"...I don't want to make this political but if the real issue is our tax dollars, I would much rather spend my money rescuing a group of climbers trapped in a white out (whether or not they had MLU's), than on the food stamps the gentleman ahead of me at Von's today used to pay for his Doritos and Pepsi before getting into his new Escalade (don't get me started)..."

You are so right about that. But, if having the climbers carry a $5 item will possibly save a bunch of tax dollars, maybe to be spent buying better equipment for the SAR guys, why not???