Britney Griner

[B-Man]

 

On Thursday, news broke that WNBA player Brittney Griner was being released from a Russian labor camp and flown back to the United States. According to an announcement by the White House, Griner had been swapped for a notorious arms dealer named Viktor Bout, also known as the “merchant of death.”

 

Quickly, the backslapping began, with Joe Biden taking full credit for the deal, but it didn’t take long before questions began to emerge. Former US Marine Paul Whelan has been held on false charges in Russia for nearly four years. Why wasn’t he prioritized in the deal? Then there is teacher Mark Fogel, who was sentenced to 14 years in prison for possessing medical marijuana (very similar to Griner’s charge). The White House won’t even acknowledge his plight, having not designated him as being wrongfully detained.

 

As the Biden administration told it, though, Whelan was never on the table. Instead, the Russians insisted that the trade had to be for Griner or no one.

 

Yet, astute observers noted how little sense that makes. Why would Russia want to make the choice easy for Biden? Wouldn’t they gain much more from making him make a choice between two Americans? And why would the Russians want to give up Griner before Whelan given that Griner is a public figure and obviously more valuable?

 

Sure enough, there’s evidence emerging that the White House’s story isn’t exactly accurate. For example, NBC News originally reported via a senior government official that the Russians were offering either Griner or Whelan in the deal. Later on, the article was stealth edited to match the administration’s talking points.

 

{snip}

 

Further, consider the administration’s messaging on the prisoner swap. Karine Jean Pierre, the White House press secretary, touted Griner being a gay, black woman during her briefing in what appeared to be an attempt to justify her importance. Others in the administration toed the same line, with the press dutifully playing along. If Griner’s identity wasn’t a factor, why make such a big deal about it?

 

There’s just too much here that doesn’t add up. That we are dealing with an administration that has made a habit of lying to the American people only makes the questions more prudent. Did Biden choose Griner because she’s famous and/or checks the right intersectional boxes over a former Marine who has been rotting away for nearly four years? It sure seems like it.

 

At the very least, there needs to be a lot more investigation as to what exactly went on here. The original deal was bad enough, if not arguably necessary. But if the White House played identity politics with a former service member’s life, that would be a major scandal.

 

https://redstate.com/bonchie/2022/12/09/it-sure-looks-like-biden-is-lying-about-the-brittney-griner-prisoner-swap-n671663

 

 

.

[BillStime]

 

15 minutes ago, Chef Jim said:

But someone posted it on Twitter. It has to be true!  

 

But it is true. Heaven forbid you actually read the attached Reuters article.
 

Trump released her early and sent her right home.

 

We all know who is boss, Jim

 

[Chef Jim]

14 minutes ago, BillStime said:

 

 

But it is true. Heaven forbid you actually read the attached Reuters article.
 

Trump released her early and sent her right home.

 

We all know who is boss, Jim

 

Hey Billy Boy!  How ya doin’? How many beers ya got in ya this Friday?  Seems like a lot.  Pace yourself ok.  We’d not want to lose you. 

 

Ok enough of the pleasantries. I actually did  read the linked article.  That’s how I knew the Twit for Brains was full of it.  

[Big Blitz]

 

This could go in the libs are mentally disturbed thread as well.  

[Doc]

8 hours ago, StHustle said:

so if he was traded for the ex Marine instead of Griner you’d still be outraged?

 

Trump was presented with this offer.  He (rightly) turned it down.

 

10 hours ago, nedboy7 said:

Right?  You got it I think.  The other dude is melting down.

 

You didn't.

[Tiberius]

 

[Doc]

Yeah, again, Trump wasn't willing to let Bout go free.  Joke was, but for a basketball player who had just recently been incarcerated.

[BillStime]

🎯

 

 

[Big Blitz]

3 hours ago, BillStime said:

🎯

 

 

 

Oh?  Interesting.  
 

So has been President Result of former CCPDNC Twitter been presented with any opportunity to free him?

 

I’ll hang up and listen.  

[BillStime]

2 minutes ago, Big Blitz said:

 

Oh?  Interesting.  
 

So has been President Result of former CCPDNC Twitter been presented with any opportunity to free him?

 

I’ll hang up and listen.  

 

You're dreaming if you think Trump lost because of Twitter.

 

 

 

[Big Blitz]

Just now, BillStime said:

 

You're dreaming if you think Trump lost because of Twitter.

 

 

 

 

Answer the question.  
 

 

 

You can address why he didn’t* in the Twitter and free speech has been saved thanks to Elon thread.  
 

 

*He did

[BillStime]

15 minutes ago, Big Blitz said:

 

Answer the question.  
 

 

 

You can address why he didn’t* in the Twitter and free speech has been saved thanks to Elon thread.  
 

 

*He did

 

II have no idea if Biden will be able to put the right deal together to free PW but I wouldn't put it past Biden to get the job done. He has a great track record getting things Trump promised done.

 

Really unfortunate the greatest POTUS in MAGA history couldn't leverage his connections and love notes with Putin to free a US Marine. You all claim Putin wouldn't have invaded Ukraine with a second Trump presidency, but Trump had two years to get a US Marine out and failed.

 

Shocker.

 

 

[Big Blitz]

4 minutes ago, BillStime said:

 

II have no idea if Biden will be able to put the right deal together to free PW but I wouldn't put it past Biden to get the job done. He has a great track record getting things Trump promised done.

 

 

 

 

 

The reports are they had a choice - NBC just isn’t interested in doing as much work on it as they did Trump’s taxes.  
 

 

But now the bar is set…….a lunatic arms dealer called the merchant of death for a WNBA Player.  
 

That’s like trading Nate Peterman for Patrick Mahomes.   

[BillStime]

9 minutes ago, Big Blitz said:

 

The reports are they had a choice - NBC just isn’t interested in doing as much work on it as they did Trump’s taxes.  
 

 

But now the bar is set…….a lunatic arms dealer called the merchant of death for a WNBA Player.  
 

That’s like trading Nate Peterman for Patrick Mahomes.   

 

Yea, the world is much safer with 5,000 Taliban prisoners and terrorist leaders released by Trump.

 

[Big Blitz]

1 hour ago, BillStime said:

 

Yea, the world is much safer with 5,000 Taliban prisoners and terrorist leaders released by Trump.

 

 

Or much safer giving their country away to the people they took orders from in stunningly embarrassing fashion.  

[BillStime]

30 minutes ago, Big Blitz said:

 

Or much safer giving their country away to the people they took orders from in stunningly embarrassing fashion.  

Trump negotiated with the terrorists without the Afghan government present.

 

 

[B-Man]

 

 

 

 

 

.

[reddogblitz]

I'm not 100% convinced Brittney tried to smuggle in a vape. Do we believe everything Russia says?

 

I'm glad she's home as I would any American in a Russian jail.

 

I don't care if she knealed during the anthem or whatever. Free speech and we don't have a loyalty test in America.

 

I don't like that we released Bout in a trade. I feel like this could incentivise Russia to arrest other Americans popular with lefties to use as trade bait now that the precedent has been set.  Not to mention he is a really bad dude.  Its doubtful Russia wanted him out for humanitarian reasons.

 

And, I'm still not voting for him.

Edited December 11, 2022 by reddogblitz

[Doc]

4 minutes ago, reddogblitz said:

I'm not 100% convinced Brittney tried to smuggle in a vape. Do we believe everything Russia says?

 

I'm glad she's home as I would any American in a Russian jail.

 

I don't care if she knealed during the anthem or whatever. Free speech and we don't have a loyalty test in America.

 

I don't like that we released Bout in a trade. I feel like this could incentivise Russia to arrest other Americans popular with lefties to use as trade bait now that the precedent has been set.  Not to mention he is a really bad dude.  Its doubtful Russia wanted him out for humanitarian reasons.

 

And, I'm still not voting for him.

 

She pleaded guilty.

[reddogblitz]

2 hours ago, Doc said:

 

She pleaded guilty.

 

I understand or so they said. Again, do you believe everything Russia sez?  I don't.

 

Not saying she did, not saying she didn't.  I'm just giving the same credence to what Russia sez as I do reading stuff I see on Tweeter.

 

And I'm still not voting for him.

Edited December 11, 2022 by reddogblitz

[SoCal Deek]

6 hours ago, reddogblitz said:

 

I understand or so they said. Again, do you believe everything Russia sez?  I don't.

 

Not saying she did, not saying she didn't.  I'm just giving the same credence to what Russia sez as I do reading stuff I see on Tweeter.

 

And I'm still not voting for him.

So you're saying that Russia's information was actually disinformation? My head is spinning.

[leh-nerd skin-erd]

9 hours ago, reddogblitz said:

I'm not 100% convinced Brittney tried to smuggle in a vape. Do we believe everything Russia says?

 

I'm glad she's home as I would any American in a Russian jail.

 

I don't care if she knealed during the anthem or whatever. Free speech and we don't have a loyalty test in America.

 

I don't like that we released Bout in a trade. I feel like this could incentivise Russia to arrest other Americans popular with lefties to use as trade bait now that the precedent has been set.  Not to mention he is a really bad dude.  Its doubtful Russia wanted him out for humanitarian reasons.

 

And, I'm still not voting for him.

I agree with you on the vape cartridges, and her right to express herself as she sees fit.  Likewise, people have the right to express themselves as they see fit on her actions.  
 

At the same time,  it’s hard to remove the fact that she put herself in harms way by traveling to Russia in the first place.  Do people not read the news, or consider the political landscape when making decisions? 
 

Two things can be true at the same time.  She can be a victim of circumstance, some of which was of her own making, and a trade in exchange for the prisoner can be a very bad decision. 
 

As for the incentive for hostile governments to seize Americans, that pre-dates Brittney Griner by decades.  All that has happened here is they know the conditions under which Biden will negotiate.  
 

 

[SoCal Deek]

In all the chatter here....does anyone know why Ms Griner was going to Russia in the first place? Was it some sort of a promotional event? If so, doesn't she have 'people' who tell her the rules before she gets on the plane? (Not making a judgement here....just wondering what her management team was doing.)

[Chef Jim]

9 minutes ago, SoCal Deek said:

In all the chatter here....does anyone know why Ms Griner was going to Russia in the first place? Was it some sort of a promotional event? If so, doesn't she have 'people' who tell her the rules before she gets on the plane? (Not making a judgement here....just wondering what her management team was doing.)

People??  I smoke weed and travel with it and you better believe I check the laws regarding it if I travel out of the country.  If they are strict I leave it at home.  It’s her responsibility as an adult not the people who handle her.  

[Doc]

6 hours ago, reddogblitz said:

I understand or so they said. Again, do you believe everything Russia sez?  I don't.

 

Not saying she did, not saying she didn't.  I'm just giving the same credence to what Russia sez as I do reading stuff I see on Tweeter.

 

And I'm still not voting for him.

 

I don't either.  But no one from Griner's camp ever once refuted that she brought the vape pen and pot into Russia or that she pleaded guilty.  And it's not like by pleading guilty she got a lighter sentence; they threw the book at her.

 

15 minutes ago, SoCal Deek said:

In all the chatter here....does anyone know why Ms Griner was going to Russia in the first place? Was it some sort of a promotional event? If so, doesn't she have 'people' who tell her the rules before she gets on the plane? (Not making a judgement here....just wondering what her management team was doing.)

 

She was going to play in one of their women's basketball leagues, IIRC.

[SoCal Deek]

4 minutes ago, Chef Jim said:

People??  I smoke weed and travel with it and you better believe I check the laws regarding it if I travel out of the country.  If they are strict I leave it at home.  It’s her responsibility as an adult not the people who handle her.  

You must’ve missed the part where I said I wasn’t placing judgment on anybody. 

[Chef Jim]

2 minutes ago, SoCal Deek said:

You must’ve missed the part where I said I wasn’t placing judgment on anybody. 

What does that have to with my placing judgement?   At the end of the day it’s her responsibility. 

[SoCal Deek]

5 minutes ago, Chef Jim said:

What does that have to with my placing judgement?   At the end of the day it’s her responsibility. 

Yes it is. I’m just amazed that if she was traveling with a group that they didn’t go over this amongst a bunch of other protocols. If they did, it makes her error even more baffling. If they didn’t it makes you wonder what the event organizers were doing. (It’s different from when you or I just get on a plane.)

[Doc]

18 minutes ago, Chef Jim said:

People??  I smoke weed and travel with it and you better believe I check the laws regarding it if I travel out of the country.  If they are strict I leave it at home.  It’s her responsibility as an adult not the people who handle her.  

 

He's saying that beyond herself, she probably has a team of people out of who at least one of them should have foreseen this being a problem. 

[Chef Jim]

7 minutes ago, SoCal Deek said:

Yes it is. I’m just amazed that if she was traveling with a group that they didn’t go over this amongst a bunch of other protocols. If they did, it makes her error even more baffling. If they didn’t it makes you wonder what the event organizers were doing. (It’s different from when you or I just get on a plane.)

Why is her potentially ignoring what her handlers may have told her baffling?  Dude, you live in LA. You have to know how celebrities think they are above the rules.  Reason #1 why I despise celebrities and have given up on sports. 

9 minutes ago, Doc said:

 

He's saying that beyond herself, she probably has a team of people out of who at least one of them should have foreseen this being a problem. 

I understand what he’s saying.  🙄

[SoCal Deek]

1 hour ago, Chef Jim said:

Why is her potentially ignoring what her handlers may have told her baffling?  Dude, you live in LA. You have to know how celebrities think they are above the rules.  Reason #1 why I despise celebrities and have given up on sports. 

I understand what he’s saying.  🙄

Not sure why a simple observation cause so much consternation. But you do you. 😉

[T master]

On 3/6/2022 at 1:15 PM, Doc said:

So this girl rails against the US, goes to Russia despite warnings...and takes a marijuana vape pen with her.  Should I have any sympathy for her?

 

I think she is a secret agent for Biden seeing as they traded her for a arms dealer she must have something on Joe or maybe was gonna tell all about Hunter i think that is where she got the weed from 🤔.

[Chef Jim]

1 hour ago, SoCal Deek said:

Not sure why a simple observation cause so much consternation. But you do you. 😉

Thanks. Not sure who else I’d do.  😏

[SoCal Deek]

2 minutes ago, Chef Jim said:

Thanks. Not sure who else I’d do.  😏

Whatever happens do NOT do BillSy. Pinky swear! 

[Chef Jim]

2 minutes ago, SoCal Deek said:

Whatever happens do NOT do BillSy. Pinky swear! 

No worries. And I’ll not be a Twit For Brains regurgitater either. 

[leh-nerd skin-erd]

7 hours ago, SoCal Deek said:

Yes it is. I’m just amazed that if she was traveling with a group that they didn’t go over this amongst a bunch of other protocols. If they did, it makes her error even more baffling. If they didn’t it makes you wonder what the event organizers were doing. (It’s different from when you or I just get on a plane.)

People are dumb, and if you’ve been a high performing athlete your entire life, it’s likely that arrogance plays a part.  It’s not even as if one has to think “The rules don’t apply to me”, it’s more of a “Oh, crap, there are rules??”’ 
 

 

[SoCal Deek]

5 minutes ago, leh-nerd skin-erd said:

People are dumb, and if you’ve been a high performing athlete your entire life, it’s likely that arrogance plays a part.  It’s not even as if one has to think “The rules don’t apply to me”, it’s more of a “Oh, crap, there are rules??”’ 
 

 

No argument there. My original question was an honest one. If she was indeed amongst a group going over there to play basketball I can guarantee you they were given explicit instructions and protocols to adhere to. I’m not so quick to place blame. I’m guessing it was more of an ‘oh crap’ moment. 

[Chef Jim]

14 minutes ago, SoCal Deek said:

No argument there. My original question was an honest one. If she was indeed amongst a group going over there to play basketball I can guarantee you they were given explicit instructions and protocols to adhere to. I’m not so quick to place blame. I’m guessing it was more of an ‘oh crap’ moment. 

When you were in elementary school or Jr High did you ever disregard what your elders told you?

 

Whoops….question.  😬

[leh-nerd skin-erd]

27 minutes ago, SoCal Deek said:

No argument there. My original question was an honest one. If she was indeed amongst a group going over there to play basketball I can guarantee you they were given explicit instructions and protocols to adhere to. I’m not so quick to place blame. I’m guessing it was more of an ‘oh crap’ moment. 

It’s a damn shame when a majestically inked up 7’ tall lady in a ginormous track suit can’t blend in with the crowd.  

[reddogblitz]

14 hours ago, SoCal Deek said:

So you're saying that Russia's information was actually disinformation? My head is spinning.

 

Perhaps.

 

How do you know they're telling the truth?