Illinois gay community mourns Republican Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka: “Equality Illinois CEO Bernard Cherkasov called Topinka a leader in supporting issues important to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Illinoisans. He said she endorsed same-sex marriage in Illinois and even offered to be a flower girl for any same-sex couple that would have her. Cherkasov also said Topinka opened her office to Equality Illinois’ delegation on the group’s annual Springfield lobbying days. He says she also attended Chicago’s Pride Parade and the group’s annual galas.”

Anna Kendrick: Meryl Streep = oxygen. 

The road ahead for LGBT rights in the US post-2014 midterms: “What lingers are employment protections, housing and public accommodations protections, safe schools legislation, marriage equality in all 50 states, access to credit without discrimination, and the right for transgender service members to serve openly. To get there, it is essential to win the hearts and minds of those living in many Southern, Midwestern and Great Plains states where few equal rights exist for LGBT residents.”

Malala Yousafzai accepts Nobel Peace Prize: “The terrorists tried to stop us. Neither their ideas nor their bullets could win. We survived. And since that day, our voices have grown louder and louder.” Yousafzai also called attention to her friends in the audience, noting that her story is not all that uncommon. “I tell my story not because it is unique but because it is not. It is the story of many girls.”

Do all dogs go to heaven? Pope Francis weighs in. 

Leaked correspondence between Sony’s Amy Pascal and uber-producer Scott Rudin sets tongues wagging.

SAG Nominations are out. 

Orlando Bloom talks his locks and what they have in common with Harry Styles with Ellen.

Adam Lambert shows off new ink on Instagram.

Study shows same-sex couples are divorcing at a lower rate than their opposite-sex counterparts.

Former CIA directors respond to the CIA torture report.

OutSports takes a look at the 204 current and former Olympians who have come out to identify as LGBTI. 

Brazil had 3,701 gay marriages in 2013, the 1st year such unions were legal.

Hallmark recalls Hannukah gift wrap that has swastika embedded in its design.

Heartbreaking account of sexual assault: “I realized two months later that I hadn’t had sex with a man. I had been assaulted.”