They cannot distinguish between humanitarian intervention and long term nation building.
VERY true.

Ditto in regards of 'no matter what is happening in Syria, the US is not coming to the rescue'.

I actually find this tragic, then Syria was (or, should I say, 'it still is') really the opportunity.

K, then 'stay tunned' - for all the same media and same characters that are now damning any thoughts about intervention, to damn the failure to launch that intervention, sometimes in the future (i.e. we'll see a sort of opposite reaction to invasion of Iraq, where everybody who was 'pro' back in 2002-2003, can't be more 'contra' now).