And the person who will be making plenty of appearances on this here blog (whether good or bad, who's to know) is 76-year old Cardinal Bergoglio, from Argentina. He has taken the name Pope Francis and is the first non-European pontifex. 

Updated 12:30 p.m. CST

The Illinois state Senate has returned from a short break and is hearing marriage equality at this moment. Head here to celebrate Valentine's Day with the Illinois state Senate and stay tuned to Instinct today for breaking news out of the Midwest!

The Senate Help Committee has just started a hearing concerning an employment non-discrimination act that includes protections for the LGBT community. Watch it live on CSPAN (and follow the jump for more details).

Lady Gaga and her mom Cynthia will be joined by Oprah and Deepak Chopra at 4 p.m. to launch the mother-daughter team's anti-bullying project, the Born This Way Foundation. The live stream of the event, which will outline the details of the initiative, will begin a half-hour early.

Marriage equality gets its big day in front of the California Supreme Court today, and, unlike its previous court appearance, this time you can watch the action unfold live. 

Head to the California Channel to watch the hearing online or, if you live in California, head here for local listings to view the historic trial on TV. 

The California Supreme Court's hearing on Prop 8 is slated to begin today at 10 a.m. (PST).

As always, we will keep you updated on any big news to come from the hearing, so stay tuned to InstinctMagazine.com as well!