# Why no critical discussion on Brittney Griner's drug bust? {She's been released as of 2022-12-08} **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [July 27, 2022, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668 "2022-07-27T20:50:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 11
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2022, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/201 "2022-11-13T19:12:24Z")
I wonder if you would be so dismissive if one of your own kids were sentenced to 9 years in a Russian penal colony for a stupid mistake and victimless crime. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2022, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/202 "2022-11-13T19:49:23Z")
Hmm. By that same measure, are all the folk supportive of BG her close relations? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2022, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/203 "2022-11-13T20:07:50Z")
No, just sympathetic friends. Americans supporting an American agaisnt a totalitarian enemy. Putin is a known murderer of his opponents. And certainly not above planting evidence no matter what lies and half truths have been told by him or his henchmen. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2022, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/204 "2022-11-13T22:03:23Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > Smug? Perhaps. But instead, I think of myself as someone who has lived a pretty ordinary life - in part by not engaging in activities that would risk my comfortable, boring family existence. And maybe I’m somewhat jealous that I never had the opportunity to be a highly paid athlete, entertainer, etc. So when someone chooses otherwise - and it turns out such choice was unwise? Well, too bad for them. BG is just a high profile example of someone who miscalculated as to the risks of their choices. There are countless such folk. To the extent I am sympathetic to such individuals, BG’s situation does not move me. ⁢ But what does any of that have to do with whether you feel sympathy? That’s the bizarre part. How I personally act has no bearing on whether I can feel bad that something happened to someone else. It has no bearing on whether I care about an injustice. That’s what’s bizarre with the way you talk about these things. Your sympathy seems to be transactional, based on some internal merit-based system, rather than the way it works for most of us. Most of us, we have sympathy except in extreme circumstances where someone is so bad we don’t think they deserve it. Or, conversely, that they deserve what happened to them. Otherwise we feel at least some sympathy. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2022, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/205 "2022-11-14T05:45:36Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > Hmm. By that same measure, are all the folk supportive of BG her close relations? JFC, we’re talking 9 fucking years in a penal colony. You’re so goddamned smug about how she deserved it because she earned so much money and should have been smarter is just repulsive. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2022, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/206 "2022-11-14T08:25:04Z")
I’m really sorry that your job consists of hearing people, all day long, trying to game the system. It seems to have hardened you to being able to have any empathy to people who aren’t as astute as you. You seem to assume that everyone should be as savvy as you in all their life choices, but it doesn’t work out that way. Not everyone has your many advantages - white, male, smart, etc. You’re dismissive of why an American black woman would dare to work in a country that until this year wasn’t safe, because _you_ don’t have to be concerned about your retirement. And how dare she make the stupid mistake of bringing an illegal painkiller. Bully for you. Continue to feel smug on your pedestal. ---
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2022, 9:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/207 "2022-11-14T09:56:29Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > I’m presuming WNBA players enjoy at least SOME perks if only free shoes, admission to events Ah, free shoes! Sounds entitled. Probably just getting what she deserves for living a life of free-shoed privilege that went to her head. ---
**Author:** ![raventhief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raventhief/32/4_2.png) [@raventhief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raventhief)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2022, 11:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/208 "2022-11-14T11:59:18Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > JFC, we’re talking 9 fucking years in a penal colony. You’re so goddamned smug about how she deserved it because she earned so much money and should have been smarter is just repulsive _ **Moderating** _ This is getting very heated, and you need to dial down the temperature a bit. This isn’t a warning, but insults are not acceptable in GD. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2022, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/209 "2022-11-14T15:03:27Z")
Apologies for my role. I do not understand the sympathy so many folk have for such individuals/situations, and those folk do not understand my position. But I certainly have said all I have to offer on this topic and will do my best to stay out of it from now on. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2022, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/210 "2022-11-14T15:43:27Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > I do not understand the sympathy so many folk have for such individuals WTF? Quite a back-handed apology. Please don’t further explain why “such” individuals don’t deserve your sympathy. If you must, please take it to the pit. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2022, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/211 "2022-11-14T15:59:05Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > I do not understand the sympathy so many folk have for such individuals/situations _shrug_ I think it’s pretty easy to understand. Anyhow, I have both sympathy and empathy for BG (as well as the teacher who is being held in Russia for a similar transgression that is being less talked about), while also thinking it was colossally stupid (if done knowingly. I could also see it being a brain-fart oversight, like something I might actually do.) I find it hard to be human and not have sympathy/empathy for what I perceive to be injustices. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2022, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/212 "2022-11-14T16:11:15Z")
I wonder what BG will do whenever she is released? She’s 32. Even a couple years \*\*inactivity and poor diet will make a come back at 34 unlikely. \*\*The Pussy Riot women said they sewed uniforms in prison. ---
**Author:** ![3AxisCtrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/3/ecd19e/32.png) [@3AxisCtrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/3AxisCtrl)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2022, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/213 "2022-11-16T04:25:30Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > I suspect $250k/yr and net worth $5 mill (at age 32) exceeds some 80-90% of Americans. $250k puts you in the top 5% of annual income earners. A net worth of $5M is approximately top 2.8%. Among people age 32, these are probably top 1% amounts. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2022, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/214 "2022-11-16T04:53:23Z")
But you have to remember that athletes have a very short shelf life. _Especially_ women. That income has to support them once they retire at 40 with wrecked knees and few marketable job skills. Aging women athletes don’t have the same amounts of opportunities available to them as men. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2022, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/215 "2022-11-16T05:15:57Z")
I hope Brittney has income insurance. Wouldn’t bother me if the US went in and freed her from the labor prison by bribing guards. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2022, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/216 "2022-12-08T13:14:46Z")
And she’s out. Good. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2022, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/217 "2022-12-08T13:59:33Z")
> **[Brittney Griner: Russia frees US basketball star in swap with arms dealer...](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-63905112)** > > Brittney Griner flies home to the US while notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout returns to Russia. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2022, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/218 "2022-12-08T14:04:02Z")
Meanwhile Paul Whelan an ex Marine is still in a Russian prison. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2022, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/219 "2022-12-08T16:24:55Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Meanwhile Paul Whelan an ex Marine is still in a Russian prison . While I don’t think he was a spy, I also think “ex marine” needs some context: > After a [court-martial](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Courts-martial_of_the_United_States) conviction in January 2008 on multiple counts “related to [larceny](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larceny)”, he was sentenced to 60 days restriction, reduction to pay grade E-4, and a [bad conduct discharge](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bad_conduct_discharge).[[9]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Whelan_(security_director)#cite_note-9)[[10]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Whelan_(security_director)#cite_note-10) The specific charges against him included attempting to steal more than $10,000 in 2006 in Iraq and using a false Social Security number to create a false account on a government computer system to grade his own examinations. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2022, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668/220 "2022-12-08T16:38:43Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Paul Whelan an ex Marine is still in a Russian prison. I dunno, that guy just seems sketchy. Personally I’d rather see [Marc Fogel](https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2022/07/28/marc-fogel-teacher-russia-prison/) released before Whelan. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668.md?page=10) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-critical-discussion-on-brittney-griners-drug-bust-shes-been-released-as-of-2022-12-08/968668.md?page=12)