The latest social media phenomenon has sprung up in Instagram feeds and TikTok videos: World War III memes, which arose after escalated tensions between the U.S. and Iran broke out in early January.
Many teens have had at least a chuckle at them. They range from girls making jokes about diligently performing household duties when asked about whether women should be drafted to those with nut allergies boasting their immunity from military service, but the recent surge of the memes begs an important question: Are these jokes really OK in the larger picture? Do they make the situation worse or better?
Most of these memes comment on Gen Z’s unpreparedness for a draft.
For some people, the jokes are unfunny and blatantly insensitive.
“World Wars aren’t something that should be taken easily and made into a joke,” sophomore Koharu Miyoshi said. “Because of the advancement of technology and threats of nuclear war, it’s especially dangerous to make an impending World War something that’s OK to pass off as a joke.”
Miyoshi was so concerned with the memes that she posted a passionate message about them on Instagram. She understands that other people may see the memes as merely a joke, but also points out how scary it can be for young adults who may have to serve in such a war.
“The memes connect back to history,” she said. “It can be funny to see such memes about history repeating, but then people also don’t really think about the fact that it’s really scary that war’s repeating again. So memes probably are like a coping mechanism.”
Others see the jokes are harmless.
“The memes aren’t saying something like, ‘Wouldn’t it be funny if all those Iranian people died,’” senior Kai Zhang said.
Zhang said that if the memes were to offend anyone, it would be the American troops currently in the Middle East. “If an American soldier said, ‘This isn’t funny, I’m in Iran and my life is at risk here,’ then I respect that,” he said. “However, the people complaining about it on Instagram might not have as good an argument.”
Ultimately, the weight of the situation rests on how each individual views the possibility of such a war. Most memes are solely made for entertainment, but the severity of the topics may be overlooked by enthusiastic teenagers trying to have a laugh.