Russia Says It Has American Basketball Player in Custody

By artappraiser on Sat, 03/05/2022 - 12:21pm |

Breaking News: Russian customs officials said they had detained a star American basketball player after finding hashish oil in her luggage at an airport near Moscow. The Russian news agency TASS has identified the player as Brittney Griner. https://t.co/7rJaQqNyJK
— The New York Times (@nytimes) March 5, 2022

URL:

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/05/sports/basketball/russia-brittney-griner.html

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Let me guess- as a criminal case has been opened into the large-scale transportation of drugs, she is part of a criminal western group that threatened to bring down godly Russian values?

by artappraiser on Sat, 03/05/2022 - 12:32pm

Republicans will note they share Putin's Christian values.

by PeraclesPlease on Sat, 03/05/2022 - 1:29pm

Not at all, PP! Got to strongly disagree!

Pence is about as as conservative "Christian family values" as you can get and he's saying that there's no room for Putin apologists in the GOP
The opportunist types are scrambling to look like they've been Zelenskky's best friend and Putin's enemy all along
Even the NRA Second-Amendment types should be anti-Putin, Putin invasion being fought by citizens is like the all the classic movies of Soviet invasion of the US being resisted by gun owners-is like one of their wet dreams
Even polled rank and file registered are strongly anti-Putin.
If anything, the GOP talking points are clearly going with Biden has been too soft on Russia, and we're still buying Russian oil (drill baby drill!)-been seeing a lot of that today, Biden bashing about him being too soft on Putin, including from Giuliani.

That's just a few things, I could dig up more...

edit to add: been seeing a lot from left sympathizers on the "Freedom Fries-ification of the Russia-Ukraine conflict". where Putin is evil, the west is good (and Trump and Tucker are toast for sympathizing)

by artappraiser on Sat, 03/05/2022 - 3:03pm

More GOP:

Sen. Ben Sasses rules out a no-fly zone after the Zoom call with Zelensky but says: "Americans should absolutely send Ukrainians planes, helicopters, and UAVs."
— Michael Weiss (@michaeldweiss) March 5, 2022

Senate Whip Thune

Wow, Sen. John Thune (Rep) is live on TV saying he is thankful for the uniting of all the nations that President Biden has done, and the Administration is doing a good job. He also denounced the behavior of Boebert, and Greene. Are they beginning to wake up?
— Tanya Freeman-Glover (@TanyaFreemanGl1) March 2, 2022

Americans stand with Ukraine as its people fight for their homeland.
— Senator John Thune (@SenJohnThune) March 2, 2022

Mitch, drill baby drill, including for our "friends" in Europe

A year ago, President Biden hurt American energy independence on Day One by executive order.

With another stroke of the pen, he could get us back in the production business to meet our own needs and export to our friends in Europe too. pic.twitter.com/IGqrgJInsx
— Leader McConnell (@LeaderMcConnell) March 2, 2022

and more on defense against Russia & China:

The President’s job is to seriously meet the growing threats posed by Russia and China. That starts with investing in our national defense. Our adversaries have prioritized military modernization for decades. We need more investment, not less, to strengthen our own capabilities.
— Leader McConnell (@LeaderMcConnell) February 28, 2022

RNC: Biden should have sanctioned Russia long ago, see what Zelenskyy just said -

Joe Biden 9 days ago: “No one expected the sanctions to prevent anything from happening”pic.twitter.com/kHUpziTzqe https://t.co/YbkwY9JfXB
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) March 5, 2022

RNC: Biden stymied GOP attempt at sanctions

Joe Biden waived sanctions on Nord Stream 2, and then had Democrats effectively filibuster the Republicans’ effort to put sanctions back on Putin’s pipeline https://t.co/YbkwY9JfXB
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) March 5, 2022

"Russia should not be at any table"; Putin & Iran both hate America:

Republicans troubled by ongoing talks to revive Iran nuclear deal: 'Russia should not be at any table'https://t.co/UVHMtpxsWh
Why does Biden want another nuclear country that hates Americans like Putin. One is enough! Biden is stupid old jerk that should not represent Freedom.
— Pat Curran (@PCurran58) March 5, 2022

More conservative Christian Pence

Mike Pence To Try To Kick Trump Out Of The Republican Party https://t.co/MPRqFkLQHA
— #TuckFrump (@realTuckFrumper) March 4, 2022

by artappraiser on Sat, 03/05/2022 - 4:36pm

I will be discussing the shocking arrest of B. Griner on @MSNBC at 3:40 pm EST. This is a damn serious situation. https://t.co/7u3mRbcCs0
— Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon (@ksvarnon) March 5, 2022

by artappraiser on Sat, 03/05/2022 - 1:59pm

verrry interesting "Promoted" tweet from "FBI New York" just now on my Twitter timeline (which means they are either paying for it to be promoted or Twitter is giving them a public service freebie)

Информация, предоставляемая ФБР населением, является наиболее эффективным средством борьбы с угрозами. Если вы располагаете информацией, которая может помочь ФБР, просим вас обратиться к нам.
— FBI New York (@NewYorkFBI) February 16, 2022

here is Twitter's translation:

Information provided to the FBI by the public is the most effective means of dealing with threats. If you have information that could help the FBI, please contact us.'

To be clear, not implying it has anything to do with the Griner case, just thought it was a good place to plop it.

by artappraiser on Sat, 03/05/2022 - 2:22pm

Now that is just messed up. Putin is trying to escalate as much as he possibly can to see what it leads to.

by Orion on Sat, 03/05/2022 - 5:20pm

Uh oh, I see she's an out lesbian, that's decadent west

In my interview about Brittney Griner (will post as soon as I get the link or footage), I discuss the charges she is facing, how Russia has other Americans in prison right now, and the specific challenges she faces as a Black, Lesbian woman with high profile.
— Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon (@ksvarnon) March 5, 2022

Lets get real there, though, a reminder that Russia's been doing the female-to-male trans thing like fuhever, way before everyone else, i.e. the stererotypical female shot putter at the Olympics built "like a brick shithouse" because she's pumped up with steroids. It's just that these women still always had to adhere to rigid gender roles outside of sports. Held off the seige of Leningrad with a frying pan, Rosie the Riveter had nothing on her....

edit to add the MSNBC video she tweeted

https://t.co/KQrSc5vGNi
— Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon (@ksvarnon) March 5, 2022

by artappraiser on Sat, 03/05/2022 - 6:39pm

This is an instigation by an actor that wants conflict, not one who seeks to avoid it. Russian bots were involved in instigating both left and right and this is a very bold asshole venture in that direction.

by Orion on Sat, 03/05/2022 - 8:12pm

You talkin bout this?

https://youtu.be/FpypTXccG2I

by PeraclesPlease on Sat, 03/05/2022 - 10:53pm

Diplomats were working to ensure the release of American basketball player Brittney Griner after Russia said she had been detained for possession of vape cartridges containing hash oil, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said https://t.co/9RkDgrAQTI pic.twitter.com/RAossg7c9k
— Reuters (@Reuters) March 7, 2022

by artappraiser on Mon, 03/07/2022 - 12:35pm

Russian soldier begs for forgiveness for Ukraine war. https://youtu.be/nAvV8jSEpVs

by Orion on Mon, 03/07/2022 - 2:59pm

Yeah, I posted that too just after midnight ET here on the Ukraine war thread after an article about Russian surrenders. Tweeter said This, out of #Ukraine, is 100% one of the most incredible videos I have ever seen. This Russian POW has the heart of a lion. Saw others say everyone should watch it. He was pre-emptive about saying don't think this is a prepared text...he's just an older more mature guy who has seen too much b.s., that's what it is to me, not gonna end up with a war crimes rap for Putin's sake

by artappraiser on Mon, 03/07/2022 - 6:56pm

Someone told me a while back that Vladimir Putin is nowhere near as smart and calculating as he seems, that he is actually a bit of a bullshitter who was assigned his position. I think that might be fairly accurate.

by Orion on Mon, 03/07/2022 - 7:41pm

Ukraine nags a Russian ship! https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=32r0GfQPnXo

by Orion on Mon, 03/07/2022 - 5:01pm

A thread on Brittney Griner and Russia from @ksvarnon. https://t.co/GQZRDrFXSJ
— Terrell Jermaine Starr (@terrelljstarr) March 9, 2022

by artappraiser on Wed, 03/09/2022 - 11:55am

A look at what is known now about Brittney Griner's situation, working with @TJQuinnESPN. https://t.co/phNckXtM3x
— Mechelle Voepel (@MechelleV) March 10, 2022

by artappraiser on Thu, 03/10/2022 - 11:28am

This is almost certainly all political but it doesn't help Russia's case with the rest of the world. They already had a soccer problem.

by Orion on Fri, 03/11/2022 - 5:23pm

for Cori Bush, the Afro-Americans-are-victims angle always comes first (if there isn't a clear easily apparent, she'll find it) -

We cannot ignore the fact that if Brittney Griner wasn’t a Black woman, it would be plastered across the news that she is being held as a political prisoner in Russia.

Free Brittney Griner.
— Cori Bush (@CoriBush) March 17, 2022

by artappraiser on Mon, 03/21/2022 - 7:07pm

p.s. nearly as stoopid as Marjorie Taylor Greene sometimes, can't even do the D.S.A. talking points well -

Oil oligarchs are exploiting regular, everyday people.

American billionaires have added $1.7 trillion in wealth during the pandemic while nearly 1 million people have died — disproportionately low-income Black and brown people.

It’s all connected. We must end corporate greed. https://t.co/beamqR60bH
— Cori Bush (@CoriBush) March 16, 2022

by artappraiser on Mon, 03/21/2022 - 7:13pm

Europe wants your cheap gas if you don't.

by PeraclesPlease on Mon, 03/21/2022 - 7:17pm

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Russia's hosted such meetings in the past, most recently Feb 2019

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