An interpretation I've always had, but never really expressed was that the Rumbling was the only choice for survival only because Eren ensured it would be the only choice.
People always argue that without the Rumbling, the Eldians would have definitely gotten wiped out. That is likely true, but only in the timeline we got. If Eren was actively ensuring that conflict would force the Rumbling, then he could've just as easily created conditions most suitable for peace negotiations. But he didn't because it was his innate desire to see the Rumbling come to fruition.
I felt that this makes sense with the theme of the story. AOT is pretty clear that conflict is inevitable because humans create historical conditions that lead to fear, oppression, trauma, etc., that fuels it further. It is then impossible for killing to lead to peace, because it will only sow further seeds of discontent and fear that will fester. We see this in the ending where while peace was maintained for a period, war eventually resumed and the Eldians wiped out. Given the option to drop the knife or wield the knife, he chose to wield it, so nothing changes in the end.
While the threat against Paradis was imminent, Armin was attempting to approach it through diplomacy because he saw that only through it can stability last. It was unlikely, but possible. It would be hard, because breaking a cycle of hatred is inherently difficult. Eren, instead of creating conditions conducive to Armin's attempts to delay conflict and buy time for diplomacy, instead ensures that peace becomes impossible. There was no world where Eldians would survive after his actions because the peace Eren bought, was a hollow one. The initial apprehension of Eldians based on history, had been replaced with a real one coated in bloodshed and loss.
I feel there is a lot to be said about Eren's character, but to avoid rambling, I've only evaluated him based on his outward actions. But I think this is also the reason why he calls himself an idiot because among all of the possibilities, the only path he saw was further violence as a product of violence. Once again, reinforcing the idea of the cycle of conflict.