Ruling classes pacify the masses by declaring the promised future already achieved.

Evidence

For political reasons the masses have been told: ‘What you were awaiting, and what was promised you by charlatans (i.e. the socialists and communists) already exists’, i.e. the regulated society, economic equality, etc. — Antonio Gramsci, Selections from the Prison Notebooks, 2340

Categorization

• XREF: Precursor to ‘common sense’ and hegemony machinery: ideology telling subjects their emancipation has arrived — parallels post-9/11 claims that Muslims were already free and equal.
• SEED: Angle: ‘The regime that says utopia is already here’ — how states across history answer grievance by declaring the demand fulfilled.