This makes nostalgia dangerous. Protesters do not necessarily expect to put back the clock—they may just be seeking to slow it down. And yet such sclerosis may only aggravate the sense of decline. In addition, the self-esteem that nostalgists crave often seems to feed xenophobia. India’s Hindu-nationalist revival has seen an increase in reported hate crimes towards Muslims. In the West people on the right remember a whiter past, with fewer cultures, even as the hard left condemns the machinations of global business. It is no accident that there has been a resurgence of anti-Semitism, not least in Britain’s Labour Party under the backward-looking Jeremy Corbyn.
而折中方案会使得怀旧情绪变得危险。反对者并不一定期望时光倒流——而仅是希望其放慢速度。然而这种僵化可能只是会放慢衰退速度。此外，怀旧者常常渴望的自尊似乎助长了仇外情绪。据报道，在印度，印度教民族主义复兴导致增加了针对穆斯林的仇恨犯罪。在西方，右翼人士仍在回忆白人更多、文化更少的过去，而与此同时，强硬左派正巧在强烈谴责全球商业的阴谋诡计。反犹太主义的复兴并非偶然，尤其是在英国工党领导人杰里米·科尔宾的保守领导下。
Because of the taint of xenophobia, progressives are quick to treat all nostalgia as prejudice, leading them to dismiss the fears of whole sections of society. That sweeping judgment is one more reason why populists have been able to exploit nostalgia so successfully.
由于排外情绪影响，进步派很快对所有的怀旧情绪产生偏见，这会引导他们消除社会各阶层的恐惧。民粹主义者能够如此成功地利用怀旧情绪，这种全面判断是另一个原因。
They are having it too easy. Nostalgia can be harnessed for good. At the start of the 20th century, Europe and America were nostalgic, too, buffeted by a similar confluence of technological, geopolitical and cultural change. Then a period of conflict and social upheaval led to universal suffrage and education for all. Today’s politicians can learn from that time. They must avoid war, obviously, by preserving and enhancing the institutions that enable countries to work together. But they should also find bold ways to deal with insecurity and alienation. That will involve the state working harder for the citizen by making education available throughout people’s lives, by overhauling taxation, devolving power to cities and regions, averting climate catastrophe, and wise management of immigration.
民粹主义者利用怀旧情绪太容易了。怀旧情绪可以被永久利用。20世纪初，欧洲和美国也很怀旧，且伴有类似的技术、地缘政治和文化变革的冲击。随后，一段冲突和社会动荡时期带来了普选和全民教育。今天的政客们可以从那段时期吸取教训。显而易见，政客们一定要避免战争，这就需要维护和加强能使各国合作的机构。但也应该大胆寻找处理不安全感和疏离感的方式。这就涉及到国家要致力于给公民提供终身教育、改革税收、下放权力至城市和地区、避免气候灾难、明智管理移民。
The nostalgists are on to something. When one way of running the world seems to be exhausted, but the next has yet to come into being, the past holds important lessons. When nothing seems to make sense, history becomes the supreme discipline. Knowing who you are and where you came from matters.
怀旧主义者有其道理。当管理世界的一种方式似乎消耗殆尽，下一个似乎还未形成时，我们可以从历史汲取重要经验。当一切似乎毫无意义时，历史成为最高教条。知道你是谁、你从哪里来很重要。
The best way to harness the past demolishes prejudice and opens horizons. A proper sense of history helps you grasp that progress depends on facing up to hard choices. Sometimes it can inspire, too. Fifty years ago Apollo 8 took off from Cape Canaveral in Florida. On December 24th it captured a photograph of Earth, a half-shrouded blue-white planet, seemingly united.
好好利用过去来破除偏见、开拓视野。对历史正确认识有助于理解进步取决于面对艰难选择这个道理。有时也能激发灵感。50年前，阿波罗8号从佛罗里达州卡纳维拉尔角起飞。12月24日，它拍下了一幅地球照片：一颗半透明的蓝白色行星，俨然浑然一体。
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