Soft 18 confusion

so everybody keeps saying soft 18 is a dealer trap but i don’t really get why people assume it’s some kind of easy call to always double or always hit. it’s like everyone ignores the actual cards the dealer shows. if you’re sitting there with ace-7 and they’re up against a 9 or 10, most will just stand and chalk it up to “not risking the bust,” which feels lazy. you’ve got an ace, you’re protected, what’s the point in letting the dealer run you over?

i see a lot of guides saying you “always” do this or “never” do that, but none of them seem to line up with the way things play out in practice. just seems like way more context to it. maybe i’m missing something obvious but the absolutism drives me nuts.