The Guardian reports: Malta has become the first country in Europe to ban gay conversion therapy after the parliament in Valetta unanimously approved a bill outlawing attempts to “cure” homosexuals of their sexuality. Under the new Affirmation of Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Gender Expression Act, anyone found guilty of trying to “change, repress or eliminate a person’s sexual orientation, …

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports: A St. Cloud husband-and-wife film company is challenging the constitutionality of Minnesota’s human rights act, arguing that they will be punished for refusing wedding services to same-sex couples. In one of the first challenges since same-sex marriage became legal in Minnesota in 2013, Carl and Angel Larsen’s Telescope Media Group filed suit Tuesday in federal court …

NBC News reports: Hundreds of people protested a speech given by the white nationalist and member of the so-called alt-right, Richard Spencer, at the University of Texas A&M Tuesday. The College Station, Texas, university did not invite Spencer to speak and said his views are “in direct conflict with our core values.” Spencer was invited to speak by a former …

Five million views since yesterday. US Weekly reports: Taking grab-and-go to the next level. Amazon just opened a state-of-the art grocery store called Amazon Go in downtown Seattle that lets customers shop without ever waiting in line or going through a checkout process. In a video introducing the concept Monday, December 5, the e-commerce company refers to it as “just-walk-out …

CBC News reports: Vice President Joe Biden is continuing his coy approach to a possible 2020 presidential bid. For now, it’s no. The Democrat told Stephen Colbert on CBS’ “Late Show” Tuesday, “I don’t plan on running again, but to say you know what’s going to happen in four years is just not rational.” He added, “I can’t see the …

From TIME Magazine: This is the 90th time we have named the person who had the greatest influence, for better or worse, on the events of the year. So which is it this year: Better or worse? The challenge for Donald Trump is how profoundly the country disagrees about the answer. It’s hard to measure the scale of his disruption. …

Politico reports: Trump transition team members had to sign a code of ethics with a pretty significant lobbying ban, but they’ve also had to sign a non-disclosure agreement to make certain they keep all of their work confidential, according to a copy obtained by POLITICO. The agreement legally bars transition staffers from disclosing info about major portions of the transition …

Via AlterNet: Late-night radio host Art Bell is suing controversial right-wing commentator Michael Savage for defamation, claiming that Savage insinuated Bell’s wife was a 10-year-old sex worker during the September 25 episode of his “Savage Nation” radio program. “I generally avoid gun questions. I know this from the first day in radio. I learned you never do certain topics where …

From the Associated Press: A trending story that claims Hillary Clinton won a total of 57 counties in the presidential election is untrue. The Associated Press finds that Clinton won 487 counties nationwide, compared with 2,626 for President-elect Donald Trump. The story appeared on several viral content sites that cater to some of Trump’s supporters. It also falsely claimed that …

The Orlando Sentinel reports: A federal appeals court Tuesday overturned a lower-court ruling that supported the Lake County School Board’s decision to block middle-schoolers from forming a gay-straight-alliance club to combat bullying. In a battle dating to 2011, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling found that the Equal Access Act, which requires federally funded secondary schools to treat all …

From the oh-so-very anti-LGBT LifeSiteNews: For the first time ever, Walmart has scored a “perfect” 100 percent ranking on a leading homosexual lobby group’s “corporate scorecard,” meaning that to keep its score the retail giant will now cover transsexual employees’ “sex reassignment surgeries” as part of its healthcare coverage. The decidedly anti-social-conservative “Corporate Equality Index” (CEI) is produced by Human …

Brian Tashman reports at Right Wing Watch: Responding to a statement on Carson’s nomination from incoming Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Robertson said that Obama was unqualified to be president since he “never held a job in the private sector,” “learned his organizing skills from a well-known radical who had a handbook for revolutionaries,” and “did next to nothing” in …

You may need a tissue for this. The Independent reports: A Polish Christmas advert, which has been viewed more than two-and-a-half million times, about a grandfather learning English is melting hearts worldwide. The advert, released by online auction website Allegro, starts with the elderly man receiving an “English For Beginners” audio set from the website. He then sets about becoming …

The Daily Beast reports: Seemingly out of nowhere on Tuesday morning, President-elect Donald Trump bashed Boeing on Twitter, declaring the company’s costs “out of control,” and saying the government should cancel an order with the company for two new Air Force One jets. As it turns out, that seemingly random outburst against the aerospace company came within an hour after …

Breitbart really is a perfect fit for Tony Perkins, considering his history of working with David Duke and keynoting for white supremacists. Via Breitbart: Tony Perkins, host of the Family Research Council’s Washington Watch radio show, discussed the #DumpKelloggs boycott with Breitbart News CEO Larry Solov on Monday. “The Left has lost control of the government – at least, it’s …

The Los Angeles Times reports: Los Angeles subway commuters were met by heavily armed deputies and bag searches Tuesday as authorities responded to a report of a possible terrorist attack on the Metro Red Line’s Universal City station. Increased security was visible across the Los Angeles County transit system as the FBI, LAPD and Sheriff’s Department dealt with what they …

Law Newz reports: Three voters in Florida filed a lawsuit in state court seeking a recount of the votes in November’s presidential election. The voters claim that Hillary Clinton really won Florida, but problems including hacking, faulty voting machines, and voters being turned away from the polls led to a Trump victory. They sued Governor Rick Scott, Donald Trump, State …

Via Raw Story: A billboard promoting atheism during the holiday season has been run out of town by Christians in Monroe, Louisiana, who deemed it too offensive for their community’s religious sensibilities to tolerate. This message proved to be so triggering for Christians in the community that they successfully demanded that it be taken down on the grounds that it …

There will never be an end to the grifting. Via Politico: The U.S. Secret Service is the hot, new “amenity” in the Trump Tower, where desperate brokers are trying to lure well-heeled clients into the building on Fifth Avenue that has served as President-elect Donald Trump’s home as well as his campaign and transition headquarters. Less than a week after …

That didn’t take long. The Hill reports: North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory (R) will meet with President-elect Donald Trump this week, two days after conceding a drawn-out gubernatorial race. Trump transition aide Sean Spicer told reporters that McCrory will meet with the president-elect in New York on Wednesday following Trump attending a transition fundraising breakfast. Spicer offered no additional details …