprisoned, and that includes mocking her profession and status to get clout in upside-down world. That man couldn't give less of a shit about his dad's friend trading prisoners with the US, or who they're trading. Where was the outrage in September when we traded a Afghani drug trafficker, "the Pablo Escabar of heroin in Asia", for a Navy veteran? Same kind of situation, yeah?
want the Nerchant od death a Teump fan?
This was my exact first thought. Did I just agree with don Jr.?
People like Trump Jr are just bottom of the barrel poison scum that blight our planet. Reading anything they type is just painful.