The US rescued hostage Brittney Griner by trading an important Russian arms dealer for her.

Griner deserved to be freed for the simple reason that what she did was not wrong. However, I don't understand why Americans clamor for Griner's release more than for the release of everyone imprisoned in the US for possession of marijuana. There are many Americans unjustly imprisoned in the US for doing nothing more than what Griner did. They too deserve to be freed.

It is a shame to let arms merchant Viktor Bout go free, though.

I think we should not pressure the US to try to ransom hostages, because that pressure benefits the regimes that take hostages at the expense of the US. If I were a hostage, I would say, "Don't ransom me if the ransom hurts my country!"