Strange woman fainted again – the Bui Kim Thanh saga

Posted on July 26, 2010 by Bolsavik

OK, so if you don’t know Bui Kim Thanh, you may want to revisit this, this and this.

Now, maybe the woman has a medical condition that makes her prone to fainting. Or something.

But anyway, so there was a concert at the Anaheim Arena on Saturday, and hundreds of Vietnamese-American protestors (600, according to Anaheim PD Sgt. Chris Pena) came out to protest. Because Dam Vinh Hung – the victim of Ly Tong‘s criminal act – sang there.

So anyway, Bui Kim Thanh scored herself a ticket. When she passed the security check point, but before entering the arena, she stopped, whipped out a couple flags, and started shouting slogans and trying to stop people from going in.

Security came and asked her to leave. She said no, wait, I need to call 9-1-1.

So she picked up her phone, and dialed something.

Then she spoke into the phone, in Vietnamese: “Is this 9-1-1? I am lawyer Bui Kim Thanh, communists are terrorizing me.”

(Bui Kim Thanh has been calling herself “the people’s lawyer” since her days fighting the communist government’s land-grab in Vietnam.)

Security asked her to leave, she wouldn’t. Security called the cops, and when cops came she said she don’t speak English. So they got a Viet cop.

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Posted in Strange stuff, political | Tagged , , | 33 Comments

Ly Tong bailed out, will join Anaheim protests

Posted on July 23, 2010 by Bolsavik

In court today, Ly Tong‘s bail was reduced from $100,000 down to $75,000. Tong’s supporters will post bail, and he will get out in time to attend this week-end’s demonstrations against the same singer, in Anaheim. Nguoi Viet Daily News says so.

And that’s just a couple days after Ly Tong had proudly said he’d rather stay in prison, American in prison ain’t so bad, and his supporters should save their money to help democracy activists in Vietnam.

Guess those activists will have to wait now…

Posted in celebrity, crime | Tagged , | 72 Comments

Ly Tong doesn’t want bail, but also asks to reduce bail?

Posted on July 21, 2010 by Bolsavik

OK, so the Bolsavik needs help figuring out something.

Yesterday, one of the two attorneys representing Ly Tong in the assault case sent out a press release and a petition that he asked people to sign.

The two documents are sent around the listservs, and many web sites also reproduced it, such as this one or this one.

Here’s the head scratcher. In the press release, the lawyer says:

(1) They already have people willing to put up bail money.

(2) Ly Tong, however, doesn’t want to. He’d rather stay in jail.

On BBC Vietnamese Service, the lawyer repeated those two things. In an audio interview that can be heard on numerous web sites, like this one, Ly Tong also said that he was offered bail money but refused.

(3) But on the other hand, the petition asks the judge to reduce bail amount.

So, riddle the Bolsavik this:

(4) If the money is already there, and besides Ly Tong doesn’t want to get out of jail, then what the hell is the point of reducing bail???

Posted in crime, political | Tagged , , , | 60 Comments

Ly Tong pepper-sprays singer, right-wingers applaud

Posted on July 19, 2010 by Bolsavik

Ly Tong, the man who spent the last 14 months or so on the fringe of Vietnamese-American society, thrusted himself back in the limelight by dressing up as a woman and pepper-spraying a singer from Vietnam at a concert in Santa Clara.

It’s not the first time Ly Tong made news with a spray can and women’s wear. Last year, he spray painted an artwork and glued lingerie panties to it.

Nguoi Viet Daily News has a detailed story here (in Vietnamese), including accounts from an eyewitness.

According to the witness, she was sitting 3 seats away from Ly Tong at the concert featuring Dam Vinh Hung, a singer who frequently goes by the name Mr Dam.

Ly Tong came in drags, accompanied by a woman. The witness told Nguoi Viet:

“He was wearing a dress but his legs were all spread out. I and my friend were telling each other, ‘That guy’s so gross, dressing as a woman.’ At first we thought maybe Dam Vinh Hung is gay and this gay guy has a crush on him.”

Halfway through the show, Ly Tong came up and assaulted the singer. A press release from the Santa Clara Police Department says:

Ly accomplished the assault by posing as a woman. He purchased a ticket at the door to gain entry to the event and approached the stage acting as if he was going to give Hung Dam a flower. When the performer approached to take the gift, Ly sprayed him with the chemical irritant.

Ly was taken into custody immediately after the assault by Santa Clara police officers who were present at the event. Ly’s motive for the assault is thought to be political in nature.

The spray affected not just Mr Dam but also another singer on stage with him, Mỹ Tâm, and members of the audience.

The police’s press release says, “the audience of several hundred people had to be evacuated temporarily. The show resumed after the venue was ventilated and Santa Clara Fire Department personnel administered first aid.”

The audience member who spoke to Nguoi Viet also said the chemical was spreading throughout the room. “When he sprayed it, everybody knew it’s just pepper spray. At first, the people in the front row, the VIP row, were coughing. Then it spread and me, in the cheapest seats, next to the last row, also coughed.”

Ly Tong is being held in Santa Clara County Jail “on several charges.” Attempts to raise funds to bail him out failed, so Ly Tong announced that he didn’t want to be bailed out.

As news of Ly Tong’s actions spread throughout the web, on Facebook and on the listservs, right-wingers rejoiced.

Many applauded Ly Tong and professed their admiration of him. Which goes, of course, to prove that Vietnamese love children.

Continue reading →

Posted in Strange stuff, art, celebrity, events, political | Tagged , , , , , | 56 Comments

Viet accuser drops Steven Seagal lawsuit

Posted on July 18, 2010 by Bolsavik

The Vietnamese-American model who claimed she was sexually assaulted by actor Steven Seagal has dropped her lawsuit, the AP reports here.

No reason was given for the dismissal by Kayden Nguyen, which is what usually happens when the two sides independently settle or have the case resolved by binding private arbitration.

The AP hints that it was by arbitration that the case was dismissed, writing, “No reason was given for the dismissal granted Tuesday. Seagal’s attorneys had been trying to resolve the case through private arbitration.”

Nguyen had claimed that after she took the job of “Executive Assistant,” Seagal forced her to have sex with him.

Nguyen also alleged that the actor kept a stable of Russian women at his home as his sex slaves.

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Posted in litigation | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

San Jose Viet candidate fined $500

Posted on July 15, 2010 by Bolsavik

The San Jose Elections Commission on Wednesday night unanimously agreed to impose a $500 fine against City Council candidate Minh Duong for two violations of city campaign disclosure laws, reports the San Jose Mercury News here.

The fine is for failing to disclose an unpaid campaign debt and neglecting to accurately file campaign statements during Duong’s unsuccessful 2008 bid for the District 8 City Council seat.

That’s not the same seat as the one Duong is running for now. He’s currently in a runoff against incumbent City Councilwoman Madison Nguyen for the District 7 seat.

The unpaid campaign debt came to light from a lawsuit by Imprenta Communications Group, his then-campaign consultant, for some $18,000 due. According to an investigator for the commission, Duong, a 32-year-old furniture store owner, issued a check for the amount, then stopped payment on the check.

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Posted in elections | 6 Comments

Janet Nguyen feeds Van Tran

Posted on July 12, 2010 by Bolsavik

VanTran Janet

Trannies of the world, rejoice. You will not go hungry. There’s always Janet.

On Sunday, when half of Little Saigon was watching the final game of World Cup soccer somewhere, OC Supervisor Janet Nguyen served penne pasta to people who came to watch at Viet Herald Daily News. A picture printed in that paper shows that among people who showed up and ate was Assemblyman Van Tran.

Rumors of the death of bad vibes between the two, however, are said to be still greatly exaggerated.

Posted in political | Tagged , , | 85 Comments

Viet voters prefer Boxer for Senate: Poll

Posted on July 9, 2010 by Bolsavik

OK, so that headline should have an asterisk. Because that’s how the survey results were qualified.

The Field Poll in a recently released survey, here, says that incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (pictured, left) has a 3-point overall lead over GOP challenger Carly Fiorina (right).

What may be the first time for the Field Poll, though, is that the company took the trouble of conducting the survey in six languages and dialects, including Vietnamese. And among Viets, Boxer supposedly holds a whopping (asterisk) 32-point advantage

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Posted in elections | Tagged , , | 61 Comments