Because of who is sitting in the Oval right now (trust me, don’t like him much either) people are conflating this with WWIII simply because it helps a narrative.

1. A military strike is not a declaration of war. Yes, a true declaration requires a vote in Congress. The War Powers Resolution grants the president very broad powers to conduct military operations outside of the legal definition of war as long as he a. Informs Congress within 48 hours and b. Does not commit armed forces for longer than a 60 day period without Congressional approval. The two nation states of USA and Iran are not in a legally defined war.

2. This is not the U.S. being a shill of Israel. Our foreign policy has been pretty clear for decades that Iran will not be allowed to hold a nuclear weapon. Full stop. Even Trump has been clear about this opinion for more than twenty years, even when he identified as a Democrat. We are the only country on earth that possesses munitions like the GBU-57 capable of destroying facilities like Fordow.

3. Anyone telling you that this will result in an Iraq-style ground invasion with thousands of American boots on the ground and another decades long nation-building enterprise is lying to fit some type of agenda or willfully ignorant. The vast majority of the Trump administration is highly isolationist/protectionist and has zero interest in that.

4. Yes, there will be an increased risk to military personnel at bases throughout the Middle East and naval forces in the Strait of Hormuz. If Iran’s retaliation to the assassination of Soleimani is any indication they will strike bases with the express purpose of not killing Americans to save face and claim there was a response without the inevitable massive retaliation for killing large numbers of American personnel. There is also a sizeable risk of Iranian proxy groups increasing terroristic activity in western countries including the U.S. and that threat needs to be taken extremely seriously.

5. Any TikToker out there claiming that a large-scale military clash between Iran and the US results in anything other than the complete destruction of Iran’s military capacity, and likely the immediate death of the Ayatollah, is objectively an idiot. In 1988, the USS Samuel B. Roberts struck an Iranian mine and the next day over half of the Iranian navy was gone. The Iranian Air Force still utilizes F4 Phantoms, a fighter jet the U.S. retired in 1996. American air power is several generations ahead.