> Also... a million fanatics ready to die for the regime? Maybe. Maybe some of them value their lives The Basij militia has more than a million men in it alone

> Also... a million fanatics ready to die for the regime? Maybe. Maybe some of them value their lives The Basij militia has more than a million men in it alone (officially it has 20+ million but more neutral sources pin the number around a million), and this is the organisation that was doing unarmed human wave attacks against Iraq to defend the Iranian revolution. It's also a theocracy with a religion that has martyrdom as a thing. If anything, a million fanatics ready to die for the regime is probably an understatement. > We've dealt with fanatics multiple times whether that's Japanese willing to die for the emperor or Muslim extremists throughout the Middle East trying to get their 72 virgins. Nobody in the US is scared of dealing with fanatics And Japan surrendered because the Emperor said so. If Operation Downfall had to be done instead, you'd have millions of American and Allied casualties. If you're not scared of this, you aren't paying attention. > Iran is more mountainous and the terrain is a challenge but the major population centers aren't hidden in bunkers in the hills Bombing population centres has never resulted in military victory. It has occasionally, alongside military reversals, contributed to political leaders deciding they can't continue (Hirohito, Milosevic), but it would be delusional to hope that Iran's Supreme Leader, sone of the previous one who got bombed out of existence, and again, is a religious leader part of a religion with martyrdom, would be impressed by the US bombing "his" people.