How Bout Dat

[abbey1227]

Yahoo Sports
Brittney Griner released from Russian prison 10 months after arrest
Tyler Greenawalt  Thu, December 8, 2022 at 7:21 AM

WNBA star Brittney Griner has been released from a Russian prison, President Joe Biden confirmed Thursday.

In exchange for her release, the U.S. government will reportedly send convicted international arms dealer Viktor Bout back to Russia, according to CBS News. Bout, nicknamed the “Merchant of Death," was sentenced to 25 years in prison after being convicted of, among other things, conspiracy to kill Americans. Retired U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, who is also currently imprisoned in Russia for the past four years on espionage charges, is reportedly not part of the prisoner swap.

======================================

yeah, THAT seems like a fair trade.    F'n sell outs

[abbey1227]

comments:

ABC's saying the White House was under enormous pressure from LeBron James, Steph Curry and others to get her released. Since when to basketball players influence or control the White House and our international affairs? And a convicted arms dealer is now free. BAD deal in my opinion.


48 minutes ago
Paul Whelan has been in prison for 12 years! Oh wait, he's not a celebrity or a sports figure - nobody knows him and he cannot benefit politics (which trumps, excuse the expression) doing the right thing and fighting only for Griner - let's free her so the government can get lots of credit!


50 minutes ago
This trade is like in the NFL trading Brady for the other teams equipment manager.


54 minutes ago
Wonderful. Now what about Paul Whelan, who has been imprisoned for far longer and is actually a US veteran? You’re gonna leave him behind? Nice job US. Great way to show how you look after your own. His life isn’t worth as much as the professional athlete’s apparently.


49 minutes ago
I wonder if this experience will change her perspective of the US. Things may not be perfect here but it’s not all that bad either. It’s too bad we had to release an international arms dealer in order to get back a WNBA player with some hash oil. In the sports world, we got robbed in that trade.


58 minutes ago
Not a “wrongful detainee”, she disregarded their laws and should have paid the price like anyone else.


49 minutes ago
Another failure of the biden admin. We should have had Paul Whalen released and let her stay. In the past she has taken a knee when the national anthem was playing.


49 minutes ago
How do you not get Paul Whelan included? All this says to the American citizens is if you're a celebrity they'll move heaven and earth to get you home. If not, tough luck.


48 minutes ago
So the Biden administration is sending Russia a convicted arms dealer and in return we get a basketball player? This makes no sense. She broke the rules and she needs to pay the price.


1 hour ago
We negotiated for her release but not a Marine? Or did we just fail in our negotiations?


48 minutes ago
Sounds like Paul Whelan was left twisting in the wind. Leave a US Marine imprisoned and swap Bout for Griner? It's outrageous. It's wrong.

42 minutes ago
Shameful, very shameful, of both the United States and United Kingdom to not have included Paul Whelan (Canadian born) in any exchange involving Viktor Bout. Commendable that Britney Griner is released. Neither ever should have been detained to begin with. United States Marines do not leave one of their own behind. SEMPER FI.

52 minutes ago

It is great she is released. People should be outraged. She is only out because of who she is and who she knows. Do you think you would be out? Look at Whelan.
She had Lebron James, WNBA stars asking for her release.
Biden continually shows he is about who you are.
Biden is only there for you if you are rich or a celebrity. This proves it.
Biden is a joke when it comes to the average person.
Again, people should be outraged while a marine is still not free. If Biden is not willing to get a marine free who fought for your country then what will he do you for you?
Listen to you or come after you?



49 minutes ago

My sixth grade daughter can do a better negotiating job than this. This is worse than paying full price on a car at the dealership. Wonder how soon this guy will be out in the world pushing arms again. Sad day.


48 minutes ago
They got her back for a guy known as the Merchant of Death? If his release results in the death of some innocent person this is going to go down as one terrible decision.

47 minutes ago
A washed up basketball player who protested the US for an international arms dealer and no negotiation which included a retired military officer who served this country. Well good job Joe Biden. Between this and handing free money to pay off student loans and the $38 million you are about to give to union member pension plans. Certainly a piece of work. Illegals running wild all around the country, no help for the homeless military or seniors who can't even afford to live. And we pay you a big fat salary. This country is going down and it is just a matter of time.


48 minutes ago
What about Paul Whelan? He has been there longer and didn’t even do the crime he was charged with. He served his country and is left to rot with Biden giving away his top leverage to save someone who has espoused anti-American views

46 minutes ago
Worst trade ever in the history of trades.

1 hour ago
Wow she’s worth an arms dealer, wonder what I would be worth, oh yeah nothing, I’d be left there to do the whole sentence for breaking Russian law.

55 minutes ago
A US marine is left behind for a WNBA player?


48 minutes ago
"The Merchant of Death" for a pot vaping Basketball player. Doesn't seem like an equal trade in my opinion. Just Saying.

46 minutes ago
It's embarrassing we traded an arms dealer for a basketball player who admitted she doesn't like the U.S.A

Now I'm happy for her that she's free, but we should've got the Marine out 1st. Or did a 2 for 1 swap

46 minutes ago

We are now the laughing stock of the entire world. We traded a basketball player who hates our country for an arms dealer. How low can we possibly go ?


50 minutes ago
We traded for the wrong American.

54 minutes ago
An arms dealer for a pot smoking basketball player?

Yeah, that sounds like an even trade.

39 minutes ago
Spent billions fighting Russia, convinced the world to sanction Russia and break it financially so what does Biden do, yes, an exchange that favors Russia. Go figure. Wonder what all our allies are thinking right now? Where is the trust?

[permutojoe]

So the point of this thread is that people who comment on internet news articles tend to be idiots?

[merh]

Dec 8, 2022 14:36:03 GMT abbey1227 said:

comments:

ABC's saying the White House was under enormous pressure from LeBron James, Steph Curry and others to get her released. Since when to basketball players influence or control the White House and our international affairs? And a convicted arms dealer is now free. BAD deal in my opinion.


48 minutes ago
Paul Whelan has been in prison for 12 years! Oh wait, he's not a celebrity or a sports figure - nobody knows him and he cannot benefit politics (which trumps, excuse the expression) doing the right thing and fighting only for Griner - let's free her so the government can get lots of credit!


50 minutes ago
This trade is like in the NFL trading Brady for the other teams equipment manager.


54 minutes ago
Wonderful. Now what about Paul Whelan, who has been imprisoned for far longer and is actually a US veteran? You’re gonna leave him behind? Nice job US. Great way to show how you look after your own. His life isn’t worth as much as the professional athlete’s apparently.


49 minutes ago
I wonder if this experience will change her perspective of the US. Things may not be perfect here but it’s not all that bad either. It’s too bad we had to release an international arms dealer in order to get back a WNBA player with some hash oil. In the sports world, we got robbed in that trade.


58 minutes ago
Not a “wrongful detainee”, she disregarded their laws and should have paid the price like anyone else.


49 minutes ago
Another failure of the biden admin. We should have had Paul Whalen released and let her stay. In the past she has taken a knee when the national anthem was playing.


49 minutes ago
How do you not get Paul Whelan included? All this says to the American citizens is if you're a celebrity they'll move heaven and earth to get you home. If not, tough luck.


48 minutes ago
So the Biden administration is sending Russia a convicted arms dealer and in return we get a basketball player? This makes no sense. She broke the rules and she needs to pay the price.


1 hour ago
We negotiated for her release but not a Marine? Or did we just fail in our negotiations?


48 minutes ago
Sounds like Paul Whelan was left twisting in the wind. Leave a US Marine imprisoned and swap Bout for Griner? It's outrageous. It's wrong.

42 minutes ago
Shameful, very shameful, of both the United States and United Kingdom to not have included Paul Whelan (Canadian born) in any exchange involving Viktor Bout. Commendable that Britney Griner is released. Neither ever should have been detained to begin with. United States Marines do not leave one of their own behind. SEMPER FI.

52 minutes ago

It is great she is released. People should be outraged. She is only out because of who she is and who she knows. Do you think you would be out? Look at Whelan.
She had Lebron James, WNBA stars asking for her release.
Biden continually shows he is about who you are.
Biden is only there for you if you are rich or a celebrity. This proves it.
Biden is a joke when it comes to the average person.
Again, people should be outraged while a marine is still not free. If Biden is not willing to get a marine free who fought for your country then what will he do you for you?
Listen to you or come after you?



49 minutes ago

My sixth grade daughter can do a better negotiating job than this. This is worse than paying full price on a car at the dealership. Wonder how soon this guy will be out in the world pushing arms again. Sad day.


48 minutes ago
They got her back for a guy known as the Merchant of Death? If his release results in the death of some innocent person this is going to go down as one terrible decision.

47 minutes ago
A washed up basketball player who protested the US for an international arms dealer and no negotiation which included a retired military officer who served this country. Well good job Joe Biden. Between this and handing free money to pay off student loans and the $38 million you are about to give to union member pension plans. Certainly a piece of work. Illegals running wild all around the country, no help for the homeless military or seniors who can't even afford to live. And we pay you a big fat salary. This country is going down and it is just a matter of time.


48 minutes ago
What about Paul Whelan? He has been there longer and didn’t even do the crime he was charged with. He served his country and is left to rot with Biden giving away his top leverage to save someone who has espoused anti-American views

46 minutes ago
Worst trade ever in the history of trades.

1 hour ago
Wow she’s worth an arms dealer, wonder what I would be worth, oh yeah nothing, I’d be left there to do the whole sentence for breaking Russian law.

55 minutes ago
A US marine is left behind for a WNBA player?


48 minutes ago
"The Merchant of Death" for a pot vaping Basketball player. Doesn't seem like an equal trade in my opinion. Just Saying.

46 minutes ago
It's embarrassing we traded an arms dealer for a basketball player who admitted she doesn't like the U.S.A

Now I'm happy for her that she's free, but we should've got the Marine out 1st. Or did a 2 for 1 swap

46 minutes ago

We are now the laughing stock of the entire world. We traded a basketball player who hates our country for an arms dealer. How low can we possibly go ?


50 minutes ago
We traded for the wrong American.

54 minutes ago
An arms dealer for a pot smoking basketball player?

Yeah, that sounds like an even trade.

39 minutes ago
Spent billions fighting Russia, convinced the world to sanction Russia and break it financially so what does Biden do, yes, an exchange that favors Russia. Go figure. Wonder what all our allies are thinking right now? Where is the trust?

Russia refused to go 2 for 1.

Bout is halfway thru his sentence so he would be released in a decade or now while he has trade value.

Didnt Donnie listen to a Kardashian about pardons?

Apparently Russia is sticking on the espionage charge.

[Prometheus]

It is absolutely disgusting that we trade Griner for Bout.

She has no equitable value

[abbey1227]

Dec 8, 2022 21:30:31 GMT merh said:

Russia refused to go 2 for 1.

Bout is halfway thru his sentence so he would be released in a decade or now while he has trade value.

Didnt Donnie listen to a Kardashian about pardons?

Apparently Russia is sticking on the espionage charge.

meanwhile SHE is still nobody of consequence..........just like you'd be if you were imprisoned there

[permutojoe]

Dec 8, 2022 22:09:53 GMT Prometheus said:

It is absolutely disgusting that we trade Griner for Bout.

She has no equitable value

neither do you

[Deleted]

The elite win!!!! The elite win!!!


If it was my white ass in prison, for doing what she did, yall see me in 9 years.

Long live the elite.

God bless America, I love this fair system!

[Prometheus]

Dec 9, 2022 4:02:28 GMT permutojoe said:

Dec 8, 2022 22:09:53 GMT Prometheus said:

It is absolutely disgusting that we trade Griner for Bout.

She has no equitable value

neither do you

Did I suggest that I did?

I wouldn't trade me for Bout either.

And I honestly don't think we should trade Whelan for anybody of significance.

[abbey1227]

Dec 9, 2022 4:13:03 GMT @shadyvsesham said:

The elite win!!!! The elite win!!!


If it was my white ass in prison, for doing what she did, yall see me in 9 years.

Long live the elite.

God bless America, I love this fair system!

Celebs and the DC crowd are our new royalty.

That's why Hollywood and DC seem to get a pass on all of the stuff that'd land common folks in prison.

[fetzerzinfandel]

nypost.com/2022/12/08/trump-turned-down-viktor-bout-for-paul-whelan-prisoner-swap-john-bolton/


Trump turned down Viktor Bout-for-Paul Whelan prisoner swap, John Bolton says

[merh]

Dec 9, 2022 2:28:38 GMT abbey1227 said:

Dec 8, 2022 21:30:31 GMT merh said:

Russia refused to go 2 for 1.

Bout is halfway thru his sentence so he would be released in a decade or now while he has trade value.

Didnt Donnie listen to a Kardashian about pardons?

Apparently Russia is sticking on the espionage charge.

meanwhile SHE is still nobody of consequence..........just like you'd be if you were imprisoned there

Like that teacher in prison for medical marijuana there?
No one is saying he accidentally had pot.
Yet he is apparently on the table eventually to be discussed.

[merh]

Dec 9, 2022 4:13:03 GMT @shadyvsesham said:

The elite win!!!! The elite win!!!


If it was my white ass in prison, for doing what she did, yall see me in 9 years.

Long live the elite.

God bless America, I love this fair system!

What Trevor Reed Reveals about Joe Biden’s Cautious Approach to Releasing American Hostages

Joey Reed and Paula Reed, the parents of Trevor Reed demonstrate in Lafayette Park near the White House on March 30, 2022 in Washington, DC. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
BY BRIAN BENNETT
APRIL 27, 2022 10:55 PM EDT
President Joe Biden waited until former Marine Trevor Reed was out of Moscow, had been successfully exchanged for a Russian prisoner in Turkey, and was safely on a plane bound for the U.S. before calling Reed’s family.

Reed had spent nearly 3 years in a Russian jail after being arrested in 2019 on charges of assaulting police in Moscow. But Biden had been concerned about contacting his family too soon and risking upsetting the sensitive deal before Reed was securely out of Russia’s reach.

When Reed was finally airborne, Biden told his family the good news and released a statement saying Reed’s return was “a testament to the priority my Administration places on bringing home Americans held hostage and wrongfully detained abroad.” He promised to continue pressing for the release of other Americans being held in Russia, including Paul Whelan, who was arrested on suspicion of espionage in a Moscow hotel in 2018. Reed was freed in exchange for the release of Russian citizen Konstantin Yaroshenko, who had been sentenced in the U.S. in 2011 to 20 years on drug smuggling charges.

While other U.S. citizens captured abroad have been released during the Biden Administration, Reed’s was the first case in which Biden was willing to hand over a prisoner being held in the U.S. as part of the terms of the release, a step previous administrations had taken. Biden’s deliberate approach to freeing Americans held overseas has been marked by a cautious and bureaucratic decision-making process, according to two people involved in the negotiations, and a slow pace that has been frustrating to some families whose loved ones are held in foreign prisons.

White boy released in April, dude

[merh]

Dec 9, 2022 12:59:21 GMT abbey1227 said:

Dec 9, 2022 4:13:03 GMT @shadyvsesham said:

The elite win!!!! The elite win!!!


If it was my white ass in prison, for doing what she did, yall see me in 9 years.

Long live the elite.

God bless America, I love this fair system!

Celebs and the DC crowd are our new royalty.

That's why Hollywood and DC seem to get a pass on all of the stuff that'd land common folks in prison.

Trevor Reed was a celebrity?

[abbey1227]

Dec 9, 2022 20:18:33 GMT merh said:

Dec 9, 2022 12:59:21 GMT abbey1227 said:

Celebs and the DC crowd are our new royalty.

That's why Hollywood and DC seem to get a pass on all of the stuff that'd land common folks in prison.

Trevor Reed was a celebrity?

He's a higher value trading piece than Griner will EVER be

Fer chrissakes, merh......she hates the US. She didn't enter the service to fight for it.

[abbey1227]

Dec 9, 2022 19:19:36 GMT fetzerzinfandel said:

nypost.com/2022/12/08/trump-turned-down-viktor-bout-for-paul-whelan-prisoner-swap-john-bolton/


Trump turned down Viktor Bout-for-Paul Whelan prisoner swap, John Bolton says

Doesn't that argue that Bout was viewed as more valuable a piece to hold onto? rather than trade for a WNBA player of all people?

[merh]

Dec 10, 2022 13:07:43 GMT abbey1227 said:

Dec 9, 2022 20:18:33 GMT merh said:

Trevor Reed was a celebrity?

He's a higher value trading piece than Griner will EVER be

Fer chrissakes, merh......she hates the US. She didn't enter the service to fight for it.

According to a deposition Whelan gave in 2013, he was in law enforcement from 1988 to 2000 as a police officer in Chelsea, Michigan, and a sheriff's deputy in Washtenaw County. The Chelsea Police, however, said he worked in lesser roles and as a part-time officer from 1990 to 1996, while the Washtenaw County sheriff reported no record of his employment. A former colleague said he was a patrol officer from 1998 to 2000 in the Keego Harbor police department.

He was an IT manager for the Kelly Services staffing company from 2001 to 2003, and then 2008 to 2010. From 2010 to 2016 Whelan was Kelly Services' senior manager of global security and operations.

He enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve in 1994. He took military leave from Kelly Services to serve with the Marine Corps Reserve from 2003 to 2008, including service in Iraq. He held the rank of staff sergeant with Marine Air Control Group 38 working as an administrative clerk and administrative chief, and he was part of Operation Iraqi Freedom. After a court-martial conviction in January 2008 on multiple counts "related to larceny", he was sentenced to 60 days restriction, reduction to pay grade E-4, and a bad conduct discharge. The specific charges against him included "attempted larceny, three specifications of dereliction of duty, making a false official statement, wrongfully using another’s social security number, and ten specifications of making and uttering checks without having sufficient funds in his account for payment."

When arrested in Russia, Whelan was director of global security and investigations for BorgWarner, an international automotive parts manufacturer based in Michigan. His work with Kelly Services and BorgWarner gave Whelan contacts with the U.S. intelligence community, federal agents and foreign embassies.

Whelan traveled to Russia several times from 2006 and maintained an intermittent presence on a Russian language social media website, Vkontakte (VK), where he had approximately 70 contacts. He has studied Russian but communicated online using Google Translate. Whelan supported Donald Trump in the 2016 election and, following Trump's victory, posted in Russian Президент Трyмп Вперед!! (President Trump Onward!!).

He said in a deposition in 2013 that he holds a bachelor's degree in criminal justice and an MBA degree. He took courses at Northern Michigan University from fall 1988 to fall 1990 without earning a degree.

So Whelan isn't the hero some are painting him as, dude.

So dishonorable discharge.
Perjury.

But the lesbian is scum.

[merh]

Dec 10, 2022 13:08:59 GMT abbey1227 said:

Dec 9, 2022 19:19:36 GMT fetzerzinfandel said:

nypost.com/2022/12/08/trump-turned-down-viktor-bout-for-paul-whelan-prisoner-swap-john-bolton/


Trump turned down Viktor Bout-for-Paul Whelan prisoner swap, John Bolton says

Doesn't that argue that Bout was viewed as more valuable a piece to hold onto? rather than trade for a WNBA player of all people?

Or Donnie knew Whelan wasn't quite the shining star he's been painted?

The guy supported Trump & Trump still wouldn't deal for him.

[abbey1227]

Dec 10, 2022 18:49:23 GMT merh said:

Or Donnie knew Whelan wasn't quite the shining star he's been painted?

The guy supported Trump & Trump still wouldn't deal for him.

Again, none of that information changes the low value that Griner holds compared to the fella that the US released.

I didn't say the lesbian was scum..........or that all lesbians are scum.......... but this one showed a disdain for the US

[merh]

Dec 11, 2022 2:24:44 GMT abbey1227 said:

Dec 10, 2022 18:49:23 GMT merh said:

Or Donnie knew Whelan wasn't quite the shining star he's been painted?

The guy supported Trump & Trump still wouldn't deal for him.

Again, none of that information changes the low value that Griner holds compared to the fella that the US released.

I didn't say the lesbian was scum..........or that all lesbians are scum.......... but this one showed a disdain for the US

And Whelan was one of the guys stealing from the military in Iraq. Not disrespectful in any way?

You know, all that money that seemed to vanish in Iraq in so many different ways?