There is a very great difference between being brought up with survival knowledge, and being dumped into the situation, even with a reasonable amount of equipment.

Up to about WWII, it was second-nature for most people to "make do". And often it was making do with very little. It was all they knew. Even many young kids of six or seven knew what to do if they got caught outdoors overnight or lost for a few days.

But now? We are so used to so much comparative luxury, I don't know that many people could do it, day after day. And the way kids are brought up now, thinking for themselves hasn't been on the curriculum (from any source, not just schools) for a long time.

If we were hit by another Depression that wasn't even worse than the last one, it would be incredibly bad. And some people think we might be headed for one that would make the last one look like a walk in the park.

Sue