What she did was dumb and probably deserved a punishment, but this was all about Russia using her as leverage. She had spent vape cartridges in her bag that contained less than 1 gram of hash oil in total when extracted from all the cartridges, something she was legally allowed to possess from where she left. To her, they were just garbage that needed to be thrown out. A normal country would consider these things when sentencing.
Sure, what she did was technically illegal, but countries with dumb laws should be challenged on them. Recently two teenaged boys were executed in North Korea for distributing South Korean films and music. Do we just say, well that's the law there, so they deserve it?
I realize that is an extreme comparison, but it is the same concept. Griner did something dumb and is a questionable character, but she didn't deserve what she got either. I get the double standard of the government going all out for her and the outrage of making a lopsided prisoner exchange for her, I feel the same way. But as far as her "crime" and punishment, it was not justice in any sensible way.
__________________
"A pessimist thinks things can't get any worse. An optimist knows they can."
|