I've talked to several Iranians, they pretty much said that that's what happened to Iran. People tore it down because they were unhappy with their current government, but they didn't have a replacement. Authoritarians with false promises filled the void and created Iran as we know it today.
Sounds like the way things are going to me and it's what a lot of people are rooting for. I think America did a really good job of compartmentalizing the rich and the poor so the rich are completely unaware of what everyone else is dealing with.