that's a whole lot of non-sequitur there, as the weed is entirely beside the point. the russian government wanted to make a geopolitical point and gain leverage

that's a whole lot of non-sequitur there, as the weed is entirely beside the point. the russian government wanted to make a geopolitical point and gain leverage, and they would have found something else to trump up and attract mediopolitical news coverage. griner is a minor celebrity, so perfect for not generating too much outrage, but enough to get more than incidental coverage. yes, other countries (including the US) have done this too, but in this case (and many other cases), it's a civilian, not a gvernmental or military member, who has been pulled directly into the crossfire, and that's the core "wrong" here.