I think Stroud can take some credit. One of the "others" I find dangerous and hope he isn't used as a model.

I do think by far the greatest impacts on the personal psyche of individuals in the USA has been sheer catastrophic mishandling of the big natural disasters, 911, and the continued mishandling of smaller mishaps. People had an unsafe reliance on govt and politicians. The folly is that it all relies on political appointees (of ALL flavors) and not actual accomplishment. All that said, like any vocation, the events above and the response to them showed that in the US we are blessed with a LOT of people at the top of their game who are selfless, devoted, and have the expertise to act. These pople often operate efficiently and perform beautifully in spite of dipstick managers/politicians/appointees and do so without budget, equipment, or even aid. I'm always in awe of them and it always makes me think, "Wow. I wonder what they could do with some actual help from above?". Anyway, here are e-beers to all of them/you.

Thankfully, discussions about necessity and preparedness are taking place at all levels of society these days. It's unfortunate that as humans we can't look ahead to prevent some of these issues and that we have to rely on pain in order to learn.