People hold onto the past when they are unhappy with their lot in the present. I am familiar with the rural South, and it is difficult to imagine that as my existence, day after day until I die. Of course, there are many situations in which people are dissatisfied with their lot. Most people seem to have that mindset, which is fertile ground for clinging to past glories, real or imagined, when one’s ancestors seemed to have the upper hand. That is at the heart of the MAGA movement and other nationalistic movements.