A few miles from my apartment is the Governor's mansion, and next to it is the old Call family home, named for Richard Keith Call. A former governor, Call opposed secession.
When the legislature voted for secession, a crowd marched from the capitol building -- which still stands -- to Call's house and jeered and catcalled for him to come out and meet them. Call appeared on the front porch and, when the crowd quieted, said, "Gentlemen, I have only one thing to say. You have opened wide the gates of Hell."
And so they had. In the excitement of the moment, many Southerners ginned themselves up to believe that secession would be painless, or nearly so, or that the North would quickly lose to the South if war followed. Few were like Richard Keith Call and anticipated the terrible war that followed and utterly destroyed the Old South that they loved.
I guess they underestimated the fascist intent of LongColon and Yankee greed.