By CNN's Jack Cafferty:
Syria is teetering on the brink of an all-out civil war as the situation quickly goes from bad to worse.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says she's concerned that Russia may be sending attack helicopters to Syria. Something that, if true, can escalate the conflict quite dramatically.
She says the U.S. has confronted Russia about stopping its arms shipments to the assad regime. According to the State Department, Russia insists that the weapons they're sending can't be used against civilians and are only for self-defense. What's not to believe?
Syrian forces are reportedly pummeling their own people with attack helicopters, tanks and mortars. On the other side, the insurgents appear increasingly armed and better organized. Like we said: bad to worse.
Meanwhile the UN is out with a report that the Syrian government has used children as human shields and tortured other children whose parents are suspected dissidents. These child victims describe being beaten, blindfolded, whipped with heavy electrical cables, burnt with cigarettes and in one case, subjected to electrical shock to the genitals.
A UN peacekeeping chief now describes the situation in Syria as a civil war. It's estimated as many as 14,000 Syrians have been killed in the 15 months of bloodshed.
Secretary Clinton says there's no easy solution to the mess in Syria. But it's clear that sanctions and isolating Syria haven't worked so far.
As for Americans, they overwhelmingly say the U.S. does not have a responsibility to step in.
A recent CNN/ORC poll shows 61% oppose any American intervention.
33% say the U.S. should intervene - that's up from 25% in February.
Here’s my question to you: Has the time come for the U.S. to intervene in Syria?
Tune in to the Situation Room at 4pm to see if Jack reads your answer on air.
And, we love to know where you’re writing from, so please include your city and state with your comment.