Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

Getty Images Lawmakers in California and Texas – the two most populous US states that together contain more than 70 million Americans – are at the centre of an intense political battle that is poised to have a major impact on the balance of power in Washington DC. After Texas passed a redistricting measure that…

Getty Images India’s opposition parties said they were considering an impeachment motion to remove Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar India’s Election Commission (ECI), one of the most trusted public institutions in the world’s largest democracy, is facing a test of its credibility. Over the past few weeks, it has fielded a string of allegations from…

Ghislaine Maxwell, the convicted associate of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, told US officials that a highly discussed “client list” does not exist, according to a released transcript of her interview. In a July interview with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, Maxwell said she was “not aware of any blackmail” and did not witness any inappropriate…

Nardine Saad BBC News, Los Angeles California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Lyle appeared virtually for the hearing, which spanned more than 10 hours Lyle Menendez has been denied parole one day after his brother Erik was similarly blocked from being freed from prison after more than three decades. The Menendez brothers, who were convicted…

Frank Gardner Security correspondent EPA-EFE/KCNA Listen to Frank read this article Glinting in the autumn sun on a parade ground in Beijing, the People’s Liberation Army missiles moved slowly past the crowd on a fleet of giant camouflaged lorries. Needle-sharp in profile, measuring 11 metres long and weighing 15 tonnes, each bore the letters and…

Facebook has removed an Italian group which saw men sharing intimate images of often unsuspecting women with thousands of people online. The Mia Moglie group, which translates to My Wife in English, had around 32,000 members before it was shut down this week. Its discovery has prompted outrage among Italians who are concerned about similar…

At least 18 people have been killed and dozens wounded in two separate attacks in Colombia, deepening the country’s most serious security crisis in decades. Six people died and more than 60 were injured after a car bomb exploded on a busy street in the western city of Cali in Colombia, according to authorities. Earlier…

Nigeria has deported dozens of foreigners, including 50 Chinese nationals, in a major crackdown over the last week on one of the “largest foreign-led cybercrime syndicates”, the country’s anti-graft agency has said. “This brings the total repatriated convicted foreign nationals to 102 in the ongoing exercise,” it said, adding they had been found guilty of…

Katy Watson BBC News in Kyiv EPA/Shutterstock Ukraine’s leader said he was not afraid of any meetings, unlike Russia Ukraine’s President Volodymr Zelensky has accused Russia of “doing everything it can” to prevent a meeting with Vladimir Putin to try to end the war. US President Donald Trump has sought to bring the two leaders…

Serena Williams, one of the most successful athletes of all time, has spoken out about using weight loss drugs – she says, to lift the “stigma” around using such medication. Will her outspoken comments instil a new sense of confidence in those using the drugs? And could her honesty quieten the critics? The 43-year-old tennis…