This comment was left on an earlier post from Anonymous:
Steve-- what did you think of the story on Musser? Is he as pathetic as he seems? What a painful article to have written about oneself. I would shoot myself if I was like he is portrayed! Kyle Hopkins ADN Blog
He sounds like my ex husband of 16 years ago, "Ever since you left me my life has become an eddiface to what I am not! boo-hoo."
Well I was nearby in the cafeteria when Musser started talking to Kyle and Lisa. This is a picture of them while Kyle was live blogging the post you linked to.
Read the very end of my earlier my earlier post on what the jury needs to know. We all have to take responsibility. It's really easy to make snap judgments about people. The Government subpoenaed Musser and flew him up, he said, but in the end he didn't get called to testify. Because they weren't sure what kind of witness he'd be? Because they figured they didn't need him? Who knows? But whistle blowers tend to get creamed if they haven't planned it out carefully. He violated the rule about hanging dirty laundry in public. He outed a Republican legislator who committed numerous campaign finance violations. He said he tried to work out some other way to end what was going on. She was having serious domestic problems and she needed help, he said. Finally he went to the APOC. He also violated the norms against outing your boss. While, he never said Kohring 'fired' him, he said he was put on leave without pay until the Masek matter was settled. But he could never get in contact with Kohring again. He said his calls weren't answered, etc. He's living in Houston (Texas, not Alaska). He said someone at an oil company told him the word was he couldn't be trusted (he'd ratted on his boss, on a fellow Republican is how I understood that.) So, when your whole network blackballs you, it's hard. Not only can't you get a job through your network, he probably has trouble getting letters of recommendation. They want people to remember what happens when you break the code. This is hardball. This is like an inside guy having the tape going when everyone is relaxed and letting their hair down. Can't have that guy working here, we can never trust him.
Look at who is still chair of the Republican party in Alaska:
He's got to give up his old life and start over where no one knows who he is. That's not easy.
If you read articles and books on whistleblowing, this is not unusual. People are blackballed and even actively sabotaged when they apply for jobs.
Were his motives pure when he filed his complaint? I don't know. I asked him, why with so many people aware of what was going on, only he blew the whistle. He said he had a reason, but he wouldn't talk about it until after the verdict.
Just because there might be a characteristic or two similar to your ex-husband's, doesn't mean the rest is the same. It could be, but I prefer to fill in the missing pieces before I come to a conclusion. After all, Musser did report a sitting legislator to the APOC and she was found to have violated the rules. And for that he lost his job and was blackballed.
Maybe we should be thinking, not of Anderson, Kott, Kohring, but of Masek, Anderson, Kott, and Kohring. Then Musser would have been the first to stand up against corruption. But he always has to live with the behind the back innuendo and suspicion - was he just taken revenge for some slight?
I would say that when he did this he was either incredibly brave or incredibly naive - or maybe both.
