Category End of Fossil Fuel

Feb 28 2024

The Second Motive of the Migrant Crisis Revealed


Posted originally on Feb 28, 2024 By Martin Armstrong 

Dollar Beat Up

I revealed how Democrats planned the deliberate invasion of America to secure votes for socialistic policies. There is a second motive that is not largely understood, but it becomes apparent when you follow the money. In particular, follow the dollar.

The dollar’s purchasing power is significantly less than it was a few short years ago. Americans understand that inflation is here to stay, and the cost of living far outpaces what they earn. Americans mourned the American dream and are living in survival mode. During private waves, when the public turns away from the government, people hoard their money. The American people no longer revere the USD and are turning away from all government investments. They see the value of their dollar declining every time they go to the store, pay their mortgage, or glimpse at their bank account. Tax season highlights the misuse of government funds as we are taxed every time we look at the dollar.

You know who does revere the dollar? Everyone living outside of America, especially the people in third world countries who still place the dollar on a pedestal because its purchasing power far outweighs their own national currency. Migrants are not following the American dream to build a new life; rather, they are following the dollar.

Fiat Money

Now, our fiat currency could easily be exposed for being worth less than the public perception. “Money” is merely worth its associated cost. There is not some magical bank within the Federal Reserve where they actually store trillions of dollars to use for every outlandish spending package. The Federal Reserve simply prints more money when demanded by monetary and fiscal policies. The dollar remains the strongest currency in circulation, for now, but it does not have the same strength as it once did.

The migrants provide the illusion of a stronger dollar and a reason to print in continuation to meet the monetary policies enacted under Biden. Furthermore, the migrants are provided with free housing, health care, food, and all other living expenses in order to perpetuate the concept of a strong dollar. If they were permitted to work, they would see that their wages would not take them far. They have no concept of American taxation. Therefore, the second motive behind the deliberate invasion of America lies within the declining purchasing power of the USD.

Jan 26 2024

The Price of Dying – Repeal the Estate Tax


Posted originally on Jan 26, 2024 By Martin Armstrong 

Angel of Death

They say the only two certainties in life are death and taxes. And taxes on dying if you’re in the US. That’s right, the luxury of death comes with a price in the land of the free, thanks to the death tax. Now, Republicans are working to introduce legislation that would allow Americans and their families to rest in peace, free of charge.

The estate tax, or death tax, was first executed in the United States in 1916 as a means to generate revenue for the federal government. Supporters said it would address concerns about wealth concentration. The tax has been rewritten and revised over the years and numerous states have imposed their own death tax on top of the federal one. This is not the same as the inheritance tax that directly taxes beneficiaries.

US Representative Randy Feenstra, a proponent of eliminating this absurd tax, believes this bill is hurting farmers in particular. I have heard similar sentiments from my own clients. People fled England to America to avoid government confiscation of property through taxation. Britain has a 100-year land lease program whereby you pay the actual fair value of the property you bought outright. At the end of that 100 years, the next tenant must pay the full fair value once again. This is how the “rich” made their money keeping it in the family and never selling land. It is also why Britain was forced to hand Hong Kong back to China after 100 years.

People fled to America so they could actually pass property down to their children like the rich landholding families in Britain. This was the origin of the term “freehold” meaning you could actually own the land. America was the land of opportunity because it was all freehold and people could for the first time rise from the poor rank to that of the rich by hard work, saving, and being able to create wealth for the family unit. This was the American Dream.

Failing to repeal this tax will change American agriculture. As Rep. Feenstra notes:

“Over 99% of our country’s two million farms and ranches and over 95% of our nation’s small businesses are owned and operated by individuals and families. In other words, the American economy is powered by mom-and-pop shops on main street and farms that have been in the family for generations. Naturally, the federal government only sees these incredible farms and small businesses as potential sources of tax revenue, completely ignoring the sacrifice and labor that made these enterprises successful.”

This is one of the reasons why the wealthy in China are buying US farmland. The manner in which governments globally treat farmers is shameful. The government is not our next of kin; we do not save our entire lives to provide a better life for government.

Jan 26 2024

Your Morning Coffee is Killing the Planet


Posted originally on Jan 26, 2024 By Martin Armstrong 

The ruling elites want to strip us of all our earthly pleasures. Swiss banker Hubert Keller took to the stage at Davos to declare that coffee consumption is destroying the climate.

“The coffee that we all drink emits between 15 and 20 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of coffee… Every time we drink coffee, we are basically putting CO2 into the atmosphere,” Keller stated. Every time we BREATHE, we are “putting CO2 into the atmosphere” and this argument is completely absurd. Life cannot exist on Earth without CO2. Surely they serve coffee on Mr. Keller’s private jet.

The World Economic Forum first presented this idea in August 2016 in an article entitled, “Your morning coffee is destroying the planet.” The article begins by discussing the waste of plastic cups – OK, fine, pollution is an undeniable problem. This was also when Keurig machines and coffee pods became popular. It seemed reasonable to find a plastic alternative, but that was merely a way to plant the seed.

Fertilizer 2

Coffee agriculture is a significant global market. The annual revenue of the global coffee industry is estimated to exceed $200 billion, with over 25 million farming households depending on coffee bean production for their living. Global coffee production reached 168.5 million 60-kilogram bags as of 2021/2022, and coffee is commercially produced in more than 50 countries. The United States coffee industry alone is responsible for nearly 1.7 million American jobs and $225 billion of national Gross Domestic Product.

The global market for coffee shops is projected to reach $237.6 billion by 2025. Countless mom-and-pop shops are centered around the world’s second most popular beverage. Coffee is ingrained in countless cultures throughout the world. It is part of our daily routine and way of life. Interestingly, his warnings come at a time when Starbucks plans to expand into China and is defying the WEF by siding with Palestine in the Israel-Palestine war.

YOU WILL OWN NOTHING, including coffee production, according to the WEF:

“The opportunity is to basically bring capital for return in this value chain, to basically, you know, acquire or lease these coffee assets, these monoculture coffee assets, to transform them to a regenerative agroforestry model. In doing so we would create effectively a climate and a nature premium which will have a lot of value for these parts of the value chain that can inset these climate and the nature premium and you end up with basically coffee plantations that are fully regenerative, that are sequestering carbon, that are positive for nature, that are restoring biodiversity, and that basically are creating better value for an asset that has a longer life without actually the consumer paying any more for its daily coffee.”

“A regenerative agroforestry model” is precisely what farming has always been and there is no need to redesign the wheel. The WEF introduced the concept in 2019 in an article entitled, “How regenerative agroforestry could solve the climate crisis.” The article claims that farming, the most essential industry for our survival, has contributed to 30% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and is the cause of 80% of deforestation. The latter is the key here – they want the land in order to seize the means of production.

LandUseEfficency.WEF_.Farming

The globalists claim that “land use efficiency” needs to improve by 2030. They have already implemented restrictions on fertilizers and taxed the life out of farmers. I mentioned in another article how US farmers are unable to pass their land onto the next generation due to the death tax. Globalists like Bill Gates have been buying countless acres of farmland to prepare for the next step. Farmers throughout the world are protesting the increased regulations, but you won’t see that covered by the media.

The ultimate plan is to force farmers to lease their land. You will own nothing, but they will own everything.

Jan 9 2024

Big Oil v. California


Posted originally on Jan 8, 2024 By Martin Armstrong 

Crude Oil Production

Chevron can no longer remain profitable in California, where politicians fail to understand the impact of reducing fossil fuels without a reliable alternative. The company has already pulled back hundreds of millions in spending in California over the past two years. Chevron’s Q4 filings proclaimed it needed non-cash write-downs and is expected to report non-cash charges of up to $4 billion.

At this point one must wonder if Governor Gavin Newsom wakes up each day to plot the destruction of California. Newsom announced he was taking over “Big Oil” last year by implementing legislation aimed at price gouging.

Andy Walz, Chevron’s Americas products president, explained that California’s regulations have made it difficult to remain profitable. “A margin penalty can only serve to further deter investment in the state’s energy market,” Walz wrote. “This is not hyperbole, nor is it merely hypothetical. California’s policies have made Chevron’s investments in its home state riskier than investing in other states, with projects being lower in quality and higher in cost.”

Exxon

Adding to the issue, Exxon Mobil also announced it may need to write down its California assets by up to $2.6 billion. “While the Corporation is progressing efforts to enable a restart of production, continuing challenges in the state regulatory environment have impeded progress in restoring operations,” said Exxon. The company expects Q4 earnings to decline by ~$800 million compared to Q3, along with a $1.7 billion drop in industry margins.

Companies as large as Chevron or Exxon Mobil cannot simply pack up and move to another state. Instead, companies are downsizing operations in California and rejecting new projects. California is operating at a $68 billion deficit and cannot afford to lose more business. This will impact gas prices throughout the nation, not just in California. It is not the oil companies but the GOVERNMENT that is price gouging the people through regulations and taxation.

Dec 30 2023

Crazy Stuff – Details of Results from Western Oil Sanctions Against Russia


Posted originally on the CTH on December 29, 2023 | Sundance

I’m very serious when I share with people that almost everything we understand about the geopolitical purposes and impacts of sanctions against Russian economic interests is entirely fabricated.  However, because the scale of the propaganda against us is so effective, breaking the mental/cognitive barrier is almost impossible.

It’s not that situations are ‘shaped’ or information is ‘manipulated,’ like would be the definition of the term “disinformation.”  But rather that the entire construct of reality regarding the economic issues -as presented- is fabricated, created by massive financial interests, and flat-out lies; I mean, total unadulterated nonsense. Complete fiction.

This latest article from Reuters, and the accompanying graphic from ZeroHedge, only scratches the surface.

[SOURCE]

We are through the looking glass folks.  Literally captive to the narrative as sold by our Western government officials, and there’s a huge one-way mirror; beyond which, massive segments of the grey zone are looking at us as if we are pathetic victims of professional propaganda.

The worst part of this dynamic is how the USA looks insufferably weak, because we are playing this massive game of pretending that only the Yellow Zone is participating in.

MOSCOW, Dec 27 (Reuters) – Almost all of Russia’s oil exports this year have been shipped to China and India, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Wednesday, after Moscow responded to Western economic sanctions by quickly rerouting supplies away from Europe.

Russia has successfully circumvented sanctions on its oil and diverted flows from Europe to China and India, which together accounted for around 90% of its crude exports, Novak, who is in charge of the country’s energy sector, told Rossiya-24 state TV.

He said that Russia had already started to forge ties with Asia-Pacific countries before the West introduced sanctions against Moscow following the start of the conflict in Ukraine in February 2022.

“As for those restrictions and embargoes on supplies to Europe and the U.S. that were introduced… this only accelerated the process of reorienting our energy flows,” Novak said.

He said that Europe’s share of Russia’s crude exports has fallen to only about 4-5% from about 40-45%. (read more)

What Alexander Novak shares is stunningly accurate, only the ramifications are far more serious.  This is why I am spending so much time trying to break the issue down into digestible portions.

Russia and Iran are now trading oil (and other things) in their own national currencies, not the petrodollar.  This is the epicenter of a process initially triggered by the BRICS economic alliance and is now taking place in real time while the proverbial WEST pretends it is not happening.   Now, it might sound esoteric, as if it is a disconnected or academic issue that doesn’t have real substantive ramifications, but that’s not true.

I can literally see how global trade is now cost-shifting as the dollar starts to weaken (become less used) as a trade currency.  Again, like our domestic social issues, this de-dollarization process is “slowly at first,” but eventually this is going to come all at once.

As USA consumers we cannot see it yet, because we are inside an economic system that is entirely dependent on dollars.  However, as the devaluation of the dollar continues slowly to happen, outside our dollar-based economy, the cost of goods, products and stuff in the ordinary life of people within the GREY ZONE is now stunningly less.  It’s not showing up in currency markets (dollar -vs- fill_in_blank), because the currency trades are not part of the trade/cost dynamic outside the YELLOW ZONE.

Go into the grey zone and compare the price of “product X” to what you would pay in the United States for “product X”, and you will see the difference in the end consumer price is starting to widen faster.   Identical goods in the USA cost much more than goods outside the “west.”

As the de-dollarization continues (mostly driven by the lessening of oil sold using the petrodollar), the disparity in price will get even more stark.   As a result of this dynamic, wages in the USA (or the “west”) must necessarily rise faster; however, that’s only part of the issue.

If I took $200 into a Russian supermarket, buying only consumable food products, I would end up with about 3 shopping carts full of food.  Take that same $200 into the average USA supermarket and you get one shopping cart or less.  This is the scale of what is likely to happen in durable goods.  The “cleaving” is underway.

Let me say that again, the “cleaving” of dollar-based price/value is underway.

Starbucks pulled out of Russia.  The building still exists, the furniture still there, the equipment still there, just a different name, “Star Coffee” lolol.   Starbucks is roughly $6 for whatever, the StarCoffee is $1.  Same stuff.   A cab/uber ride in USA might be $25, or in EU might be €30, but outside the yellow zone around $6 to $10/max.  It’s getting crazy how big the difference is.

Now, the price disparity is not in everything, only in the products that do not originate from inside the yellow zone.  The increased price of the yellow zone goods transfers into the grey zone when the product is moved.  However, if the yellow zone and grey zone both produce an identical product (or service), that’s when you see the massive difference in price.  [And no, this is not a lower cost labor issue]

Conversely, prices of goods originating from the grey zone shipped to the yellow zone will be far less than the comparable product created from within the yellow zone.

What is going to happen?

I suspect we are going to import even more products from the grey zone at a greater rate, because there’s a lower origination price and greater opportunity for profit.  Wait and see.

China needs energy, Russia needs computer chips and tech.  They are trading thusly.  Now watch… if the sanctions are ever lifted, we will start importing Russian made electronic goods, because less expensive.  It’s nuts.

Remember, our ‘western’ government is doing this to us on purpose.

Dec 19 2023

Now That Blackrock-Biden White House Have Forced EV Mandates, China Moves Massive Investment into Mexico to Make EV’s for U.S Market


Posted originally on the CTH on December 18, 2023 | Sundance 

The headline is the non-pretending reality.  Now that Joe Biden has designated EPA mandates for U.S. automobiles that include having at least 50% of all new vehicle sales be electric by 2030 {LINK}, three major Chinese EV manufacturers are reportedly building manufacturing facilities in Mexico.

Blackrock investments steer WH policy {Go Deep}. Blackrock investments are heavy in China and EV production.  Blackrock returns on their investments would be substantial with Chinese EV production in Mexico.  Quite a coincidence.

BUSINESS INSIDER – Three major Chinese EV companies are planning to build new factories in Mexico, sparking concern among US officials, according to a new report.

MG, BYD, and Chery are all looking at sites to build new factories in the country, according to unnamed sources cited by The Financial Times, and this investment is causing angst in Washington as it seeks to keep China out of the US electric car market.

US officials have reportedly raised concerns with their Mexican counterparts over Chinese investment, with the new sites potentially including a new $1.5 billion to $2 billion MG electric car factory and a factory investment worth hundreds of millions of dollars from Warren Buffett-backed Tesla rival BYD.

China’s electric vehicle market is booming, and local manufacturers are increasingly looking to expand overseas amid cutthroat competition for customers back home.

China also dominates the global electric vehicle battery supply chain, allowing it to produce far cheaper EVs than many of its US rivals.

The US has attempted to protect the US market by unveiling new rules earlier this month to make it more difficult for EVs made with Chinese parts to qualify for tax breaks.

But the possible expansion of Chinese automakers into Mexico, which recently replaced China as the US’ biggest trading partner, will fuel fears that it could serve as a backdoor. (read more)

Blackrock invests in China and EV’s.  Biden policy supports China and EV’s.

Blackrock invests in Ukraine.  Biden policy supports Ukraine reconstruction.

Biden puts Blackrock Investment Institute Chairman Tom Donilon in charge of U.S-China policy.

It’s almost as if….

Dec 10 2023

This is Why the 2024 Election Will Never Be Accepted


Posted originally on Dec 10, 2023 By Martin Armstrong

2023_12_09_11_20_47_Decision_to_put_only_Biden_s_name_on_the_FL_ballot_in_March_2024_spawned_a_feder

The Democrats have not only schemed to try to prevent Trump from being on any ballot, but they have effectively forced RFK out of the Democratic Party. They have even been trying to block any other Democrat from being on any ballot. This is in-you-face anti-Democracy. The Neocons have the Democrats as their puppet, the same as the silver miners who held the grip on the Democrats that led our nation into bankruptcy by 1896, known as the Silver Democrats.

Bryan CrossOfGold

The United States is now in the Decline & Fall phase. The 2024 election will be the turning point, and we are going to witness the rise of civil unrest, for NOBODY will now believe in winning. The Democrats are keeping the border open, handing illegal aliens over $2,000 per month and sneaking them voter registrations. They intend to slip an executive order under Biden’s nose who will sign whatever is there this time granting all the millions of illegal aliens citizenship so they can keep the Democrats in power while they then extract taxes from the rest of the people who work to keep fund the corruption in Ukraine and the majority of these illegal aliens who have no skills to even work.

2009 Ginsberg Eugenics

This is not about what is good for the people or the country – this is about retaining power. Even the support for the climate crazies in Germany has collapsed to just 7% for the Green Party. This entire climate change agenda is really about reducing the population. They are deliberately attacking farmers to reduce the food supply. In Canada, their euthanasia program has been expanding rapidly as they are now killing hundreds per week, and this is now approaching 5%  of all deaths – up 31.2% over 2021. This is the WEF agenda and Gates’ father’s entire scheme behind Planned Parenthood. Even Justice Ginsberg said that Row v Wade had nothing to do with women’s rights – it was about eugenics.

NOTHING IS EVER WHAT IT SEEMS!

We are viewed as the stupid vermin and they have decided there are too many of us and we should not even have a right to vote.

Schwab WEF End of Democracy
Dec 8 2023

Canada Limiting Oil and Gas Industry Emission


Posted originally on Dec 8, 2023 By Martin Armstrong 

Crude Oil Production

Canada has announced a plan to use a cap-and-trade system to impose greenhouse gas emission limits on its oil and gas industry. Under the “draft framework,” Canada will issue emissions allowances to oil and gas producers, which will be capped at levels between 35% and 38% below 2019 levels, beginning in 2030. The government will then continue to lower allowances in stages until the industry reaches net zero by 2050.

Ottawa plans to finish drafting regulations by next year, with a final plan in place by 2026. Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault called the plan “ambitious” but “practical.” “It considers the global demand for oil and gas, and the importance of the sector in Canada’s economy, and sets a limit that is strict, but achievable,” Guilbeault said. This is all part of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s plan for Canada to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, which he announced during his election in 2021.

Critics state that the timeframe is simply not achievable for the world’s fourth-largest oil producer and fifth-largest natural gas producer. Federal Energy Minister Jonathan Wilkinson admitted that the government is uncertain how they will implement these measures without shutting down production entirely. A failed execution “would essentially make us poorer in Canada and make our American friends or folks in Saudi Arabia or elsewhere richer,” he stated.

Globalists everywhere are making lofty pledges on the heels of the COP28 summit. The only rush comes when attempting to meet these arbitrary targets. The only reason governments are targeting 2030 and 2050 is because they were directed to do so by Klaus Schwab and the globalists at the World Economic Forum. It will be interesting to see the final plans for this idea that sacrifices Canada’s economic health for the climate change psyops.

Oct 16 2023

History Repeating All Over Again


Armstrong Economics Blog/Europe’s Economic History Re-Posted Oct 12, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

The 1848 Berlin Revolution

QUESTION: You have mentioned that the 1848 Communist Revolution that swept all of Europe was a political contagion. Am I correct in assuming this is what you suggest comes post 2024 going in 2032?

Paul

The French 1848 Revolution

ANSWER: Yes. We all have heard of the 1846 -1852 Great Hunger/Great Irish Potato Famine. This Great Hunger was not confined to Ireland. It hit all of Europe, and this was a significant influence in promoting the Communist Revolution of 1848 that swept Europe. The 1848 Revolutions in Europe were unique, for they were a contagion. Neither the French Revolution of 1789, the July Revolution of 1830, the Paris Commune Uprising of 1870, nor the Russian Revolutions of 1905 and 1917 sparked a comparable transcontinental cascade as that of 1848 that swept Europe, including Romania. What is often overlooked is that this came on the heels of a major famine that killed millions- the Great Hunger.

The parallel with prosecuting Trump also existed, where they executed a German politician for supporting the 1848 Revolution. Robert Blum (1807–1848) was a German democratic politician, a publisher, and a revolutionary spirit. He was also a member of the National Assembly of 1848. He fought for a unified Germany and opposed what was happening then, the same thing unfolding today. He argued that no people should rule over another – that is, Prussia. Back then, Prussia was protestant, and they sought to overrule the Catholics of Bavaria. Today, the LEFT assumes seizing power, and they get to force their agenda upon everyone else. That is neither how Democracy works, and it is specific against the very purpose of civilization, where everyone benefits by joining together.

Hence, Blum was also an opponent of the Prussian occupation of Poland.  Blum also was against the rise of this idea of an ancient Arian race, and as such, he opposed the movement toward antisemitism. He supported the Southern German Catholic sect of Bavaria. He even argued for the equality of the sexes, which was ahead of his time.

Blum claimed immunity as a member of the National Assembly who, under the law, could not be prosecuted for his political position. That principle should have applied to Trump on January 6th. They were clever and had him arrested during a stay in Vienna, Austria, and this being a German politician was not recognized as an immunity outside of Germany. They naturally found him guilty and ordered his execution for his role in the Revolutions of 1848 in the German states.

The ex-CIA Chief has called for the execution of Donald Trump. That would save the CIA from having to assassinate Trump if he wins the election and blame some Mexicans this time. Trump now knows the game. There is no way the Neocons, FBI, CIA, and institutionalized career politicians, including the uni-party RINOS, will ever follow any order of Trump. They are blocking even RFK because he is also an outsider. How dare these people think they can be voted in to change government?

This is this coalition of anti-American actors’ last stand, and they are not about to lose control in 2024. We are staring into the eyes of some of the most evil people on the face of the Earth. They can taste power and lick their lips over the thought of defeating Russia, China, North Korea, Iran, Syria, and the Palestinians. From their perspective, this is their time.

Welcome to how history repeats and the Revolutionary Cycle as we move into 2032.

This Will Be A Global Contagion as was 1848

Sep 13 2023

What is Biden Doing in Alaska?


Armstrong Economics Blog/Politics Re-Posted Sep 13, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

For the first time in US history, the president did not visit a 9/11 memorial on the day of the worst terrorist attack on US soil. Instead, the president traveled to Alaska to commit his own attack against the American people. Peter Doocy said that he received a response similar to “Well, presidents stopped visiting Hawaii 22 years after Pearl Harbor,” or in other words, the president does not feel obligated to honor the victims of the attack since it’s in the past. He claimed he was at ground zero on the very day of the attack, but records show that he clearly was not in New York. So why did Biden travel to Alaska? Biden announced he was canceling all drilling on Federal land in Alaska and termination existing permits. In unison, he prohibited liquid gas from being transported via train. This will put a strain on the supply chain as trucking is the only viable transportation method now.

Demand will outweigh supply. Joe Biden drained America’s oil reserves when prices where skyrocketing and he was coming under pressure. The stockpile is at the lowest level since the 1980s, and since we cannot drill our own gas, we are at the mercy of our suppliers who continue to raise the price. Energy had never been an issue prior to Biden taking office and eliminating America’s energy independence.

Is it even legal for the Biden Administration to cancel previously issues leases? Alaskan Governor Mike Dunleavy believes that Biden is bypassing the law and intends to sue his administration. Dunleavy noted that while the Secretary of the Department may cancel oil and gas leases issued in violation, no such violation exists. “The leases AIDEA hold in ANWR were legally issued in a sale mandated by Congress. It’s clear that President Biden needs a refresher on the Constitution’s separation of powers doctrine. Federal agencies don’t get to rewrite laws, and that is exactly what the Department of the Interior is trying to do here,” said Governor Mike Dunleavy. “We will fight for Alaska’s right to develop its own resources and will be turning to the courts to correct the Biden Administration’s wrong.”

Democrats are upset at the ruling as it takes away jobs from native Alaskans. U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, a Democrat, said that she will continue fighting the lease cancelations. “This makes absolutely no sense from any perspective unless your goal is to drive up the cost of oil and gas so much that it makes certain renewables cheaper,” Dunleavy told Fox News.

Biden has just ensured rising energy costs for all Americans. This is so important to Biden and his handlers that they insisted on spending a national day of mourning in Alaska to reframe climate change as the larger threat to this nation. What does one do when the people in charge are deliberately ruining the nation? They can only blame Russia and climate change for so long until the masses wake up.