Can Congressman Joseph Cao raise money?

For a second time within 3 months, US Congressman Joseph Cao visited Orange County to raise money with the help of State Assemblyman Van Tran. The first time, it was during the Tet's Celebration and Van Tran was the main host organizer along with Chieu Le (Lee's Sandwiches) and Frank Jao (the wealthiest and most powerful real estate developer in Little Saigon). The media was all over for this was afterall the first Vietnamese-American Congressman ever. Yet the event was so pathetic that no newspapers in Little Saigon even bother to report it. Less than 60 people showed up for the fund raising in a posh restaurant with seating arrangement for hundreds. One interesting observation at the event was Tran and his gang (of 5 now instead of 7 ) made a point of not seating together.

Two weeks ago, Joseph Cao came again for fund raising and also to discuss about human rights issues in Vietnam. Van Tran was once again on the host committee. Tran did not show up and he was not happy that Quang X. Pham was also asked to help with the event. Whatever the politics, the event was worse than the first attempt. Joseph Cao came away with about $2,000, enough to cover his travel expenses. However, he did stay long enough to receive an achievement award given out by VANG at their biannual gala in Beverly Hills. VANG is an acronym for Vietnamese-American National Gala. It organizes as national annual celebration of Vietnamese heritage and pride.
The event was not well attended this year after its controversy 2 years ago in Houston. To many people in the community, the event was nothing more than snobbish get together to flaunt the wealth of the few rich people in the community.

Both Assemblyman Van Tran and Supervisor Janet Nguyen declined to attend the event despite receiving invitation months in advance.

On a more successful note, a fund raising event titled : "Thank you the Vietnamese Veterans" was held in San Jose 3 weeks ago. The event attracted about 10,000 people and raised $440,000 to help the Vietnamese veterans who are still in Vietnam. This was the third time that it was organized.

The only Vietnamese-American elected official in San Jose City Council - Councilwoman Madison Nguyen- was not invited. Instead, Councilwoman Rose Herrera and Supervisor Dave Cortese- came and received recognitions from the community.

Also, thank God that Congressman Joseph Cao was not invited for he might jinx the whole event.
Cao might be considered to be the symbol of GOP party's future as House Minority Leader John Boehner had touted; but in the Vietnamese-American community, his political future is unclear. "The Future is Cao" slogan needs to be revised for 2010 election.

Career Workshop at SJSU

Discussion About Career Paths in Globalization Era
If you are a parent, a student, a professional who cares about the followings:
How to prepare and land on a right job for the future
How to advance in the current employment
Select the right career path suitable for the globalization trend
Case studies in career handling situations
Tour of state-of-the art labs at SJSU

And more …
You are cordially invited to join us in the
Q&A and Panel Session
Organized by the Youth Development Group and VietMentor with the following

Speakers and Panelists:
Tuoc Vinh Luong – Senior VP, Yahoo! Search – Keynote Speaker
Tri Tran – Senior Advisor, Department of Energy, USA
Nga Vu –President 2007-2008, Cisco Asian Affinity Network; Senior Manager, Cisco Systems Inc.
Kim Anh Vu – Director of Student Services, Oak Grove School District, San Jose
Huyen-Nhung Le – Adjunct Faculty of Vietnamese Language, SJSU & K-12 Educator,
Parkview School
Luc T. Nguyen – Sr. Manager National Technical Services, Tellabs & Adjunct Faculty, SJSU
Antoine Duong – Sr. Strategic Alliances Manager, Sun Microsystems, Inc.


LOCATION & TIME
San José State University, Room E-345, third floor, Engineering Building
(corner of 6th and San Fernando Street)
Sunday June 7, 2009
1:30pm: Reception 2pm: Event begins
FREE Parking available at garage structure at the corner of 4th St. and San Fernando St.

The Organizing Committee:

Christopher Hoang Pham, Nhan Van Luu (SJSU) – Bick Nguyen (P. Bick Nguyen & Associates) – Gam Vu Nguyen (EVC) – Trung Ngoc Ngo, Trung Khuong Huynh, Ha Thanh Nguyen, Cao Trung Nguyen, Viet Dai Hoang (YDG) – Michelle Mai (Asian American
Recovery Services) –Lena Pham-Tran (UC Santa Cruz) –Canh Van Nguyen (Stanford University, Founder & Advisor YDG)

Sponsored by:
Youth Development Group & VietMentor, San Jose State University, Professor Thuy Trong Le,
EE/SJSU, Vietica Inc., San Jose Library

The Media Changes in The Original Little Saigon

So here is the latest of the changing landscape of Vietnamese-American media in OC.

Dinh quang Anh Thai is leaving Little Saigon Radio to be with Nguoi Viet Newspaper. Nguoi Viet's Bao Anh is losing her grip further of the newspaper (She was never in control to begin with and she was hoping her husband would be able to. But they both are now "one foot in another foot out"). NV also lost two brightest reporters to a new start-up. This new daily newspaper will directly challenge Nguoi Viet with its multimillion dollars backing. It will take about $400,00 to $500,000 (first year) to start a decent newspaper. Whether Hao Nhien will join them or not will depend on the Hao Nhien's independent streak.

Viet Weekly keeps promoting that they will become Viet Daily soon but the controversial newspaper is just hanging on. Their dream of challenging Nguoi Viet is all but gone. Their 5 ads from Vietnam is dwindling down. Majority of the ads are from Vietnam government owned enterprises (i.e., Vietnam Airline, Vinamilk). The ads were attained from Nguyen cong Khe, the ex- editor in chief of Thanh Nien Magazine, the second largest magazine in Vietnam and of course Communist Party owned. At that time, Khe took it upon himself to help Viet Weekly when the anti-communist supporters decided to take issue with Viet Weekly's articles praising the communist government. With Khe being out of favor(as the Communist Party recently shook up the political power in Ho chi Minh City) and lost his position, Viet Weekly also feels the affect.

Little Saigon Radio in Little Saigon is not doing too well in the economic downturn. There will be benefits cut back since Mai Khanh's escrow business is also hurting and she cannot afford to support both media enterprises (Viet Tide and LSR). Viet Tide is on the block again. The money losing weekly newspaper has not made a single dime since its inception more than a decade ago.

Both Viet Bao and Nguoi Viet are making money still. Viet Bao's husband and wife team of course are much smarter by staying out of controversy. Vien Dong News paper is marching on with no financial worry since the owner has so much money leftover from the stint at Nguoi Viet.


And life goes on in Little Saigon whether it is good time or bad time. This community has seen it all in the last 34 years. Nevertheless, LSI do wish Quynh Trang would be back in the media for she could have done something great. " Time it was, and what a time it was. A time of innocence, a time of confidences..."

SCHOLARSHIP

YOUTH TASK FORCE SEEKS SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS!

The Santa Clara County Youth Task Force (YTF) is offering $500 scholarships for high school seniors going to college this fall. The YTF is an advisory body to the Board of Supervisors and Human Relations Commission and strives to provide youth with civic leadership opportunities and access to education.

The Deadline to apply is May 29. For full description and application please For additional information regarding the Youth Task Force scholarship, contact Raji Bains (408) 792-2315.




The Santa Clara County Youth Task Force (YTF) is a group composed of young people, from the ages of 12 to 18, empowered to make a difference. They serve as an advisory body to the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors and the Human Relations Commission. They address the issues that teens face on a regular basis. They work to educate teens about the harms that affect their community and strive to find solutions and policies that will make better the lives of young people today. In doing so, they promote youth activism and advocacy, establishing a firm belief in the importance of youth speaking to youth. From that connection they hope will stem an inspiration in teens to embrace the culture and diversity around them, to work together, to contribute in making a positive change and to inspire others to become civically engaged.

Van Tran and His Vietnamese Dream

A week after State Assemblyman Van Tran announced his intention to run against incumbent Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez in 2010, things have been very quiet on the Vietnamese many e-mail groups, Web news outlets as well as blogs. Apparently, the excitement of being the first in congress is taken away by Congressman Joseph Cao’s successful run in New Orleans last year.

In his press conference with the Vietnamese community, Van reiterated 5 times “….As Vietnamese, we should take care of our own since nobody will…” It was no doubt his way of pleading to the community to forget and forgive his divisive tactics within the community in the last two years trying to bring down his political enemy – County Supervisor Janet Nguyen.

Sensing Tran’s vulnerability, Quang X. Pham, an author, a successful businessman and well respected in community, also announced his intention of challenging Loretta Sanchez. It is not a surprise move since Pham has expressed his interest in running for congress sooner or later.

So what is in play at the moment and the opportunities at hand for Tran.


Currently, the question every political pundit is asking - Would Tran back out at the last minute like last time? Tran is a calculated politician and does not like to commit to a race unless he knows he has a good chance of winning.

The 47th Congressional District according to an Associated Press news release has 96,000 registered Democrats, 70,000 registered Republicans and 42,000 registered Independents. These numbers are attained from the Orange County Registrar of Voters.


According to OC Progressive, there are about 20,000 Vietnamese-Americans voted in Nov 2008 election in the 47th District. In comparison, there were about 50,000 Hispanics voted. The percentage is roughly 15% vs. 40% of the total votes in Nov. 2008 election. If the actual voting numbers as quoted by the OC Progressive blog are true to be directly from PDI (A well known voting database company), Tran will need to do very well within his Vietnamese community.

Now, the bigger issue Tran is facing is something called goodwill and political capital. Almost half of 47th District falls within County Supervisor Janet Nguyen’s District 1. By publicly attacking Nguyen and calling her falsely as a “Viet Gian” (A word implying a traitor working for the communist government) and communist sympathizer, Tran has distanced himself with many Nguyen’s supporters. It was a bitter 2008 election where Tran engineered Dina Nguyen and his cohorts to an at all cost war to ensure Janet Nguyen would not be re-elected. This was not the political leadership and unity that the Vietnamese community expected of Tran.

The lowest point of course was when the Vietnamese households receiving Tran’s personal letter written on state assembly letterhead attacking Nguyen

With all the money that the Republican leadership will be pouring into this race, Tran needs to prove himself again that he is a worthy Vietnamese candidate within his community. He has not done anything to benefit the community except for some Freedom flag waving ceremonies and meaningless jingoism on freedom and democracy for Vietnam. Nevertheless, he has done a job in building up his image as a political Godfather of the Vietnamese community. With his infamous “Trannie”, he has managed to cause a great concern within his own community as a power hungry kingmaker/politician. Political monopoly is something that the community has always leery. After all, it was the abusive political monopoly of the communist that the community fled for their life.

And Tran and his Trannie latest successful attempt in blocking Janet Nguyen and her funding of a pedestrian bridge to help ease the traffic on Bolsa demonstrates to the community that Tran would go to any extent for his political vendetta against his enemies instead of putting the interest of the community first.

Tran as a Vietnamese candidate vs. Sanchez as a Hispanic incumbent is an intriguing race and will make great news and blogs. Tran has criticized Sanchez as a Latino politician with a narrow focus on Latino issues and concerns. Meanwhile, he portrays himself as a candidate of mainstream and can reach across to the Whites and Hispanics. In reality, the party still views him as a Vietnamese candidate and expects him to deliver the Vietnamese votes to them. The irony is that within his Vietnamese community, whether he can regain their trust and respect is still debatable. Currently, Van Tran is damaged good and not well liked by the community. His wife's conviction of insurance fraud and lost her insurance license is itself a story of credibility in a community that is infamous for insurance fraud and Medicare fraud.


And this is where Quang X. Pham potentially can see an opening. He does not have the baggage like Tran. Matter of fact, the community is in need of a fresh voice and not the divisive politics as usual. How he positions himself in the race is still not known, and only time can tell.

12th Annual Camp Len Duong - 2009

REGISTER NOW!

Register is OPEN now with limited space. First come, first served basis. Please register today!
Click HERE to register.Check out our Scholarships as well!


Press Release
The Vietnamese Culture & Science Association cordially invites Vietnamese-American/Canadian youths 18 years or older to the Twelfth Annual Youth Leadership Development Camp, Len Duong 2009. Embark on this short, but unforgettable journey, during the Independence Day weekend (July 3 to July 6). If you are or aspire to be a community activist or leader Camp Len Duong is for you. Camp Len Duong has been the place to be for over 2,700 Vietnamese-American students and professionals during the past eleven years. Interested attendees are highly encouraged to register early. Space is limited and Camp Len Duong has consistently received more registrations than available space. Other reasons to attend Camp Len Duong:
LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT TEAM BUILDING FUN and FRIENDSHIP CULTURE AWARENESS VOLUNTEERISM and SERVICE

Testimonials:"I have been trying to describe what the Len Duong experience was like and have come to the conclusion that it is impossible to describe it fully with words. It has been said that during the year if you have not laughed from the bottom of your belly or cried from you heart, then you have not lived that year. I think at Len Duong...many of us have more than enough to live for many years to come as our hearts and minds were opened and lifted." --- Luu Duc Cuong, Toronto, Canada

"Never have I found a weekend as fun, as stimulating, or as rewarding as the weekend I spent at Camp Len Duong...I had many doubts about coming...because my Vietnamese isn't fluent, my opinions are often considered radical by my more conservative Vietnamese friends...But when the time came to say goodbye to my fellow campers, I resisted the idea of leaving." --- Katherine Vu, Houston "...

The experience was truly inexplicable...I managed only to exclaim, "Awesome!" Awesome is an understatement...I had expected Len Duong...to be just another summer camp, where friends are made and games played in an effort to "de-stress" from the everyday hectic environment. But was I wrong! Len Duong...was a learning experience, beyond all my expectations..." --

Tom Nguyen, Houston "Len Duong camp...was the best present I have ever [gave] myself...there wasn't a dull moment..." (Lan Anh Le, Orlando, Florida)

"Len Duong truly is more than just any camp; it is one with a heart. What I discovered at Len Duong I cannot simply describe in words, for it is a feeling you have to experience to understand..." (Ann Vo, Toronto, Canada)

"I will always treasure 4 days at Camp Len Duong. It was probably one gift among the best gifts I received in my life. Camp Len Duong gave me the opportunity to become a much better leader, the opportunity to interact and observe other leaders." (Chu Ngoc Lan Anh, Ottawa, Canada)

"... At Len Duong Camp...I learned many things which benefited both my professional and my personal life. Not only did it allow me to have a chance to meet other Vietnamese youth with such energy and vibrancy, but it also inspired me to be a positive..." (Pham Oanh, Oklahoma)


"... I was overwhelmed by all the love that I was surrounded by...because in their eyes, I was a brother, a Vietnamese brother...it opened my heart and touched my soul. My Len Duong experience helped me find out who I am...I loved every moment of it. I cried on the plane ride back to New York." (Pham Minh Bao, New York)

JOIN US!!! CAMP LEN DUONG 2009 Youth Leadership Development Camp

Time and Date:

6:00 pm July 3, 2009 - 2:00 pm July 6, 2009

Location: Crieff Hills Conference Center - Puslinch, Ontario, Canada


For complete information about Camp Len Duong 2009, including pictures from previous years, special speakers, directions, fee schedule, and online registration, please visit VCSA's website at http://www.vcsa.org or http://www.lenduongcamp.info Online registration is available now at http://www.vcsa.org click on Len Duong camp.

Len Duong 2009 camp was sponsored byBank of America,CenterPoint Energy, Shell Oil Company,Texas Instruments,Thoi Bao Magazine,WinMagic, Saigon Houston Radio, Little Saigon Radio, Farmer Insurance, Chevron, TME, Ameresco Canada, Greatland Investment, Saigon Tex-News Len Duong 2009 is hosted by VCSA-Toronto chapter and with the following partnered organizations Vietnamese Association of Toronto, Canada (www.vat.org)

Leadership Education for Asian Pacifics (www.leap.org)

Len Duong'09 VCSA SCHOLARSHIPS

Supported by Le Hoang Nguyen, Manh Xuan Thai, Dr. Rick Ngo, Dr. Hai Ho, Saigon Houston Radio 900AM and Greatland Investment Scholarship Foundation I.

Goal: To promote participation of Vietnamese-American/Canadian students in volunteerism in the Vietnamese community in the local city, VCSA will award eight (8) $500.00 scholarships to outstanding young community activists who want to attend camp Len Duong 2009 and need financial help.II. Requirements:1. Applicants can be college students or senior in high school whose GPA is 3.00 or above on the 4-point scale. 2. Applicant must be active in a Vietnamese community organization or Vietnamese Student Association3. Submit an application (download form HERE). 4. Submit an essay about the topic "What Vietnam means to you? Why are you active with the Vietnamese community and what is your plan to contribute to Vietnam in the future?"5. Submit a personal resume showing leadership ability and current active involvement with the community. 6. Scholarship fund will be awarded to the applicant at camp Len Duong 2009.

Please submit the essay, personal resume, Len Duong camp expectation statement to camp@vcsa.org or vcsa@vcsa.org or send the hard copies to VCSA Len Duong scholarship - 4615 Belle Park Dr. Houston, TX 77072 Attn.

LD scholarship committeeNO LATER THAN May 4th, 2009For more information please contactVietnamese Culture & Science Association(281) 933-8118vcsa@vcsa.org or camp@vcsa.org

Missing Child Notification

Missing Child: Anh Tran AKA Tram-Anh, Annie
Date Missing: 03/31/2009
Missing From: San Jose, CA
DOB: 06/15/1991Age at
Disappearance: 17 years oldSex:
FemaleRace:
VietnameseHeight: 5'1"
Weight: 130 lbs.
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Black
Circumstances: Anh was last seen at her home in San Jose, California on March 31, 2009. She may be in the company of an adult male. Anh has not been seen or heard from since her disappearance.

If you have information concerning this case, please contact:The San Jose Police Department (408) 277-4141

National Center for Missing & Exploited Children: Anh Tran
Polly Klaas Foundation - List of Missing Children & flyer: Anh Tran

Her loving family is praying for her safe return. Thank you.