I don't think he has ever completely reallized how big of an impact the Star Wars OT has had on the world. After all he has always considered it strange that people actually liked them in the first place. Apparently, he doesn't care about that particular impact that will have on history. He cares about what he intended people to see. And in a way, he has that right, since he's the one who created and owns them. To Lucas, I don't think he's interested in the impact his original films left. I do, however, belive he's interested in showing future generations what he intended, and not a rough draft of what he intended. He considers that his legacy, not his "rough draft films." I suppose if he doesn't release to OOT, then historians will have to look at a list of changes he made in order to reallize what the films originally were.