[dangus]

I don’t in any way see how Burke was saying that the spirit of liberty was strongest in the old South; he’s saying that the slave-owners value their liberty the most. But slave-owners were a terribly small minority.

[xp38]

It seems to me that those who have freedom and blessings often take them for granted and those who were once enslaved but now freed (I.e. those who have escaped communist countries) cherish them far more. It’s not a hard and fast rule as I’m sure there are many counter examples but it can be noted.

[Svartalfiar]

I don’t in any way see how Burke was saying that the spirit of liberty was strongest in the old South; he’s saying that the slave-owners value their liberty the most. But slave-owners were a terribly small minority.

Not quite. He's saying that every member of a society with slavery will value their freedom more. Not just the slave owners.