Possibly a very sensitive topic. Hope it remains civil.

What do you think the Western world should do regarding the ongoing insurrection in Syria, if anything?

I voted for "butt out".

The fact that a good portion of the so called "rebels" are actually radical Islamic jihadists is somewhat concerning.
Syria does have a stockpile of chemical weapons, and if Islamic militants were to take over the country, we'd be in a world of shit. They could easily destabilize the entire region, neighboring Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon.

Like it or not, supporting the current Syrian regime might actually be the best option.

Well, the USA and Europe has not been "too" interested becasue Syria has no oil, or very little that doesn't account or matter. It seems to me anyway that the USA is on the fence giving lip-service to the rebels, but at the same time ducking and covering to the UN.

The UN?????? What a joke. There was a time when I thought (as a younger man) that the UN should be given more of a charge on world affairs such as this....................

"The Security Council orders a cease-fire in Syria"

they keep fighting. Same thing the UN has done throughout the decades all over the world. "hey guys, ummm stop fighting. It is bad."

Even the third world thinks they're a joke. Look at what happened in the Congo...UN forces behaving as barbarians, just as bad as the government that was in place (rapes, looting, outright theft of the resources, 2006-2009).

Personally I think the Arab world should be doing something more, but somehow, someway the USA will get the call to fund, support, or covert something......and get balmed for the outcome.

The U. S. will be blamed whatever happens, and called cynical and self-interested. Therefore the most logical course of action for the U. S. is to act in our narrow self interest. I guess this means instituting a friendly dictatorship who will keep the oil flowing.

What the U. N., NATO, or "the West" does independently of the U. S. will be inept and thus irrelevant.

NATO? Okay Nature....WHY is NATO in Afghanistan? I know this is a little off topic

NATO's charter is to 'keep the Soviet Union in check, and to keeep Germany down militarily'

It stands for North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Why in the blazes are they in Afghanistan?????

I voted the "Aid or arm the rebels, do not send soldiers" solution. I think we should do airstrikes on military targets bombing cities, but not send men on the ground. Protect the civilians.

Come and take all the oil/gas/gold/diamonds for themselves, as usual?
*trollface*

I suspect that you already know everything I'm going to say, but for the sake of discussion, I'll say it anyway.

In a nutshell, the reasons NATO still exists:

• Even though the Soviet Union doesn't exist any more, Russia is still seen as a potential threat.
• The Europeans still like the idea of sponging off of U. S. defense spending rather than having to finance their own.
• The Americans like the political cover that NATO provides when they want to embark on non-U.N.-sanctioned military adventures.

As for why NATO is in Afghanistan, well, that's really a two-part question:

1. Why is anyone in Afghanistan? The U. S. wants to establish a strong central government that will prevent the country being used as a haven for terrorists.
2. Why is NATO involved? To force the Euros to share at least a small part of the costs.

The Orthodox Christian minority is in peril.If the rebels gain control it would be worse.Just like "liberated" Iraq,Iran,Afghanistan and Egypt.

oh, it borders Israel, Irak and a NATO country. It is hugely important.

The fact of the matter is, the ministry of propiganda (media outlets) are very adept and picking and choosing information to sway "public opinon", a massacre here, a sob story there, the 'oppression' of women and gays. BOOM, we get to test out that new drone system on weddings, funerals and school children.

I'll be the first........

The USA needs to withdraw its membership from the UN and NATO. Yesterday.

The whole world hates us, even when we are pressed to "do" something, it is always wrong. Makes someone mad at us. Ughhh.

Time to quote Washington "Stay out of enatgling alliances, and stay out of the affairs of the Europeans, they are a very backward and childish people when it comes to matters of diplomacy"

Nope, sorry gmartinfan. That would be the foreign policy of a loser nation like Canada or France.

As a responsible adult nation, we are burdened with having to do what's right even if it means everyone hates us.

It's mostly envy, anyway. Everybody loves losers. When was the last time you heard anyone (besides me) say an unkind word about Canadians?

Nato should be disbanded but if you withdraw from the UN you basically withdraw from the international scene.

That's simply not true. I'm European and I don't hate America. Most Europeans I know don't hate America and quite a few are even very pro-America. Just because we strongly disagree on certain issues it doesn't mean we hate you, with the exception of radical leftists who are very vocal but only represent a small percentage of Europeans.