For most of history, the modus operandi of governments has been to continue growing in power until they're so big they can't do anything but fail, then have a b

For most of history, the modus operandi of governments has been to continue growing in power until they're so big they can't do anything but fail, then have a bloody revolution where the new radicals throw out everything the old guard did - even the parts that worked - and start from scratch. To be fair, a lot of pre-democratic government structures weren't that bad at handling power transition. Either there was a generally-acknowledged official line of succession, or some kind of council of noblemen who were officially responsible for choosing the king's successor, or some combination of the two. Of course, kings back then also had more practical (if not constitutional) limitations on their power than Saddam had on his power.