Interesting post.

As well stated already, trust is the big issue in a SHTF scenario. People are already hyper-protective of their property. Add an apocolyptic event and see the reaction when you accuse your neighbor of taking your hammer.

What I find most interesting is the perception of value. Who is a freeloader and who is not? I notice that many "tactical experts" are quick to devalue anyone who does not have military experience and tactical training. Fact is, some extremely intelligent people simply have not had that opportunity.

How many soldiers know how to make your gas generator run off wood chips? And without any plans on how to do it? I know I can and I have done it before. Value is relative.

I guess my point is any SHTF scenario will be a very interesting exercise in sociology. Most people overvalue themselves and their skills and devalue other people. The less you know someone, the less value they have. Strangers hold abolutely no value until they can offer some special reason to have value.

Imagine this. Two complete strangers walk up to your encampment basically empty handed. One says he is a doctor and the other says he is a lawyer. Chances are you will let the doctor in and turn the lawyer away. Why? Perceived value. For all you know the doctor doesn't have a license and just escaped from a minimum-security facility where he was serving time for malpractice, but the word doctor gives him instant value. On the other hand the word lawyer has a strong negative value, even though the lawyer might have grown up on a farm and have extensive practical skills that you need. He might even have military experience or other practical knowledge.

Again my point is value is relative. And true value is rarely what we perceive.

Read "The Unthinkable" by Amanda Ripley. An interesting non-fiction discussion of who actually survives disasters and why. It's rarely the big strong macho guy who claims superiority. It's far more often the quiet school teacher or the garbage truck driver who surprise you.