{"id":787,"date":"2026-07-21T21:36:46","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T21:36:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/americanlivingreport.com\/?p=787"},"modified":"2026-07-21T21:36:46","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T21:36:46","slug":"iran-is-showing-it-can-still-fight-back","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/americanlivingreport.com\/?p=787","title":{"rendered":"Iran is showing it can still fight back"},"content":{"rendered":"
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This story appeared in <\/em>Today, Explained, a daily newsletter that helps you understand the most compelling news and stories of the day. Subscribe here<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Read more Trump goes to (trade) war with Canada<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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President Donald Trump seemed visibly irked when asked about his plans for Iran on Tuesday. \u201cYou don\u2019t know anything,\u201d he snapped at a reporter who said Iran showed no signs of de-escalating.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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You have to forgive the man his vexation \u2014 he is in something of a bind. The war in Iran, never popular to begin with, has only become more of a lemon since a tenuous ceasefire collapsed earlier this month. In the two weeks since, Iran has bombarded targets across the Middle East with missiles and drone strikes. The onslaught badly damaged US bases and, just last week, claimed three American soldiers\u2019 lives.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Now Iran and its allies, metaphorically drunk on their recent successes (…alcohol is technically illegal in Iran!), appear to be revving for a new round of attacks. Iran launched strikes on Kuwait, Jordan and Bahrain this week, reportedly targeting both US bases and civilian infrastructure. And on Monday, Yemen\u2019s Iran-backed Houthi militia also threatened to shut down a second key waterway that could further strain global oil markets.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The world is running out of soldiers<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The latest US casualties are a grim reminder that \u2014 for all the talk of drones and precision missiles \u2014 wars are still fought by actual, human people.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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But major military powers are running short on soldiers: The US, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Japan have all recently struggled to recruit troops. And the forces driving that shortage aren\u2019t easily reversed.<\/p>\n

Read more How the culture war came for condoms, PrEP, and HIV testing<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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For starters, falling birth rates and aging populations have left many countries with fewer military-age adults. Being the right age is also only half of the equation. In the US, factors including weight, drug use and physical or mental health conditions would disqualify an estimated three-quarters of young Americans from military service.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Then there\u2019s the military\u2019s image problem: Polls show that young people around the world are becoming less willing to fight for their respective countries. And young Americans, in particular, have more negative views of both the military and the war in Iran than do their parents or grandparents.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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There is another way to fill the ranks, of course\u2026but it isn\u2019t popular. The US ended its draft in 1973, and most Western militaries have similarly transitioned to all-volunteer forces. If the US did ever need to restart its draft, both the politics and the logistics could prove formidable.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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One link for later<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\u27a8 Treat yourself to a froyo.<\/strong> The go-to dessert of my misspent 20s is apparently very much back in vogue. But this time, it\u2019s less about the zany flavors and maximalist toppings and more about wellness buzzwords like\u2026protein and probiotics. Hmmmm.<\/p>\n

Read more The truth about gut health<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Before you go\u2026<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
See More:<\/span><\/p>\n
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  • Today, Explained newsletter<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Iran\u2019s Houthi allies are threatening a Red Sea chokepoint just as it launches a new wave of attacks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":786,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-787","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"\nIran is showing it can still fight back - American Living Report<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/americanlivingreport.com\/?p=787\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Iran is showing it can still fight back - American Living Report\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Iran\u2019s Houthi allies are threatening a Red Sea chokepoint just as it launches a new wave of attacks.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/americanlivingreport.com\/?p=787\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"American Living Report\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-21T21:36:46+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanlivingreport.com\\\/?p=787#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanlivingreport.com\\\/?p=787\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanlivingreport.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7b970e3bc484fe2e26860a4380d70de8\"},\"headline\":\"Iran is showing it can still fight back\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-21T21:36:46+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanlivingreport.com\\\/?p=787\"},\"wordCount\":508,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanlivingreport.com\\\/?p=787#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanlivingreport.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/8b6876467aa7757b4b3b4c2e9912406a.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Interesting\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/americanlivingreport.com\\\/?p=787#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanlivingreport.com\\\/?p=787\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanlivingreport.com\\\/?p=787\",\"name\":\"Iran is showing it can still fight back - 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