FEBRUARY 15, 2022
4
FEATURE: WORLD
OPINIONS
DESIGN BY SUVIA LI
An unfair trade: The Brittney Griner prisoner swap
Andrew Duval
Staff Writer
THE CHARGER ACCOUNT Leland High School 6677 Camden Ave. Principal Peter Park San Jose Unified School District San Jose, CA 95120-2142 (408) 535-6290 thechargeraccount.com
EDITORS IN CHIEF Keirah Chen, Raymond Dai, Miranda Lu, Larry Ye ART AND PHOTO DIRECTORS Kailey Hu, Ellie Kim, Julia Nakanishi NEWS EDITORS Sophia Qin, Imran Shaikh OPINIONS EDITOR Suvia Li SCIENCE & TECH EDITOR Sophia Qin FEATURE EDITORS Bertina Fan, Inseo Kim, Imran Shaikh VIEWPOINT AND LAST WORD EDITORS Isaac Ang, Daniel Lin ENTERTAINMENT AND LIFESTYLE EDITORS Bertina Fan, Reagan Liu INVESTIGATIVE REPORT EDITOR Isaac Ang SPORTS EDITOR Breanna Lu STUDENT SPOTLIGHT EDITOR Reagan Liu AD MANAGER Breanna Lu MEDIA MANAGER Jeehee Kim, Claire Pham MANAGING EDITOR Manasa Sriraj ADVISOR Elaine Ngo COMMUNITY CIRCULATION Parent Club and Leland Bridge
Infamous Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout gives a polite smile and quick nod to the cameramen recording his release from prison as he briskly climbs up the steps of a jet. Brittney Griner, a renowned WNBA player arrested on drug smuggling charges in Russia, eagerly leans forward as journalists ask her, “Are you ready for a flight?” “Yes, yes,” she responds. On Dec. 8, 2022, Bout and Griner were exchanged by the United States and Russia in a controversial prisoner swap. In response to the event, many voiced concerns over the Biden administration’s foreign policy decisions, with some accusing it of caving in to the demands of authoritarian regimes. Others questioned the media’s influence on the selective release of prisoners. Griner was arrested on February 17, 2022 in Russia after the Federal Customs Service discovered that she possessed medicinal cannabis, which is illegal in Russia. Griner pleaded guilty on July 7 but claimed that she did not intend to break the law. Bout was sentenced to 25 years in prison in the U.S. in April 2022 after attempting to sell over 100 missiles and rocket launchers to a DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) informer. Bout was charged with conspiring to provide material support of a designated foreign terrorist organization, conspiring to kill Americans, conspiring to acquire and use an anti-aircraft missile, illegal purchase of aircraft, wire fraud and
The Charger Account Editorial Staff
Ella Polak Gilina Voon Kyan Wang Lauren Wilson Lia Yereslove Lyn Kang Dana Lim Jude Tantawy Kenneth Yang
PHOTOGRAPHERS Hsi Lok Chan William Huang
Gilina Voon
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The Charger Account Feb. 15 | Vol. U No. 4
were being used for political purposes. “The Biden administration should not have traded Bout away for Griner because Bout is a great threat to the nation. While Griner only accidentally committed a crime, Bout deliberately harmed many,” Freshman Catherine Wang said. Bout aided in the deaths of millions by supplying arms to warring governments and terrorist groups. Since his release, he has joined an ultranationalist political party in Russia. Griner, on the other hand, brought a relatively small amount of medicinal cannabis into Russia with no intent to distribute it. There is clearly a substantial difference in the nature and impact of their crimes, making the trade unwise. However, a factor that must be taken into consideration
A capitalist weapon
ARTISTS Daniel Choi Kayla Choi Quincy Han Jane Hong Harry Kang
KAYLA CHOI ART
The right to replace planned obsolescence
STAFF WRITERS Gwen Carroll Andrew Duval Antara Gangwal Jay Li Tammy Newman
money laundering. Nicknamed “The Merchant of Death,” Bout has smuggled arms into Afghanistan, Angola, Liberia and more. During the invasion of Iraq, Bout’s firms were instrumental in bringing supplies for American troops into the nation. Both the prisoners’ respective governments argued that their detentions were unjust and that they
Competition for customers and profits form the heart of capitalism, stimulating innovation and diversity in available products. However, in pursuit of victory in this rat race, manufacturers often employ deceptive tactics such as planned obsolescence—purposefully designing products to stay in style for only a limited amount of time—that ultimately harm consumers. Planned obsolescence is a primary contributor to America’s problem of cyclical overconsumption. Decreasing the reliability of products so that customers are forced to replace them regularly, planned obsolescence can significantly boost profits. However, manufacturers are careful to make product lifespans reasonable for their price to maintain customer loyalty. Planned obsolescence also comes in the form of periodic product upgrades, as customers may feel pressured to always own the newest versions of products. Fast fashion is a notorious example of planned obsolescence: It
makes “old” fashion styles obsolete, typically replacing them in months— or even weeks—with new trends to increase consumption. Fast fashion behemoths Shein and Uniqlo often use cheap, synthetic fabrics and severely underpay their workers, maximizing profits. In the technology industry, Apple is infamous for abusing planned obsolescence; in 2020, NPR reported that the company was accused of slowing down old iPhone batteries. In 2021, Apple faced further allegations that it had provided customers with low-quality, secondhand replacement devices instead of new parts during repairs, per The Verge. Such instances of exploitation have prompted many to repair their existing belongings through third-party suppliers. In December 2022, New York enacted the most extensive “right to repair” law to date, requiring companies to make repair information available to independent providers. Politicians praised this policy, describing how repairing products drastically reduces electronic waste and increases affordability. However, The Verge shared that companies have already exploited several loopholes in the bill. Some businesses have merely provided instructions for assembly rather than actual components, and the act excludes various goods including home appliances and medical devices.
is the publicity and sensationalism surrounding the case. Many influential people such as NBA star LeBron James urged the U.S. to negotiate for Griner’s release through social media. This put immense pressure on the U.S. to make the trade and boost public trust in the government. Contrarily, this trade also exposes government bias toward the well-known and powerful. Marc Fogel, an American teacher, was arrested in Russia in August 2021 for possessing medicinal marijuana, the same crime that Griner committed. However, unlike Griner, his case did not receive widespread public attention or media coverage, and he was not classified as wrongly detained. “While it was right for the United States government to push for Griner’s release, they should not have freed Bout. The government needs to help out its citizens, but not at such an expense,” Sophomore Sophia DeRollo said. The U.S. government should have instead pushed to trade for a Russian detainee who has committed a crime of similar severity to Griner rather than Bout. Instead, our government buckled to the pressure of publicity and media. To promote public trust in the government, fair and balanced prisoner swaps must be made in the future.
December issue corrections Opinions: “Pure Colour”: • “Pure Color” should have been written as “Pure Colour” in the review box. Feature School: Plants: An unlikely feline foe: • “who” should have been added after “avid cat lover.” Student Spotlight: Photo by Anonymous: • “San Francisco” was misspelled as “San Fransisco.” Sports: Successful seasons: The school scores at CCS: • Amber Lee ’24’s name was misspelled as “Amber Lu.” The bill’s wording is also ambiguous; some argue that devices manufactured before the bill’s passage are not bound by the stipulated protections. Although planned obsolescence spurs economic growth by increasing consumption, it is highly detrimental to consumer and environmental well-being. Until this practice becomes better regulated, we should opt for higher-quality, longer-lasting products and make tangible efforts to reexamine our relationship with consumption.
