Ksenia Khavana faces up to 20 years in prison for treason amid Kremlin crackdown
  • @RunawayFixer@lemmy.worldEnglish
    97•1 year ago

    Every citizen of a democratic country, who is still inside Russia at this point, is a potential hostage and bargaining chip for the Russian government. There’s no independent press or judiciary in Russia and the Russian government has no morals and few scruples. If they need a hostage, they’ll take one.

    Griner (a basket ball player convicted to 25y in prison for petty charges) was exchanged for Viktor Bout (the person on whom the movie Lord of War was based).

    The Russian laws are also a minefield of post truths and petty rules, so it’s not hard to find some kind of charge against any individual. Basically everyone will be breaking the law in some way in Russia and the crooks in the Russian government can decide when and where to go after someone.

    • @suction@lemmy.worldEnglish
      25•1 year ago

      Thank you. It’s so disappointing that people still give Russia the benefit of doubt. And thereby the people in the US and Europe who want to turn our countries into post-fact dystopias.

    • s0ckpuppet
      17•1 year ago

      Yeah at this point if you’re still there, there should be no bargaining for you if/when this happens. So fucking stupid to give that country any benefit of the doubt.

      • @khannie@lemmy.worldEnglish
        8•1 year ago

        Saw an interview with some Americans living in Moscow and all I could think was “Jaysus lads, you must have been dropped on your head as a baby a few times to still be there at this point”.

        Like I’m sure day to day it’s fine, but you’re instantly a bargaining chip if Putin wants one.

      • GhostalmediaEnglish
        16•1 year ago

        Dude lived in DC and never once grabbed a shopping cart from the local Aldi. I assume his private chef took care of all the shopping.

        • s0ckpuppet
          15•1 year ago

          Yes the US absolutely does have them at some chains. Also a lot of stores have tech where the wheels lock up if you try to leave the parking lot with the cart. There’s various versions of them, including this one.

          In the EU the coin lock carts are basically standard everywhere I’ve been.

          Tucker’s bullshit wasn’t aimed at people that would know that. It was ridiculous propaganda for the sorts of dumb fucking Americans who never leave their bubble, yet spend all their time making wild assumptions about the outside world.

        • GhostalmediaEnglish
          11•1 year ago

          Yeah, Aldi and Lidl do. But it’s arguably a thing they brought over from Europe. Most other retailers and grocers don’t do it.

          That said, Tucker has lived in towns with Aldi stores, but that guy is a sentient boat shoe. I can’t imagine he shops for himself at the local Aldi.

          • GhostalmediaEnglish
            6•1 year ago

            And IMHO, that Russian one is the lame kind. The better ones have a separate track for carts. Target use those a lot, and they allow the people side to flow with less obstruction.

        • @ShittyBeatlesFCPres@lemmy.worldEnglish
          2•1 year ago

          The ones where I live have some sort of range signal where the wheels stop if you go too far away. If you leave the parking lot, all the wheels lock up. It’s probably simple to disable but I haven’t bothered to go there with a flipper zero and sort out how to steal them since I already own a pretty sweet wagon.

    • @Jiggle_Physics@lemmy.worldEnglish
      -15•1 year ago

      What would the US have done if an Iranian immigrant had donated money to the war effort of the insurgency during the Iraq and Afghan wars? Serious question. Would they get arrested? Is that some sort of crime? hmm…