Russian actions and motives in Syria?...

Anyone who thinks the situation in Syria is anything but a blood bath, involving innocent women and children as pawns in a nefarious, dangerous and sponsored civil war, in which even the United Nations observers are now being targetted, is smoking illegal substances.
And to listen to Mr. Putin and his Foreign Minister deny any reports of supplying "attack" helicopters, and military materiel to Syria, her longtime ally, is like listening to Al Capone tell the police he knows nothing of the latest death on the South Side of Chicago....it is hogwash?
Iran, too, is far from innocent, and has blood on its hands, given the supply of supporting arms that continues to flow to support the Assad regime in Damascus.
Opinion, at least in the west, is clearly divided over next steps, as to whether or not to militarily intervene in Syria, and even safe havens, and corridors of passage cannot be guaranteed, for those seeking refuge from the fighting to get help or to leave the country.
Without any evidence to support this intuitive leap, I am prompted to ask whether the Russians want to exacerbate this conflict as their way of hampering the Obama administration during the campaign period, as their contribution to a more "acceptable" Romney, who has publicly and stupidly, delared Russia America's greatest threat, only to be called out on his statement by none other than Colin Powell, former Secretary of State and Head of National Security, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in various U.S. administrations...not one to be unprepared in his judgements.
Should Romney, perversely, from our perspective, but perhaps not from the Russian point of view, win the White House, the Russians would know they could expect more headlines from his administration, and would thereby accentuate their position on the world stage, something Putin craves, to ward off his street protests, that seem, legititamately to be growing both in size and in frequency.
What other larger motive could be behind the Russian subterfuge, and obstruction of a UN settlement for Syria, and for the obvious dismantling of the Annan efforts to bring this horrible conflict to a peaceful conclusion?