BP has announced that it will square off against the federal government in court next week to fight “excessive” claims arising from the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil disaster.

In a combative statement, the oil giant said it had been open to a settlement in the civil trial, set to start on Monday in a federal court in New Orleans. But it had failed to reach a deal with federal government lawyers.

The trial could potentially …

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In a major step forward, Mississippi banned slavery this week. This type of definite legislative action is ostensibly the type of thing to be excited about in an era of unprecedented political foot-dragging, so congratulations Mississippi for finally ratifying the Thirteenth Amendment. Sure, the state is a little behind the curve on this one, given that the nation is a full 148 years past the official end of slavery (more on that, in a second). …

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Syria’s government blamed terrorists for a car bomb that killed at least 31 people in central Damascus near the headquarters of the ruling Ba’ath party on Thursday, as pressure mounted for talks between the government and opposition.

Among more than 230 people reportedly injured in the incident in the Mazra’a district of the capital were children from a nearby school, as well as Nayef Hawatmeh, the head of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine. …

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A strike by millions of low-skilled workers in India has seen banks close and public transport disrupted, amid reports of two deaths in the north.

An estimated 100 million Indians, angry about rising prices, low pay and poor working condition, walked off their jobs on Wednesday, on the first day of a two-day strike organised by eleven major trade unions.

The strikers are demanding a legal minimum wage, fairer contracts and improved working conditions.

“Workers are being totally …

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With a tagline that reads, “It’s hard to see racism when you’re White,” the University of Wisconsin Duluth-Superior‘s Un-fair Campaign is forcing Whites of Duluth, Minn., to reconsider their White privilege once again, and their latest campaign has some crying foul. Why? Because it features Whites wearing a number of grievances allegedly shared by minorities…on their faces.

“Is White Skin Really Fair Skin?” and “Society Was Set Up For Us” are just some of the messages …

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Finally.

Finally somebody said it. Finally somebody defended the innocent actions of Evander Kane, and finally somebody said those words we all knew we’d finally hear a hockey player say, one day. It’s just too bad it had to be Kane, himself, who said them.

“I think a good portion of (the criticism of me) is because I’m black and I’m not afraid to say that,” the left winger told The Hockey News. …

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Emad Burnat, the Palestinian who co-directed the Academy Award-nominated documentary “5 Broken Cameras,” was reportedly detained at Los Angeles International Airport on Tuesday night as he attempted to enter America to attend the Oscars, this according to filmmaker Michael Moore.

Burnat and his family were eventually released, according to Moore, but not before spending 90 minutes being held by immigration officials. Moore explained what happened to Burant in a series of tweets to his 1.4 million …

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SOFIA, Feb 20 (Reuters) – Bulgaria’s government resigned on Wednesday after violent nationwide protests against high power prices, joining a long list of European administrations felled by austerity during Europe’s debt crisis.

Prime Minister Boiko Borisov, a former bodyguard who swept to power in 2009 on pledges to root out corruption and raise living standards in the European Union’s poorest member, now faces a tough task to prop up eroding support ahead of a probable early …

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The United States Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to hear the case that opens the door to the final destruction of the campaign finance laws that place a limit on how much money an individual can contribute directly to a federal candidate or national political party.

Now that the infamous Citizens United case, decided in 2010, has removed limits on how much a corporation, union and individual can contribute to groups that are ‘unaffiliated’ with candidates …

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Recent reports suggest that President Obama is about to nominate Sylvia Mathews Burwell, the president of the Walmart Foundation, as director of the Office of Management and Budget. Her nomination would be a coup for Walmart and its foundation, which under Burwell’s watch has wielded its massive budget to expand the retail giant’s influence at all levels of government and to pave the way for store expansions.
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The most recent tax disclosure from the Walmart Foundation, …

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