The Guardian reports: An amnesty for gay and bisexual men convicted of consensual sex with people of the same sex has been extended to Northern Ireland. Until Wednesday, the region was excluded from legislation that posthumously pardons men convicted of sexual offences that are no longer illegal and allows the living to apply to have convictions overturned. The legislation did …

Watch the highlights clips below. Variety reviews: It’s hard to imagine better casting for the production. Jennifer Hudson stole the show, once Motormouth Maybelle got to the screen; Ariana Grande, certifiable pop star, came away as the show’s MVP, acting as both reliably overlook-able sidekick and, once the situation required it, showstopping diva. Harvey Fierstein was predictably great, reprising his …

The Houston Chronicle reports: Every day in Texas, more than an estimated half-million people are breaking a law that’s on the books, but unenforceable. It’s technically illegal to be gay in Texas. The law, passed in 1974, makes homosexual conduct a class C misdemeanor, punishable by up to 180 days in jail and a $2,000 fine. The law has been …

The Guardian reports: Journalist Megyn Kelly, who is under armed guard after receiving death threats, has accused Donald Trump’s social media director of stirring hatred on the internet. The Fox News host urged Dan Scavino, a member of the presidential transition team’s leadership staff, to stop encouraging hostile and abusive elements online. “The vast majority of Donald Trump supporters are …

The Washington Post reports: People who have “deep-seated homosexual tendencies” or who “support the so-called ‘gay culture’” cannot be priests in the Catholic church, the Vatican said in a new document on the priesthood. The document said the church’s policy on gay priests has not changed since the last Vatican pronouncement on the subject in 2005. Some have been hoping …

Yesterday it was reported that Trump is considering Jim O’Neill, one of libertarian loon Peter Thiel’s cronies, to be the head of FDA. Like Thiel, O’Neill has some really bizarre ideas and sits on the board of Thiel’s Seasteading Institute, which hopes to build floating zillioniare utopias where businesses can operate unencumbered by pesky things like banking laws, environmental protections, …

Via Raw Story: Stephen Colbert Wednesday hammered the conspiracy theorists who rose to prominence during the 2016 election, suggesting Wikileaks, Alex Jones and Reddit trolls should “grow the f*ck up.” During a segment on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, the host urged his viewers to refrain from getting their news from him, “because newsflash, this isn’t news,” before also …

The New York Times has interviewed the nutjob that fired an assault rifle inside a DC pizza shop because he needed to “investigate” a fake news story promulgated by extremist pro-Trump sites. The guy is exactly as you’d suspect. From their article: Mr. Welch, the father of two daughters, said he woke up Sunday morning and told his family he …

The Detroit Free Press reports: After two days of ballot counting, conflicting court decisions and legal wranglings between frustrated lawyers, a federal judge on Wednesday night halted the hand recount of 4.8 million ballots cast for president in Michigan, concluding there’s no real evidence of foul play and there’s no valid reason to continue the recount. In his eight-page opinion, …

Nearly 20 million views already. Fuse recaps: This year was dominated by YouTube content creators taking their talents from the video-sharing service to various outlets on social media, beauty companies, television and more. So to highlight all of this blossoming buzz, YouTube released their annual YouTube Rewind that references 2016’s biggest memes, trends and videos. It opens up with the …

US Weekly reviews: Bitch, she’s Madonna. New York City drivers, beware: The Material Girl does not like to be cut off when she’s driving. The Queen of Pop joined James Corden for Carpool Karaoke on The Late Late Show on Wednesday, December 7, and the segment began with their black SUV getting cut off by a Manhattan bus. “Let’s drive …

CNBC reports: Donald Trump used Twitter late Wednesday to slam the union chief who had sharply criticized the President-elect’s claims to have saved more than 1,000 jobs at the Carrier plant in Indianapolis, and set of a war of words over who best represents American workers. Chuck Jones, president of the United Steelworkers 1999 that represents workers at Carrier, apparently …

As a desperately needed diversion from the ongoing decline of our nation, let’s gay the fuck out of this joint and watch Hairspray Live! together. NBC’s live broadcast begins at 8PM Eastern and stars Harvey Fierstein, Jennifer Hudson, Kristin Chenoweth, Ariana Grande, with Maddie Baillio making her television debut as Tracy Turnblad. You can watch via NBC’s smartphone app and …

Via Mediaite: Conspiracy radio host Alex Jones hit back at The Blaze’s Glenn Beck the day after Beck labeled him a “madman,” accusing-but-not-accusing Beck of being gay. “Why is Glenn Beck out to get me, why is he always attacking me, starting like ten years ago?” Jones asked rhetorically. Jones said that he knew and met Beck back in the …

Just in via email from Monica Cole: Where is the last place parents would suspect their kiddos to be exposed to same-sex “families” portrayed as normal? In the current controversy, Highlights magazine decided to include same-sex families in their magazines. Babies and preschoolers will soon be introduced to this sensitive topic in the Highlights line of magazines. Parents are seeing …

Via Gay Star News: A homophobic preacher in Ghana claims to be able to increase the size of a man’s penis using a ‘massage ritual’. Bishop Daniel Obinim says he uses the ‘power of God’ for his enlargement service that is part of his hands-on work. In a video broadcast on Obinim TV, the bishop and founder of the International …

NBC News reports: Two juveniles were arrested Wednesday on aggravated arson charges in the Tennessee wildfires that killed 14 people, and more charges are possible, authorities said Wednesday. The suspects weren’t identified because they’re minors. Authorities would say only that they are residents of Tennessee but not of Sevier County, where the fire caused significant damage and forced the evacuations …

David Corn reports at Mother Jones: Congressional Democrats are increasing the pressure for an official and public inquiry into Russian meddling in the 2016 campaign. On Wednesday afternoon, Rep. Eric Swalwell, (D-Calif.), a Democrat on the House intelligence committee, and Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), the senior Democrat on the House government oversight committee, announced they were introducing legislation to create …

The New York Times reports: President-elect Donald J. Trump has selected Scott Pruitt, the Oklahoma attorney general and a close ally of the fossil fuel industry, to run the Environmental Protection Agency, a transition official said, signaling Mr. Trump’s determination to dismantle President Obama’s efforts to counter climate change. Mr. Pruitt, a Republican, has been a key architect of the …

Before he was even sworn-in back in 2010, the first thing Iowa Governor-Elect Terry Branstad did was call for a public referendum to repeal same-sex marriage. Three of the state Supreme Court justices that had upheld same-sex marriage in 2009 were voted out of office in the same election. And now, barring unlikely opposition in the Senate, he’s heading for …