Trump's Plan To Escort Ships Through Strait Of Hormuz Would Put U.S. Navy Warships In The Crosshairs

But the war's already started, what does Iran have to lose?

It works when it's in range. And it'll only occasionally spray allied ships because the Phalanx doesn't check whats behind the target.

An American destroyer has a large number of area defence interceptor missiles, not just the CIWS. The question is, will the interceptors be completely effective if Iran is able to launch a saturation attack on them, and will they have enough interceptors left by the time they get out of the shooting gallery. Personally, I think even they aren't stupid enough to try it, but I hope I'm proven wrong.

Phalanx is self defense only. The weapons used to protect nearby ships are ESSM and SM-2 missiles. Which should to work fine to intercept cheap drone, artillery and ballistic missiles. (Tho very expressive to intercept artillery with missiles)

The navy has used those systems recently to defend ships during the Houti crisis in the red sea.

That strategy failed miserably against the Houthis.

Well see there is the whole issue of Missile Trucks.

Where are they? How many are there? Where are they headed? Which ones are decoys? Where will they deploy to fire?

With Iran already being economically isolated for years before this war, there's not enough new risk of further economic damage to cause a market crash.

Well you see that's where Trump's level of genius shines. Don't shoot the archers, shoot the arrows (it looks way cooler and people think you're so badass).

Sure you might lose a naval vessel or twelve when US capacity to build more ships is really low, but that's a sacrifice this level of genius is willing to make (totally unawares, probably).

Not with Patel and Kegsbreath chugging it.

All of it in a matter of a week or two, easily.

There is nothing to stop this from escalating, I don't think abrupt, nonsensical nuclear war is off the table for the US or Israel and I don't think the centrists of the world are ready for that (which terrifyingly, is really one of the few "gotchas" Trump and Netanyahu have left to flip the script, all the other non-existent international norms people believed in are already destroyed, nuclear weapons are the only one left.).

We have never been closer to nuclear war in my lifetime and it is almost entirely the fault of the US and Israel.

Let me ask you a question, if every accusation is an admission, what is Trump loudly admitting he is about to do?

This conflict leads directly to the use of "tactical" nuclear weapons because this is the first bullshit war in a long time in US history where the existentiality necessity of using nuclear weapons can be invoked without the immediate fear of nuclear retaliation as a consequence, at least according to how the leadership of the US and Israel see it.

There are not many off ramps left here...

Iran could easily end up doing that if things keep escalating, but I think what the US and Israel do will be far more catastrophic for everybody.