>The American military couldn't handle rice farmers or goat herders

Eh, they killed them by the hundreds of thousands, and were not even trying to genocide them. If the current regime decided to actually just exterminate people our level of technology would make what the Nazis did look like babies playtime.

>The question is how many people will side with them vs reality

At least 40% of the population given what we've seen so far.

We'll find out I suppose, the Iranian government is currently seeking the answer to that question experimentally.