WASHINGTON - August 3, 2011 - A federal judge has ruled that former Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld can be sued personally for damages by a former U.S. military contractor who says he was tortured during a nine-month imprisonment in Iraq.

The lawsuit lays out a dramatic tale of the disappearance of the then-civilian contractor, an Army veteran in his 50s, whose identity is being withheld from court filings for fear of retaliation.

WASHINGTON - July 31, 2011 - In order to shore up GOP support for a deal to raise the debt ceiling, Senate Democrats are exploring ways of giving the proposed "super Congress" even greater super powers, according to multiple news reports and congressional aides with knowledge of the plan.

Under the new proposal, if the new legislative body, made up of six Democrats and six Republicans from both chambers, doesn't come up with a bill that cuts at least $1.5 trillion by Thanksgiving, entitlement programs will automatically be slashed.

July 27, 2011 - These stories circulating about culinary raves are becoming more prevalent. In fact, the New York Times did a good story back in April. Instead of the old dance-and-drug-type rave, these are raves where foodies gather to craft, sell, talk about, and share their food in underground farmer's markets, away from all of the bureaucracy and tyranny of the federal food fuzz.

LONDON, England - August 8, 2011 - Violence and looting raged across London and spread to three other major British cities on Tuesday, as authorities struggled to contain the country's most serious unrest since race riots set the capital ablaze in the 1980s.

In London, a third straight night of disorder saw buildings, vehicles and garbage dumps set alight, stores looted and police officers pelted with bottles and fireworks, as groups of young people rampaged through neighborhoods. It was an unwelcome reminder of London's volatility for leaders organizing the 2012 Summer Olympics in less than a year.