The rest of the world will likely be watching the U.S. elections very closely. It is no mystery that U.S. foreign policy often has a greater impact abroad than it does at home. Over the weekend the United States continued to act with impunity as it launched raids into Syria and Pakistan killing innocent civilians and generally flouting international law. Meanwhile, the global financial crisis, which many blame on American style capitalism and over indulgence, is spilling over into world markets. The big question is whether an Obama administration will mark a departure from U.S. imperial rule and global hegemony. Some think it will. Many have their doubts.

On GRITtv we discuss the view from abroad with Deepa Fernandes, the host of WBAI’s Your Call and the author of Targeted: Homeland Security and the Business of Immigration, David Brooks, the U.S. Bureau Chief for the Mexican Daily La Jornada, and Hooman Majd, a journalist and the author of a new book on Iran, The Ayatollah Begs to Differ.

Then an interview with John Siceloff of PBS’s NOW on democracy’s real heroes. Watching the election coverage it would be easy to believe that democracy begins and ends in the voting booth. That is in part because politics has become a consumer good. But real change takes a long time to enact and it usually begins at the local level. In his new book Your America: Democracy’s Local Heroes Siceloff documents how local people make change in their communities, from tomato pickers in Immokalee to a small town mayor in Indiana. A new kind of democracy is taking root and it may just be transforming American politics.  

Finally, a guest commentary from performance artist Lois Weaver.