I just had a much too long winded post about ready to submit and I messed it up, so I won't try to recreate it and I'll try to be breif.

Suffice it to say that any soldier and any country that sends them into battle along side the US, deserves our honor and deep respect, and I think in large part, most share that sentiment, whether here on this board or elsewhere. I would hope, though we seem to see that it's not necessarily true from the reports we get, that the feeling is not often reciprocated. However, regardless of that often joint sacrifice, that does not give them a voice in OUR electoral process nor does it give us a voice in theirs.

As for the media, I'd agree that the American media and what I've seen of the International media, has long ago abdicated their true role as watch dog, discoverer, and unbiased disseminator of ALL the information. Instead, they've essentially become in disguise propagandizers, in large part adherent to their respective corporate ideological positions. This is true on both the left and the right. I don't know of many center positioned outlets in existence any longer, in my opinion. I also think the liberal vs conservative make up is largely tilted to the liberal side in the media.

This wouldn't be so bad except that most people still take much of what they read and see as fact and don't bother to question it or have time to investigate further or to contemplate it further. The exchange I had with borredo on the "mythylogical Clinton Surplus" is one example of probably millions. So even if I were to subscribe to your train of thought that the US voter should pay attention to what the world opinion is with respect to the selection of our President (and to be clear, that's the singular issue I am addressing) the world opinion is largely formed by the media who in essence is not reporting the facts, but rather reporting just their version of the facts. So even that opnion you propose a US voter should take into account is by your own admission formed based on incomplete information as your example about the reporting of casualties in Afghanistan points out.

See, that was brief! lol