90-year-old Navy veteran fatally shot, run over during carjacking in retirement home parking lot, police say



A 90-year-old Navy veteran was fatally shot and run over during a carjacking outside a Houston retirement home over the weekend, police told KTRK-TV.

The victim has been identified as Nelson Beckett, the station said.

'I think the neighborhood would feel safer if there were police patrols instead of just when something bad happens.'

Police told KTRK that Beckett was in the parking lot of Lonestar Living on Westbrae Parkway around 12:45 p.m. Saturday when a man in his late 20s approached the victim and began talking to him.

Investigators told the station that surveillance video shows the suspect attacking Beckett before shooting him and getting into the victim's car. What's more, police told KTRK the suspect ran over Beckett during the getaway.

Beckett was pronounced dead at a hospital, and his car was found abandoned at an apartment complex less than three miles away, the station said.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday announced a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest in the case:,

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The victim's son, Tim Beckett, told KTRK in a follow-up story that he hopes the suspect is caught and that he's "thankful" for the outpouring of support in the wake of his father's killing.

Tim Beckett added to the station that his dad leaves behind two children, five grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren. He also told KTRK that his father attended Abilene Christian University, worked in sales after his naval service, and was active at Southwest Central Church.

"What a foolish, brutal act against the mildest of men, an act that makes absolutely no sense," Southwest Central senior minister Steve Sargent said during a Sunday service, according to the station.

Sargent also said Beckett attended a funeral at the church just days before he was killed, KTRK said.

Crime statistics from January until the end of June this year show at least 61 crime reports along Westbrae Parkway near where Beckett was killed, the station said, adding that 81 crime reports were filed for the same area over the entirety of 2023.

At least one neighbor who's lived in the area for two decades added to the station that safety is a growing concern: "I think the neighborhood would feel safer if there were police patrols instead of just when something bad happens."

Police asked anyone with information about Beckett's killing to call 713-308-3600, KTRK said.

You can view a video report here about the fatal carjacking.

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California officials ticket disabled Navy veteran known as the 'Bubble Pirate' for 'littering prohibited fluids'



A disabled Navy veteran turned bubble artist has been ticketed by California officials for "fluid littering."

Sandy Snakenberg, 63, is an entertainer known as the "Bubble Pirate." For more than 10 years, Snakenberg has dressed like a pirate and entertained communities with his creative bubble performances.

'It's not just my livelihood, it’s something that is actually part of the community now.'

"I was just enjoying blowing the simple bubbles that you blow and people walking by were enjoying them," he told KSWB-TV. "I got kind of hooked sharing the joy of it."

Snakenberg, a self-described "bubble-ologist," lives out of his van, where he stores all of his equipment and props.

"I was becoming more involved with bubbles, more professionally, making my own juices, my own devices. I did a TED Talk while in Singapore," Snakenberg told Fox News.

Snakenberg's 2016 TED Talk is titled: "Lessons of the Bubbles." The video is described as Snakenberg's "journey and lessons learned not just from the bubbles but from his observations of others when exposed or re-exposed to their magic."

Snakenberg — who has dyslexia — said he makes his living from his bubble artistry and entertainment.

However, the Bubble Pirate was recently hit with a ticket for the crime of blowing bubbles.

Last week, Snakenberg was performing his usual "Bubble Pirate" show at La Jolla Cove in San Diego, California.

A ranger with the San Diego Parks and Recreation Department issued Snakenberg a ticket for "littering prohibited fluids" on the park grounds.

The Bubble Pirate allegedly asked the park ranger to note on the ticket that the liquid in question was from bubbles, but the officer did not oblige.

A San Diego Parks and Recreation Department spokesperson told Fox News, "The City of San Diego values the rights of community members to engage in expressive activity in City parks, including artistic expression. This does require those engaging in these activities to do so in accordance with other City codes and regulations, including those related to littering and disposal of waste."

The spokesperson continued, "In this instance, Park Rangers attempted to educate the individual numerous times that the residual substances from the bubbles are in violation of the City’s municipal code as it relates to littering (SDMC 63.0102(c)(8) Littering). The individual uses up to six gallons of liquid per day with the residual chemicals ending up in the lawn areas, which can cause damage to the grass."

The spokesperson concluded, "After witnessing numerous violations and receiving complaints from other park users, Rangers issued the lowest level citation available."

The San Diego municipal code for littering states: "It is unlawful to leave or scatter about any boxes, empty or otherwise, waste paper, remains of meals, newspaper, tobacco, remains of any material capable of being smoked, or rubbish of any kind, except that such material and matter may be deposited in receptacles provided for such purpose."

Snakenberg said, "If I thought I was in any way damaging the environment or hurting people, I wouldn't be around very long. I've been doing this for over 10 years."

The Bubble Pirate told the San Diego Union-Tribune, "I'm not doing anything wrong. The rangers said my solutions are harming the grass, but I make it myself and know that it doesn’t harm the environment. I tested it on a friend’s property by pouring it out on the lawn and there was no damage. I have talks with the parents on the safety of my solutions. I’m really big on environmental safety and audience safety.”

Snakenberg noted that he places a tarp in the area where he creates the bubbles and disposes of any excess bubble solution offsite.

"It’s not just my livelihood, it’s something that is actually part of the community now," he told KSWB-TV.

Snakenberg said he wasn’t surprised by the citation because he had been “given a heads-up by the community” that law enforcement had been cracking down on this type of littering.

The Bubble Pirate declared, "I'm not going to quit because I’m not doing any harm. If I was doing something wrong, I wouldn’t be doing it. But I will be coming back against the rangers’ advice."

Snakenberg said on Instagram, "This Bubble Pirate will be continuing public performances at La Jolla cove when I am not otherwise engaged at other events. And (as the officer communicated) will likely get more citations."

Snakenberg is scheduled to appear in court in October.

In May, the city of San Diego began cracking down on yoga classes held at public parks.

A city spokesperson told KGTV-TV:

The City of San Diego’s Municipal Code prohibits groups consisting of four or more people engaged in commercial recreational activities like yoga, fitness classes and dog training from gathering in parks without a permit and can only operate in certain designated areas. Picnics and other gatherings of 50 or more also require a permit in parks, beaches and bay. The applicable municipal code (SDMC 63.0102) has been in effect since 1993, and recent updates to the policy have clarified the activities for which necessary permitting applies. These updates went into effect March 29 and are in place to ensure these public spaces remain safe and accessible to all users at all times. Park Rangers, police and lifeguards have the authority to enforce these codes to ensure public safety in San Diego’s parks and beaches.

Some yoga instructors pushed back against the city and argued that their classes are free to join, but participants can donate if they enjoyed the class.

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Christian Navy veteran charged with hate crime for beheading demon statue at Iowa Capitol



Hundreds of statues of historical and religious significance have been toppled throughout the United States in recent years. Rather than stop the iconoclasts responsible, government officials have in many cases rewarded them — at least when they were not themselves directly responsible.

However, it became clear this week that the powers that be still hold some things sacred: abortion clinics and satanic idols.

Within hours of a federal court finding six more pro-life activists guilty of peacefully demonstrating inside an infamous late-term abortion clinic, Christian Navy veteran Michael Cassidy was charged with a hate crime Tuesday for toppling a satanic statute last year at the Iowa Capitol.

The Polk County Attorney's Office indicated that Cassidy's admission that he "destroyed the property because of the victim's religion" prompted the decision to increase Cassidy's previous misdemeanor charge to a class D felony.

What's the background?

The Satanic Temple is an anti-Christian leftist group that has distributed satanic literature to kids; championed the LGBT agenda; worked ardently to ensure that mothers can have their unborn babies legally killed by way of their "religious abortion ritual"; performed public "unbaptisms"; erected multiple statues of demons on public property; and held a demonization ceremony in protest of the canonization of the Catholic Spanish priest Junípero Serra.

Blaze News previously reported that weeks ahead of Christmas, the Satanic Temple installed a demonic altar on the first floor of the Iowa Capitol along with caped figure of what appeared to be a ram-headed Baphomet holding a red pentacle.

Baphomet has long been associated with devil worship and the occult; however, it appears to have originated as a slight against the Muslim faith.

UCLA professor Zrinka Stahuljak indicated "Baphomet" was originally a French corruption of the name Mohamed. British historian Peter Partner suggested further that the Knights Templar, who successfully reclaimed territory previously occupied by Islamic forces, were accused by inquisitors of worshiping Baphomet as part of what appears to have been a 14th-century smear.

Lucien Greaves, the co-founder of the Satanic Temple, claimed the demon statue was not intended to be insulting despite its anti-Islamic significance and the installation's exhibition of the anti-Christian group's "seven fundamental tenets," including "the freedom to offend."

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Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) faced significant pressure to have the statue taken down. While Reynolds acknowledged the demonic altar was "objectionable," she invited critics to join her in prayer at the state Capitol rather than in destruction.

State Rep. Jon Dunwell (R), a Christian pastor, outlined why this was the optimal response, noting that the Satanic Temple successfully "petitioned for their display in August and were approved with some modification."

Dunwell said the display "glorifies the evil influence we oppose" but was nevertheless lawful.

Satanic Temple co-founder Greaves stated, "I would hope that even people who disagree with the symbolism behind our values, whether they know what those values [are] or not, would at least appreciate that it's certainly a greater evil to allow the government to pick and choose between forms of religious expression."

Beheading Baphomet

Although a prayerful man, Michael Cassidy of Lauderdale, Mississippi, apparently figured it wouldn't hurt to also smash the demonic display.

After liking a post by Blaze News columnist Auron MacIntyre, which stated, "Periodic reminder that the religious right were correct about everything," Cassidy marched into the Iowa Capitol on Dec. 14, 2023, and decapitated the Baphomet statue.

Adding insult to symbolic injury, he tossed the ram head into a garbage can.

"I saw this blasphemous statue and was outraged. My conscience is held captive to the word of God, not to bureaucratic decree. And so I acted," Cassidy said in an interview with the Sentinel.

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Cassidy, a former F/A-18 Hornet pilot who served on the USS George Washington, turned himself in to police following the beheading without incident. He was subsequently charged with fourth-degree criminal mischief, a misdemeanor.

"The world may tell Christians to submissively accept the legitimization of Satan, but none of the founders would have considered government sanction of Satanic altars inside Capitol buildings as protected by the First Amendment," Cassidy told the Sentinel. "Anti-Christian values have steadily been mainstreamed more and more in recent decades, and Christians have largely acted like the proverbial frog in the boiling pot of water."

The Satanic Temple Iowa said in a statement, "This morning, we were informed by authorities that the Baphomet statue in our holiday display was destroyed beyond repair. ... [J]ustice is being pursued the correct way, through legal means. Solve et Coagula! Happy Holidays! Hail Satan!"

No good deed goes unpunished

The Polk County Attorney's Office announced Tuesday that on the basis of Cassidy's statements both to law enforcement and the public indicating he destroyed the property due to its anti-Christian nature — or what prosecutors referred to as "the victim's religion" — they had enhanced his original charge to "third-degree criminal mischief in violation of individual rights, a class D felony, according to Iowa Code Section 729A.2."

The attorney's office indicated that the cost to replace or repair the demonic installation was between $750 and $1,500.

The Des Moines Register indicated the radical group alternatively estimated the cost of replacing the statue was $3,000.

The attorney's office also underscored that prosecutors seek "fair and just resolutions of all cases, as we continue to apply the law equally to all, regardless of religion, race, sexual orientation, or economic status."

Casidy faces arraignment on Feb. 15. He has raised over $85,700 for his legal defense so far.

The Register noted that the Navy veteran's attorney, Sara Pasquale, declined Tuesday to comment on the new charge.

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Transgender female Navy veteran christens ship named after slain gay rights leader Harvey Milk



A U.S. Navy ship named after slain gay rights leader Harvey Milk was christened by a transgender female Navy veteran this weekend.

What are the details?

Milk — who served with the Navy in the Korean War — became the first openly gay elected official in California, winning a seat on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1977. Milk and Mayor George Moscone were assassinated a year later by former city supervisor Dan White.

Paula Neira — a Navy veteran and the clinical program director at the Center for Transgender Health at Johns Hopkins University — christened the ship Saturday in San Diego, National Public Radio reported.

The Navy ordered Neira's name corrected on discharge paperwork — a first for a transgender Navy veteran, according to the Baltimore Sun.

NEW - U.S. Navy names military ship after gay rights leader Harvey Milk and it's christened by a transgender veteran.pic.twitter.com/nVa1fFxadd

— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) 1636309794

"I christen thee Harvey Milk," Neira said before smashing the traditional bottle of champagne. "May God bless the ship and all who sail in her."

Neira and U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) sponsored the ship, NPR said.

More from the outlet:

Naming the ship after an icon of the LGBTQ rights movement represents a symbolic milestone for the military following a long history in which gay service members were unable to serve openly. Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro said it helps right the wrongs of the past and shows a commitment to current and future LGBTQ service members. It's estimated that 100,000 veterans have been discharged from military service because of their sexual orientation.

"Leaders like Harvey Milk taught us that diversity of backgrounds and experiences help contribute to the strength and resolve of our nation," Del Toro said, according to NPR. "There is no doubt that the future Sailors aboard this ship will be inspired by Milk's life and legacy."

Stuart Milk — Milk's nephew and cofounder of the Harvey Milk Foundation — told the outlet that the Navy gave documents to the Milk family outlining Harvey Milk's discharge and that it was "less than honorable." While Stuart Milk added to NPR that the Navy asked him about posthumously reversing his uncle's dishonorable discharge, he said he nixed the idea as a reminder that not everyone was treated with honor.

Anything else?

White committed suicide in October 1985 — apparently it was carbon monoxide poisoning — a year after he was paroled for his voluntary manslaughter sentence in connection with the deaths of White and Moscone.

Here's a look back:

Harvey Milk, George Moscone assassinated in SF: November 27, 1978youtu.be

Revealing the Corruption of Maxine Waters | Joe Collins | POLITICS | Rubin Report

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