Welcome to Casting the net, Liberal Conspiracy’s daily web review.

Breaking News
Vladimir Putin has announced his support for First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev to succeed him as Russian President. [NYT]

Highlights
Mark Mardell - A very foreign office
The BBC’s Europe editor on British foreign policy and its relationship with Europe as leaders sign the Lisbon Treaty

Ian Buruma/CiF - The dustbin of history
Buruma claims that the recent decision by the Spanish parliament to outlaw rallies and memorials celebrating the life of Franco is misguided

The voice of young liberal democrats - Why Ethics Alone Can’t Save The World
Environmentalism: Liberal sanctimony will only get us so far. We need an international, “far-reaching, legally binding multi-lateral effort”

Indigo Jo Blogs - In denial about our speed habit?
Our approach to speeding is riddled with contradiction and devoid of common-sense

PoliticalBetting.Com - Should Huckabee really be the favourite for the GOP nomination?
Guest editor Paul Maggs looks at the rising star that is GOP 2008 hopeful Mike Huckabee

Craig Murray - Foreign Office Performance
Why did “conventional diplomacy” fail to secure the release of Gillian Gibbons, and is the FCO now marginalised to the point of irrelevance?

Westminster Wisdom - Britblog roundup
The latest issue of the long-running Britblog roundup, delightfully penned by Gracchi

Also… the last weekend of 50.50, openDemocracy’s “16 Days Against Gender Violence” blog, saw a flurry of excellent articles.

Elsewhere
Mike Ion - The BNP in their own words: ’sleazy, lying incompetent scumbags’
a radical writes - Telegraph guarantees to boost your Britishness by up to 28%!!!
Unknown Conscience - Hands Off the People of Iran Conference Report
The Pamphleteer - On £35,000 cocktails
John’s Labour blog - The “absolute nightmares” Where should they live?
Mind the Gap - Female musicians “shackled by feminism”

If you would like your blog or site to be considered as source material for future reviews, drop me an email at aaronh [at] liberalconspiracy [dot] org with the relevant url. I can then enter it into my RSS reader and monitor it for suitable content to be included. Likewise, if you have a specific article/post you feel deserves a little more traffic, get in touch.