Seeing a plethora of low IQ “Israel FORCED the US into war” takes. Xi thanks you for helping to unwittingly launder CCP propaganda btw.

The US strikes come down to Iran and China having engineered a mathematically unwinnable war of attrition for any purely defensive strategy. In other words, they can replace missiles faster than the US can replace the interceptors needed to stop them.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated this week that Iran is now producing over 100 ballistic missiles per month, while the US can manufacture only 6–7 relevant ballistic-missile interceptors per month (the high-end systems actually capable of reliably knocking down Iran’s advanced threats).

Even the broader Patriot PAC-3 MSE line is only at ~45 per month today and THAAD/SM-3 production is even tighter at under 10 per month before emergency surges. Surely you can see how this is a giant problem.

And what is China doing? China is deliberately supercharging this imbalance. Beijing has been caught shipping dual-use propellant ingredients, planetary mixers, and components that let Iran rebuild its munitions factories at breakneck speed.

Reuters released a report on Feb 24 revealing that Iran was days from sealing a deal with China for CM-302 supersonic anti-ship missiles capable of evading defenses, sinking US carriers / destroyers from a distance of 290 km, which turns the Strait of Hormuz into a lethal kill zone. If this doesn't strike you as a red line that should galvanize action now rather than later, then you are unable to handle the reality of geopolitical survival.

Why is China doing this? Because a cheap, endless Iranian missile barrage that forces the US to expend $4-million interceptors against $20K Shaheds (or $200K ballistic missiles) is Beijing’s perfect trap - keep America’s navy, aircraft and industrial base tied down in the Middle East burning through stockpiles. Basically, keep America busy and out of the West Pacific.

The imminent arrival of a Chinese-backed “gamechanger” would have rendered America’s naval supremacy obsolete and provide an anti-access shield over the Gulf, Iranian nuclear sites, and every proxy from Hezbollah to the Houthis. This is why the Gulf States are also aligned with US action.

The US needed to restore deterrence against a regime racing toward nukes, and send an unmistakable message that the United States will never cede the Gulf to a Sino-Iranian nightmare.

I highly recommend listening to the latest episode of @triggerpod and @havivrettiggur. These guys provide the best analysis of the situation.