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Bonus: Brittney Griner part 2(so I made a mistake)

Hard Parking with Jhae Pfenning Dec 15, 2022 13 min

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About this episode

A deep dive into the controversial trade involving Brittney Griner and the 'Merchant of Death' raises questions about the implications of celebrity influence on politics and public opinion. The hosts discuss the misinformation surrounding Griner's case, the complexities of international law, and the polarized views on Griner as a public figure. They explore the broader societal issues at play, including the responsibilities of athletes and the government's role in high-profile negotiations. The episode features insights from Brian Sales, a military advocate, adding depth to the discussion.

Topics: brittney griner merchant of death celebrity influence international law political implications misinformation public opinion athlete responsibilities

ep 141.5 I was recently called out on my YouTube video that Brittney Griner was caught with allegedly cannabis oil, and not CBD oil. Cannabis oil contains far more THC and is illegal in most states still. Although her doctor sent over proof it was medically prescribed which does supersede the legality in many states, it was still far more of a potent product that CBD oil. With that being said, CBD is still derived from the cannabis plant and is still 100% illegal in Russia. Would that have made any difference? Further more, this is the third time a woman from the US has been detained or jailed in Russia over this. This seems to be the only time the US has made an actual prisoner trade. In one case, the woman was released after 30 days and paid a small fine. The other case, President Putin pardoned the Israeli American woman because Israel refused to trade her for a Russian hacker.

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So, I recently uploaded a video about my opinion on the Brittney, Griner Viktor bout trade, Merchant of death.

I did say that, I think it was a terrible tray, but I also had about three or four minutes of misinformation about what she was actually caught with. She was actually caught with,

according to other sources THC oil, which is definitely stronger than, than CBD oil. Both, however, are derived from

the cannabis plant and I will double back and are double down.

Down and saying that had it just been CBD oil.

I honestly believe she'd still be in the same place that she has right now because anything derived from Cannabis is considered illegal in the country of Russia as well as other parts of the world. So with that being said, I mean

joined by friend. Brian sales, Warriors collection

brand, strong military, advocate in kind of tell us a little bit about you really quick and we'll get to the second half of this piece. Know as you already said all

those great. Things and more.

Yeah, let's jump into it. So we both University agree that

we don't think it's a good trade.

Yeah. What do you think about

Brittney? Griner as a person it's

important that I ask this question because I think that she's very it's very polarized and she's a very polarizing individual. Yeah, I'm just having issues

with it. I feel like if you go to another

country is good to know. You know what their rules and

guidelines are. Like, but like you said, so,

well, in your, in the, in the episode, sometimes you forget things, sometimes you get things and it happens.

The only issue I have is the trade like yeah your trade and well, let me, let me back up. Listen, let's highlight the fact

that she hates this country and everything that this country is now, I would say, I don't like that and for her to want to come back to a country. You hate so much feel.

Like it's so wrong, in so many things.

Do you now years and become a resident of Russia?

So I understand that rhetoric. I understand that it's like

okay, it's is and I'd mention it, I don't think I said it on the piece but I mentioned in a comment where it's kind of the Colin Kaepernick scenario right where people like well if you don't want to kneel or you don't want to stand for the national anthem, you think that this country and she's not wrong in a sense where there's definitely some, you know, hardcore inequalities, you know, At the right place to do it.

My challenge to people who feel that way is not necessarily the people who are angry about it, but for people who want to take that stance, okay, what are you doing in the community to make a difference? Because just by kneeling or, you

know, kneeling that doesn't necessarily mean you're making a difference. You're just bringing attention

to yourself and then you take that attention, that's where Colin Kaepernick fail to my opinion.

Yeah, she didn't actually do anything actionable and so his cause started to fall apart and This case, you know, I don't want to get steer too far away but I think people have a hard time separating their personal feelings towards somebody on the actual issue at hand and that's kind of what I was saying is that you have to suspend your dislike of her.

And at the end of the day, she's still a US citizen.

Whether we like it or not, just attained in a hostile country.

We need to get her home now. I understand the outrage with

the whole Paul wheel and thing. But what I found is we've been

trying to get him and they were like, no, I think, once they had her, they knew they had a bargaining chip.

They knew they had something to work with what your thoughts on that? Well, Yeah, they knew they knew

exactly when you they won't give up the military one.

Especially the one that has all the information on what Russia is doing. If he's been, you know, doing

his job and he probably has a lot of Intel and then to play Devil's Advocate I would say how hard like, how hard was America trying to get him back? Maybe he has information on what

America has been doing or not, doing or been?

You know, I feel like there's maybe America wasn't trying as hard, you know, we're very thing that's going on or maybe a word and Russia wasn't then want to give him up because he knew too much. But the trade for The Merchant

of death like this man is back in Russia finding weapons that we we can't even get this country shot of ban weapons and we going to get Give a man back that he Prides himself on finding weapons and selling weapons.

And they have named him Merchant of death.

Like, how prestigious is this guy that he's been coined as The Merchant of death? I wouldn't, what has he been

getting? Yeah, we had a gentleman comment

on my last YouTube video hot take video and you know he did say hey it was THD, you know, you're wrong but then he sent me a link to Russia news in. As soon as I'm watching Russian

news we all know how Russia spends everything they spend everything from there people. You know, granted we could be

guilty of that ourselves but Call me naive, but I don't think the White House is controlling every single news Outlet.

We have, we still have people that have independent reporting.

We have people that are if you're a republican you don't care. If there's if there's Democrats

in the white house you can do everything you can right to knock them out. And if it was Republicans in the

white house, if your Democratic news, you want to do everything, you can, and knock them out. We know that Russia, controls

all that stuff. You know, the Russian machine is

going to say, hey your victory for Russia, Bubba, blah.

So as soon as I got that Link. I was like okay dude let me read

what you actually wrote and let me investigate on what you actually wrote. I have no interest in watching

this Russian translated YouTube video because that's just as bad as some of the other stuff that I've seen.

Well, again, you had to separate your family, must be really compassionate to it towards the, the whole Brittany situation and you must has, you know, a real strong connection to THC or whatever. But I mean, you have to just

look at it for what it is. We we traded someone To get a

WNBA star where that the haze this country.

Again, she's a citizen to haze's Country.

We gave them and a total asset. We didn't gain an asset.

Like do we gain? Someone who's doing something

big, and you said she played in Phoenix.

You didn't even know she plays at Phoenix.

Yeah, I didn't even know, I don't know.

What was she doing anything inside the community that that set her apart that, you know, put on a pedestal Or something right? I've been here nine years.

I'm gonna say not that I know of, but again I don't really look into those Affairs but I don't see a lot of the sports teams are on their have programs but they seem to be very like I know we have athletes that are in the community.

Yeah but you don't really hear about them, you hear about any NFL play, 60 or whatever. But yeah, no I don't, I don't

stop his last communication degree or Phoenix, Suns community outreach. You know, I don't see anyone

walking with the police or walking with the people.

Like I don't see any of that, and some of that's controlled, obviously, by the organization but still, I just, I don't see it. So, yeah, I had no idea.

She was still playing exactly. So, she wasn't like, a person of

the people that wasn't people out in Phoenix.

Was there people in Phoenix and bringing Brittany home.

I don't got. So was there a group of people

watching? We need bring me home today.

Like that. We gave them an asset.

We didn't gain anything out of it.

It's again, it, I guess is good for her family that and her wife that, you know, they have her back.

But, you know, put for people to be mad.

And again, I don't care II, just thought the trade was horrible, right? It was the biggest trading WNBA

history. The only the only trade that has

ever made headlines. Yeah, that's it's the only

trade, I mean, not even it's fun.

It's fun to make fun of this. But at the end of the day, it's

I think the we can't be mad at Brittany.

Yeah, we can be mad at the rest of the American people.

We can be mad at the administration.

We could be mad that Paul Wheeling.

You know, what's the difference? The difference is your average

American has no idea who he is. Hmm, he's not a public star and

in this day and are aged this You get to the court of public opinion on your on your side. And I think that's ultimately

what really happened here. I mean, as soon as you know Vin

Diesel says I need Brittney Griner home by Christmas, not saying that Vin Diesel is the reason why this happened but that's just the example of a national International Star and other National people saying bring Brittany home.

Bringing Brittany home. Brittany home.

So I think it's maybe if the government had came out of me like, no, we're gonna try to get Brittany and way their home, they did. You see that?

It know. If we were able to watch that

fell apart I'm like okay it's either Brittany or nobody and say okay well let's get us Britain and then people my okay, well we knew that they were trying to get a package and the package didn't work, so we can bring bringing home and go corner. I think people are mad because

they felt like all the celebrities had so much.

Say so and how this thing plays out, I think that what people are mad about, you know, when you have Always stars and sports, or athletes and different TV pundits, speaking on things and you feel like their voice matters more than what people feel like should be, you know, recognized as a true American, there's a disconnect. So I feel like they should have

packaged it and say, hey, this is what we're doing instead of being reactive, if they would have been proactive saying, hey, we're going to try to get Brittany and wailing instead of being reactive to the outrage. What about all US Marine and be

like, oh well, we try to get them, we don't know yet.

So that's, that's an excellent point.

And I'll finish with this had, she loved America and never was in that controversy. It would at the end of the day,

it would still be, we just traded a WNBA gay, black woman political, right? Political moves for the

merchants of death. I don't think the bottom line

would have changed. Yeah.

Yeah. Right.

Right. It didn't you know, then people

would have found something else and then it did it would have been less about her hating America more about her being a famous black athlete. You know, one thing I will add,

before we wrap this up, is there upon further research after this guy pointed out the fact that it was th see.

There's at least two women that we know of that have been detained for something similar. Both THD products, one was a

film student under New York, who spent 30 days in, Tainment in got out. After paying like a 200, some

dollar fine. The other one was an

israeli-american at the age of 26 who was actually sentenced to just over seven years in prison herself, but was pardoned by Vladimir Putin in 2020, after meeting with the Israeli Prime Minister, so they pardoned, they didn't trade, they pardoned.

So, again, that kind of brings the whole, the whole thought that this was we have a famous American and we can try to get our Merchant of death and we'll see if they'll fold and And you know, I'm not saying she should have stayed there, but again, I'll double back that we should have been in this position to begin with. So she served four years before

they parted. I remember when she was it was

all seven years sentence and she was pardoned in 2020.

I didn't look to see what year was it.

She was actually sentenced. So I mean, you know, Russian

knew what they had version you what they had you know what, they are interested in your take on it and it happened.

Yep. All right there you know they

know what's going on over here and they got the perfect gift wrapped basket because you know everything is so critical eyes know, she's gay black, female and be a star or do.

The NBA star. And that's perfect.

They know that, you know, Hollywood and all the celebrities gonna be wanting her own and there's so many issues surrounding the yeah. They, they knew they knew.

And you. Yeah, I agree.

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There it is. Thanks!

Brian. You guys can catch me on hard

parking with Jay, finding the non-automotive automotive podcast where society and culture comes first like this topic. And if there's time we talk

about cars, thanks Brian. Thank you.

Now, let's strip in time. Ain't nobody got time for that.