Have you been following the Brittney Griner saga? I haven’t followed it that closely but I can say it is surprising and not at the same time. It seems that Americans (yes, I am one) think they can get (or deserve) special treatment when they go to a foreign country. I don’t feel this way, of course, that’s why I am going to write what I write. I’ll keep it brief.

In short (as I understand it), she is a basketball player from the US who was traveling to Russia for a game. She was detained because she was trying to bring contraband into the country (from what I understand, marijuana). She broke the law of a foreign country and now is being punished for it. The verdict was handed down today – nine years in a Russian prison.

My take: If you break the law in a foreign country and get caught, you should be punished under their system of laws. I, we (as US citizens) shouldn’t expect special treatment (even if we are a “celebrity”).

Now, there is always going to be the question of whether or not this was truly a legit case because Russia is shady and there is obviously some “make an example of her” and “the US is supporting Ukraine” thrown in for good measure by the Russian authorities. That does leave some questions in my mind.

BUT, my guess is she most likely knew what she was doing was wrong and thought she could get away with it. Or, she was hoping her status as a pro basketball player would win her some favor. Or, she was hoping that being an American would mean that ol’ Uncle Sam would come to the rescue if soemthing bad went down.

Well, not so much. We shouldn’t be going around flouting the laws in our own country let alone one that isn’t our own. There should never be a “Get out of Jail FREE” card, no matter your status or country.

Put that “in your pipe and smoke it!”