Is there a way to parse raw transactions offline? I have found a few ways to create signed transactions offline, one is at http://brainwallet.org, and another is at https://www.strongcoin.com/blog/the_easiest_way_to_create_secure_offline_bitcoin_transactions    

after i have created a transaction, is there a way check and see what data is included in it before submitting it to the network? i ask because when a transaction is created, all i see is a long hex string, and (tinfoil hat time) for all i know this could just be an encoded version of my private key that someone could be trying to steal. is there a service that allows you to decrypt/parse that raw string?
You can run bitcoind or bitcoinqt in offline mode (disconnected from the Internet). The client does not need to be synced. Then you can use the console to view transactions using the command. 

decoderawtransaction &lt;hex string&gt;

To check if the signatures are correct, you need to do a 

signrawtransaction &lt;hex string&gt; without any other arguments. It will output a {complete:true} result if the signature verifies. 

Edit: I should mention that the signatures cannot be verified if the inputs are not known to bitcoind. In that case you will have to supply the inputs as discussed here.