Thursday, March 17, 2022
Political Mayhem Thursday: Brittney Griner, hostage
One of the world's best basketball players, Brittney Griner, remains a hostage in Russia. She was detained there while traveling between the US and Russia-- an understandable trip given that she plays in both places. The real money, too, is over there; while Griner makes a little more than $200,000 a year in the WNBA, she makes over a million dollars a year playing for Yekaterinburg UMMC in Russia.
Supposedly, she had a vape pen that contained a detectable amount of hashish oil. Not such a big deal; that would normally only be a ticket offense in the US, even when traveling through an international airport. But these are strange times.
I find it odd that this is not a bigger deal. Griner was a huge star at Baylor and then playing for Phoenix in the WNBA, and played a big role in the USA winning two Olympic gold medals. It could be, of course, that those trying to get her free are trying to avoid publicity on the case-- sometimes that is the right call.
Or maybe people just don't care so much. I hope that is not the case.
