Funny, that's my perennial question about Erik Sten. Has he ever had a real job? Has he ever been paid for real work other than professional office-holder and Spender of Other People's Money?

At least it's a little easier to tell whose water Mannix is carrying.

As someone who knew him when, let me point out that Kevin Mannix once upon a time was a Democratic state rep. Some of us who knew him 20 years ago aren't quite sure why/how he changed, but by the early 1990s he was beginning to be the "good people agree with me" sort of person he is now--shall we say allergic to answering inconvenient questions?

Which is really too bad. I recall many long years ago going to a town hall meeting at a restaurant which specialized in really good pies and a room full of people asking intelligent questions and getting intelligent answers.

According to Mannix's 2002 campaign web site he had been a practicing lawyer for 27 years -- 19 in the private sector. Regardless how you feel about lawyers, you must admit they work hard. Of course, he could have been defending cigarette manufacturers or something similarly slimy. It would be interesting to know whether Kevin Mannix used to be a (gasp!) trial lawyer.

Though I may be wrong, I think Erik Sten was a public high school teacher. They also work hard, though they don't make as much money as lawyers.

I recall a little while back here on BO there was a link (I couldn't find it today) posted to Mannix's profile from the voters pamphlet from I think the early 90's (when he was a Democrat). Anyhow, because of a personal connection to the island I happened to notice and distinctly recall that he was an Assistant AG for Guam at one point. Not an elective office, and not a "slimy defense attorney".

I thought he made his name originally as a prosecutor?

"Although your point is as stupid as it is pointless, Sally, let me nevertheless spend a moment considering it. Mannix, who spent hundreds of thousands of dollars of "other people's money" running various failed election campaigns, has yet a single thing to show for it. Sten is a public servant. Which makes me want to ask--do conservatives really believe that public service is akin to the dark evil they describe in their rhetoric. Do you truly argue for the end to government?"

Pointless point? Why, that almost sounds like a contradiction in terms. Nevertheless, Jeff, let me answer your pointedly (snicker) barbed retort. I argue for an end merely to Erik Sten's almost singularly worthless "public" service. He has, though, made me wonder whether someone so young, with so little if any (I could find none listed) experience outside government should spend a life inside it. It may be that very insulation that makes him so incapable of imagining reality of working people.

I grew up near Salem and I remember when Mannix was a small business attorney rand a conservative Democrat legislator representing the Salem area. His pro-life positions stood out among Ds and Rs. I always thought of him as being a meat and potatoes, Rotary Club, traditional Catholic kind of guy. I know he was active in his parish. He was kind of like that uncle you don't really clique with but get along with when you're around him at a family BBQ or baseball game. I think he left the Ds after he lost a primary for Attorney General. Circa '92 and '94, Mannix sponsored successful mandatory sentencing and other tough-on-crime measures. These put him on the state political map.

Kevin Mannix is a joke. That's why I made him the butt of my April Fools post ;-)

And as far as Mannix being a sign of the "sorry state of our state"... I beg to differ. It's a sign of the sorry state of the GOP in Oregon.

I usually do not post on these kind of websites. However, I thought I should inform the uninformed about Kevin Mannix. He began his law career as an Oregon Assistant Attorney General. Later, he was an atttorney for Guam. Upon his return, he was an ALJ. He then began private practice in a Portland area, where he worked with many attorneys who are now Oregon judges. He then started his own practice in Salem. He entered Oregon politics after being recruited by none other than Vera Katz. He served in the Oregon legislature for ten years, where he wrote more legislation than any other legislator in the history of Oregon, including the famous stalking laws. Say what you will about the guy's current activities, but I assure you there is more to the man than you will ever know. I should know, I worked with him for five years. By the way, most of this information is on the internet. I suggest doing your homework before posting messages that display your ignorance.