I know it might not necessarily apply here, but don't the authoritarian regimes ever get tired of ALWAYS being the ones to directly threaten violence first? When has that ever succeeded?

No doubt we enjoy antagonizing them, but the US is never the first person in the conversation threatening missile strikes and nuclear detonations. Mostly, I assume, because we don't really need to. Still, though. Do they really not realize what reactionary and fragile idiots they look like when they try for an intimidation tactic that literally never works?