What can the Obama-Romney campaigns tell us about how Australia's federal election clash will unfold next year?
The link between the two is best not to be overstated, because as our voting is compulsory we do not see here the massive work aimed at getting out the vote.
But there are some aspects Australian political watchers should keep in mind when pondering our election.
America's fiscal cliff
By far the most likely winner of the 2012 US presidential election is gridlock and its running mate dysfunction. More
Anxieties grow
In a few days, the Communist Party's once in a decade leadership transition will take place amidst China's rising anxieties about its place in the world. More
Exceptional America
Most Americans will have voted on domestic issues, but the impact of their choice will be felt around the world. More
Pick and choose
Jonathan Green
The internet doesn't just allow us to choose which opinions we read. Now we can pick our own statistics and facts too.
Super disgrace
Alan Kohler
Australia's superannuation system is not the paragon it's cracked up to be.
The campaign diary
Jane Cowan
Impressions from a week on the road in the midst of the 2012 US presidential election.
Leave it to the professionals
Jonathan Holmes
There's no advantage in formally including the managing director of a media organisation in the editorial chain of command.
Political turnarounds
Barrie Cassidy
The Federal Government is starting to look like The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight.
More discrimination, please!
Scott Stephens
The left and the right are both complicit in our current political deadlock.
The empathy trap
Jane Hutcheon
Is our instinct to help being kept in check by a fear of appearing gullible?
Clueless or calculated?
Annabel Crabb
Is it reassuring to have a federal leader who only realises he's said something offensive well after the words are airborne?
Digital debate
Michael Brissenden
In cyber space no-one can hear you scream but they can sure tell if you're off your game.
Super disgraceAustralia's superannuation system is not the paragon it's cracked up to be, writes Alan Kohler.
OPINION
Show me the moneyWayne Swan's budget forecasts are so shaky that if he was competing in an archery event, the only safe place to watch would be on TV, writes Tony Smith.
Three Michelin starsWayne Swan has pulled out all the stops to keep the budget in surplus. Now prepare for an early election, writes Alan Kohler.
OPINION
Surplus politicsWayne Swan has stepped on the fiscal brakes harder in one year than any treasurer ever before, writes Greg Jericho.
OPINION
Tougher on spendingThe Government has flagged some significant cuts to spending, but they didn't go far enough, writes Peter Reith.
Fresh startIf all goes well, Nine should avoid going under today, along with the all the bad things that usually involves, writes Alan Kohler.
The US democratic system may be better than other options like a communist dictatorship but it is far from perfect when you consider things like the enormous influence a few wealthy individuals have over the political, economic and social welfare systems.
Help101 on Stewardship or leadership? America's exceptional dilemma, via story comment
I'm a female engineer - I'm personally not in favour of AA. What I am in favour of is companies attempting to limit the level of discrimination in their hiring and promoting procedures whereby people are judged on their qualifications, experience and value to a company rather than their sex
RenA on An inconvenient truth: we need more women in the boardroom, via story comment
The penalty should be severe. It's tantamount to attempted manslaughter (if such a thing could exist). A driver is in charge of several tonnes of metal with huge momentum - it requires complete attention to control, otherwise it's a weapon.
Trevor on Grandstanding about mobiles won't reduce the road toll, via story comment
When a vote isn't a voteThe West Wing's Josh Lyman explains how to vote. [YouTube]
Barry ObamaChris Rock's special election message for white people. [YouTube]
Did Sandy stall the Mitt-mentum?Michael Tomasky and David Frum debate whether the storm stopped Romney's momentum in the crucial days before the election. [Daily Beast]
A firefighter puts out a blaze which gutted a car at a service station in Newport, in Sydney's north, on the morning of November 3, 2012. Mackenzie Price arrived at the scene not long after the first fire truck and managed to capture this photo. He said the front half of the car was destroyed but it seems the driver got out unharmed.
Kevin M Kruse says not even dedicated fact-checkers can prevent candidates from straying from the truth. [NYT]
"While the line between fact and fiction in politics has always been fuzzy, a confluence of factors has strained our civic discourse, if it can still be called that, to the breaking point."
Phillip Coorey says if Wayne Swan leaked Opposition costings to Fairfax, he was entitled to. [SMH]
"By raising a stink about what Labor is doing now, Hockey at least ensures the Government may be more reluctant to repeat the process between now and the election, when the costings issue becomes more sensitive."
Chris Killia travels through the swing states in the US election, and finds one overwhelming message: "Get something done." [Christian Science Monitor]
"On the eve of an election that everyone says involves two "stark" choices for America, people across the country have a simple plea for Washington: Work together. Get along."
Wendy Squires describes crushing the dream of a teenage girl considering a career in fashion modelling. [SMH]
" I am only too well aware that young girls have a distorted view of the modelling world and the fashion industry it orbits. However, having worked on many glossy magazines throughout my career, I know the reality and wouldn't wish it on anyone. Ever."
This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced.
AEDT = Australian Eastern Daylight Savings Time which is 11 hours ahead of UTC (Greenwich Mean Time)
