[Vnbiz] Fwd: Today's Editorial - Little Saigon

Fri Feb 22 09:38:15 PST 2008

Dear CACC,

Let me provide a little more analysis on this Little Saigon issue in San
Jose.

The San Jose Mercury News has characterized the hunger strike in front of
San Jose City Hall to fight for a business strip's name is "a joke."  That
is absolutely correct.  But this is a deadly joke and it raises many legal
and political issues.  Hunger strike means only one thing: "I am starving
myself slowly.  If you do not cave in to my demand, eventually you will have
to deal with a dead body at your front door."  Now, does it still sound like
a joke?

But here is a bigger issue, bigger than the individuals and the specific
issues involved:  Using the threat of a dead body to demand what you want is
a direct attack at the democratic process at the core of the American system
(especially, when the demand is for the little thing like a business name;
imagine when we deal with more important issues in life!)

The question is:  Would the political and legal processes of City of San
Jose be able to withstand that kind of deadly attack?  Or would the city
leadership cave in, having faced such a deadly method of demand?  (It seems
the city has already caved in a little, by agreeing to rescind its earlier
resolution on the name).   These questions also have great implications on
the national scale on this time of great international turmoil:  How would
the US democratic process withstand attacks from the inside by deadly
undemocratic methods by its own citizens?

And here are some more immediate legal questions that the City Attorney
should work on right now:

1.        Is hunger strike the equivalence of an attempted suicide?  Is
aiding and abetting a suicide illegal?  (The answer is generally "yes).   Is
aiding and abetting a hunger strike illegal?  If a hunger strike results in
a death, would all the suicide laws govern by then?

2.       Would a hunger strike in front of city hall violate any law
concerning public order?   When does the right to petition the government
become an abuse of process?  When does the right of self expression become
an abuse of process?  When does a threat of death pose a threat to public
security and order?

3.       Does the city has the right to interfere in a hunger strike should
the strike become a danger to the striker himself and to others?

There may be other issues that need to be work on.  But if I were the City
Attorney, I would start working seriously.

Have a great day!

Hoanh

On Fri, Feb 22, 2008 at 8:11 AM, Madison Nguyen <madisonnguyen at yahoo.com>
wrote:

> [ Vietnam Business Forum ]
>
>
> Thank you, Hoanh, for your effort in trying to speak the truth about this
> issue. I understand most of you probably know that I don't have anything
> against the name "Little Saigon." Nevertheless, for the record and to the
> extent of not leaving behind any misunderstanding or confusion, here it
> is: I am not against the name "Little Saigon." However, I am against the
> tactics of bullying, intimidation and manipulation to get one's way. Part of
> embracing democracy is also accepting compromise. Unfortunately, we have
> leaders in the community who refuse to accept or understand this important
> aspect of Democracy.
>
> All the best,
> Madison
>
> *Hong-Phong_Pho at ita.doc.gov* wrote:
>
>
> This absurdity can only be understood in context.
> To some of these folks who have lost so much, they must win just for the
> sake of winning.
> Many of them probably didn't even know that the choice was between "Little
> Saigon" and "Saigon Business District", just that Madison Nguyen was against
> "Little Saigon".  By putting it to a general referendum, they are liable to
> loose both.
>
>
>
>   *"Tran Dinh Hoanh" <tdhoanh at gmail.com>*
> Sent by: vnbiz-bounces at mail.saigon.com 02/21/2008 02:07 PM   Please
> respond to
> vnbiz at vietlinks.net
>    To
> vnbiz at vietlinks.net  cc
> Madison Nguyen <madisonnguyen at yahoo.com>, Kieu Linh Caroline Valverde <
> cafephile at yahoo.com>  Subject
> [Vnbiz] Fwd: Today's Editorial - Little Saigon
>
>
>
>
> [ Vietnam Business Forum ]
>
> Dear CACC,
>
> FYI, The Mercury News' Editorial:  "Little Saigon" Protest Borders on the
> Surreal.
>
> Have a great day!
>
> Hoanh
>
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> From: Madison Nguyen <*madisonnguyen at yahoo.com* <madisonnguyen at yahoo.com>>
>
> Date: Thu, Feb 21, 2008 at 12:51 PM
> Subject: Today's Editorial - Little Saigon
> To: Madison Nguyen *madisonnguyen at yahoo.com* <madisonnguyen at yahoo.com>
>
>
> Editorial: 'Little Saigon' protest borders on the surreal
>
> *http://www.mercurynews.com/opinion/ci_8322368*<http://www.mercurynews.com/opinion/ci_8322368>
>
> ________
>
> Editorial: 'Little Saigon' protest borders on the surreal
>
> Mercury News Editorial
> Article Launched: 02/21/2008 01:33:32 AM PST
>
>
> With a hunger strike drawing crowds daily in San Jose's City Hall plaza,
> the "Little Saigon" protests have devolved into theater of the absurd.
>
> It's the kind of thing maverick anti-communist hunger striker Ly Tong does
> best. He's turned what had been a once-weekly picket line into a 24-hour
> circus. His action is so disproportionate to the cause that it's widely seen
> as a joke - at the expense of San Jose and its Vietnamese community. People
> are shaking their heads in wonder: The name for a shopping strip is worth
> dying for?
>
> That's what's at stake here. The protesters want to call a one-mile
> stretch of Story Road "Little Saigon," but Councilwoman Madison Nguyen
> persuaded a majority of her colleagues to approve "Saigon Business District"
> instead. The council will rescind that vote March 4 because of perceptions
> that it violated California's open meeting law, but a resolution of the core
> conflict remains elusive.
>
> Nobody, including Nguyen, foresaw the degree to which the decision on this
> name would consume the city, even before Tong's hunger strike.
>
> "Little Saigon" protesters say San Jose government is undemocratic because
> they haven't gotten their way. But some use intimidation and other
> undemocratic practices themselves, while rejecting democratic hallmarks such
> as compromise.
>
> The constant protests are ineffective and tired. If the protesters are
> serious about wanting Nguyen out of office, it's time to start circulating
> petitions to recall her, the legal remedy under the city charter. Nguyen and
> Mayor Chuck Reed already have suggested a referendum on the name.
>
> A hunger strike can be an honorable protest when it addresses matters of
> life and death or fundamental human rights. By using one to press for a name
> on a cluster of shopping centers, Tong diminishes the tactic, appearing more
> like a petulant child who refuses to eat supper until he gets his way.
>
> And let's get one thing straight. If he becomes ill or dies in this
> protest, it will not be, as he claims, the fault of the city council. It's
> his choice, and the people who encourage him should be ashamed.
>
>
> --
> Tran Dinh Hoanh, Esq., LLB, JD
> Washington DC _______________________________________________
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-- 
Tran Dinh Hoanh, Esq., LLB, JD
Washington DC
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