Guardian: A standoff between BP and the US government over the handling of the stricken Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico continued with a sharp exchange of words over the best way to keep the oil contained before the well is permanently plugged next month. Thad Allen, the official appointed by Barack Obama to lead the federal response to the disaster, gave BP another 24 hours in which to keep the new containment cap on the broken well closed. But he warned that the US government would …