Chuck,
TT ~150hrs
I do not profess to talk from the expert point of view though I do find this rather fascinating.
My instructor (I have alluded to him in other threads so I apologise to continue canonising the chap), his resume could read almost identical to yours though with more emphasis on military flying.
The method of judging the flare (using peripheral vision to keep track of the horizon as the plane sinks) is the way I was taught and is the method which works best for me. It is quite difficult for the human eye to judge height based on a visual reference directly in front of the canopy regardless of focus (incidentally I would suggest the end of the runway is not the same as focusing on infinity). This is principally because of the minimal shift of your point of focus in relation to a fixed point of the canopy.
Therefore, as taught, I prefer to use my peripheral vision to assess the rate at which the horizon is creeping up the canopy to the sides of the aircraft, which consequently is an excellent guide to the rate of descent.
You made reference to the use of peripheral vision in a previous post, so I think you would agree the use of the whole field of vision is extremely important for flying (or indeed any activity which requires a fair degree of spacial awareness).
I may well be reading your posts incorrectly however.