Sunday In The Park With AD, Nelson and Berardino
I received a call this morning from our 4th District County Supervisor Shawn Nelson asking if I would be willing to help coach a youth football clinic at Craig Park. Supervisor Nelson, aware of the fact that I played high school and Division I college football and that I had coached high school and Pop Warner football, needed someone to fill an unexpected vacancy on his coaching staff. My Sunday alternatives were to either spend the day helping 6 to 17 year olds learn a bit more about football or make more No McKinley signs. No brainer. I dusted off the old whistle and off to the park I went.
The event, billed “OC Parks and Sports Day,” was packed with eager kids with more energy than the energizer bunny. My day was not only fun and rewarding but a lot more interesting than I expected. During a break in the action I met the legendary Anthony Davis, but also the not so legendary OCEA union boss, Nick Berardino. Both were entertaining characters: AD reminisced of the days when he played smash mouth football at USC, and Berardino reminded me about the days he spent a million dollars bad mouthing Nelson in the last election, how that million bucks only moved #2 (Harry Sidhu) up 6 percentage points, and how he still got his as kicked by 12%.
Bernardino went on to explain to me that they (the employee union) were afraid of Nelson, but have learn that Nelson is not the monster they though he would be. Nick further explained that the problem in the county is corruption in upper management and the county employees (the worker bees) are the only ones that actually pay into their retirement and the people that are on Easy Street are the upper level managers including county CEO Tom Mauk who’s package equals around $350,000 per year (while collecting over $100,00 from his retirement pension from the city of La Habra). Nick and I both agreed that it’s always the little guy that gets dumped on and the corruption in the county needs to stop. Amen to that!
Supervisor Nelson tells me that he will start checking into the pay and benefits of mid to upper management, and also find out if they actually do anything except shuffle paper back and forth to each other.
Berardino didn’t give a damn about corruption in the upper levels of county government until he needed a distraction from the current pension disaster created by his own union.
Of course, I would never miss an opportunity to watch various classes of public employees throw each other under the bus in a race to the bottom. Berardino is probably pretty good at it, but don’t forget what’s motivating him.
Yeah, but the reality is that the “public safety” unions were the worst offenders at the County. They got the retroactive 3@50, plus they paid nothing into the system!
Not excusing the the 2.7 @55, just sayin…
Berardino is just trying to make friends so FFFF will leave his guys alone in the next election!
Uncle Rico or Al Bundy?
is it really a good idea to let tony b around 6-17 year old boys?
“Compton” please forward your resume to Harry Sidhu, immediately. He has an opening for a janitor at his El Pollo Loco in Pedley!
Hey Pam, that’s a good one!
Maybe you could ask Shawn why he took a 2.7 benefit for himself only to find religion again when his chubby fingers got caught in the cookie jar? I’m just saying…..if he’s gonna investigate management he should add himself to that list.
“Did I mention I was a high school football star and played college ball?”
Hahahaha! Holy crap, Bushala! Thanks for the great laugh at your sorry “Glory Days” boasting.
Hey Fullerton Harpoon aka David Zenger! Which pension option did you take after you went on the guvmint payroll? Just sayin’…
Jerbal, you’re busted!
Tony what college did you play for?
Norby beats his wife!
He gotsta keep da b!tch in line yo!!
What Division 1 college did Tony play for?
What D-1 college did you play for Tony?
Is Fullerton JC a D-1 school?
Lies!
In all fairness, Tony was a helluva running back at Troy High, and had the country rushing record for years and years.
He played at CSUF for a season or two, which was D1A in football before shutting down in 1992.
Sadly, Norby beats his wife!
Bushala played for the University of Wyoming before CSUF.
Is Bushala the reason CSUF no longer plays football?
… at Scrabble. But she’s got him licked when it comes to Mexican Twister.