What's Happening
in San Jose Vietnamese Community & Interested News:
Sep. 25, 2003: Freewheeling exchange. In a freewheeling forum Wednesday night that swung between near chaos and wonkish debate, the top two candidates in California's recall election sought to distinguish themselves from the pack as they came under fire for accepting special-interest money and failing to offer a clear vision for the struggling state. Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante, appearing together for the first time, both tried to shake off relentless attacks from independent candidate Arianna Huffington and demonstrate their grasp of complex issues. More SJMN.
Recall Rivals Use Debate to Go on Attack. The five leading contenders to replace Gov. Gray Davis tossed off barbs and swapped one-liners Wednesday night in a raucous debate over taxes, immigration and the economy. For all their substantive differences, the most heat was shed when the hopefuls, seated together and questioned in round-robin fashion, unleashed a series of personal put-downs. More LA Times.
Sep. 23, 2003: Court rules election is Oct. 7. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco gave the green light to the Oct. 7 recall election today, clearing the way for candidates to charge ahead without wondering so much whether the voting will take place in March instead. An 11-judge panel ruled less than 24 hours after hearing oral arguments. The larger panel concluded that the state and its citizens have a stake ``in having this election go forward as planned and as required by the California Constitution.'' More SJMN. Read the decision, full text (PDF)
Sep. 18, 2003: Whites no longer majority in region CENSUS ESTIMATE SHOWS PERCENTAGE OF LATINOS, ASIANS IS ON THE RISE IN GREATER BAY AREA. Whites are no longer the majority in the Greater Bay Area, mirroring a widespread shift that has already taken place statewide and in some local counties, according to census estimates released today. Whites slipped from 51 percent to 49 percent of the region's population from July 2000 to July 2002, as a result of foreign immigration and the high birthrates among some ethnic groups. In contrast, the percentage of Asians and Latinos each rose from 20 to 21 percent, while the African-American population remained at 8 percent. More SJMN.
Sep. 16, 2003: Court puts off Calif. recall election. Appeals panel allows 7 days to appeal order. A federal appeals court postponed California’s Oct. 7 governor’s recall election, ruling Monday that the historic vote could not proceed because some votes would be cast using outmoded punch-card ballot machines. The stunning decision threw an already chaotic campaign into further turmoil and put the U.S. Supreme Court in position to influence another pivotal election. More NBC.
Sep.12, 2003: Country Singer Johnny Cash Dies at 71. NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Johnny Cash, "The Man in Black" who became a towering figure in American music with such hits as "Folsom Prison Blues," "I Walk the Line," and "A Boy Named Sue," died Friday. He was 71. More Wash. Post.
TV Star John Ritter, 54, Dies of Heart Problem. LOS ANGELES - John Ritter, whose portrayal of the bumbling but lovable Jack Tripper helped make the madcap comedy series "Three's Company" a smash hit in the 1970s, died of a heart problem after falling ill on the set of his new television sit-com. He was 54. More Wash. Post.
Sept.10, 2003: Number of American Jews declines. National survey provides extensive portrait of Judaism in U.S. NEW YORK, The number of American Jews has dropped 5 percent, to 5.2 million, in the past decade, the result of a low birth rate combined with slightly rising levels of intermarriage, according to a new survey. More NBC.
Sep. 5, 2003: 'John' Ho dies; created software for Vietnamese. His O.C. firm makes it possible to type the language's characters and accents. Viet Thanh "John" Ho, whose Westminster firm designed, manufactures and distributes software that makes it possible to type Vietnamese characters and accents, died Aug. 28 of lung cancer. He was 49. Ho, whose revolutionary software enables keyboard combinations to form tone marks and accents that for years had to be added by hand, designed his program after working for a keyboard manufacturer. Learning how the keyboard interacted with the computer, he was able to modify it for the Vietnamese language.
VNI, as the program is known it stands for Vietnam International is used by many radio stations, including the BBC, Voice of America, Radio Bolsa and Little Saigon Radio. Vietnamese TV programs use VNI-Teleprompter for titles and text, and Vietnamese Web sites use VNI for articles and documents. The program is also sold for home use. More OC. Register.