Why do people dwell on the past so much ?

Answer 1

We are supposed to LEARN from our past so we don't repeat the same mistakes. Lately it seems it's used as an excuse to keep the flames burning. Problem is....people TODAY have NOTHING to do or any responsibility for the PAST mistakes of others. Maybe we didn't "get it" and are doomed to "repeat it". It sucked the first time around and frankly......I'm tired of paying for something I had no part in. Where is the statute of limitations on this non
sense and personal responsibility kick in?

Answer 2

America is characterized by our ability and tendencies to look forward...to dream, and not dwell on the past. You don't have to look to far to see what dwelling on thousand year old religious differences will get you.
But looking back can tell us a lot about our present too. Ever heard the statement "the more things change, the more they stay the same" if you read literature from the 1600 and 1700s, you will be suprised to learn that they held the same ideals and had the same emotions and concerns as we do today. So I say, don't dwell on the past, use it as a tool of understanding.

Peace

Answer 3

I dwell on the past because I'm old enough to remember when strangers said "good morning" and "hello". I remember safe cities,safe schools,a safe world!!! Thanks to immigration we live in a world with home security,car alarms,guns in schools,unsafe streets etc etc. The governments of the west should be sued for intentionally destroying our safe world! I dwell like alot of people do!

Answer 4

It sure does seem many do dwell on 300 or 400 years ago- as if it was just yesterday.

Answer 5

Well there was just a study done that says adrenaline helps you remember. I remember very clearly the day my son died, sadly even more than the precious moments of our time together.

Also we regret, we wonder if we could have done things differently, a way of punishing ourselves with guilt.

also we tend to keep looking at the past to figure out where we went wrong, to avoid making the same mistakes.

Answer 6

Because the past and the future exsist ONLY now, so people try to live in the so called past so that thier so called future is already written and easy to deal with.

Why do you think people drink?

Answer 7

It shows a pattern for current activity. Hopefully we learn from the past.

Unfortunately the US government doesn't learn. Amnesty was a disaster in 1986 and it will be a disaster in 2007. Can't they learn from their mistakes?

Answer 8

We try to learn from the mistakes of the past, so that we don't repeat them in the future.

Answer 9

hey hun
i think people dwell on the past because its stiched into them. like me. im dwelling on this guy. it sounds stupid. but see.....i was like in love with him. like many people with something in their past. and its hard to get over with something your in love with. weather it goes over time, like...grandma, or it dissapears, like the guy you love with cancer. one minute its there and the next...in a grave. person or object. some people dont know how to get over it. and its hard. its a puzzle waiting to be solved. but when you put it aside for other things in your life you never get over it. the puzzle sits. it can be very tramatizing. some people get over it easier then others and some go into depression. others dont have time to solve the puzzle and it sits in the back of there mind. waiting. me, i try to cope. but sometimes its too painfull to think about the person or thing youve lost. i still cry to this day everynight. i try with everything in my body and mind not to, but tears overcome me. every night i cry myself to sleep but also, everynight, the puzzle is getting more and more done. because im coping. not dwelling. -morden

Answer 10

The past is a comfort zone. They already know what happened in the past, but the future is uncertain.