http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/04/politics/ ... ?hpt=hp_t1It's a tough situation at best. If it turns out that the UN inspectors find that there were chemical weapons used against civilians, I expect that the US will act, regardless of whether the UN does or not. I don't expect a war, at least, not in the sense that there would be some kind of invasion of ground troops, but I think there will be an attempt to both eliminate the source of chemical weapons and weaken the Assad regime.
I'm not sure that helping the rebels win in Syria would produce a result any more beneficial or desirable to the US than currently exists there. The vacuum of power would ultimately be of more benefit to Al Qaida, or some other extremist Muslim group than it would be in pushing the country toward democratic reform. If it is within the realm of possibility to stop, or at least slow down the use of chemical weapons, then we should make that effort. Beyond that, it is probably not worth the cost.