No one points out the huge opportunity cost of what could have been and what could still be – albeit barely – if the US took decisive action to save tens of thousands of Syrian lives and possibly tip the balance of the conflict. Consider the contrast with Libya, where one of the outcomes of US intervention was tens of thousands of Libyans marching in the streets with placards declaring their support of the US and their outrage and sorrow at the murder of the US ambassador.
没人指出这样做的机会成本——如果美国采取果断措施拯救千万叙利亚人民生命甚至改变冲突平衡的话（尽管这样的可能性极低）——有多大。想想与叙利亚形成鲜明对比的利比亚吧，美国干预的结果是千万利比亚人民举着支持美国的横幅走上街头，对美国大使的遇害表示愤怒和悲痛。而在世界舞台上，俄罗斯和中国也知道美国绝不会投反对票，于是最终决定权掌握在它们手上。